Africa’s Role in the Global Ban on Mercury in Cosmetics

Mercury is a highly toxic substance with well-documented adverse effects on human health. In cosmetic products, particularly skin-lightening and skin-toning formulations, mercury compounds have historically been used for their ability to inhibit melanin production. This function produces temporary skin lightening but carries significant health risks. Prolonged or repeated exposure to mercury through topical application has been associated with renal damage, neurological impairment, dermatological conditions, and adverse reproductive outcomes. Mercury exposure also presents secondary risks through household contamination and environmental release via wastewater systems.

Despite these risks, mercury-containing cosmetics have remained prevalent in certain markets due to a combination of consumer demand, informal production practices, and regulatory enforcement gaps. Skin-lightening products, in particular, occupy a significant segment of the cosmetic market in many African countries. Demand is shaped by a range of social, cultural, and economic factors, including beauty norms, colorism, and marketing practices, rather than by a lack of awareness alone.

African States have therefore faced a disproportionate public health and regulatory burden associated with mercury-added cosmetics. Products containing mercury have frequently entered local markets through informal trade routes, cross-border commerce, and online platforms, often without adequate labeling or safety information. National regulators, operating within constrained technical and enforcement environments, have historically encountered difficulties in identifying and removing such products once in circulation.

These conditions have informed the policy position adopted by many African Parties to the Minamata Convention. Rather than focusing solely on toxicological thresholds, regulatory efforts have increasingly prioritised enforceability, prevention, and market control. The prominence of skin-lightening products in regional markets, combined with the health and environmental risks associated with mercury use, has contributed to Africa’s support for stricter international controls on mercury in cosmetics.

This article examines the development of international regulation on mercury in cosmetics under the Minamata Convention on Mercury, with particular attention to the role played by African States in advancing recent amendments. It analyses how the Convention shifted from a concentration-based regulatory framework to a prohibition on mercury-added cosmetics, and the legal and enforcement implications of this transition for African markets and global cosmetic regulation.

Regulatory Background

The Minamata Convention on Mercury, which entered into force in 2017, is a multilateral environmental agreement designed to protect human health and the environment from anthropogenic emissions and releases of mercury and mercury compounds. Among its control measures, Article 4 and Annex A address mercury-added products, including cosmetics.

Under the original framework, cosmetics containing mercury were prohibited only where mercury concentration exceeded 1 part per million (ppm). This approach reflected a compromise between public health concerns and regulatory feasibility at the time of drafting. However, the concentration-based standard relied on the assumption that Parties had adequate technical and laboratory capacity to assess compliance.

In practice, enforcement of the 1ppm threshold proved challenging in many jurisdictions, particularly in low- and middle-income countries. Regulators often lacked access to accredited laboratories, testing equipment, and financial resources necessary to verify mercury concentrations with precision. As a result, the rule was difficult to operationalize and inconsistently enforced.

The Proposal to Eliminate the 1ppm Threshold

Concerns regarding the effectiveness of the existing framework led several African States, including Botswana, Burkina Faso, and Nigeria, to propose an amendment to the Convention that would remove the 1ppm threshold entirely. The proposal advocated for a prohibition on any intentionally added mercury in cosmetics, regardless of concentration.

The legal rationale underpinning the proposal was grounded in enforceability rather than substantive toxicological debate. A zero-addition rule simplifies regulatory assessment by removing the need for quantitative analysis. Where mercury is detected, the product is deemed non-compliant.

This proposal was discussed during COP-5 in 2023 and subsequently adopted through decisions taken at COP-6 in November 2025. The amended framework requires Parties to prohibit the manufacture, import, and export of mercury-added cosmetics, with implementation timelines varying according to national legislative processes.

Mercury Compounds and Upstream Regulatory Gaps

In parallel with product-level regulation, attention has increasingly turned to the regulation of mercury compounds used in cosmetic production. These compounds, including mercuric chloride and ammoniated mercury, have historically circulated under industrial or laboratory classifications.

Earlier iterations of international control measures focused primarily on finished products and elemental mercury. This left space for mercury compounds to enter jurisdictions under alternative regulatory pathways, including research, industrial processing, or chemical supply chains.

Following discussions at COP-6, Parties acknowledged the need for enhanced scrutiny of mercury compound trade where cosmetic use is foreseeable. International organizations such as the World Customs Organization and INTERPOL have been encouraged to support information sharing, risk profiling, and customs enforcement in relation to suspicious imports and misdeclared uses.

While not amounting to a blanket prohibition on mercury compounds, these developments reflect a broader move toward supply chain oversight.

Enforcement Developments in African Markets

A. E-Commerce and Intermediary Liability

Recent regulatory discussions in several African jurisdictions indicate a growing interest in assigning compliance responsibilities to online marketplaces. Rather than focusing exclusively on individual sellers, emerging frameworks increasingly consider the role of digital platforms in facilitating access to prohibited cosmetic products.

These approaches mirror developments in product safety and consumer protection law globally, where intermediaries may be required to implement due diligence mechanisms, product monitoring systems, and takedown procedures for non-compliant goods.

B. Customs Coordination and Trade Controls

Customs enforcement has also been identified as a key mechanism for implementing the amended Convention obligations. One challenge under the previous framework was the misclassification of mercury-added cosmetics under general or misleading product categories.

At COP-6, the Minamata Secretariat was tasked with advancing work on harmonised customs identifiers to improve detection and interception of prohibited products. Within the context of regional trade arrangements, including the African Continental Free Trade Area, such coordination may facilitate information exchange and consistent enforcement across borders.

Implications for Cosmetic Regulation

The removal of the 1ppm threshold represents a shift in international regulatory technique from conditional tolerance to categorical prohibition. For African regulators, this reduces reliance on advanced laboratory infrastructure and lowers enforcement barriers.

From a market perspective, the amended framework may also affect competition by restricting the circulation of low-cost, non-compliant imports and creating clearer regulatory expectations for manufacturers and distributors.

More broadly, the amendment process illustrates how States with shared enforcement challenges can influence the development of international environmental and product safety law by prioritising regulatory practicality alongside public health objectives.

Conclusion

The evolution of the Minamata Convention’s treatment of mercury in cosmetics reflects an incremental but significant recalibration of international regulation. African States played a central role in articulating the limitations of the original framework and proposing an alternative that aligned legal obligations with enforcement realities.

As Parties continue to implement the amended provisions at the domestic level, the effectiveness of the new regime will depend on sustained regulatory coordination, customs capacity, and oversight of emerging distribution channels, particularly digital marketplaces.