OF POLICIES AND IMPLEMENTATION
Khadija M-Williams argues the need for adequate public education before new policies come on stream
On January 21, 2024, the Lagos State Government announced, via the state Commissioner of
the Ministry of the Environment and Water Resources, a ban with immediate effect on the
usage and distribution of single-use plastics, specifically calling out Styrofoam. In order to
enforce the ban, the State cited a number of regulations including the National Environmental
(Sanitation and Waste Control) Regulation 2009, which was established under the NESREA
Act which prohibits and specifically bans single-use plastics in Nigeria. According to the
Commissioner, other laws used to enforce the ban include the 2017 State Environmental
Management and Protection Law which states under section 56(I) (Y), “Prevent, stop or
discontinue any activity or omission, which is likely to cause harm or has caused harm to
human health or the environment”.
On the announcement of the ban, Styrofoam was the scapegoat, but it is only one type of
single-use plastic. By definition, single-use plastics can be said to be plastic materials that are
used for short periods of time before being discarded. This would therefore extend to items
like the plastic bags everyday Nigerians receive after purchasing items from shops; their day
of reckoning is probably on the way. Another issue with the ban was its immediate nature as
it initially did not provide a grace period for producers and distributors of these materials to
adjust; the State later provided a three-week grace period. Is a three-week period enough to
turn a business around? I welcome answers. Apart from providing a grace period, the State
should have initiated the ban with publicity campaigns, especially on education and
awareness, well ahead of the date of implementation to allow citizens to ease into it.
Delving deeper into the matter of education and awareness, alternatives to these single-use
plastics exist and are currently in use; in fact, they were being used before Styrofoam and
other single-use plastics became popular probably because of their convenience. In the past,
when corporate staff in Lagos’ business centres, for example, bought food from bukas and
similar establishments, they typically visited with reusable takeaway packs. Nigerians are
also well versed in reusing the plastic souvenirs they receive from weddings and other social
events. Other more environment-friendly alternatives to Styrofoam include takeaway packs
made with paper, compostable and/or biodegradable materials. However, using these
alternatives is only one part of the solution; the main reason for the ban on Styrofoam given
by the State is because of the menace they present to the environment, and by extension
public health, due to their indiscriminate disposal. However, I daresay, without a proper waste
disposal and/or recycling system, these alternatives could end up being a problem like their
predecessors.
This seemingly overnight ban got me thinking; what else are Nigerian businesses unprepared
for? As someone in the environment and sustainability space, two things come to mind. As I
mentioned in a previous article, Nigeria passed a Climate Change Act which was signed into
law in November 2021. This Act has a couple of implications for private entities with 50 or
more employees; (i) they would need to put measures in place to achieve the annual carbon
emission reduction targets in line with the National Climate Change Action Plan, (ii) they
would need to designate a Climate Change Officer or an Environmental Sustainability Officer
who will be responsible for submitting an annual report that shows their status on carbon
emission reduction efforts. I assume certain readers will break out in a sweat over this.
In addition, the Financial Reporting Council of Nigeria (FRC), who is responsible for
“developing and publishing accounting and financial reporting standards to be observed in
the preparation of financial statements of public entities in Nigeria” has adopted the
International Sustainability Standards Board’s (ISSB) International Financial Reporting
Standards (IFRS) Foundation S1 (sustainability-related financial information) and S2
(climate-related disclosures) standards and plan for these standards to be used by listed
companies in the development of sustainability reports. The FRC has also developed a
readiness roadmap document that is open for comments at the time of writing. I do not know
how many companies are aware of this, but ignorance is not an excuse in the court of law.
Company Directors who are aware of these may say to themselves that these developments
are not necessary, and given the Nigerian government’s track record, may never be
implemented. Well, Styrofoam business owners, at least the ones that were aware of the
policies, probably said the same thing when the aforementioned policies were entered into
law. My unsolicited advice would be to not be caught wanting; companies have nothing to
lose by being compliant with regulations as they stand. In fact, there are a lot of benefits to
implementing a robust sustainability reporting process such as attracting foreign capital and
investments, building credibility amongst an entity’s stakeholders, and helping an entity
identify areas of operational improvement. Needless to say, these benefits could ultimately
lead to an improvement in an entity’s bottom line.
In all of this, and speaking to the area of environment and sustainability, the Nigerian
government appears to be on top of policies to ensure we have a liveable environment.
However, like most other areas, its implementation has been found wanting. Unfortunately, it
is up to individuals and businesses to ensure that they are on the right side of the law as the
landscape can, and most likely will, change in an unforgiving way.
Khadija, who is an environment and sustainability expert, writes from Melbourne, Australia
