“South Africa is a developing country that currently has no obligation to reduce
greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions under agreements such as the Kyoto Protocol. Moreover, with an unemployment rate of 30% or more, the focus of most South African development policies is to increase job creation and overall industrial profitability. At the same time, however, research suggests that industrial energy efficiency measures offer the potential to increase profitability and jobs while reducing GHG emissions and influence other sustainable development goals. This paper draws on recent work in South Africa to show how certain energy efficiency measures meet national development goals and incidentally reduce GHG emissions. The implication is that
certain GHG mitigation measures could support national economic development goals. These measures are both described and evaluated using a multi criteria analysis (MCA) framework with appropriate macro economic interactions and feedback. This framework can provide solutions that meet multiple policy and development goals.”
