SANBI to implement eco-disaster risk reduction project with Green Climate Fund support
Image: OR Tambo District Municipality
The South African National Biodiversity Institute (SANBI) will receive a R700 million grant from the Green Climate Fund (GCF) to aid SANBI's Eco-Disaster Risk Reduction (Eco DRR) project.
The GCF announced their support for nature-based disaster risk reduction over eight years during their board meeting held in Papua New Guinea on Tuesday.
This investment will support the implementation of the project called, 'Scaling up ecosystem-based approaches to managing climate-intensified disaster risks in vulnerable regions of South Africa', or the Eco-DRR project, said Nontsikelelo Mpulo, SANBI's Director of marketing communications and commercialisation.
The Eco-DRR project is expected to take place in four climate-vulnerable district municipalities. The proposed project sites have been identified are: Eastern Cape Province: Alfred Nzo District, Umzimvubu and Ntabankulu Local Municipalities;
Limpopo Province: Sekhukune District, Makhuduthamaga Local Municipality;
Mpumalanga Province: Ehlanzeni District, Bushbuckridge Local Municipality; and
North West Province: Ngaka Modiri Molema District, Ramotshere Moiloa Municipality.
The exact location of the intervention sites will be determined through an operationalisation phase at the start of the project, in consultation with all relevant stakeholders, stated SANBI. The lessons that emerge will be applied to climate change adaptation responses across the country.
Mpulo stated that the project is expected to benefit approximately 366,000 people and indirectly reach over 5.1 million South Africans, especially those in areas most affected by floods, droughts, and wildfires.
The project is expected to restore and protect critical ecosystems such as catchments, wetlands, and forests and is intended to reduce the communities' exposure to extreme weather events, enhance water security, and promote sustainable, nature-based livelihoods.
Mpulo said that the Eco-DRR project is part of SANBI's broader climate adaptation portfolio and contributes directly to the GCF's targeted results for 2024-2027, for ecosystems and food systems.
Dr Dion George, Minister of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment (DFFE), said SANBI's leadership as a direct access entity reinforces South Africa's role in pioneering sustainable climate solutions and reflects the country's commitment to harnessing ecosystem-based approaches to tackle climate-induced disasters.
"The initiative will embed ecosystem-based approaches into disaster risk planning. This will bolster infrastructure resilience, safeguard livelihoods, and enhance adaptive capacity against climate change impacts,' he said.
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Mpulo said the project would directly benefit people by enhancing their protection from floods, droughts and wildfires through a set of interventions that improved the health of ecosystems and ecological infrastructure, thus boosting their ability to buffer communities from these impacts. 'This will be complemented by activities that improve disaster preparedness and response in the target district municipalities, enabling communities to review and interpret early warning messages timeously,' she said. This project takes a three-pronged approach to building climate resilience: On-the-ground action: This looks at integrated landscape management to enhance the resilience of ecological infrastructure and climate-vulnerable communities in the four district municipalities. The goal is to strengthen ecological infrastructure like wetlands and forests, making them and the vulnerable communities that depend on them better able to withstand climate impacts across four district municipalities. Proactive safety measures: Transforming how communities prepare for and respond to climate-driven disasters. This involves practical steps to reduce the destructive impact of hazards on buildings, infrastructure, and especially on at-risk communities. S upporting long-term change: Concentrates on creating the right conditions for sustained investment from both government and private companies. This will be achieved by building a stronger evidence base and improving how knowledge about nature-based disaster reduction is shared and used. In a statement, Dion George, the Minister of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment, said: 'The increasing frequency of floods, droughts and wildfires poses a serious threat to South Africa's communities, especially those in rural and peri-urban areas. 'This investment will support our efforts to strengthen ecological infrastructure, reduce disaster risk, and build adaptive capacity where it is needed most.' A strategic advantage in accessing global climate finance The issue of global climate finance to countries in the Global South remains a hot topic. While South Africa is a significant recipient of international climate funding, particularly through the Just Energy Transition Partnership, there remain several problems. This relates mainly to most climate finance in the country being loan heavy, insufficient, slow to arrive, and inadequately focused on the profound social adjustments required, raising fears of a transition that could leave the most vulnerable communities behind and deepen the nation's debt. The primary point of contention is that the majority of the climate finance offered to South Africa, including the initial $8.5-billion for the Just Energy Transition Partnership, consists of a lot of concessional and commercial loans, not grants. This has raised significant concerns that the transition is being financed by indebting the nation, which could exacerbate fiscal pressure on an already strained economy. Now Sanbi and the DFFE believe that the institute's accreditation as a Direct Access Entity of the Green Climate Fund, since 2016, gives South Africa a strategic advantage in accessing global climate finance. What this means is that resources are available to support local priorities and needs, build institutional capacity, and to ensure that climate change adaptation is driven by South Africans, for South Africans. 'This accreditation enables the South African National Biodiversity Institute to ensure that resources are channelled efficiently into projects that address national priorities. As a result, South Africa is better positioned to strengthen institutional capacity, advance climate change adaptation goals, and deliver tangible benefits to communities most affected by climate change,' the institute said in a statement. The Development Bank of Southern Africa and the institute are the only South African institutions accredited by the Green Climate Fund. 'This is a monumental achievement for South Africa and a testament to the South African National Biodiversity Institute's expertise as a Direct Access Entity to the Green Climate Fund,' said George. The minister said that as a Direct Access Entity, the institute had shown 'remarkable leadership' in securing this substantial funding, marking a milestone for both it and the nation. Project proposal development The Green Climate Fund is the world's largest dedicated climate fund and serves as an operating entity of the financial mechanism of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, supporting both the Paris Agreement and the global effort to help developing countries address climate change. It is funded primarily by voluntary contributions from national governments, with additional support from regional governments and cities. The main contributors are developed countries, but several developing countries also provide funding. Money is distributed from international climate funds to developing countries through accredited entities. The role of an accredited entity is to prepare and submit project proposals, disburse funding to projects, oversee implementation, monitor progress and report on project performance to the climate funds. Sanbi has been accredited with both the Adaptation Fund (established in 2001 in response to the Kyoto Protocol) since 2011, and the Green Climate Fund since 2016. In 2018, the institute initiated the development of a national pipeline of project proposals for the Green Climate Fund and invited Expressions of Interest from across the country. This led to the fund's approval of three concept notes, which are now being developed into comprehensive funding proposals. The projects currently in development are: Scaling up ecosystem-based approaches to managing climate-intensified disaster risks in vulnerable regions of South Africa (Eco-DRR): With a requested grant of $40-million, this project seeks to use nature-based solutions to mitigate the effects of extreme weather events, directly benefiting approximately 366,000 people and indirectly reaching about 5.1 million. Ecosystem-based approaches for transforming smallholder farming systems that are vulnerable to the impacts of climate change in South Africa (EbA-Farm): This $25-million project will use participatory, ecosystem-based methods to improve the resilience of 60,000 smallholder farmers and their communities across four provinces. Ecosystem-based adaptation for water security in South Africa (EbA-Water): Requesting $25-million, this initiative looks to safeguard 11 of the nation's strategic water source areas, ultimately affecting an estimated 17.1 million people. Sanbi said it was also actively working with various national and provincial partners to develop more projects for future consideration. DM
