T H E P U B L I C S EC T O R AN D SUSTAINAB ILITY
Co-operation between government and international agencies
leadership of the Water Research Council, the Sanitation Transformative Initiative (SaniTI):
In January 2020, more than 130 participants from across sectors - public,
“In this new and transformative approach,
private and civil society - gathered at the
the circular economy of sanitation sees
CSIR International Convention Centre
human waste as a resource, which allows
in Pretoria at the launch of UNDP South
a whole ecosystem of beneficiation to
Africa’s Accelerator Lab – one of 60
be derived from processing, byproducts
across the world, serving 78 countries.
and servicing models that support self-
The labs test and scale new solutions to
sustaining businesses.
global challenges by bringing together grassroots ideas with new sources of
“The circular economy has the catalytic
real-time data and experimentation to
effect of stimulating and developing a
meet the fast-changing realities of 21st
series and variety of logistics and supply
century development.
chain models, which brings greater convenience to the user and the much-
Minister of Higher Education, Science and
Innovation, Blade Nzimande in his speech at the
launch of UNDP South Africa’s Accelerator Lab
UNDP South Africa has partnered with the
required capacity, which is a weakness
Department of Science and Innovation
in the public model.”
These smart grids will provide opportunity
initiative. “Ground-breaking innovation is
Honourable Nzimande indicated that
but can also address local government
not new to South Africa. The country has
government is adopting a similar
played a pace-setting role in the global
approach with respect to energy access
innovation ecosystem, which led to the
and security (with a focus on off-grid
invention of several devices that continue
solutions using hydrogen fuel cells and
to shape the world innovation landscape
renewable energy sources) and in internet
till today” - Dr Ayodele Odusola, Resident
access and connectivity.
(dsi) to implement this innovative global
Representative, UNDP South Africa “Potentially the biggest industry that can In his keynote address, the Minister of
also develop especially looking at the
Higher Education, Science and Innovation,
infrastructure demand is the electric car
Blade Nzimande referred to the strategic
market. Investment in smarter electricity
partnership with the Bill and Melinda Gates
grids will be a pre-requisite for a future
Foundation) which has initiated, under the
electric vehicle roll-out.
for private investors in infrastructure revenue challenges. The integration of information and telecommunications technologies and the electricity sector can be lead to a significant new growth in these sectors”. Together we can This statement in South Africa’s National Framework for Sustainable Development reflects government policy towards sustainability: “South Africa aspires to be a sustainable, economically prosperous and self-reliant nation state that safeguards its democracy by meeting the fundamental human needs of its people, by managing its limited ecological resources responsibly for current and future generations, and by advancing efficient and effective integrated planning and governance through national, regional and global collaboration.”
Sources UNDP South Africa www.dea.gov.za Launch of UNDP South Africa’s Accelerator Lab
www.dti.gov.za www.dsi.gov.za
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