Growth and Development in the Cosmetics, Soap and Detergent Regional Value Chains: South Africa and Zambia

The report compares the soap, detergent, and cosmetics sectors in South Africa and Zambia, noting that while South Africa has a more mature industry, both face capacity and competitiveness challenges. Zambia struggles with a trade deficit and poor packaging quality, while South African small firms face high input costs and regulatory barriers. The authors recommend developing natural product lines, operationalising industrial clusters, and improving supermarket access to foster regional import substitution.

• South Africa possesses a more mature and sophisticated soap, detergent, and cosmetics industry than Zambia, with exports averaging $865.8 million between 2010 and 2015, which is 20 times the size of Zambia's exports.
• Zambia maintains a trade deficit in soaps, detergents, and cosmetics; between 2010 and 2015, South African exports accounted for 70% of Zambia's total imports in these categories, while Zambian exports represented only 0.3% of South Africa's total imports.
• Small firms in South Africa struggle to compete due to high costs for raw materials and packaging, limited finance for advertising, skills shortages, and regulatory hurdles including a failing bio-diversity permit system and expensive export certification.
• The Zambian industry is severely hindered by expensive, poor-quality local packaging, which limits brand awareness and prevents firms from accessing supermarket shelf space. Other constraints include high import taxes on chemicals, kwacha depreciation, and a lack of international recognition for Zambia Bureau of Standards’ certification.
• To improve regional competitiveness and import substitution, the report recommends that both nations produce cosmetics from natural products, establish industrial clusters, and engage supermarkets to open shelf space for regional products.

APA

South African Institute of International Affairs (2019). Growth and Development in the Cosmetics, Soap and Detergent Regional Value Chains: South Africa and Zambia. https://saiia.org.za/saiia-toolkit/growth-and-development-in-the-cosmetics-soap-and-detergent-regional-value-chains-south-africa-and-zambia/

Chicago

South African Institute of International Affairs. Growth and Development in the Cosmetics, Soap and Detergent Regional Value Chains: South Africa and Zambia. 2019. https://saiia.org.za/saiia-toolkit/growth-and-development-in-the-cosmetics-soap-and-detergent-regional-value-chains-south-africa-and-zambia/.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=South African Institute of International Affairs |title=Growth and Development in the Cosmetics, Soap and Detergent Regional Value Chains: South Africa and Zambia |date=26 March 2019 |url=https://saiia.org.za/saiia-toolkit/growth-and-development-in-the-cosmetics-soap-and-detergent-regional-value-chains-south-africa-and-zambia/ |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{southafricaninstituteofinternationalaffairs2019growth, author = {{South African Institute of International Affairs}}, title = {{Growth and Development in the Cosmetics, Soap and Detergent Regional Value Chains: South Africa and Zambia}}, institution = {South African Institute of International Affairs}, year = {2019}, month = mar, url = {https://saiia.org.za/saiia-toolkit/growth-and-development-in-the-cosmetics-soap-and-detergent-regional-value-chains-south-africa-and-zambia/}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }