South Africa: Technical Assistance Report-Report on Macro-relevant Climate Change Statistics Diagnostic Mission (July 17–21, 2023)

Technical Assistance Reports, March 8, 2024

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Canonical URL: South Africa: Technical Assistance Report-Report on Macro-relevant Climate Change Statistics Diagnostic Mission (July 17–21, 2023)

Mission dates: July 17–21, 2023.
Publication date on landing page: March 8, 2024.
Context: South Africa has high dependency on coal energy and physical concentration of nature-related risks; the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate change projects that extreme temperatures to be on the upward trajectory.
Objective: IMF Statistics Department diagnostic mission to support authorities in developing a workplan for enhancing environment and climate change statistics.
Host and financing: Hosted by Statistics South Africa; mission financed by the Swiss State Secretariat for Economic Affairs.

Data needs for policy:
- South Africa requires large amounts of granular, relevant, and reliable data for evidence-based planning and a just transition.
Broad stakeholder agreement to prioritize:
- Establishment of a centralized environmental and climate change database with formalized institutional arrangements for coordination, data sharing protocols, and communication of statistics.
- Development of the first set of air emission accounts and reestablishment of the energy flow accounts.

Strengthen capacity for collection of statistics on government environmental expenditures and subsidies, especially from sub sovereign governments and municipalities.
Provide tailored technical assistance/training on carbon footprints of foreign direct investments.

Increased frequency and intensity of nature-related risks expected to have profound effects on:
- Human health.
- Access to food and water.
- Biodiversity, habitats and ecosystems.
- Infrastructure and human settlements.