Understanding the policy process

Plastic pollution is one of the biggest environmental challenges of our time. But change is possible. Policies shape how products are made, sold, used and disposed of – and good policies can protect nature, improve public health, and boost livelihoods. Campaigning for policy change might sound daunting, but community-led efforts can and do shape the law. Flipflopi’s work on the East African Single Use Plastics (SUP) Bill is one example.

This toolkit shares what Flipflopi has learned while campaigning for stronger legislation on single-use plastics, and offers simple, practical ideas to help others do the same. Whether you’re calling for change at the national level or working with local government, we hope this gives you a helpful place to start.

How laws are made – and changed

Laws aren’t set in stone. They can be improved, updated or challenged when they no longer serve the public interest. In Kenya, for example, a public petition with 10,000 signatures can force Parliament to debate a proposed law. With 1 million signatures, a bill is formally introduced to Parliament. If 10 million people sign, the law must be passed. That’s powerful.

In the case of the Flipflopi SUP Bill, the goal was not to ban all plastics, but to address problematic, unnecessary and avoidable single-use plastics such as stirrers, balloon sticks, plastic straws and cutlery and most importantly to take a regional approach to addressing this problem.

 How the Flipflopi did it...

Lake Victoria as a powerful symbol for regional action

Lake Victoria offered a compelling setting to highlight why a regional approach to plastic pollution is not just preferable – it is essential. As the largest freshwater lake in Africa, it physically connects Tanzania, Uganda, and Kenya, while its wider catchment extends into Rwanda and Burundi. These shared waters do not respect political borders, and neither does plastic pollution.

Plastic waste moves freely across boundaries – carried by rivers, wind, trade, and human activity. A ban or restriction in one country may be rendered ineffective if neighbouring states do not take similar action. The informal movement of goods across porous borders makes this even more complex. Without coordination, efforts risk being undermined by leakage from neighbouring jurisdictions.

What happens in one part of the Lake Victoria Basin affects the health of the entire ecosystem. This interdependence makes a strong case for coordinated policy, shared enforcement mechanisms, and harmonised standards. If one country acts alone, progress will be limited. But if countries work together – aligning on policy, messaging, and enforcement – the region can move from isolated efforts to meaningful, long-term change.

Mamo B. Mamo, the Director General of Kenya’s National Environment Management Authority (NEMA) commented: “A regional approach is important because the challenge that regulatory bodies face is porous borders. Even though we banned plastic bags in Kenya, they were still coming through the borders. We needed to engage regional authorities and enforcement actors to ensure we stop smuggling of plastics across borders.

Research has also shown that in Lake Victoria, 1 in 5 fish has ingested plastic. This is why it’s important to have a common approach to address our shared resources over which we have a shared responsibility as the East African Community.”

All East African Community states have in place some form of single-use plastic legislation and our Bill calls for an extension of national bans to one regional policy.

EAC policymakers unite to beat plastic pollution

Different levels of government

Policy change can happen at different levels – local, county, national or even regional. Flipflopi aimed high, proposing a new piece of regional legislation. But there are many other routes:

Municipal by-laws
County-level policy
Technical standards (e.g. for packaging or labelling)
Updates to national strategy or planning documents

Understanding how government works in your country will help you decide where to focus. Think about where your voice can make the most difference.

Who makes decisions

Most governments have two key groups:

Elected representatives (e.g. MPs, councillors) who make laws and set priorities.
Civil servants who carry out that work, write policies and oversee implementation.

Both are important. Elected leaders can push new ideas or call for debate. Officers and advisors can help shape the details. Building good relationships with both is key to any policy campaign. See the Partnerships Toolkit for more ideas on working with government officials and elected representatives.

 How the Flipflopi did it...

Championing the cause inside government

As community support to end plastic pollution grew, Flipflopi also focused on building trusted relationships within government – not just with ministers, but with the civil servants, researchers, and committee staff who play a key role in shaping how policy is made.

In 2023, in partnership with ALN, the International Conservation Caucus Foundation (ICCF Group), and UNCTAD, Flipflopi convened over 40 government officials – including 21 parliamentarians from seven East African Community member states. The gathering provided space to review the draft Bill to phase out certain types of plastics and explore trade and policy opportunities for plastic substitutes, while also mapping the current state of national legislation across the region.

This convention helped Flipflopi build a network of supporters within the East African Legislative Assembly (EALA), where the draft Bill is now under technical and legislative review. Throughout the process, the Flipflopi team positioned itself as a constructive partner – offering insights from the ground and supporting lawmakers to design legislation that is both ambitious and practical.

Read about the importance of working with government in Partnerships.