AFRICAN countries, including South Africa, cannot follow any one agenda to achieve their net zero carbon emissions targets, despite the prescripts of developed countries, they need to do it their own way, Crispian Olver, the executive director of the South Africa Climate Commission said yesterday.
Speaking at an intergovernmental summit at the African Mining Indaba, Olver said while African governments needed to work to maximise job creation and livelihoods, if they moved too fast on the energy transition they risked shutting down industries and sectors still dependent on the fossil fuel economy, and if they moved too slow, they risked falling behind on economic opportunities and being shut out of the global economy.
Barbara Creecy, the Minister of Forestry, Fisheries and Environment, said South Africa had never advocated a “sudden”…
