Sustainability Indicators for Swaziland

indicators | social | economic | natural resources | institutional

NATURAL RESOURCE ASPECTS OF SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT IN SWAZILAND

WASTE AND HAZARDOUS MATERIALS

Background

In 1992 the Swaziland Environment Authority (SEA) under the Ministry of Tourism, Environment and Communications (MTEC) was established and authorised, by Act No. 15 of 1992. The SEA shall, according to the act, prepare environmental audit reports, create partnerships and act as a co-operative body on environmental issues.

Through a consultative and participatory process the National Development Strategy (NDS) "A Twenty-five year Vision" was developed (September 1997) by the Ministry of Economic Planning and Development. The NDS covers the period 1997-2022. This long-term development strategy is followed up every three years by more detailed planning. The latest development plan covers the period 1997/98-1999/00.

Based on the guiding principles in the National Development Strategy (NDS), the Swaziland Environmental Action Plan (SEAP) was developed during 1997 and published in August 1997 by Swaziland Environment Authority (SEA). The SEA co-ordinated the development of the SEAP using a consultative and participatory process involving a wide range of stakeholders.

The SEAP clearly identified the need for development of a National Solid Waste Management Strategy (NSWMS). The development and implementation of a waste management strategy is, in other words, one of the priority areas within the environmental field, the coming years. The point of departure for development of the NSWMS is the guiding principles laid down in the SEAP.

A draft National Environmental Policy (NEP) was drawn up in January 1999. This policy still needs Cabinet approval.

Furthermore an Environmental Management Bill (EMB) has been drafted. This bill is waiting for political decision. When the EMB is passed the Environmental Management Act (EMA) will be the enabling legislation for the development and implementation of the National Solid Waste Management Strategy.

The Swaziland Waste Regulations 2000 (No.31 of 2000) were developed during 1998/99, and are very important for future waste management. The waste regulations were published in the Gazette of 21 April 2000 and are now in force.

During 1999 a project was launched by the Danish Co-operation for Environment and Development (DANCED) in close co-operation with the SEA. The project was established in order to assist Swaziland with the development and implementation of its National Solid Waste Management Strategy (NWSMS). The project eventually started on 1 April 2000 with financial support from DANCED and the Danish consultant RAMBØLL.

The National Solid Waste Management Strategy (NSWMS)

The National Solid Waste Management Strategy for Swaziland represents a long term plan (up to 2012) for addressing key issues, needs and problems experienced with waste management in Swaziland. The strategy attempts to give effect to the National Environmental Policy, National Environmental Management Bill and the Waste Regulations 2000. The focus of the strategy is to move towards a holistic approach in waste management, in line with internationally accepted principles but taking into account the specific context of Swaziland regarding the institutional and legal framework as well as geographical and resource constraints. Integrated waste management thus represents a move away from waste management through impact management and remediation to a proactive management system which focus on waste prevention and minimisation.

The strategic approach applied for the development of the strategy is based on the international hierarchy approach which includes Waste Prevention, Recycling, Collection and Transport, Treatment and Disposal. The waste hierarchy put the focus on prevention (preventing the generation and minimising the waste that is being generated) as a first priority. Thereafter would follow reuse and recycling of waste (utilising waste as a resource) and only after that treatment and disposal of the remaining waste. Currently the focus of waste management in most developing countries (including Swaziland) is still on collection and disposal of all waste.

Apart from the waste hierarchy two other aspects are also forms an integral part of the strategy. These include Waste Management Planning and a Waste Information system. Both of these lead to the development of important management tools e.g. long term plans and an up to date data basis which is necessary for long term planning.

Critical aspects that were taken into account during the strategy formulation process is the existing institutional and legal framework regarding waste management. The National Environmental Policy, National Environmental Bill as well as the Waste Regulations 2000 has been used as a legal framework. A concerted effort was also made to allocate waste responsibilities in the strategy within the existing responsibility framework of government. Key to the success of the implementation of the waste management strategy would be whether government and other stakeholders could actually provide the necessary resources needed for implementation.

The rationale and justification behind proposing a National Solid Waste Management Strategy for Swaziland are many. The Kingdom of Swaziland needs an integrated waste management strategy to address the identified needs and problems and that puts emphasis on both urban and rural areas. A clean environment means reduced public health problems as well as reduced ground and water pollution.

Core Principles

The development of the NSWMS is to be based on the core principles, the policy instruments and the implementing strategy given in the above-mentioned policies, strategies, plans and regulations. The joint SEA/DANCED project for development of National Solid Waste Strategy for the Kingdom of Swaziland is designed to cover two components:

Development of the National Solid Waste Management Strategy
Development of the Capacity Development Plan to support the Strategy

Development Objective

The development objective of the project is as follows: -

Reduced adverse impact of all forms of solid waste, so that the social and economic development of Swaziland, the health of its people and the quality of its environment and its resources, benefit.

Immediate Objectives of the Project

The immediate objectives of the project are two-fold: -

A final Solid Waste Management Strategy is prepared, presented and accepted.
Capacity is developed in the various institutions according to the draft Solid Waste Management Strategy, and a sustainable plan exists for development of capacity according to the final Solid Waste Management Strategy.

General Approach

The project is divided into 3 phases: -

The Design Phase
The Pilot Implementation Phase
The Fine-tuning Phase.

The Design Phase includes execution of activities leading to the Draft National Waste Management Strategy and the Draft Capacity Development Plan and will cover the period from April 2000 to January 2001. The Pilot Implementation Phase is to be executed during 2001 up to June 2002, and the Fine-tuning Phase will end in October 2002.

The Status Quo and Needs Analysis forms the first part of the Design Phase. During September and October 2000 a Needs Analysis and a Preferred Solution Document was issued, giving the background for discussion of different strategic solutions to the waste management problems. Different strategic solutions were discussed in a workshop in November 2000 (10 November) and the workshop will gave guidance to the development of the Draft National Solid Waste Management Strategy launched in February 2001.

A first draft of the Draft National Strategy was available for written comments on 12 January 2001.

During the month June to December 2000 the Swaziland Environment Authority started the preparation of the Pilot Projects to be carried out from February 2001. The results of the Pilot Projects will be documented before the end of June 2002. During the pilot implementation phase the major elements of the Draft National Solid Waste Management Strategy will be tested. The Final National Solid Waste Management Strategy will reflect the conclusions of these pilot projects.

During all three phases a comprehensive participatory process will be carried out to ensure that the final strategy for waste will be realistic, easy to implement and in line with the principles laid down in the legislation and regulations.

Delimitation of the Project

All non-hazardous solid waste types as well as all hazardous waste types as defined in the Waste Regulations 2000 will be covered by the project. Initially waste from the mining and the agricultural sectors were not included in the project, but it has become clear that there is a strong feeling amongst the stakeholders that, especially specific waste fractions from these sectors should be included. The Inception Report (17 July 2000) makes provision for this amendment to the project, but decision has not yet been taken.

Residues of pesticides used in the agricultural sector are nevertheless touched upon in the Status Quo Analysis Report, as problems with residuals are reported in several cases.

It is important to note that solid waste dissolved in liquid going directly to the receiving environment through point sources e.g. sewage sludge, falls out of the scope of work of this strategy.

On the other hand solids coming from de-watering of e.g. sewage sludge and with low liquid content (e.g. less than 20%) are covered by the strategy.

Furthermore all secondary solid wastes, that includes wastes from incineration of waste e.g. ashes from medical waste incinerators, are also covered in the strategy.

Waste is defined in the new Swaziland Waste Regulations 2000 (in force 21 April 2000) and in this project as follows:

"waste" means any substance or thing that the holder discards or disposes of, or intends or is required to discard or dispose of, irrespective of its value to anyone, and any substance or thing deemed by a regulation to be waste;

"holder" means a person in possession of the waste, or a person whose activities produced the waste, or a person who carried out pre-processing, mixing or other operations that changed the nature or composition of the waste.

Division of Responsibilities and Duties between Ministerial Actors

The division of responsibilities for solid waste management at the level of national ministries has hitherto been carried out according to which "waste generators and handlers" these ministries would have under their auspices in their general sector capacities. Thus:

The Ministry of Health and Social Welfare (MHSW) is the ultimate authority responsible for monitoring and control of waste management regulations for waste generated from hospitals, health centres and clinics and medical retailers under its auspices; Specifically this responsibility includes the medical waste. Furthermore the Ministry is responsible for regulating, enforcing and monitoring health standards including solid waste management performance of food supplies intended for human consumption.
The Ministry of Housing & Urban Development (MHUD) is similarly responsible for monitoring and control of the household and commercial waste management regulations under the auspices of the urban local government bodies such as City Councils, Town Councils and Town Boards, while
The Ministry of Enterprise & Employment (MEE) is responsible for monitoring and control of the execution of the waste management regulations in the specially designated "Industrial Townships"; It is the general perception, that this responsibility covers not only Matsapha Industrial Estate and other industrial estates, but also activities securing monitoring and control of the execution of the waste management regulations in the company towns.
The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister is in turn the ultimate authority responsible for monitoring and control of the waste regulations regarding the domestic waste generated in the rural areas. This includes the same duties in the peri-urban areas. These responsibilities are, however, not stated in any legislation falling under this office.
The Ministry of Public Works & Transport (MPWT) having the jurisdiction over land occupied by public roads has the responsibility for waste management of any littering along the roads. This responsibility, however, may not be understood as such by the Ministry of Public Works and Transport.
If and when it is decided to include wastes from the agricultural and the mining sectors, the Ministry of Agriculture and Co-operatives (MAC) and the Ministry of Natural Resources and Energy (MNRE) should be included in the list of ministerial actors responsible for monitoring and controlling the current waste management regulations.

The co-ordinating body, however, is the Swaziland Environment Authority within the Ministry of Tourism, Environment and Communications. With respect to waste management the Authority's main function can be described as that of the conceptual lead agency. This involves amongst other tasks, enforcement of the regulations issued by the Authority, co-ordination of the activities of the above mentioned ministries, development of waste management policies and strategies, and setting of standards. The Authority is furthermore responsible for the waste management of those institutions and economic agents that are not covered by the above i.e. hotels. In general, the Swaziland Environment Authority (SEA) is the lead agent for development of environmental policies, strategies, setting up environmental regulations, including Environmental Impact Assessment Projects (EIA's) and ensuring enforcement of the duties of the monitoring responsible parties. More specifically the assessment of Environment Impact Assessment Documents from e.g. larger development projects is included in the duties of SEA. These projects often demand co-ordination between different ministries (e.g. MTEC/SEA, MHUD, MEE).

This page was last updated on 11 February 2004