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The circular economy (CE) is increasingly recognized as a key driver of sustainable development, enabling societies to decouple economic growth from resource depletion, reduce waste, and regenerate natural systems (Geissdoerfer et al., 2017). The CE framework is grounded in theoretical traditions, including Industrial Ecology, Cradle to Cradle, Performance Economy, Biomimicry, Systems Thinking, and Regenerative Design (Geetha, 2025;Campbell-Johnston et al., 2021;Vermeulen et al., 2021;Reike et al., 2018;Olayide, 2015). Early interpretations positioned CE as compatible with green growth pathways, while neglecting potential rebound effects, international disparities, and the social dimensions of production. More recently, from a degrowth or post-growth perspective, understanding recognises that achieving true circularity requires not only efficiency gains but also reductions in absolute resource throughput (Karim, Dhar and Roshid, 2025). Despite this potential, CE research in Africa is still in its infancy, even though CE practices and initiatives are widely spread at local scale. Much of the CE literature is dominated by case studies from Europe, China, and other high-income countries, leaving low-income African contexts underexplored (Nijman-Ross et al., 2023;dos Muchangso, 2022). Over half of the academic studies between 2004-2017 focused on Asia, especially China, while the remainder concentrated on European countries (Merli et al., 2018). Similar patterns emerge from a bibliometric review evaluating sustainability and CE-related research, which found that the majority of the publications are focused on China, the UK, the Netherlands, the USA and Italy (Geissdoerfer et al., 2017). The strong emphasis on the Global North underscores the importance of scholarly attention to CE development in the Global South. As a result of this gap, policymakers and practitioners often lack localized evidence on how to design effective policies and mobilize investments.To address this gap, the research topic, "Accelerating the Circular Economy Transition: Innovations and Developments from Africa", aims to compile research studies to provide in-depth insights into CE developments within different African countries, with the objective of accelerating the CE transition across the continent. It compiles 12 papers that address CE developments in 6 African countries, Rwanda, Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Zambia and Nigeria, while also framing these insights within broader pan-African research priorities. This topic documents CE development across multiple sectors -agriculture, industrial parks, waste, health care, fresh water supply, and packaging -providing a multi-country perspective on progress and challenges. Key themes emerging across contributions include: the misconception of CE, importance of stakeholder engagements, the need to accelerate CE policy implementation and pilots in upscaling CE innovations.Geme et al. ( 2023) provide a baseline study of CE knowledge among stakeholder groups, including government, businesses, civil society, the public, academia, research, and think tanks, across six Ugandan cities. The study concludes that, in general, respondents are knowledgeable about the CE. However, much of the CE knowledge is tied to the 3Rs (reduce, reuse, and recycle) and waste management. Many respondents viewed recycling as synonymous with the CE, despite that the majority of the respondents completed a university degree. In general, participants' knowledge and perceptions of CE are shaped by the level of education, sector, position within the organization, duration of engagement in the CE field, and participation in decision-making. The authors stress that capacity-building is needed to expand understanding beyond waste management, enabling stakeholders to appreciate its potential.Similar findings emerged from the study by Mulindwa et al. (2024), which focused on the implementation status of achieving circularity among manufacturing, waste management, and recycling companies in Kigali City, Rwanda, using the 10-R framework. The study applied a mixedmethods approach and interviewed senior management and mid-level production department representatives from each company. The findings suggest that reuse and recycling are the most widely adopted practices among manufacturers, though adoption of higher-order principles, such as reduction and redesign, remains limited.A broader knowledge gap was highlighted by Nijman-Ross et al. (2023), who analyzed 275 articles and conducted a survey of 38 industry experts working on CE projects in African countries. The study found that the current body of CE knowledge is primarily focused on one element of the CE, which is circulating materials and products, while there is limited attention on other CE principles, such as designing out waste and pollution and regenerative natural systems. This gap is further echoed by Samenjo et al. ( 2023), who conducted a scientific literature review to examine which CE principles have been applied to the design of medical devices for low-resource settings in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). Their findings indicate a lack of attention to the design of medical devices that can be refurbished, remanufactured, and recycled in SSA. The study highlights that factors such as the lack of legislation and infrastructure for remanufacturing of medical devices in SSA could play a role, including the hygiene procedures that need to be in place, and whether it is financially viable to recover the product, discard it, or replace it.While we acknowledge the differences in research methods across the studies, they collectively point to the need to strengthen the conceptual foundations of CE across African contexts. Waste-to-value seems to be a low-hanging fruit for governments and an important donor priority with the municipal waste crisis in many African countries. However, to fully unlock CE's potential, research and practice must expand beyond recycling and waste management. There is an urgent need to integrate design and systems thinking, and regenerative approaches to avoid waste and pollution in the first place.Several studies on this topic have highlighted the importance of incorporating CE principles into policies to accelerate the transition in Africa. Studies from Kenya, Rwanda, and Tanzania reveal that countries have regulations that align with CE principles. However, there is a need to accelerate policy implementation, bring it into practice and introduce measurable policy outcomes.Rwanda is often seen as a CE pioneer, with its 2008 ban on single-use plastics, subsequent policies to mainstream green growth (Ogutu et al., 2023) and a National Action Plan for the CE (Ministry of Environment, 2022). Ogutu et al. ( 2023) examined the implementation of CE policies in Rwanda by reviewing manufacturers' responses to the plastic ban. The study concluded that environmental sustainability policies align with different levels of circularity. However, Ogutu et al. ( 2023) also reveal that businesses struggle to comply with the plastic ban and CE policies due to limited capacity for new technologies, a lack of technical expertise, a lack of locally available alternatives to plastic packaging and reduced competitiveness in international markets where other countries continue using cheaper packaging materials. The findings suggest that factors such as financial support and stakeholder consultations might help businesses to adopt CE and other sustainability policies.In Zambia, Clube et al. ( 2024) investigated the CE policy landscape in the waste sector. The study concluded that policies align with the CE principles, but implementation is lagging, and practices remain predominantly linear. Despite policies considering waste as a resource, it is still largely treated as a burden due to challenges such as the neglect of the role of the informal sector, lack of coordination between entities, ownership and innovation, and a restrictive licensing approach. The study also highlights that there are opportunities to introduce sector-specific tax exemptions and benefits, tariff-free imports of equipment, and other fiscal incentives to support investment. Furthermore, Clube et al (2024) emphasizes that there is a need for consistent enforcement to be effective. Low enforcement could be caused by capacity and financial constraints, for instance, by the government's lack of physical presence. The study recommends conducting additional research to fully understand the reasons behind low enforcement.In Kenya, Muriithi et al. (2023) examined the policy landscape and concluded that the CE transition is still in an early stage, but essential policy foundations, such as laws, policies, regulations, and institutions, are present. The findings suggest that a range of CE principles are reflected in laws and policies. However, there are more specific policies to guide CE implementation in the waste sector, leaving limited direction for other sectors, such as agriculture and construction, that have tremendous potential for circularity. The dominant focus in policies on the waste sector links back to our previous topic, whereby we discussed that there is a need move away from recycling and waste management, which has also been identified by Muriithi et al. (2023) as an important need to accelerate the CE transition across various sectors at the policy level. Despite these challenges, the countries studied are showing growing momentum towards circularity. The studies are clear that there is a need to accelerate the implementation and enforcement of national CE policies across all countries. Solutions such as providing financial incentives to businesses to adopt circularity Muriithi et al., 2023), capacity-building to develop CE business models, and enhancing government-business collaboration (Ogutu et al., 2023) can create pathways towards implementation.Across several case studies of this research topic, stakeholder engagement appeared to play a key role in successful CE adoption in Africa.In Kenya, Muriithi et al. (2023) highlight lessons learned from the development of CE-centered policies and regulations, including the Extended Producer Responsibility Regulation. Broad stakeholder participation fosters ownership, clarifies expectations and improves compliance. 2023) observed in Uganda that key groups -youth, informal sector, and communities are often excluded from CE conversations. Therefore, the study recommends using participatory approaches to reach different levels of society. In Tanzania, Awina et al. ( 2025) investigated the effectiveness of CE technologies for rural freshwater supply in areas facing multiple competing water-use activities worsened by climate-change-induced human activities and livestock migration. The authors found that community ownership from the outset plays a vital role in the success.Alongside community ownership, the citizens' receptiveness also plays an important role in stakeholder engagements. In Nigeria, Oguntuase et al. ( 2023) surveyed 465 Lagos residents to examine how individual-level factors influence bioeconomy acceptance. The respondents had varying educational levels (secondary school to master's and above), and lived in urban, peri-urban, and rural areas. The study found a positive and significant relationship between the factors "intention" and "perceived usefulness", suggesting that perceived usefulness from bioeconomy is a positive predictor of intention to accept bioeconomy. The findings suggest that limited knowledge of the bioeconomy and moderate beliefs about climate change influence acceptance of the circular bioeconomy. The study underscores the need for initiatives to improve public knowledge of circular bioeconomy products and beliefs about climate change, especially since climate change education positively shapes perceptions of bio-based CE products and the citizens' intention to embrace circularity in Nigeria.A case study that aligns with these findings is Sangwa et al. (2023), which evaluated waste-to-value practices, including the adoption of eco-latrines and the use of human excreta among farmers' households in Nyanza district, Rwanda. The study concluded that acceptance of safer technologies (Ecosan) over traditional latrines, which pose a risk of spreading disease into groundwater, begins with helping families understand the concept behind them, given the lack of education and experience with Ecosan. Both studies suggest that education plays an important role in local residents' acceptance of CE products.Although stakeholder engagement emerged as an important factor across the case studies, it requires tailored strategies for different stakeholders, particularly given CE's cross-cutting nature across systems, sectors and levels of society.Another emerging topic across studies of the research topic is the urgent need to launch pilot projects to drive CE innovation and scale successful business models in African countries, whereby future research plays a crucial role.The study by Nijman-Ross et al. (2023) aimed to develop a preliminary research agenda for CE development in African countries by identifying the current body of knowledge on CE, the existing research gaps, and the barriers to conducting CE research in these countries. The findings suggest a particularly urgent need for private-sector-driven research, with the highest number of research gaps identified in this area. Therefore, the study suggests that partnerships such as academia-industry pilot projects are essential in developing CE solutions and innovations tailored to African countries and their stakeholders. Nijman-Ross et al. (2023) concluded that there is a need to establish CE demonstration and pilot projects to upscale CE innovations that suit the African context. Also, the study highlights the importance of industry-academia projects, in which industry-academia collaborations can play an essential role in piloting innovations with businesses, whereby universities can bring in research, technological knowledge and expertise.Building on this topic, other studies of the research topic emphasize the importance of pilots. Ntawuhiganyo et al. (2023) assessed the adoption of regenerative agricultural practices in Eastern Africa, and their contribution to household food security by conducting surveys in Rwanda and Kenya. The findings suggest that household food security increased with an increased number of regenerative agriculture practices and farm visits by extension officers. The study identified a need for pilot studies on different regenerative practices and their adoption imperatives. The study particularly recommends designing scaling-up pathways to accelerate the transitions towards regenerative agriculture.At the industry level, Negesa et al. ( 2023) studied the transformation of traditional industrial parks into Eco-Industrial Parks (EIPs) in Kampala and Mbala Uganda, by utilizing the International Framework for EIPs as a guideline. The study recommends piloting projects, like EIPs in Uganda. EIPs promote resource optimization, waste minimisation, and symbiotic relationships between industries. Pilots can be used to test and demonstrate the viability of EIPs, with successful pilots serving as scalable models for other regions. EIP pilots can provide practical insights and build momentum for nationwide EIP initiatives, as a pathway to sustainable industrial development, balancing economic growth, social well-being and environmental stewardship.As addressed throughout the editorial, the implementation of the CE has been challenged by factors such as a lack of capital for new technologies, lack of expertise, (tax) incentives, policy enforcement and misalignment, among others. While pilots play an important role in testing innovations, we also have to emphasize that there is a need to upscale already existing pilots that have demonstrated their feasibility and impact. Achieving this requires incorporating lessons learned from initiatives, as discussed in this editorial and research topic, and ensuring sustainable funding mechanisms for introducing and scaling (existing) pilots. This is particularly important given that many CE initiatives rely heavily on donor funding, which may limit their long-term sustainability and scalability. The need for more stable funding is also highlighted by Nijman-Ross et al. (2023), who report that more than 70% of surveyed respondents face challenges due to insufficient funding for CE research in Africa, particularly for institutions based on the continent.This editorial presents a collection of 12 studies on CE in 6 low-income countries in Africa, offering an overview of CE developments, remaining challenges, and opportunities to accelerate the CE transition. The research topic makes clear that the CE is building significant momentum across the countries studied; however, it needs to be professionalised to unlock its full potential. This research topic demonstrates that the countries studied are advancing towards CE by adopting CE at the national policy level. However, there is a need to accelerate policy implementation and enforcement, and inclusive stakeholder engagements to bring it into practice. Despite progress at the policy level, at the sectoral level, there are more specific policies to guide CE implementation in the waste sector, leaving limited direction for other sectors with high CE potential. This could also be explained by an important gap identified: the lack of understanding of CE among stakeholders and the misconception that recycling is synonymous with CE. Therefore, there is a direct need to improve the CE understanding to enable stakeholders to appreciate the full potential and implications. Education seems to play a crucial role, with CE built into the curriculum from primary through higher education, targeting all educational levels. Since research has shown that the current body of CE knowledge and research for Africa is primarily focused on one element of the CE, which is circulating materials and products, it is essential to build CE into the curriculum of higher education and the existing research agendas, given the fundamental role of higher education in research. Pilots can be an important pathway for future research and building innovations, whereby partnerships such as academia-industry pilot projects are essential in developing, testing and scaling CE innovations tailored to African countries. A long-term pilot and innovation fund for CE would be recommended to enable the introduction and successful and existing pilots that demonstrated their feasibility and impact, alongside the development of the necessary infrastructure.Lastly, future research should also investigate CE developments in other African countries, especially since the countries studied in this research topic, mostly focused on East African countries and Anglophone contexts.