This Second Nationally Determined Contribution under the Paris Agreement outlines South Africa’s updated and enhanced commitments to climate action across mitigation, adaptation, loss and damage, in compliance with the Sustainable Development Goals. This Contribution integrates climate goals with South Africa’s broader sustainable development agenda, addressing poverty, inequality, unemployment, and economic diversification towards a low-carbon, climate-resilient society. The Contribution details eight national adaptation goals for 2031-2035, with priority interventions across water and sanitation, disaster risk management, infrastructure resilience, food security, climate services, ecosystem-based adaptation, institutional capacity, financial assistance and climate-resilient settlements: 1) adapting South Africa’s water and sanitation systems to drying conditions and drought and flood intensification; 2) enhancing disaster risk management, healthcare and sanitation provision, especially in informal settlements, to reduce impacts of flooding and heat stress on most vulnerable households; 3) upgrading critical transport infrastructure (roads, rail, ports) to maintain functioning under increased rainfall intensity, heat stress, wind speeds and storm surges; 4) enhancing nutritious food access and affordability through support to agricultural and fisheries producers and distributors in adapting to warmer and windier conditions and changes in rainfall; 5) enhancing climate services, with early warning and impact information made accessible to a wide range of users, tailored to different operational, language, gender, age and disability needs; 6) enhancing ecosystem-based adaptation to heat and water stress, protecting South Africa’s natural heritage, biodiversity and improving ecosystem functioning that underpins the country's cultural identity, food systems, human wellbeing and the tourism economy; 7) capacitating all spheres of government to implement adaptation through enacting and enforcing all provisions of the national legislation on climate change; 8) building climate-resilient human settlements and resilient infrastructure.
Targeted interventions analysed in this Contribution concern: updating water preparedness plans and water safety plans; restoring catchments and wetlands, removing invasive alien plants; providing care services to young children, elderly and people living with disabilities; improving coastal dune rehabilitation and preventing erosion; developing market drought-resistant crop varieties and heat-tolerant livestock and aquaculture species; strengthening market access for small-scale producers; improving irrigation efficiency; increasing sustainable land management and sustainable fishing and aquaculture practices; redesigning national-scale agricultural extension programme to support sustainable rangeland management and fire management; ensuring invasive alien plant clearing and management; expanding conservation estate and protected area network; supporting ecological infrastructure interventions.