Natural capital accounting is an emerging area of work that aims to provide credible evidence for integrated planning and decision-making in support of the development needs of the country. As such, the report focuses on efforts by Statistics South Africa (Stats SA) and other institutions to develop priority natural capital accounts and effective statistical systems and institutional mechanisms to inform South Africa’s sustainable development policy objectives.
The National Natural Capital Accounting Strategy is intended to support coordination of an integrated body of natural capital accounting work in South Africa, and collaboration between national institutions in such a way as to strengthen investment and commitment to the production of natural capital accounts that provide credible and useful evidence for integrated planning, monitoring and decision-making.
The strategy has a 10-year time frame with a five-year review, with a focus on national level natural capital accounts, and meets Stats SA’s standards through application of the System of Environmental-Economic Accounting (SEEA) and national classification systems. These have helped place South Africa at the forefront of a global movement on natural capital accounting.