UNEP joins Cape Town for Green Week

Cape Town, South Africa, 13 August 2009 - For one week in late October, Cape Town will become one of the greenest business cities on Earth as the City of Cape Town joins hands with the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and a range of partner organizations for an action-packed Green Week.

One of the main events of the week will be the first-ever Global Roundtable in Africa at the Cape Town International Convention Centre on 22-23 October 2009. The Roundtable is organized by UNEP’s Financial Initiative, the largest and oldest Partnership between the UN system and the world of banking, insurance and investment.

Hundreds of financiers, investors, business leaders, built environment and property professionals from around the world and across Africa, joined by green groups, will gather at the Convention Centre (October 19-23) for a week-long series of events exploring how a green approach to business can create jobs, protect the environment and build better, fairer communities with towns and cities that work.

Partnering organizations supporting Cape Town Green Week include : the City of Cape Town ; the United Nations Environment Programme Finance Initiative (UNEP FI) ; The Cape Town Partnership ; Banking Association of South Africa (BASA) ; Green Building Council South Africa (GBCSA) ; Africa investor (Ai) ; Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP), National Business Initiative (NBI) ; and Cape Town International Convention Centre (CTICC) . Other organizations and initiatives are welcome to back Cape Town Green Week. (For more details on the partner organizations see Editor’s Notes).

Climate Change : Cape Town to Copenhagen Cape Town’s Green Week will put the City at the centre of the global green business revolution just six weeks ahead of a crucial United Nations Climate Change summit in Denmark, when the governments of the world will attempt to negotiate a new agreement for reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Cape Town Green Week will also enable African finance, business, civil society and green groups to send a strong message, calling for action, to the historic UN gathering in Copenhagen.

Achim Steiner, United Nations Under Secretary General and Executive Director of UNEP congratulated the organizations behind the initiative : " This initiative captures the very essence of the needed transformation to a smart, low-carbon, clean “green” economy that generates jobs and better services for communities in Africa and across the planet.

"UNEP and its 180 partner organizations drawn from across financial services are delighted to be part of an initiative driven by such South African leadership. Dynamic cross sector initiatives like these will help us ’Seal the Deal’ in Copenhagen" the UN environmental head added.

Paul Clements Hunt, Head of Geneva-based UNEP FI, explained : “Cape Town Green Week will also provide an opportunity to showcase UNEP’s Green Economy Initiative. This is a global initiative to mobilize and refocus the global economy towards investments in clean technologies and “natural” infrastructure while combating climate change and triggering an employment boom in the 21st century”

Clements-Hunt added : “The world of finance and investment will mainstream green economic thinking and sustainability as it seeks to rebuild balance sheets, reputation and trust after the financial and economic crisis of 2007 – 2009. UNEP FI’s two-day Global Roundtable – which will bring Cape Town Green Week to a close – provides the perfect opportunity for African and South African financial institutions to play a leading role in the challenging transition to sustainable finance.”

Piet Van Zyl, Executive Director of Strategy and Planning at the City of Cape Town commented : "As a green pioneer city in Africa, Cape Town is honoured to host this important cluster of “green” events in October. Cape Town is a leading global destination for sustainability-related events and tourism, and we are encouraged to see how the business world is taking green issues on board. During that week the City will be launching green building guidelines which will guide resource efficiency improvements in new and existing buildings, and help build a low carbon future for Cape Town."

Hubert Danso, Vice Chairman and Managing Director of Africa investor commented : “The Cape Town Green Week will provide an unparalleled platform for African corporations and the global finance community to facilitate environmentally sensitive investment partnerships and showcase their innovate solutions to stimulating green collar jobs in Africa.

Danso added : “The Africa investor CEO Forum & Awards are an integral part of the week and will promote numerous green business opportunities and recognise Africa’s sustainability leaders at the prestigious Awards ceremony held in association with UNEP Finance Initiative.

Cas Coovadia, Managing Director of the Banking Association of South Africa and Chair of UNEP FI’s African Task Force for the past seven years, said : "This is a remarkable alignment of green events and business action in Cape Town. It will also enable the City to highlight the impressive steps it is taking to address the sustainable development agenda at a time when we have guests, including hundreds of senior financiers, from around the world".

According to CTICC, Chief Executive Officer, Rashid Toefy the launch of “NOW (Nurture Our World)’ is a symbol of the CTICC’s dedication to becoming a leading environmentally sustainable convention centre and is a call to action, and encapsulates the centre ’s responsibility to address issues like climate change and the preservation of the environment for future generations. NOW symbolizes CTICC’s commitment to total sustainability through every facet of the organization," he said.

According to CTICC, Chief Executive Officer, Rashid Toefy the launch of “NOW (Nurture Our World)’ is a symbol of the CTICC’s dedication to becoming a leading environmentally sustainable convention centre and is a call to action, and encapsulates the centre ’s responsibility to address issues like climate change and the preservation of the environment for future generations. NOW symbolizes CTICC’s commitment to total sustainability through every facet of the organization," he said.

CTICC is committed to transforming the events industry to one that is socially, economically and environmentally sustainable and the NOW concept will serve as a catalyst to implement change. ‘We are proud of the fact that CTICC is the first convention centre in Africa that is a member of the UN Global Compact, a strategic policy initiative for businesses that are committed to aligning their operations and strategies with universally accepted principles in the areas of human rights, labour, environment and anti-corruption,’ said Toefy.

Highlights of the week will include the following events : UNEP FI, a unique partnership between UNEP and more than 180 banks, insurers and investment institutions, will bring its Global Roundtable to Africa for the first time. Five hundred financial executives will gather at CTICC on 22-23 October to explore the theme of ‘Financing change, Changing finance.’ UNEP FI will also hold a series of training events across Cape Town during the week. Africa Investor (Ai), a media and investment advisory group, will partner with UNEP FI to hold a Pan African CEO business meeting at CTICC on 21st October to debate green business issues and to fine-tune an African business message for the UN Copenhagen Climate Change Conference. Ai will also join UNEP FI to present its prestigious 2009 Africa investor Investment & Business Leader Awards at a gala dinner on 22 October.

The Green Building Council of South Africa (GBCSA) will convene its Annual Convention & Exhibition on the 21-23 October at CTICC to cover the very latest ground on the green revolution taking place in property, city design and responsible real estate investment. The GBCSA will also launch its pilot Green Star SA Rating Tool for Retail Centres, following the successful launch of the tool for commercial office buildings last year. The Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP), in partnership with the National Business Initiative, will unveil information from South Africa’s largest companies on their greenhouse gas emissions and climate change strategies. A CDP report detailing the climate change actions of businesses in the JSE 100 will be released during Green Week at the Cape Town International Convention Centre (CTICC). In addition to these core events the following initiatives will be launched :

Africa Investor will be hosting the Africa investor Investment and Business Leaders Awards 2009.

The City of Cape Town launches its Green Building Guidelines. The Cape Town Partnership will be launching its Green City Programme, focusing on sustainable development in the Cape Town Central City. The Partnership has been involved in a number of energy efficiency initiatives to date, and is a member of the World Business Districts Network for Sustainable Development.

Cape Town International Conference Centre (CTICC) will be announcing their ‘Nurture Our World’ which is a symbol of the CTICC ’s dedication to becoming a leading environmentally sustainable convention centre.

Burundi signs CAADP Compact

The Government of Burundi today (August 24, 2009) signed the Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Programme (CAADP) Compact.The signing was conducted during the Country’s roundtable meeting, which opened today with the President of Burundi, His Excellency, Pierre Nkurunziza as guest of honour.

Burundi becomes the second Country in the COMESA region to sign the CAADP Compact after Rwanda, which signed in 2007. The CAADP Compact in Burundi will target sectors that effectively reduce poverty.

CAADP’s agenda reflects a fundamental shift in the way Africa’s leadership looks at agriculture and its potential contribution to ending poverty, hunger, and malnutrition. It aims to achieve growth and national development in line with the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). m The roundtable meeting attracted agricultural experts, policymakers, and representatives from the Government of Burundi, the African Union (AU), the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD), the private sector, civil society and development partners. The Compact is a mutual commitment between the Government of Burundi and the various national, regional and international agencies that are committed to agricultural-led development through CAADP.

The Compact was signed by Burundi’s Minister of Finance, Hon, Clothilde Niragira, the Minister of Agriculture, Hon. Ferdinand Nderagakura, AU Commissioner for Rural Economy and Agriculture, Madame Rhodah Tumusiime, Professor Richard Mkandawire head of CAADP at NEPAD and COMESA Assistant Secretary General, Mr. Stephen Karangizi. Other key signatories included, Mr. Bleoue Ehoue, a representative of the development partners, Mr. Hermenegilde Ndikumasabo representing the private sector and Mr. Pacifique Nininahazwe, representing the civil society. Source : NEPAD News, Bujumbura, Burundi, 24 August 2009

Economic Troubles Roil Africa

Amid signs the rest of the world may be recovering from the global financial crisis, Africa is still being hammered. South Africa’s economy, the continent’s largest, shrunk by another 3 percent in the second quarter, an omen that things may get even worse before they improve.

South Africa, among Africa’s most diversified economies, had already seen a plunge in demand for the cars, machinery and other goods it produces.

Africa’s larger economies are more directly affected by the crisis, but even smaller economies are feeling pinched, said Richard Mkandawire, an economist at the African Union’s development agency.

On a continent where most people live in abject poverty, any downturn is magnified. Some African countries are seeing tourist dollars drop as foreigners foreigners cut back on exotic travel. In countries like Ghana, there is evidence expatriates working in the West are sending less money home, Mkandawire said.

Africa had at first been seen as isolated from the market and banking turmoil that engulfed Europe and the United States, but a drop in Western consumer demand means Africans are selling fewer of the commodities on which many of their economies depend. In South Africa, manufacturing production dropped by 17 percent in June, and gold output in June was 12 percent lower this year than for the same period the previous year.

Former banker Maureen Dlamini, who has experience across Africa, said the global recession will result in lost ground in the fight against poverty on the continent.

A recent report on the continent’s economic prospects predicted overall growth for 2009 would be 2.8 percent - less than half the 5.7 percent expected before the global downturn. The report, by the Paris-based Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development and the African Development Bank, said growth in South Africa would be just 1.1 percent, and that Angola’s economy was expected to contract by 7.2 percent.

The picture is rosier in much of the rest of the world. In the U.S., the economy is still shaky, but the Federal Reserve has said the downturn may be "leveling out." Germany, Europe’s biggest economy, has seen better than expected investor sentiment and other positive indicators. Japan has reached the end of a yearlong recession.

"Just as the impact of the recession on South Africa lagged somewhat behind the rest of the world’s, it seems our recovery will lag too," South African Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan said in a speech Monday, even before the latest GDP figures were released.

On a street in Johannesburg on Tuesday, workers at a big box store were on strike for higher wages, demonstrating behind a sign that told management : "Stop complaining about the recession - it is hitting us."

Shop steward Emmanuel Ramara said the store cited the recession when resisting demands for higher wages. He said it takes courage to strike when every week seems to bring news of another company going out of business. At least a quarter of South Africa’s work force is unemployed, and some experts say the figure could be as high as a third if those who have given up looking out of despair are counted.

"There’s a need for urgency in South Africa’s response" to the global crisis, the country’s minister of economic development, Ebrahim Patel, told reporters last week. "We need to ensure that our industrial capacity is not destroyed by the recession."

South Africa’s GDP has slid for three consecutive quarters, the first time that has happened in more than a decade. South Africa has long attracted workers from neighboring countries, and now they are sending less money home, Mkandawire said. Any cut is significant on a continent were many live on less than $2 a day.

"Enough money to buy a bag of fertilizer could make a huge difference to a family in Zambia or Malawi," the economist said.

The picture isn’t all bleak. Moderate growth is expected in 2009 and 2010 in Ethiopia, Rwanda, Sudan, Tanzania, and Uganda - the fastest growing economies in East Africa in 2008.

Patel said South Africa needs to foster a much stronger economy across the continent, echoing a point made by visiting U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton this month. She noted that while she was promoting trade between African producers and her country, Africans should not overlook the market on their own continent, estimated at 800 million.

Dlamini, the former banker, concurs. Since February, she has headed the Africa Board, the Johannesburg Stock Exchange’s effort to position itself as a gateway for foreign investors interested in Africa. Companies from across Africa are listed on the Africa Board. "We have, as Africa, to work together," Dlamini said. Source : Johannesburg, 18 August 2009

Ethiopia sets Priorities Straight for Sustainable Land Management

Ethiopia is one of the TerrAfrica countries that have engaged in the Sustainable Land Management (SLM) agenda with a lot of vigor. Land degradation in Ethiopia, like in many African countries whose economies are dependent on agriculture and on land, is a very serious problem ; hence the government’s robust approach to tackling this problem.

Ethiopia is a landlocked country in the horn of Africa. It is one of the oldest countries in the world and has a population of about 79 million. Of this, about 85% are rural dwellers with a heavy dependency on agriculture and, subsequently, land for their livelihoods. Like many African countries, Ethiopia’s economy greatly depends on agriculture as a driver of economic growth. Over the past years, there has been a steady decline in agricultural productivity. Faced with increasing demands of a growing population and falling agricultural productivity, the country was forced to become a net cereal importer since 1982 . It is believed that land degradation has been a major contributory factor to this decline in agricultural productivity.

According to the World Bank, it is estimated that about 2-3% of agricultural GDP is lost annually as a result of land degradation. The government of Ethiopia recognized the threats presented by land degradation to the livelihoods of its population in general and most importantly to the overall economic growth and development and immediately took comprehensive action. The government took it upon themselves to embark on a holistic and programmatic approach to sustainable land management. This was not an overnight success story of rags to riches. The process was a steady progression from the initial constitution of a team to organise and harmonise Natural Resources Management (NRM) technologies and initiatives back in 2005. This team led the process to develop guidelines for watershed management.

The government of Ethiopia, through EPA then approached TerrAfrica partners for assistance in developing a programmatic framework to tackle the issue of land degradation that was ravaging the country. Within the same year, the ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MOARD) together with the development partners organised an inaugural workshop which laid the foundation for alignment, harmonization and coalition building for scaling up SLM.

Following the successful hosting of the workshop, a concept note for designing the SLM programme for Ethiopia was then developed by the government in collaboration with the World Bank. National inter-sectoral steering and technical committees for SLM were then established. Between 2005 and 2008, the government worked tirelessly and went through various processes until eventually, in 2008 ; they elaborated the Ethiopia Strategic Investment Programme for SLM (EISF).

The EISF provides a holistic and integrated strategic planning framework under which government and civil society stake-holders can work together to remove the barriers, and overcome the bottle-necks, to promoting and scaling up SLM within Ethiopia. The ESIF is planned to be implemented in three phases, over a fifteen year period (phase 1 : 2009 - 2013, Phase 2 : 2014 - 2018, and Phase 3 : 2019 - 2023). The activities to be implemented fall within six related broad areas namely : (i) investment in field based projects and programs for promoting and scaling up SLM ; (ii) improving land administration and certification system ; (iii) building the capacity of public and private sector SLM advisory and other support services providers ; (iv) improving the enabling policy, legal, institutional and financial environment for SLM ; (v) building the ESIF SLM Knowledge Base ; and (vi) management and implementation of the ESIF.

So far, about 30 US$ million has already been mobilized to support implementation of the ESIF and the first phase has already kick-started with 5 year SLM project that will be implemented in 35 Watersheds. The Ethiopia story of formulation of the investment programme for SLM is a clear example of how different sectors can come together and work towards achieving a common goal. It cannot be over-emphasized that at the end of the third implementation phase, Ethiopia will be at another level of scaling up SLM and clearly this is an example of a good practice many other African countries can emulate. Source : NEPAD News, Johannesburg, 22 June 2009

NEPAD zeroes in on Skills Development

Accra, Ghana 27 July 2009 - The NEPAD Chief Executive Officer, Dr. Ibrahim Mayaki, has called for specific home-grown strategies to help in the development of skills that are required to put policies into practice for the purposes of poverty eradication in Africa.

Dr. Mayaki made this statement at the official opening of the NEPAD Capacity Development Continental Steering Group (CSG) meeting on 27 July 2009, in Accra, Ghana. The meeting aimed at providing technical insights for the implementation of the NEPAD Capacity Development Strategic Framework (CDSF), as the continental framework on capacity development. The CDSF is a guiding approach towards strengthening capacity development assistance in countries and RECs, through NEPAD. At the core of the strategic framework is the need for countries to pay attention to national capacities to manage their own affairs.

The one day meeting of the CSG brought together representatives from four of the countries peer-reviewed under the African Peer Review Mechanism (APRM) ; University Networks, Private sector, Partner institutions including the Organization of the Economic Cooperation for Development (OECD)’s Development Assistance Committee (DAC), UN-Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA) and the NEPAD Secretariat. The Group identified entry points, mode of delivery and role of key players in rolling out the CDSF at all levels. The Group also agreed on the interface between Capacity Development and Governance, in relation to the African Union’s agenda on Post-conflict Reconstruction and Development, while placing premium on the integration of the CDSF into regional and national development plans and processes.

Overall, the CSG meeting endorsed the development of an Implementation Plan for the CDSF with clarity on the roles of the AUC, NEPAD, RECs and national governments, as well as, the associated mechanisms and linkages with Partners to drive CDSF implementation.

The CSG is being formalized as a technical advisory body and reference group for the implementation of the NEPAD Capacity Development Strategic Framework in Africa. Source : NEPAD News, september 15, 2009

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