By Tara Roos
Minister of human settlements Thembisile Simelane has confirmed her department is finalising a climate change response strategy & implementation plan (CCRS&IP) in a reply to a written question by MK MP Thulani Gamede.
The strategy, prepared in compliance with the Climate Change Act of 2024, sets out binding obligations on the department to safeguard vulnerable human settlements against climate‑related risks and embed resilience into the upgrading of informal settlements.
The minister said the CCRS&IP is undergoing internal governance and approval processes and will serve as the framework for accelerating in‑situ upgrading through the mid‑term development plan (MTDP).
The plan is anchored in the upgrading of informal settlements programme (UISP) and supported by the informal settlements upgrading partnership grant (ISUPG), which ring‑fences funding for measurable outcomes.
These include the provision of basic services such as water, sanitation, electricity and stormwater management; the formalisation of tenure through incremental arrangements; and the incorporation of climate‑resilient infrastructure standards such as flood‑resistant housing and energy‑efficient technologies.
The minister further confirmed the implementation plan identifies nine priority interventions for the 2024–2030 period.
These include geo‑mapping of informal settlements, re‑blocking of densely populated areas to improve access for emergency services, and the co‑development of early warning systems with affected communities.
It also requires assessments of high‑risk sites, with displacement permitted only where critical for climate‑resilient infrastructure or environmental conservation, subject to approval by local authorities.
The programme is intended to be implemented through co-ordinated action between national, provincial and municipal authorities, with municipalities tasked to embed climate risk assessments into their spatial development frameworks and disaster risk reduction strategies.
Operationally, this will involve the restructuring of settlement layouts to reduce overcrowding, the integration of bulk infrastructure maintenance into upgrading projects, and the preservation of ecosystem services such as wetlands and tree cover to mitigate heat stress and flooding.
The department has indicated that funding will be disbursed against measurable milestones, requiring municipalities to demonstrate progress in service provision, tenure security and resilience measures before further allocations are made.
In practice, the CCRS&IP is designed to shift informal settlement upgrading from ad hoc projects to a structured, performance‑based system that aligns housing policy with statutory climate obligations and ensures vulnerable communities are prioritised in national development planning.
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