South Africa would soon submit its second National Communication to the United Nations reflecting the country’s greenhouse-gas emissions profile, as well as the latest science on the country’s vulnerability to impacts of climate change, Water and Environmental Affairs Minister Edna Molewa reported on Monday.

The report showed that South Africa would become drier in the west and wetter in the east, accompanied by an increase in the frequency of severe weather events, such as drought, tornadoes, floods and other natural disasters.

Molewa said that South Africa’s role in seeking a global solution was informed by a desire to ensure that climate change did not reach dangerous levels, while balancing that with a recognition that the priority for developing countries was to address poverty and socio-economic development.

Speaking at a provincial climate change summit in KwaZulu-Natal, Molewa also highlighted South Africa's approach to the seventeenth Conference of the Parties (COP 17) and outlined the three outcomes it would seek to facilitate in the run-up to the event, which would begin in Durban on November 28.

The pre-event focus was on development, compilation, approval and lobbying of the South African COP 17 negotiating position that would be approved by Cabinet in late October. Secondly, the coordination and implementation of projects that could offset the impacts of COP 17 and create a national legacy and, lastly, implementation of the Public Climate Change Outreach and Mobilisation Programme aimed at engaging widely with all South Africans.

She said that the provincial summits contributed to these three achievements, firstly, as South Africans and government together committed to reducing carbon emissions while still ensuring development; secondly, to show that South Africa has demonstrated this commitment, through will and capacity to lead a revolution against climate change; and thirdly, knowing that whatever the outcome of COP 17, South Africa insisted on what was the right thing to do, and spoke for the poor, the underdeveloped, women, the workers and youth.

“It is my belief that as we gather in Durban later in November and December, we must not negotiate for South Africans, but negotiate together with them, we must, without an inch of doubt, know that we carry their will, and their commitment to work together to save tomorrow today,” she said.

This, she said, should be done in the knowledge that climate change poses a threat to efforts to achieve socioeconomic development priorities, while it also presents an opportunity to transition towards a green economy.

“This call is for the developed countries to increase their commitments toward carbon-emission reductions, while at the same time help the developing countries with the necessary resources that would enable carbon-emission reduction action,” she added.

“We also have to ensure that we continue working towards the clarification of the legal form of the envisaged binding legal outcomes, recognising that a global regime depends on making progress on aspects we reached agreement on in Cancun during COP 16.”

“We need to ensure that the Bali roadmap is implemented; we also need to ensure that there is comparability of effort amongst developed countries, and that there is transparency of emission reduction actions of developing countries,” she added.

Molewa also discussed the climate change response expo, which would allow South Africans who, owing to limitations associated with United Nations conferences and its related processes, were unable to take part in the negotiating aspect of the conference, to participate and showcase climate change mitigation and adaptation activities and challenges.

Provision has been made for government, business, civil society, academia, labour and media to have dedicated space at the expo.

It was meant for showcasing initiatives such as provincial climate change strategies, and the building of climate change responses by local government in delivering basic services and infrastructure.