GOOD Statement by Brett Herron,
GOOD Secretary-General & Member of Parliament
08 November 2022
South Africa is making significant progress in its plan to move away from fossil fuels – with its “just energy transition” investment plan being endorsed by the International Partners Group at COP27.
GOOD welcomes the President’s moral commitment to a just transition towards a sustainable economy, positioning South Africa as a continental leader on this issue of generational importance.
The plan – which will see R1.5 trillion in investment leveraged over five years – was formally handed over by President Cyril Ramaphosa at the climate summit in Egypt this week. It includes the initial pledge of $8.5-billion from UK, US, Germany, France and the EU to assist in South Africa’s shift from coal to renewables.
The climate emergency is the creation of an exploitative, carbonised economy by Western countries, who now bathe in the profits of industrialisation, while leaving developing countries to play catch-up and suffer the worst effects of a rapidly heating planet.
As such, these countries that created the problem have a responsibility to pay for its correction.
In this context, we note that the initial funding from the International Partners Group is comprised mainly of loans, albeit on concessional terms.
It should not be for countries like South Africa to increase their debt-burden to pay for the errors of Western democracies, while African countries still only contribute less than 4% of global carbon emissions.
We therefore call on these international partners to make a stronger contribution of grant funding, which currently accounts for less than 5% of the initial pledge. And we call on the West to practice what they preach, as some developed countries have shown a recent tendency to pivot back to fossil fuels amidst global energy pressures.
South Africa should use its position to continue to push the global community to assist all developing nations with funding for their climate adaptation and mitigation efforts, without creating further indebtedness from the Global South to the West.
Such measures could include the payment of climate reparations as well as an international climate compensation fund.
We also welcome the plan’s commitment to just transition programmes. Climate change is not the fault of the coal-miner or workers in carbon-intensive sectors. They must either be re-skilled or their livelihoods otherwise guaranteed through these programmes. They cannot be left behind or pay the price for the sins of others.
Climate change mitigation policies are not a choice, they are a matter of moral, economic and social necessity: for us, for our planet, for our children and our children’s children.
For South Africa, we need to use this momentum to not only keep to our international obligations, but also to address our own energy insecurity – and its devastating impact on the economy. Green energy is our way out.
COP27 is the largest and most important climate summit to date. This plan could be the blue-print for future transitions across the world, especially in other developing nations. Now, more than ever, we need the co-operation and support of the international community. In this existential crisis that will define future generations, failure is not an option.
Media Enquiries:
Brett Herron, GOOD Secretary-General & Member of Parliament
Cell: 0825183264
Email: bretth@forgood.org.za
Janke Tolmay, GOOD Media Manager
Cell: 0733671223
Email: janke@forgood.org.za