The Minister of Water and Environmental Affairs, Mrs Edna Molewa will host a climate change breakfast briefing. The briefing will focus on the release of the South Africa’s Long-term Adaptation Scenarios Phase 1 reports, and discussions on South Africa’s participation in the international negotiations under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change in Warsaw, in November 2013.
Climate change is already a measurable reality and South Africa, though vulnerable to its impacts, is taking action at national, provincial, local and community level. South Africa’s vision for a just transition to a climate-resilient and lower-carbon economy and society is presented in the National Climate Change Response Policy.
A key objective of this policy is to build and sustain our social, economic and environmental resilience and emergency response capacity. As part of implementing the provisions of the Policy, a set of Long Term Adaptation Scenarios is being developed in consultation with all key stakeholders.
These adaptation scenarios evaluate the socio-economic and environmental implications of climate change impacts, on the basis of a set of agreed climate change scenarios. Phase one of this process produced reports on impact and climatic scenarios, that evaluate how changes in the climate may affect key climate sensitive sectors i.e. water, agriculture, biodiversity, human health and marine fisheries, over the short, medium and long term.
A process is now underway, led by National Treasury and the National Planning Commission, on the economic modelling that will assist in determining the impacts costs of and benefits of adaptation. The evidence-based reports produced will inform the integrated adaptation planning and implementation across sectors.
The briefing breakfast will receive presentations on South Africa’s priorities for the forthcoming international climate negotiations in Warsaw, and on the phase 1 reports of the Long Term Adaptation Scenarios.
In addition, there will be a panel discussion led by various government departments on measures to respond to climate change impacts in South Africa. The Department of Health will lead on health, Treasury on infrastructure and the Department of Water Affairs and Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry will lead on impacts on water resources and food security respectively.
Media are invited to the breakfast. The details are as follows:
Date: Tuesday, 5 November 2013
Time: 08h30 – 12h00
Venue: Royal Elephant Hotel, Bondev Park, Cnr Willem Botha & Wierda Roads, Eldoraigne Centurion, Gauteng
To RSVP:
Kgomotso Penyenye
Tel: 012 310 3990
E-mail: KPenyenye@environment.gov.za
Nwabisa Tsengiwe
Tel: 012 310 3198
E-mail: NTsengiwe@environment.gov.za
For media queries contact:
Albi Modise
Cell: 083 490 2871
