South Africa's understanding of democracy has led to a system where participation is often confused with the power to determine outcomes. The country has become proficient in the performance of democratic participation, with numerous meetings, consultations, and reports produced. However, the fundamental questions of who makes decisions, controls resources, and benefits remain unaddressed. This contradiction is embedded in the country's political system, where citizens are encouraged to vote for representatives but have limited authority over decisions affecting their lives.
The Just Energy Transition (JET) in South Africa has adopted a similar model, emphasizing inclusion, participation, and social justice. The Presidential Climate Commission (PCC) has been established to advance an inclusive transition, invoking the principle that communities should participate in determining their development and livelihoods. However, this has not translated to meaningful decision-making authority for affected communities. The PCC's framework provides for procedural, distributive, and restorative justice, but the underlying concentration of power remains largely untouched.
A forthcoming report, Green Power, Old Inequality, examines how the renewable energy transition is reproducing economic exclusion and concentrated power in South Africa's mineral economy. The report highlights that the JET Investment Plan identifies around R1.5-trillion in investment requirements between 2023 and 2027. However, affected communities have limited influence over the economic arrangements determining their futures. Corporations, financiers, and government institutions often negotiate key decisions before communities are notified, leaving little room for negotiation.
The renewable energy economy is seeing a similar pattern, with communities invited to participate only after fundamental commercial decisions have been made. This has been observed in projects such as the Sonvanger Solar in the Free State, where a renewable energy project can reduce emissions but reproduce concentrated ownership and exclusion. The technology may change, but the relationships of power remain intact. Community participation becomes a mechanism for legitimizing decisions already taken.
An institutional economy is developing around participation in the Just Transition, with numerous programs established to facilitate community participation. Government institutions, international donors, and professional civil society organizations have committed significant funds towards civic engagement and stakeholder consultation. For example, the Just Energy Transition Project Management Unit's grant registers identify around R127-million in selected commitments towards civic engagement and civil society participation.
The financial figures behind these programs are revealing, with R87.9-million allocated for civic engagement in Mpumalanga and around R38-million for an EU-funded Climate Change Champions program. However, the focus on participation and consultation has not addressed the underlying issues of power and inequality. The Just Transition is replicating a democratic model that has already confused participation with power, leaving communities with limited authority over decisions affecting their lives.
As South Africa approaches the November municipal elections, the declining willingness of citizens to participate should serve as a warning about the legitimacy of this model. Turnout fell from 57.97% of registered voters in 2016 to just 45.86% in 2021. The country needs to confront the democratic deficit and address the concentration of power to ensure a more inclusive and participatory transition.
Key points
- The Just Energy Transition in South Africa is reproducing a familiar democratic contradiction, where communities are invited to participate but lack the power to determine their futures.
- The country's understanding of democracy has led to a system where participation is often confused with the power to determine outcomes.
- The institutional economy developing around participation in the Just Transition has committed significant funds towards civic engagement and stakeholder consultation, but has not addressed the underlying issues of power and inequality.
