Anda David, senior researcher on inequalities, French Development Agency (AFD) and Yasmeen Dinath, projects lead, municipalities and urban development, AFD

The French Development Agency (AFD) is “100% committed” to the Paris Agreement, and to tackling the social and climate-related issues that emanate from the switch to a low-carbon economy, said Anda David, the AFD’s senior researcher on equalities. The 2015 Paris agreement is a legally binding international agreement on what steps will be taken to minimise climate change.

It is imperative to ensure that the changes made in any community are appropriate, and have local buy-in, said David. That is why, with European Union support, and in collaboration with the University of Cape Town, AFD is currently working on software that will track the youth labour market in Mpumalanga.

The software will also map where the province’s higher education institutions are, in an attempt to enable better planning for future skills and economic development.

The AFD has put “at least” €1-billion towards just energy transition activities in South Africa, and is supporting the Presidential Climate Commission’s work on climate finance, she said. The commission is an independent, statutory, multistakeholder body established by President Cyril Ramaphosa. This includes cost-benefit analysis on the decommissioning of coal-fired power plants.

Yasmeen Dinath, the AFD’s projects lead on municipalities and urban development, said the organisation is aware that the “real impact” of the transition from a high-carbon to a low-carbon economy is felt at local level.

In South Africa, local municipalities have a high degree of autonomy, which is advantageous, Dinath said.

The AFD is focusing on Mpumalanga’s Steve Tshwete Local Municipality, looking into where its investment priorities should be focused, and what “catalytic actions” can be taken so that the local economy can be redesigned as a green one.

The AFD’s approach is to initially consult with the people living and working in an area such as the Steve Tshwete Local Municipality and, working with them, to incrementally introduce transition programmes, she said.