Johnathan Paoli
President Cyril Ramaphosa has signed the Climate Change Bill into law, claiming he wants to ensure the country’s transition to a low carbon economy without any constraint by policy contradiction.
Spokesperson for the President, Vincent Magwenya, announced on Tuesday that Ramaphosa has assented to the bill, which sets out a national climate change response, including mitigation and adaptation actions, and constitutes the country’s contribution to the global climate change response.
Magwenya said the legislation sets out to enhance the country’s ability and capacity over time to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and build climate resilience, while reducing the risk of job losses, and promoting opportunities for new job opportunities.
He said its aim was to strengthen coordination between national sector departments and provide policy setting and decision-making which would meet the commitments in the Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) as outlined in the Paris Agreement.
South Africa is one of more than 190 members of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) who are parties to the eight-year-old Paris Agreement.
The spokesperson said South Africa’s mitigation measures are a response to climate change impacts that are increasingly experienced across a number of sectors including water resources; agriculture and food production; energy generation and human settlements and migration.
“These impacts will disproportionately affect poor communities and vulnerable groups and could effect South Africa’s ability to meet its development and economic growth goals, including job creation and poverty reduction,” Magwenya said.
The legislation is expected to set out the functions of the Presidential Climate Commission, and stipulate the role provinces and municipalities will play in mitigation efforts.
This comes on the heels of the Forestry, Fisheries and Environment Minister, Dion George attending the Brazil, South Africa, India and China (BASIC) ministerial meeting on climate change in Wuhan, China on Sunday.
George said the position of the new South African Government (of national unity) remains one of unwavering solidarity with fellow members of the global South.
“We regard the BASIC groups as a key strategic platform for articulating and advancing the interests of developing countries towards a more sustainable, just and equitable international order,” he said.
The minister said South Africa is focused on implementing actions to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, by means of the Just Energy Transition Investment Plan (JET-IP).
George said the legislation followed the National Climate Change Response White Paper in 2011, where the government has been putting in place components of an integrated response.
“Now this bill will integrate all these components into a robust legal framework, and mainstream climate action across government,” George said.
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