Unlocking a Just Transition for South Africa – Opportunities for Green Jobs, Industries and Climate Resilience

The South African economy is highly energy and carbon intensive and also extremely vulnerable to the impacts of climate change. The country is also an acutely unequal society, marked by gross levels of unemployment and poverty. South Africa must achieve a Just Transition to avoid exacerbating inequality, maintain social cohesion, eradicate poverty and plan for the physical impacts of climate change.

The Department of Environment, Forestry and Fisheries (DEFF) and the Department of Trade, Industry and Competition (former Economic Development Department), jointly commissioned Trade & Industrial Policy Strategies (TIPS) to undertake a National Employment Vulnerability Assessment (NEVA) to delve into the climate-change related impacts on businesses, workers and communities in key value chains, namely:

1. The coal value chain
2. The metals value chain
3. Petroleum-based transport value chain
4. Agriculture value chain
5. Tourism value chain

Complementary to NEVA is the development of a set of Sector Job Resilience Plans (SJRPs) for the aforementioned value chains. The SJRP assess the opportunities for green jobs and industries; and climate resilience interventions to anchor and drive South Africa’s transition to a low carbon, climate resilient and inclusive economy and society.

The National Business Initiative (NBI) in partnership with  DEFF, is pleased to invite you to attend an online interactive session, as a critical next step to the development of  NEVA and SJRPs, to identify viable and effective programmes that could be implemented from these SJRPs in order to contribute to a Just Transition for South Africa. Core to this session, is a collaborative engagement on how business can best enable and realise the opportunities presented by a transition to a low carbon and climate resilient economy and; to respond to the economic risks of climate change as a key stakeholder in South Africa’s climate response. The event will concentrate on SJRPs areas that can assist sectors and companies in key value chains to realise the green economy opportunities.

Business leadership is key to a successful transition: one that is just and equitable, driving economic growth and competitiveness with tangible social benefits. Business-led engagements with Government and civil society on transition issues for key sectors present a real opportunity for a strong business leadership voice in guiding this transition both in response to climate change and other global trends.