Our common future depends on climate action now

Our common future depends on climate action now

Pesident Ramaphosa’s letter to the nation on 7 November focuses on climate change and the important discussions taking place at COP27 in Egypt.

Placing the climate change issue into local context, His Excellency recalls the tragedy of the floods which pummelled parts of KwaZulu-Natal, North West and the Eastern Cape this year – with homes being swept away, key infrastructure destroyed, businesses closed and worst of all more than 400 lost their lives.

“It has long been established that there i s a clear connection between the frequency of extreme weather events and climate change. It is also well-established that climate change has increased the likelihood of such events recurring.

According to one study, extreme weather events that were once expected every 40 years, now happen every 20 years. Extreme weather like flooding is also increasing in intensity. During the April floods, the city of Ethekwini received the equivalent of 110 days of rainfall in just one day,” - President Ramaphosa.

His Excellency is attending the 2022 United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP27) which is being held in Egypt at a time when developing countries are coming under increased pressure to contribute more to reducing global warming; at the high-level roundtable on just transition, South Africa, as Chair, will be making the case for developed economies to play their part support developing ones to meet their climate change commitments.

In this letter President Ramaphosa emphasises the balancing act required to ensure the country reaches its development goals at the same time as transitioning to a low-carbon, climate change resilient economy. Regarding the latter South Africa recently adopted a Just Transition Framework and released the Just Energy Transition Investment Plan for public comment. H.E. also points out that while historically Africa bears the least responsibility for climate change, it is our continent that is feeling its effects most acutely - and that 7 years after the Paris Agreement, countries with developed economies have largely failed to honour their commitments to provide substantial financial support for climate actions in developing economies.

“We all have a clear stake and an abiding interest in the outcomes of COP27. The flooding earlier this year, the wildfires in the Table Mountain range, the locust plague outbreak in parts of the Northern Cape, Western Cape and Eastern Cape, are all associated with climate change. They affect our health and safety, our social and economic infrastructure and our nation’s food security.

“As a country we will be outlining our own contribution to the global climate change effort, but at the same time be making a clear call for developed economy countries to meet their obligations. “It is only with this substantial support that we will be able to build the resilience that is needed to protect our country and safeguard our economy.

It is only with significant additional funding that we can ensure that future generations of South Africans live in an environment that is clean, conducive to health and well-being, and that has not been destroyed because of the inaction of today’s leaders,” – President Ramaphosa.