Eco Minute 13:30

BULLETIN 21 October 1:30 pm

Good afternoon, here is your Eco Minute:

# To date South Africa has over seven-thousand megawatts of renewable energy connected to the grid and over 20 gigawatts that are still going to be added. This is according to the director-general of Mineral Resources and Energy, Jacob Mbele. Increases in renewable energy capacity additions hit an all-time high of 33-percent last year. It also had the highest additions in sub-Saharan Africa with nearly 40-percent of the region’s new capacity. Mbele says the country must continue to explore, develop, and produce natural resources.

# Climate experts believe the bioeconomy can significantly contribute to climate-resilient development in Africa and beyond. As the Global Bioeconomy Summit commences this week, discussions will highlight how Africa’s rich biodiversity can be leveraged through sustainable bioeconomic strategies to address climate change. Intergovernmental Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services chairperson, David Obura, has underscored the urgent need to harmonise climate and biodiversity solutions.

# And finally: World leaders and representatives from nearly 200 countries are gathering in Colombia for the next two weeks, for the United Nations Biodiversity Summit known as COP16. This year’s summit will review progress towards implementing the biodiversity plan agreed at COP15 in Canada in December 2022. The plan includes concrete measures to put 30-percent of the planet and 30-percent of degraded ecosystems under protection by 2030. Business for Nature’s Eva Zabey stressed the need for effective implementation and monitoring of these commitments:

Stay tuned for more news………….