General elections will be held in South Africa in May of this year. South Africa will elect new National Assembly members as well as the provincial legislatures in each province. The elections are done after every five years. Over 350 political parties are expected to contest the 2024 general elections. However, the main political parties are African National Congress (ANC), Democratic Alliance (DA) and Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF).

President Ramaphosa said the African National Congress (ANC) plans to create about 2.5 million job opportunities in the coming five years, and some of these jobs will come through South Africa’s transition from coal-based power generation to cleaner energy. He also reiterated their strategy to meet new global climate change challenges. The president of South Africa believed that a balanced transition to a cleaner and greener future might lead to fast economic development.

In the past few years, we have seen the ANC increase its financial pledges towards the Just Energy Transition Investments plan (JETIP) from R170 billion to almost R240 billion. The ANC established a Climate Change Respond Fund to address persistent global warming effects. The government aims to bring together all spheres of government and the private sector to respond to and build resilience to the impact of climate change.

The Democratic Alliance (DA) has shown its possibilities in cities like Cape Town, where it has facilitated the implementation of proactive policies and clean, transparent governance. The DA administration has helped private and general citizens install massive rooftop solar energy installations in these urban areas.

This Post was submitted by the Climate Scorecard South Africa Country Manager Rugare Zhou.

Learn More References

1. https://www.nytimes.com/2024/01/16/climate/climate-is-on-the-ballot-around-the-world.html
2. https://www.voanews.com/a/south-africa-s-anc-launches-election-manifesto-ramaphosa-lauds-party-s-gains-/7501319.html
3. https://www.da.org.za/2023/09/da-welcomes-progress-on-the-climate-change-bill#:~:text=One%20of%20the%20most%20important,financially%20strapped%20provinces%20and%20municipalities.
4. https://www.parliament.gov.za/political-party-list