According to President Cyril Ramaphosa, unless world leaders move with urgency and purpose to bridge the wealth-poverty gap, poverty and suffering will only worsen.
The President made the statements while speaking to the Houses of Parliament of the United Kingdom on Tuesday, as part of South Africa’s State Visit to the nation.
President Ramaphosa is in the kingdom for a two-day Royal State Visit at the request of His Majesty King Charles III.
Without this urgency, the President predicted that “instability, conflict, and terror will increase.”
He said: “We need to attend to the deficiencies in access to education, health care, safe water, sustainable energy and economic opportunity if we hope to end the poverty that is handed down from one generation to the next.
“Nowhere is the need to tackle inequality more important than in our response to climate change. Those countries that carry the least responsibility for global warming are most vulnerable to its effects. They do not have the resources needed to adapt to drought, floods and rising sea levels. And as they seek to grow, industrialise and diversify their economies, their energy needs will increase and the space they have to reduce emissions will narrow”.
This, he claims, lays a duty on developed countries to donate significant resources to low- and middle-income countries to support climate action.
“This is not charity,” he said. “It is compensation for the harm done – and the harm yet to be done – to people in developing economies as a consequence of the industrialisation of wealthy countries. And because a global reduction in emissions benefits all countries and all people, it is also a necessary investment in the future of humanity.”
The President said that South Africa much valued the UK’s commitment to implementing a fair energy transition in the nation.
He said that this indicated the UK government’s strong grasp of the necessity of assisting transitions to low-carbon economies in a way that does not penalise impacted people, communities, or industries.
“We have called on the United Kingdom and the other partners to ensure that a substantial part of the funding takes the form of grants and highly concessional loans.
“We are pleased that the final outcomes of COP27 hold out the promise of concerted action to address climate change. It was President Nelson Mandela who espoused the vision of a global community of nations that strives by all means available to improve the human condition.”
Given the two country’s history, shared values, durability of their relationship, he said he firmly believes that South Africa and the United Kingdom should work together for the realisation of such a global community.
“Three decades ago, the British people joined hands with the people of South Africa – and with millions more around the world – to free Mandela and to end apartheid.
“Now, let us rekindle the moral purpose of the global fight against apartheid to confront the discrimination, inequality and injustice that divides humanity and that stifles the progress of all,” he said.
He described the State Visit as a chance to re-energize the two nations’ commercial, trade, and investment connections.
The United Kingdom is South Africa’s biggest foreign investor and the country’s fifth largest export destination. Outside of Africa, the United Kingdom has been South Africa’s main supplier of tourist visitors over the previous two decades.
“British companies need to use this advantage to greater effect, to seek out the opportunities in our country for investment and for trade. The cooperation in science and innovation between the two countries is significant, with rich potential for further expansion,” he said.
He said that the South African leadership was certain that these areas of collaboration could be expanded further.
“We are undertaking far-reaching economic reforms to make our economy more competitive and more efficient, to reduce the cost of doing business and to encourage new entrants into several industries.
“As we undertake the most significant restructuring of our energy market in almost a century to address severe power shortages, there are great opportunities for investment, innovation and partnership,” he said.
President Ramaphosa said that through pursuing these and other paths of collaboration, “we will define the relationship between South Africa and the United Kingdom in new and exciting ways.”
“By exploring the full extent of our common interests and capabilities, I am certain that we will add another chapter to our long and rich history,” he said.
Members of the UK Parliament, he added, have been crucial and involved players in the growth of the two nations’ relationship.
“We thank you for your friendship, solidarity and partnership. Please be assured of the sincere and enduring friendship of South Africa and its people,” he said.