City of Johannesburg’s Department of Development Planning in partnership with the Development Bank of Southern Africa and the United Nations Environmental Programme announced the launch of the Global Environmental Facility (GEF) Project.
This comes after funding of US $8.8-million was awarded by GEF to support the implementation of multifaceted environmental programmes that the City is undertaking between now and 2022.
The City, through Development Planning, in 2014 submitted a proposal to the GEF to fund a project which is in line with the GEF outlook; that being, a project focusing on reducing the carbon footprint of the City, and to allow for better adaptation to the changing climatic conditions the world is facing (environmental sustainability).
As per communication with the GEF, Johannesburg was selected as the pilot city since it is considered South Africa’s economic hub and consumes large amounts of resources.
According to the GEF, a shift in the development approach of Johannesburg would have a substantial impact in the production and consumption processes in the City, as the largest city, set a good example for other cities in South Africa.
The City was also selected for how it demonstrates commitment towards environmental sustainability in its long-term development strategy, the Growth and Development Strategy 2040 (GDS 2040), developed in 2011.
Through the partnership, we also intend to contribute towards greenhouse gas emission reductions in Johannesburg through an integrated urban planning approach involving a number of pilot projects.
The main GEF funded deliverables for the project are:
• Assessment of food system/resource flow of the city and its periphery;
• Detailed survey, analysis, and development of an action plan to identify problems and address the needs of disadvantaged groups in Johannesburg in relation to their access to affordable food, affordable housing and food waste to energy;
• Design, development, and testing of training modules to improve capacity of peri-urban and urban (training of farmers, local merchants, urban agriculture enthusiasts);
• Biogas project and overall management of food waste;
• Training and capacity building of local government officials in the target sectors of food, waste, and building and construction.
A comprehensive and integrated measurement framework, developed by the City for planning, monitoring and evaluation, will make it possible to track the interaction of our critical resources.
The main GEF funded deliverables for this are:
• Indicator framework established aligned with national indicators, allowing for international benchmarking, and supported by a solid information base to measure change;
• Tracking and measuring key indicators to assess the impacts of, and analysing policy and planning on inhabitants. This will include travel times and distances, growth trends, as well as spatial aspects such as density ratios, among other things;
• Align city indicators with the GEF Global Cities Programme performance framework;
• Co-development of a system to analyse indicators and translate them into policies, approaches, and projects that support GDS 2040, and the revised national Sustainable Development Framework (enhanced modelling capacity, scenario building);
• Lessons learned are captured in knowledge products and incorporated into national mechanisms, and promoted in the international arena;
• Prefeasibility and feasibility studies completed for investments aligned with the GDS 2040.
The City of Johannesburg is looking forward to a successful execution of these programmes by all Departments involved – because if Johannesburg works, South Africa works.
ENDS
Issued by the City of Joburg
ON BEHALF OF COUNCILLOR REUBEN MASANGO
MMC: Development Planning
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