In a week where Minister of Trade, Industry and Competition, Parks Tau, signalled a strategic pivot in South Africa’s trade posture toward the United States, something extraordinary happened. Amid the headlines about $3.3 billion in pledged outbound investments and renewed commitments under Agoa, one detail passed quietly: Minister Tau specifically cited metal recycling as a pillar of the proposed framework.
For those of us in the recycling industry, and for the hundreds of thousands who make their living scavenging, sorting and selling scrap, this was not just a diplomatic aside, it was recognition long overdue.
The Recycling Association of South Africa (RASA) welcomes the Minister’s leadership and vision. The inclusion of metals recycling as a focus for joint ventures under the new US engagement strategy affirms what many of us have long argued: that this industry is not peripheral, but central to sustainable development, industrial competitiveness and poverty alleviation.
Globally, metals recycling is part of the engine room of the circular economy. It diverts waste from landfills, reduces carbon emissions, and supplies critical inputs for green industries, from electric vehicles to solar panels. It is also labour-intensive, creates jobs, attracts investment, and innovates. That Minister Tau sees this is encouraging.
For more than a decade, South Africa’s scrap metal policies have prioritised steel mini-mills at the expense of the recyclers who collect, process and trade scrap. Introduced in 2013, the Price Preference System (PPS) mandates that scrap metal be sold locally at prices up to 30% below export parity. Export bans and taxes have compounded the suppression.
In theory, these measures were meant to reduce infrastructure theft and support local steelmaking. In practice, they have done neither. What they have done is divert an estimated R6 to 8 billion a year, over R60bn since inception, away from informal waste pickers, micro-traders, and processors, into the hands of a few capital-intensive operators.
South Africa’s scrap exports have collapsed from 1.8 million tonnes in 2012 to just 156 000 in 2023. Employment in the formal steel sector has fallen by 46% since 2009. Mini-mills complain about scrap shortages, but routinely reject material, leaving collectors with no buyers and no income.
We hear a lot about “inclusive growth”. But you will not find a more grassroots industry than scrap. In a country with an expanded unemployment rate above 40%, over 400 000 people, mostly poor, many women, eke out a living collecting waste. They are entrepreneurs, not beneficiaries. They work 12-hour days pushing trolleys across cities and towns to gather what society discards. And they have been systematically dispossessed by policies that distort prices, close markets, and make their labour less valuable. This isn’t just economically irrational; it is socially destructive.
The irony is painful: while South Africa presents itself to the world as a champion of sustainable industries, its domestic policies undermine the very sectors that could lead its green transition. Export restrictions have cost the country over R31bn in lost output, with R21bn from aluminium alone. Bans create bottlenecks, suppressed prices kill investment and jobs that should be created, vanish.
We can and must do better.
The United States has proven that liberalising trade in recyclable materials fosters sectoral growth, technology transfer and environmental benefit. Japan, with no domestic iron ore, has built an entire steel ecosystem on imported scrap. So too can South Africa, but while it punishes its own collectors.
Minister Tau’s comments signal a hopeful shift in mindset. By engaging the US on metals recycling, the government is acknowledging its economic and environmental promise. Through collaborative leadership with government, now is the time to translate this into policy reform at home.
The PPS, the export bans, and the price suppression policy must go.
Doing so would restore fair pricing, open access to export markets, and allow recyclers to reinvest. In the formal sector, this means upgraded processing infrastructure and new jobs. In the informal sector, it means daily survival: higher returns for cans, steel, and discarded household appliances. More collections, less landfill and more dignity through work.
Lifting these barriers would not be a handout. It would be a signal to the world that South Africa is serious about climate goals, about inclusive industrialisation, and about the people who keep our streets clean, our landfills light, and our circular economy turning.
RASA stands ready to partner with government to modernise this vital industry and hundreds of thousands of waste pickers are waiting.
Nancy Strachan is CEO of the Recycling Association of South Africa.
*** The views expressed here do not necessarily represent those of Independent Media or .
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