R Mabudafhasi: World Day to Combat Desertification commemoration

22 August 2006

“The beauty of deserts, the challenge of desertification”

Programme Director
Honourable MEC for Agriculture and Environmental Affairs in KwaZulu-Natal, Prof
Gabriel Ndabandaba
His Worship the Executive Mayor, Cllr L M Mthombeni
His Worship the Mayor, Cllr B B Ntombela
Councillors present here with us today
The CEO of Ezemvelo KwaZulu-Natal Wildlife, Mr K Mkhize
Members of the media
Distinguished guests
Ladies and gentlemen

Allow me to express my greatest appreciation for this opportunity to
commemorate the World Day to Combat Desertification and celebrate your
achievements with you. Today we wish to send out a clear message to our
communities here and throughout our country that we need to do everything
possible to care for our land and environment.

Programme Director it is eleven years since the United Nations Convention to
Combat Desertification (UNCCD) came into force. The international community at
the highest level has recognised the specific role of this convention in
achieving the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), in particular those related
to poverty, land degradation and sustainable development.

In recognition of the problem of land degradation, the United Nations has
declared 2006 as the International Year of Deserts and Desertification (IYDD).
This makes this a very special year, in which we must fight land degradation
with extra effort, and not only remember it on the one day set aside by the
international community.

This year theme for the World Day to Combat Desertification (WDCD) is “The
beauty of deserts, the challenge of desertification”. The theme reflects the
important difference between deserts as a unique and important ecosystem on the
one hand, and desertification, or the loss of the land’s biological
productivity, on the other. It thus serves two distinct purposes: to celebrate
the richness and cultural diversity of our deserts, which deserve protection,
while highlighting the need to combat desertification as a global sustainable
development challenge.

Declaring 2006 as the International Year of Deserts and Desertification
demonstrates a high political will of the international community and
strengthens the role of the UNCCD in addressing land degradation and poverty
eradication.

At a regional level the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD)
represents Africa’s response to addressing poverty and land degradation. The
NEPAD Comprehensive Africa Agricultural Development Programme (CAAD) indicates
Africa’s commitment to sustainable land management and reducing hunger. Caring
about the environment in Sub-Saharan Africa is not a luxury but a prime
necessity because African economies depend heavily on their natural resources
for survival. The commitment to eradicate extreme poverty and hunger by 2015
needs to be given priority not only at an international level but also at
national, provincial and local levels.

Programme Director, South Africa and indeed the global community has made
huge strides in ensuring that we achieve significant progress in our battle
against poverty and land degradation. As we celebrate this important day, allow
me to remind you of the achievements we have made since our government became a
party to the UNCCD.

We have put in place legislation to ensure sustainable land, water, forest
and biodiversity management, for example, the Conservation of Agricultural
Resources Act, 1993, the National Forest Act, the National Water Act, 1998 and
the Biodiversity Act of 2004.

The National LandCare programmes, Working for Water, Expanded Public Works
Programme and Working for Fire are also some of the national initiatives where
government is investing funds in rural infrastructure to ensure sustainable
land management, rehabilitation of degraded ecosystems whist addressing poverty
through job creation and economic development opportunities.

The Community-Based Natural Resource Management (CBNRM) is another programme
through which government, in partnership with communities, the private sector
as well as donor agencies, seeks to address land degradation and eradicate
poverty. The project which we are launching today is one of our CBNRM
projects.

It aims to address the problem of land degradation through land and
catchments area rehabilitation using both conventional and indigenous
technologies. The project also focuses on eradicating invasive alien species
and bush clearing with the ultimate goal of establishing a game reserve.

Through our social responsibility programme we have allocated an amount of
R5,5 million for this project. Use of these funds has resulted in the creation
of 68 temporary jobs; 20 community members have participated in learnership
training in Conservation Guardianship. The long-term objective of this project
is to increase the number of jobs to hundred and 168.

Furthermore, this project has a partnership with the adjacent privately
owned Thanda Game Reserve. I am told that the owners of this game reserve are
willing to transfer skills to the community. There is also a long-term plan to
facilitate free movement of game once the fence construction is complete. This
arrangement falls within the department’s strategic objectives of expanding the
conservation estate and ensuring equitable and sustainable use of natural
resources to contribute to economic development.

Last week on Tuesday, I launched a LandCare Centre in Mpumalanga Province.
This centre, the only one of its kind in South Africa, was established by the
local community after they have realising that their land is being degraded.
To-date this centre runs 27 projects focusing on land care and rehabilitation
projects. Amongst these projects is a food garden which produces vegetables for
subsistence and commercial purposes, thus addressing the critical issue of food
security.

Programme Director, these projects are indeed shining examples of how
communities can take care of their land whilst deriving sustainable benefits
from it.

As we are all aware, this year marks the commemoration of the 50th
anniversary of the women's historic march to the Union Building when they
protested against pass laws in 1956. In line with the national theme “Women:
Builders of Communities and Dreams”, we in the environment sector need to
create platforms for women to be active participants in programmes to address
land degradation. We must also encourage the role of local communities and
indigenous knowledge in addressing economic and ecological challenges of
dry-land management ecosystems.

I am proud to announce that our second Women and the Environment Conference
which was held in Mpumalanga on the 6 to 8 August 2006 was a resounding
success. This conference was attended by more than 400 delegates from the
grass-roots level who resolved that there is a need for the establishment of a
Capacity Building Fund for women and youth to improve their participation on
environmental matters. As the saying goes “you empower a man you empower an
individual, you empower a woman you empower a community”.

Programme Director, as I conclude we need to collectively raise awareness of
the links between land degradation and poverty and give priority and support to
conservation and sustainable use of natural resources in all our poverty
eradication strategies.

Let us continue to work together to bring hope and better lives to our
communities.

Thank you.

Issued by: Department of Environmental Affairs and Tourism
22 August 2006