Kenya will from Friday ban all single-use plastics – such as water bottles and straws – in its national parks, beaches, forests and other protected areas.

Three years after the ban on plastic bags – one of the strictest in the world – the new measure comes into effect on World Environment Day, Friday.

“This ban is again a first to address the catastrophic plastic pollution affecting Kenya and the world, and we hope it will catalyze similar policies and measures within the East African community,” the minister said in a statement on Friday.

The ban was hailed by environmental activist Dipesh Pabari, initiator of the first sailboat made entirely of recycled plastic, which in 2019 toured the Kenyan and Tanzanian coasts to raise awareness about plastic pollution.

As in many parts of the world, where plastic bottles, corks, straws and other plastic lids are made to be used only once and then thrown away, Kenya is affected by plastic pollution, which in addition to altering the landscape, can smother turtles, livestock or birds.