Alternative service delivery is critical to enhancing South Africa’s Just Energy Transition (JET) and has an equally important role to play in advancing decarbonisation, economic empowerment and community resilience in the country.
With financial support from the French Embassy, GreenCape has published an industry brief which speciifcally looks at this topic. The brief is written for:
- Municipalities: Local government officials managing energy, water, sanitation, and waste services in underserved areas. It offers guidance on
adopting community-driven, decentralised service delivery models to improve basic services and align with the JET. - Policy makers: Government representatives involved in South Africa’s JET, energy, environmental, and social policies. The paper highlights how alternative service delivery (ASD) can complement JET by addressing service delivery gaps and promoting sustainable development.
- Community development organisation: NGOs and community groups focused on socio-economic development. ASD details a community-driven approach to create localised solutions aligned with JET goals.
- International donors and development partners: Funders that support projects aligned with JET objectives, promoting inclusive and sustainable energy transitions in South Africa and other developing countries.
The brief highlights the following key insights:
- The JET is a transformative opportunity – South Africa’s JET aims to decarbonise the energy sector while addressing socio-economic challenges such as poverty, inequality, and unemployment.
- There are challenges in implementing JET – Key barriers include infrastructure limitations, financial constraints, community resistance, and service delivery gaps, which prevent equitable access to energy and basic services.
- ASD is a part of the solution – ASD provides decentralised, community-driven service delivery models that complement JET by improving energy access, water, sanitation, and waste management in underserved areas.
- There is a natural alignment between ASD and JET – ASD supports JET objectives by promoting community engagement, decentralised solutions, and public-private partnerships.
- There are replicable and scalable ASD case studies – The Nomzamo Agri Village project demonstrates how ASD can enhance JET by providing clean energy, improving safety, and fostering economic empowerment, making it a replicable model for other JET zones.
To access the full brief, click on the PDF above,