Plastic pollution has become a growing concern across the Nile Basin, threatening water quality, ecosystems and livelihoods that depend on the river. While international resolutions and regional frameworks increasingly acknowledge the scale of the problem, translating policy commitments into effective action remains a complex challenge.
In 2024, the United Nations Environment Assembly adopted Resolution 6/13 during the sixth session of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP). The resolution calls for stronger and more inclusive water policies to address the interconnected crises of climate change, biodiversity loss and pollution. It builds on earlier commitments, including Resolution 3/10 of 2017 on water pollution and Resolution 5/14 of 2022, which laid the groundwork for a legally binding global instrument to end plastic pollution.
These policy efforts reflect growing concern about declining water quality worldwide, including in major river systems such as the Nile. Pollution from land-based sources, combined with urbanisation, industrial activity, agriculture and inadequate sanitation, has intensified pressure on water-related ecosystems throughout the basin.
Recognising that resolutions alone are insufficient, UNEP has called on governments, regional bodies and other actors to strengthen cooperation and move from policy to implementation. In the Nile Basin, this has brought renewed attention to plastic waste entering the river through domestic and industrial sources.
According to Rivers are Life, a global initiative advocating for river protection, poor waste management and limited recycling infrastructure are key drivers of plastic pollution in the Nile. Bottles, bags and other debris obstruct water flow and degrade habitats, with consequences for aquatic life and fishing communities.
“The rise of plastic pollution in the Nile can be attributed to rapid population growth, coupled with inadequate waste management systems,” Rivers are Life Team notes. “As more people rely on the river for their daily needs, the amount of plastic waste generated increases, exacerbating the problem.”
Regional assessments echo these concerns. The Nile Basin Initiative’s 2022 report identified waste mismanagement as a long-standing development challenge across basin countries. With the introduction of chemically complex materials such as plastics, the problem has become more severe.
Against this backdrop, regional cooperation has become a central focus. UNEP is collaborating with the Nile Basin Initiative, with support from the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ), to strengthen water quality and plastic pollution monitoring in rivers. The collaboration aims to improve data on plastic waste transport from Nile catchment areas to the Mediterranean Sea.
As part of this work, UNEP participated in a workshop held in Kisumu, Kenya, in February 2025 under the Nile Basin Initiative framework. The workshop focused on mapping plastic pollution sources, waste management practices and technical capacity building.
During the opening session, Gladys Wekesa, a member of the Nile Technical Advisory Committee from Kenya, emphasised that “awareness and capacity development are important in tackling plastic pollution in the Nile,” adding that reversing pollution would require “cooperation and unity of purpose among different actors.”
International concern has also grown. In 2022, European Union ambassadors called for increased support to the Nile Basin Initiative, warning that pollution in the Nile ultimately affects the Mediterranean Sea. Attilio Pacifici, then EU Ambassador to Uganda, noted that pollution in the Nile should not be viewed as an African issue alone.
While policy frameworks provide direction, their impact depends on implementation. Across the basin, community-led initiatives illustrate both the potential and the limits of current responses.
In June 2024, the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD), in partnership with the Government of South Sudan and with financial support from the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (SIDA), launched the Nile River Banks Cleaning Campaign Against Plastic Pollution. The campaign focuses on cleaning sections of the White Nile and involves youth and women.
Speaking at the launch, David Kwaje, head of the IGAD mission in South Sudan, warned that plastics “destroy habitats, choke aquatic animals and facilitate the transport of invasive species into water bodies,” adding that plastic consumption can affect human health.
Reporting by Infonile, a cross-border journalism initiative, has also highlighted plastic pollution as a threat to aquatic life in South Sudan.
In December 2025 more than 20 young volunteers organised by Save the Nile removed plastic waste from the White Nile riverbank in Juba. The clean-up began near Juba Bridge, with support from the Juba City Council, which provided waste transport.
“Together, we collected thousands of plastic bottles dumped along the Nile,” said Ateny Adut, the Communications Lead at Save the Nile, who took part in the clean-up. In his update to the public, after the event, through social media, he warned that plastics break down into microplastics that enter the food chain and take over 100 years to decompose. That is why urgent action was required to tackle plastic pollution.
Similar efforts have taken place in Egypt. Volunteers participating in a Nile clean-up in Cairo to mark World Cleanup Day in September 2022 collected plastic waste from the river using boats and fishing nets.
Around 60 volunteers have also joined clean-up activities organised by VeryNile, an Egyptian environmental initiative focused on removing plastic waste from the river and promoting recycling. “We pick up plastic waste from the Nile and its bank,” said Mohsen Ahmed, a university student who has volunteered with VeryNile for about three years. [Source needed:
Together, these initiatives highlight how policy ambition, regional cooperation and community action intersect along the Nile. They also underline a persistent challenge: while clean-ups and awareness campaigns can reduce visible pollution, systemic drivers such as waste infrastructure gaps and plastic production remain largely unaddressed.
