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. 

Since the beginning of 2022, SANBI has been working with National and Sub-National partners to design the project. The project leads are the Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment (DFFE) and the South African Local Governance Association (SALGA). The project will be managed by SANBI.

In 2018 SANBI issued a national call for Expressions of Interest that could form the basis of proposals that align with SANBI’s mandate, as well as the GCF project criteria. Since then, SANBI has been working with stakeholders to develop a national pipeline of project proposals for submission to the GCF.

zainul.dawood@inl.co.za

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