Sikhumbuzo Moyo, [email protected]
NEARLY six million children in Zimbabwe are projected to be at risk of lead poisoning, while millions of dollars in lifetime economic productivity are lost annually due to exposure to the toxic metal, the Environmental Management Agency (EMA) has said.
EMA principal officer for quality Mr Last Hwengwere said research by the World Health Organisation (WHO) estimated that 5,7 million Zimbabwean children could be affected by lead poisoning, while Unicef data cited by the agency indicated that three to four children had elevated blood lead levels.
He was speaking during a stakeholder awareness workshop on Statutory Instrument 82 of 2026, which prohibits the manufacture, importation, distribution and sale of paint and coating materials containing excessive levels of lead.
The Environmental Management (Prohibition of Lead in Paint and Coating Materials) Regulations, 2026 set the maximum permissible lead content in paint and coating materials at 90 parts per million (ppm).
Mr Hwengwere said the regulations were introduced in response to concerning health research, economic losses and evidence of lead contamination in products available on the local market.
“The drive to enact statutory controls was compelled by alarming epidemiological data, economic impact evaluations, and market research,” he said.
Mr Hwengwere said Zimbabwe was losing an estimated US$425 million annually in lifetime economic productivity associated with lead exposure, excluding healthcare and social costs.
A 2022 study conducted by the University of Zimbabwe and the Lead Exposure Elimination Project (Leep) found high levels of lead in locally manufactured paints.
Seventy percent of the oil-based paints sampled from the market contained dangerous levels of lead, with some samples recording concentrations more than 100 times the permissible limit, according to the findings cited at the workshop.
Lead is a toxic heavy metal that can accumulate in the body and cause serious health problems. Children are particularly vulnerable because exposure can damage the developing brain and nervous system, impair learning and development, and affect other organs, including the kidneys.
People can be exposed to lead through ingestion or inhalation of contaminated dust and particles, including those associated with deteriorating lead-based paint.
EMA education and publicity manager Mrs Amkela Sidange said enforcement of the new regulations was scheduled to begin in May next year.
She said the awareness workshop was intended to prepare industry players for the transition by encouraging manufacturers to reformulate their products and introduce batch testing before enforcement begins.
The initiative also seeks to promote the replacement of lead-containing raw materials and the removal of non-compliant finished paint products from distribution channels.
The regulations are expected to place pressure on paint manufacturers, importers and distributors to ensure that products on the market meet the prescribed lead-content limit.
