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126 viewsThe National Treasury recently contributed R800 million to the Green Fund with the objective of creating 300,000 new green jobs in South Africa by 2020. This will add to the 27 000 green jobs already created in the last financial year. The Green Fund finances mainstream green projects that look to impact the economy in a positive way.
Despite the sudden surge in job creation in South Africa’s green economy, the country already boasts a relatively large number of established green projects and companies. Questions have therefore been raised as to how this might impact them.
“Green jobs don’t impact us negatively as (the concept) embraces our philosophy and ethos of delivering environments that have less impact on the environment and help to mitigate climate change” insists Beth Basset, founding member of Green Communities, a company that promotes greening initiatives in low cost housing developments. Green Communities also creates jobs and focuses on teaching rural communities how to be more sustainable.
When asked what should be done with the R800 million, Basset replied, “Green Communities believes that more jobs can be created in agriculture and food security than actual ‘Green Skills’ and (that) the R800 million should be shared between these two areas. I believe that we should use this money wisely to build resource centers such as Agri Parks and Eco and Environmental Service Centers.”
Mothusi Guy, a founding member of PEER Africa (a group that is active in helping South Africa’s agri business and green finances) says that there are lessons to be learned from already existing flagship projects, and that the additional funds should then be used to build on this platform.
On this note, PEER itself was instrumental in the Integrated Energy Environment Empowerment-Cost Optimization (IEEECO) project funded by the Western Cape Provincial Government with the goal of reducing both water and energy use. The project also looks to give unemployed youth an opportunity to learn and earn. As Bassett says, increased funding to create more long-term employment in similarly creative and sustainable environments can only help South Africa to “keep up with the ever changing dynamic and the future development of the ‘Green’ industry.”
It seems that both the organisations and the communities are enthused about possible green jobs. The Green Fund will help these initiatives grow and hopefully inspire others to follow their lead.
Image 1: Solar-powered roofs
Image 2: Green fingers start young
Thank you for this interesting coverage.
The article does hit the key points. I would like to add the point that “new money” in a system that does not have the absorption capacity or that does not build on the lessons learned will basically not be optimal although welcomed. Green development is different than business as usual. So there has to be a transformation process. Current nationally designated Flagship Programs re the SA Response to Climate Change White Paper (2011) offers assistance in this regard. As a designated Flagship Project our aim in the Post COP17 space is to find ways and means to integrate silo projects, scale up and rollout iEEECO(TM) projects in specific climatic regions across the country. Our company focus more accurately is on design and implementation of sustainable integrated human settlements in their entirety and we have set a target to retrofit 1 million of the poorest of the poor households including informal dwellings over the next 5 years. Included and at the core of this effort are the following key objectives:
1. Skills and Technology Transfer via life time learning concept targeting LSM 0-5 stakeholders
2. Establishment of a special purpose funding mechanism targeting the emerging SME
3. Longer term and sustainable setaside benchmark projects in each climatic region
4. Integrated energy, environment and empowerment targets under the design and guidance of a professional services management team
5. Integrated and embedded monitoring, evaluation, reporting, verification and certification systems
6. Design and prepackaging of a basket of integrated interventions which improve and enhance basic service delivery -based on local need.
7. Improved legal and contractual tools and mechanisms to protect the consumers and improve the contractual capacity of SMEs and municipalities for green performance based projects
8. Create a platform for SA inventors and manufacturers
9. Provide a link and opportunity for research, development and demonstration in low income communities.
The partners for the Witsand Phase 2 project shown in the article (there are three different projects within the site) are Witsand EEco Housing Beneficiary Support Organisation (WEHBSO) who appointed Melon Housing Initiative (MHI) as their construction support organisation under a self-help peoples housing process subsidy scheme. They completed the community based rollout of 900 units, 500 new units as seen above and 400 units fell under the phase 1 pilot of 400 units. The Witsand iEEECO(TM) project is a mixed Greenfield and retrofit site as far as greening is concerned. Green Communities was instrumental in providing assistance and empowerment of women and families in both projects with greening solutions via contributions from MHI, with sweat equity from residents under the city funded greening project. The core funding for the overall Witsand Phase 2 integrated human settlement project included the National Government Housing Subsidy Scheme, PEER Africa-Project design/Management RD&D component, EnerKey/UJ-RD&D Component, Eskom DSM-Electricity savings space heating/lighting and Community member personal contributions, MHI also enabled the solar hot water heaters, PEER Africa is also running a long term SHW heater performance measurement pilot with three different service providers.. Other Greening research pilots on site include roof top water recovery and reuse (Ohio State University, USA) and soil stablisation via the use of indigenous plants (CPUT). PEER Africa is also funding wind/solar hybrid systems and has created a platform for the demonstration of passive solar site design and town planning layout as well as house design. There are 6 different passive solar modified house types on site. Research is underway with EnerKey with links being formed with SANEDI and other research institutions to share the lessons learned.
We intend to approach Treasury and others (e.g. DBSA, World Bank) for funding of the Post COP17 Flagship Rollout Program which will target over 1 million low income dwellings to be upgraded with sustainable interventions linked to enhanced basic delivery including greening within the context of a long term “learn for life” skills and technology transfer framework soon to be introduced by PEER Africa and its regional affiliates. The new program also proposes 6 new iEEECO(TM) greenfield sites 1 for each climatic region of the country which will offer a chance for local municipalities to model thier new developments and to share in the expertise and lessons learned from over 18 years of clean development experience from 1996 to present.