“We can all do our little bit to reduce climate change”

Yunus Carrim
Deputy Minister
Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs

CLEAN CITIES AND TOWNS PROGRAMME
Msunduzi
23 November 2011

It is a pleasure, let me say at the outset, to be in my home city in my official capacity today. I was here, of course, in May as part of the launch of the ‘Clean Cities and Towns” Programme in Msunduzi, and I am here today, with others, to hand over 200 bins and plant trees as part of the ongoing campaign. We want, as CoGTA, as I am sure all of you do, to see this campaign succeed. We have no choice. We have to make it work. Not just for ourselves, but, even more, for our children and their children.

And it is particularly appropriate that we are here today, as it is less than a week to the major United Nations international Conference on Climate Change, COP 17, right here on our doorstep, eThekwini. Two years ago, in Copenhagen, the different countries could not come to an agreement on how to reduce the prospects of climate change and global warming. It is hoped that with our rich recent history of negotiations, dialogue and consensus, South Africa will provide fertile ground for an amicable global settlement.

For people the world over, this gathering is of crucial importance to the process of arresting climate change and global warming on a significant scale. Time is fast running out!  Governments have to make meaningful commitments to reduce greenhouse gasses and carbon emissions if we are to preserve the heritage of future generations.
But the challenge, it must be stressed, to manage the environment does not rest with governments alone. We all have a responsibility to do so. And this “Clean Cities and Towns Campaign” offers all of us an opportunity to play a role.
We have formed a partnership with the Department of Environment Affairs, the Provincial Department of CoGTA and the Msunduzi municipality to ensure that this campaign is successful.

Basically, the aims of the Clean Cities and Towns Programme are to:
•     Encourage communities to keep their environment clean.

•    Turn open spaces into parks.
• Plant trees to promote a green environment
•  Promote environmental education, so that people do not litter
• Promote waste management through recycling.
• Contribute to jobs-creation through recycling glass, paper and other waste.
•     Reduce waste and extend the life of landfill sites which also produce harmful gases.
The “Clean Cities and Towns” programme also supports the provision of basic services to poor communities
Where there are broken sewerage pipes or leaking taps, we work with partners like the Department of Water Affairs to fix these.
The programme provides support for municipalities to collect waste, especially from poor communities. Where there are un-serviced areas for waste collection, through this programme, CoGTA seeks to support municipalities to provide the required service to those areas.
COGTA also tries to encourage municipalities to promote clean streams and rivers, and to remove alien vegetation along the rivers, so promoting river health and reducing water-borne diseases due to dirty rivers.
The aim is also to improve side-walks through paving to beautify the environment.
The benefits of implementing the programme include:
• A safe and clean environment for children to play.
• Green parks for communities to enjoy.
• Job-creation by “turning waste into wealth”
• Promotion of tourism and investment.

As CoGTA, we seek to promote cooperative governance among the three spheres of government and between government and the people. This programme requires the active involvement of business, trade unions, other organised sections of civil society and ordinary people. All of us need to play our part to make this town clean, green and attractive.

The government has released a White Paper on Climate Change to more effectively deal with carbon emissions and other aspects of our response to the need to manage our environment better. We can all, in our different ways, play a role in implementing the White Paper.
Over time, we hope to roll-out the “Clean Cities and Towns” programme to all municipalities in KwaZulu-Natal. The programme is also being facilitated through the Community Work Programme which has created over 80 000 employment opportunities nationally. It is through the jobs created by the Community Work Programme that the “Clean Cities and Towns” programme has made progress in Johannesburg, Komatipoort in Mpumalanga, and Mbashe and Mthatha in the Eastern Cape so far.

We need to strengthen ward committees and other structures of community participation to play an active role in this campaign.
We need to ensure that people use these bins being handed over today and other bins, and do not litter. Msunduzi, regrettably, has not been seen as a clean city, and though there have been improvements of late, much more certainly can be done. Msunduzi, together with uMgungundlovu, needs to use this campaign to actively address its litter challenges. It’s not, as we all know, just about litter or even the environment. A clean city will contribute to improving the morale of the residents and a better functioning city overall, with even, possibly, better prospects for investment and growth.
So if this campaign is necessary in all municipalities, it may be more so in this municipality with its huge potential and significance.

But it’s not just up to the municipality. It’s, ultimately, the residents that count most. It is you who will have to make this campaign work.   
All the little things we do add up and contribute to our saving the planet. There’s not a single person who can say that he or she cannot contribute to the global campaign to manage our environment better. So let’s do our bit and save our future!

As CoGTA, we wish the community of Msunduzi well, and will work with the provincial government, the municipality and you to together improve your future.
I thank you!