Mother City has bagged yet another accolade, after it was rated the most sustainable city in Africa. This is according to the Corporate Knights Sustainability Cities Index report that was released last week.
The City’s Deputy Mayor and mayoral committee Member for Spatial Planning and Environment, Alderman Eddie Andrews, accepted the award and participated in the inaugural Corporate Knights Sustainable Cities Index Virtual Global launch.
Andrews said this rating speaks volumes of the City of Cape Town’s tireless efforts to incorporate its resilience and other sustainability strategies throughout the municipality’s departmental plans and practices. “This is the only way we will ensure that our city remains sustainable, irrespective of the additional pressures we face,” he said.
The 2022 Sustainable Cities Index is composed of 12 quantitative indicators of environmental sustainability performance. For each of the indicators, the necessary data points have been collected, either from public data sources or directly from the cities. The most important indicators that are measured include air quality, emissions, solid waste generation, climate change resilience and sustainable policies.
Andrews added that the greatest opportunity for cities is to prioritise actions that support the green economy, where decent green jobs are created and resilience to future socio-ecological shocks, such as climate change are improved. “The natural resources managed by cities provide significant assets that can be leveraged to facilitate appropriate and sustainable development. Natural assets provide social benefits in the form of recreational, educational, and tourism opportunities. In this regard, Cape Town has piloted and implemented various green jobs and environmental fiscal reform initiatives,” he said.
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Picture: Cape Town {etc} gallery