Health and environment policymakers and experts from Africa, Asia and Latin America are stepping up efforts to phase out mercury-containing dental filling materials and make oral health care safer and more sustainable.

The more than 75 experts from the three regions are gathering in Senegal from 19 to 22 October for an event combining an African sub-regional workshop with the global closing meeting of the GEF-7 Phasing Down Dental Amalgam Project. The meeting comes one year after the sixth meeting of the Conference of the Parties (COP-6) to the Minamata Convention on Mercury, held in 2025, at which Parties decided to phase out dental amalgam by 2034. Countries are now working to turn that commitment into national action.

Dental amalgam has been used in fillings for more than 175 years and contains about 50% elemental mercury by weight. Mercury can be released when fillings are placed or removed and when the resulting waste is disposed of, contaminating water and soil. The World Health Organization (WHO) Global Oral Health Action Plan 2023–2030 aims for 90% of countries to have phased down or phased out dental amalgam by 2030. As of 2024, however, only 13% of countries in the WHO African Region had reached this target, compared with 31% globally.

The GEF-7 project is funded by the Global Environment Facility (GEF), implemented by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and executed by WHO, with technical assistance from the UNEP Global Mercury Partnership. It supports countries in reducing their use of dental amalgam and manage mercury-containing waste in an environmentally sound way.

Senegal is one of the project's three pilot countries, alongside Thailand and Uruguay. Its experience shows that the transition is achievable. After a national assessment of practices and needs, Senegal strengthened coordination between the health and environment sectors and developed a good-practice guide. It trained oral health professionals in mercury-free and less invasive oral health care and in alternatives to dental amalgam. To keep mercury out of wastewater, it installed 13 amalgam separators as part of a pilot and improved the collection, storage and management of mercury-containing waste. Through the Specific International Programme (SIP) of the Minamata Convention, Senegal worked with Burkina Faso and Togo to develop and technically validate national regulatory instruments on mercury and mercury-added products, including provisions on dental amalgam.

“Mercury-free oral health care starts in everyday practice. By building professionals' skills, promoting suitable alternatives and testing new solutions, we are laying lasting foundations for our oral health services,” said Dr Codou Badiane Mané, Head of the Oral Health Division, Ministry of Health and Public Hygiene, Senegal.

“As Africa’s only pilot country, Senegal has used this experience to test solutions that link oral health, environmentally sound management of mercury-containing waste, and stronger regulation. Hosting the project’s closing meeting in Dakar offers an opportunity to share these lessons and encourage other African countries to accelerate the transition to mercury-free oral health care that protects both human health and the environment,” said Dr Pathé Dieye, National Focal Point for the Minamata Convention on Mercury, Ministry of the Environment, Senegal.

During the meeting, participants will review the project's results and discuss regulation, alternatives to amalgam, workforce training and waste management. West African countries will identify priority national actions to accelerate the elimination of mercury from health systems. A field visit to health facilities and a waste management site will show the solutions being piloted in Senegal.

“The experience of Senegal and the other pilot countries demonstrates that global commitments can be translated into concrete action on the ground, while offering practical lessons to help other countries accelerate their own transitions,” said Mr Ludovic Bernaudat, Head of the GEF Chemicals and Green Chemistry Unit, Chemicals and Health Branch, UNEP.

The closure of the GEF-7 project marks a transition, not an end. The three pilot countries will consolidate their results and explore opportunities for cooperation and scale-up as countries work towards the 2034 phase-out deadline.

Dr Benido Impouma, Director, Communicable and Noncommunicable Diseases Cluster, WHO Regional Office for Africa, highlighted the broader significance of the initiative: “The transition away from dental amalgam is transforming oral health systems. Experiences from Senegal and other pilot countries demonstrate that ending the use of mercury in oral health care can strengthen prevention, improve care quality and advance universal health coverage for all. WHO will continue to collaborate with UNEP and support countries in implementing the Minamata Convention, while expanding access to safe, effective and affordable oral health care and advancing healthier, more environmentally sustainable health systems across Africa.”