This Post was submitted by Climate Scorecard South Africa Country Manager Andrew John HallThe City of Cape Town (CoCt), located in the Western Cape Province of South Africa, sets the standard for climate change adaptation and mitigation strategies; not only for South Africa, but for the African continent as a whole. As a result of...
Category: South Africa News Brief and Action Alert
Best Climate Practice South Africa: SouthSouthNorth
By Climate Scorecard South Africa Country Manager Andrew HallBased in Salt River, Cape Town, SouthSouthNorth (SSN) is an NGO that supports regional and national climate change responses by means of policy and knowledge interventions, partnerships, and deep collaborations. SSN carries this out by connecting people and information, increasing capability and mobilising resources to innovatively respond...
Climate Best Practice: Kagnas Wind Farm in South Africa
By Climate Scorecard South Africa Country Manager Andrew Hall Presently, the largest combined renewable energy source in South Africa is wind energy with a combined total capacity of 2,078 MegaWatts (MW) generated by approximately 23 wind farms throughout the country. By 2030 it is projected that wind energy will make up to 22.7% of South...
South Africa’s Establishment of a Presidential Climate Change Coordinating Commission
The cabinet of South Africa has approved the establishment of the Presidential Climate Change Coordinating Commission on the 9th of September 2020. Its mandate is to coordinate the implementation of South Africa’s Low Emissions Development Strategy, and the revised National Waste Management Strategy 2020. The Commission also will coordinate the just transition to a low...
Spotlight Activity: The African Climate and Development Initiative and Council for Scientific and Industrial Research
In South Africa, there are numerous environmental organisations that work to minimise the impacts of climate change and strengthen South Africa’s biodiversity. These organisations are involved in different conservation and research projects that aim to reduce the degradation of the natural environment, protect vulnerable communities and ecosystems and influence the decision making for the future...
South Africa Lacks the Research Needed to Support the Growth of Green Jobs
South Africa does not report green jobs independently in any of its major surveys or statistics of employment, nor does it report the growth of green industries. There is not an official agreed definition of green jobs, either. However, there have been significant efforts from different organizations to measure the role of the green economy...
Rural Dwellers, Already Prone to Geopolitical and Economic Marginalization, are Predominantly Affected by Climate Change in South Africa
South Africa is ranked as the second most inequitable country in the world. South Africa’s vulnerability to climate change is exacerbated by the economic inequality, poverty, and our current dependency on coal-fired power generation. The ability to adapt to climate change may be characterised by the same inequalities that have become the fault lines of...
Invasive Alien Plants in Wetlands and Estuaries are a Major Threat to Biodiversity in South Africa
In South Africa, there are several places at particular risk of abrupt disruption to biodiversity in a high-emissions scenario. The coast from Cape Agulhas to Mozambique, inland areas on the western side of the Western Cape Province up to the Namibian border, the entire Northern Cape Province, and parts of the Free State are all...
South Africa Should Take a Sustainable Development Approach to Economic Recovery from COVID-19
South Africa is particularly vulnerable to COVID-19 given its levels of poverty, unemployment, inequality, and vulnerable employment, as well as the prevalence of HIV and tuberculosis. An R500 billion economic and social support package was announced by the President as the government’s response to stimulate economic recovery hindered by the COVID-19 pandemic. The bulk of...
A State Energy Monopoly Utility Blocks Progress to Renewables in South Africa
The South African electricity supply industry remains dominated by the state-owned and vertically integrated utility, Eskom. Coal is the major driver of the energy sector in the country. Although coal is the utility’s primary energy source in South Africa, the use of renewable sources for electricity generation has increased in the last few years. As...