Corridors of Freedom gets Global Environmental Fund investment
10 February 2016
The Corridors of Freedom (CoF) – the City of Johannesburg’s programme aimed at undoing apartheid’s spatial planning and injustices – has received a R120-million shot in the arm from the US-based Global Environmental Fund (GEF) to enhance sustainable development initiatives in the metropolis.
This was announced by Johannesburg Executive Mayor Councillor Parks Tau during a meeting with GEF Chief Executive Naoko Ishii in the mayoral chambers in Braamfontein on Tuesday February 9.
The investment will include the financing of the City’s integrated programmes in food security, public transport and social housing in line with its Growth and Development Strategy 2040 (GDS 2040).
“These projects include ensuring sustainability, integration and accessibility in the development and implementation of the City’s physical plans. The partnership projects will also see to the improvement of urban food security in the City by increasing the efficiency of food flows and improve peri-urban agriculture techniques,” said Mayor Tau.
Johannesburg is one of three African cities where the GEF has made such investments. The other two are Abidjan in Ivory Coast and Dakar in Senegal. The partnership with the City of Johannesburg will also result in the launch of a pilot process through which aggregated data on resource efficiency will be used to make informed decisions on the City’s infrastructure investments.
The Mayor said the partnership would also be used as a blueprint for other cities in South Africa and on the continent.
“The GEF investment partnership comes as the CoF, a programme designed to reverse apartheid spatial injustices to create equal and sustainable access to opportunities for all the people of Johannesburg, begins to take shape,” the Mayor said.
The expanding Rea Vaya Bus Rapid Transit System, award-winning Fleurhof mixed housing development southwest of Johannesburg and the launch of a fleet of green Metro buses are some of the programme’s flagship projects. The City, through the GDS 2040, was committed to providing a resilient, liveable, sustainable urban environment underpinned by infrastructure supportive of a low-carbon economy, the Mayor said.
“The CoF programme is aimed at achieving this and also realising the agreed upon national government programme to build a non-racial, non-sexist society, socially and economically cohesive South Africa,” Cllr Tau said.
Ishii said GEF was “extremely excited” by the partnership with Johannesburg, which was facing development challenges because of rapid urbanisation and population growth. Joburg was leading the way in its efforts to find solutions through low-carbon transport and equitable development like projects under the Corridors of Freedom.
“Cities like Joburg are important. Over the past five years the role of mayors has become very important,” she said, adding that the extension of the Sustainable Development Goals and COP 21 resolutions in Paris, France, proved this. She said cities controlled 80% of countries’ GDP and Johannesburg’s 2040 vision showed the City’s commitment to integrated development.
“GEF programmes are for sustainable development. In the past we dealt with national governments directly. This is the first time in 25 years we are dealing with 23 cities,” Ishii said. She said integrated and multi-faceted development of cities was the future.