Presidential Climate Commission raises concerns about poor disaster management at local govt level
Recent torrential rains have left parts of Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal and the North West struggling with damaged infrastructure, school closures and impassable roads.
The aftermath of the recent heavy rains in Adams Mission, KwaZulu-Natal. Picture Nhlanhla Mabaso/ Eyewitness News
JOHANNESBURG - The Presidential Climate Commission has flagged its concerns about the poor disaster management at local government level as floods continue to leave a trail of destruction in some municipalities.
Recent torrential rains have left parts of Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal and the North West struggling with damaged infrastructure, school closures and impassable roads.
Residents and businesses in eThekwini are among the hardest hit.
This was among the issues tabled when the climate commission met for its quarterly talks in Johannesburg on Friday.
While disaster management teams work tirelessly to mitigate risks and respond effectively, too many lives have already been lost, critical infrastructure damaged, and services disrupted.
Rebuilding and rehabilitating infrastructure remains a challenge.
Commissioner at the Presidential Climate Commission, Louise Naude, said that a bottom-up approach was needed to address the challenges at local government.
She added that the Climate Change Act placed extra responsibility on local government to incorporate climate change issues in their integrated development plans.
"The call from local government that I heard is that we need common methodology to fulfil our roles under the act," Naude said.
Following an assessment conducted during the 2020/2021 financial year to evaluate municipalities' capacity to perform disaster management functions, the South African Local Government Association (SALGA) in February announced an overhaul in the country’s disaster management system to address various legislative and administrative shortcomings.