COP 26 BY JESSIE TAYLOR
WHAT HAPPENED AT COP 26
South Africa in Focus LOOKING TOWARD A FUTURE LOW CARBON ECONOMY Climate change in the form of extreme weather events is impacting human health, water availability, food production, infrastructure and migration. The pace of global warming is rapidly increasing, and Sub-Saharan Africa is likely to be severely affected by changing temperatures – the region is already experiencing temperature increases well above the global average. When world leaders gathered to plan a response to the climate crisis at the 2021 United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP 26), South Africa set a mandate focused on securing funding and aligning with the Paris agreements. FOCUS ON ELECTRICITY SECTOR REFORM This focus has resulted in a partnership between Germany, France, the UK and the US to provide
pledged R131-billion over the next three to five years to fund South Africa’s move towards renewable energy sources. The funds will be in the form of grants, concessional loans and investment and risk-sharing instruments, including mobilising private sector funding. The partnership will focus on enabling South Africa’s transition away from coal towards renewable energy sources, and aims to prevent 1.5 gigatonnes of emissions over the next 20 years. It will also allow for support for the coal sector and its workers and the country transitions to cleaner energy sources. The electricity sector contributes 41% of South Africa’s greenhouse gas emissions and will be the first phase of the transition to a lowcarbon economy, according to President Cyril Ramaphosa. South Africa’s greenhouse gas emissions increased by 10.4% between 2000
16 | Public Sector Leaders | November 2021
and 2017. The country’s electricity is overwhelmingly generated by coal, with its coal use for electricity more than double the global average. The country has been ranked in the top 20 emitters of greenhouse gases and is one of the most reliant on coal of all G20 nations.
Developed nations have pledged $100-billion a year to developing nations “It will be the quickest industry to decarbonise and will have a beneficial impact across the economy. We will be decommissioning and repurposing coal-fired power stations and investing in new low-carbon generation capacity, such as renewables. We will also pursue ‘green’ industrialisation, such as manufacturing using green technology and a shift to the production of electric vehicles,” President Ramaphosa.
