The British High Commission in Pretoria announced on Tuesday that more than £3-million (over R60-million) had been granted by the UK to fund ten climate change mitigation projects in South Africa. This funding was being provided under the UK Partnering for Accelerated Climate Transitions (PACT) programme. 

The UK was the president-designate of the twenty-sixth Conference of the Parties climate summit, or COP26, to be held (all being well) in Glasgow in November. The country was determined to ensure that the summit’s outcome would be ambitious and equitable. This, in turn, meant giving equal emphasis to all three pillars of the Paris climate agreement, namely adaptation, mitigation and finance.

Despite the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic, the UK had committed itself to increasing its International Climate Finance (ICF) fund by 100% over the next five years. This would increase the ICF to £11.6-billion which would be used to support UK PACT and green recovery programmes in more than 100 countries, including South Africa.

“As host of the COP26 and a long-standing development, trade and investment partner, I am delighted that we are launching this range of projects aimed at supporting green, resilient and inclusive economic growth in South Africa,” highlighted UK High Commissioner Nigel Casey. “The world is focusing on both climate and Covid-19 recovery and we want to support South Africa to be at the forefront of the movement to build back better.”   

The projects that would receive British funding were chosen through a competitive process. They would support a transition to a low carbon economy and society that would be just and inclusive as well as climate resilient.

Four of the projects were focused on achieving a just energy transition. Two others would be concerned with the adoption of clean and renewable fuels, such as hydrogen, and implementing high energy efficiency standards in buildings. Another two projects would help underpin South Africa’s Green Transport Strategy, including the move to low-carbon mobility and electric vehicles. The last two projects would be concerned with enabling green finance and sustainable investment in South Africa.