South Africa wants to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 28 percent by 2030, members of the presidential commission on climate change announced at a hearing.
The commission, which was appointed in 2020, discussed the proposal to emit between 380 and 400 tonnes of carbon dioxide (CO2) by 2030, which forms part of the NDC (‘Nationally Determined Contribution’), a plan to be presented later this year at the United Nations convention on climate change.
This target “may imply some political changes, but there is great potential in this proposal,” said Joanne Yawtich, executive director of the National Business Initiative and one of the commission members, quoted by Bloomberg.
To reach this target, South Africa is committed to reducing its dependence on coal, and state power utility Eskom Holdings has already announced the conversion of some factories to use renewable energy.
In turn, Louise Naude, who is also part of the commission, noted that 14 countries “have already committed to achieving neutrality,” a goal that the country also had to achieve, she argued.
