Anti-HHP campaigns are growing stronger across Africa
As evidence mounts regarding the harms caused by Highly Hazardous Pesticides (HHPs) to both humans and the environment, more and more African civil society groups are taking action. Mizizi Magazine will continue to follow these developments.
New East African Community HHP strategy
In July 2026, the East African Community (EAC), representing Burundi, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Kenya, Rwanda, Somalia, South Sudan, Tanzania and Uganda, adopted a regional strategy to progressively phase out HHPs over the next ten years.
The strategy commits partner states to identify and prioritise the most harmful pesticides, strengthen pesticide registration systems, update policies and legislation, improve the monitoring of pesticide-related harm, and promote the development and adoption of safer alternatives.
Significantly, it applies not only to agriculture but also to pesticides used in public health programmes, recognising that the risks posed by HHPs extend far beyond the farm. While decisions to ban individual pesticides remain the responsibility of national governments, the strategy provides a shared roadmap for countries to work together, harmonise risk assessments and build technical capacity. Read more here.
In South Africa, momentum is growing
South Africa is also seeing growing momentum to reduce reliance on highly hazardous pesticides.
Alongside increasing public concern following a series of pesticide poisoning incidents, civil society organisations, researchers and health experts are calling for stronger regulation, greater transparency and a faster transition to safer alternatives.
One of the leading voices is UnPoison, a national network advocating for reform of South Africa’s pesticide legislation and registration system. Since publishing the country’s first publicly accessible database of Highly Hazardous Pesticides in 2023, UnPoison has highlighted that many pesticides classified as highly hazardous remain legally registered for use in South Africa, including products that have long been banned or are no longer approved in the European Union.
The organisation is also calling for the accelerated phase-out of these pesticides, stronger monitoring and enforcement, and greater public access to information about the chemicals used in food production.
At the same time, communities and farm workers are increasingly speaking out about the impacts of pesticide exposure. The South African People’s Tribunal on Agrotoxins, with support from the African Centre for Biodiversity and other leading CSOs, created a platform for farm workers, rural communities, scientists and civil society organisations to present evidence on the human and environmental costs of hazardous pesticides.
Through testimonies and scientific evidence, the tribunal has drawn attention to the experiences of those living and working alongside pesticide use, while calling for stronger protection of constitutional rights to health, a safe environment and access to information.
Gathering of CSOs in South Africa on HHPs
Convened by the Southern African Faith Communities Environmental Institute and GroundWorks, supported by the Swedish Society for Nature Conservation, this meeting in May 2026 brought together CSOs already working on or concerned about the use of HHPs in South Africa’s food and farming systems. Various experts presented on the harms presented by these synthetic products and the inabilty of South Africa’s outdated pesticide legislation to adquately protect people or ecosystems. We will continue to follow this story.
Join the Global Alliance
Momentum is also building at the global level. In 2024, governments meeting at the sixth session of the United Nations Environment Assembly (UNEA-6) endorsed the establishment of the Global Alliance on Highly Hazardous Pesticides (GAHHP) under the Global Framework on Chemicals.
The voluntary, multi-stakeholder alliance brings together governments, United Nations agencies, researchers, civil society, farmers and the private sector to support the progressive phase-out of highly hazardous pesticides and accelerate the transition to safer and more sustainable alternatives. It is supported by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), the World Health Organization (WHO) and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).
Read more here.
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