Local municipalities to compete for green award

© Ella-Sarkisyan – za.fotolia.com

Briefing media during a post-Cabinet briefing on Thursday, 21 August, Minister in the Presidency for Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation, Jeff Radebe, said the Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries will run the competition.

Minister Radebe said the competition is aimed at encouraging local municipalities to green their areas of jurisdiction.

He said the department ran the awards in partnership with the Institute for Environment and Recreation Management as well as Total South Africa.

Other objectives of the Arbor Award competition include:

• To extend greening in local municipalities to previously disadvantaged areas;
  
• To ensure compliance with relevant greening legislation;
  
• Raise general awareness about the importance and value of new settlement areas towns;
  
• To provide incentives for local authorities that go an extra mile to green their areas;
  
• To provide a platform for diagnosis of challenges facing municipalities regarding the greening.

The competition provides for two categories of winners namely the Metropolitan municipalities and Category B which is local municipalities. For each category, the winning municipality will receive prize-money.

However, the competition entries closed in May earlier this year.

National Arbor Week and the National Arbor City Award is conducted in line with the department's greening strategy which defines greening as an integrated approach to the planting, care and management of all vegetation in urban and rural areas.