The Institute for Economic Justice (IEJ) hosted a policy roundtable on food systems and climate policy in Pretoria on 12 August 2026, bringing together grassroots food-system constituencies, civil society organisations and policymakers involved in implementing South Africa’s Climate Change Act.
The roundtable was the culmination of a broader process to build the capacity of food-system constituencies to engage with the Climate Change Act and upcoming national, sectoral and municipal adaptation planning processes. The process seeks to ensure that the priorities and experiences of producers, workers and communities are reflected in the development of a just and resilient food system.
The discussion brought together smallholder farmers, informal traders, farm workers, labour representatives and fishers, alongside representatives from government departments and institutions including the Departments of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment; Agriculture; Health; and Water and Sanitation, as well as the Presidential Climate Commission (PCC) and the South African Local Government Association (SALGA).
About the roundtable
The roundtable provided an opportunity to:
- Present the civil society position paper, Putting Food Systems on the Climate Agenda, to relevant government departments and policymakers.
- Enable grassroots constituencies that contributed to the position paper to engage directly with policymakers about their priorities and experiences.
- Strengthen dialogue across government departments whose work affects the food system, including climate, agriculture, water, land, labour, trade and local government.
- Understand the current state of national, sectoral and municipal climate planning processes and identify opportunities for civil society participation.
A central theme was that food-system adaptation cannot be treated as an agricultural issue alone. Effective adaptation requires coordinated action across areas including water governance, agricultural policy, labour, health, local government, infrastructure, social protection and climate finance.
Climate Change Act: moving from legislation to implementation
The roundtable included an update from Thabang Phago, Director for Adaptation and Natural Resources at the Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment (DFFE), on implementation of the Climate Change Act.
The update highlighted progress towards developing technical guidelines and templates for provincial, municipal and sectoral climate planning, assessing the readiness of provinces and municipalities, developing climate scenarios and indicators, and strengthening climate finance mechanisms.
At the same time, important gaps remain. Several provisions of the Act have been deferred, many municipal climate plans require updating, the review of the National Climate Change Adaptation Strategy has not yet begun, and coordination between departments and spheres of government remains uneven.
The discussion highlighted the importance of ensuring that implementation processes create meaningful opportunities for civil society and affected communities to participate.
Putting food systems on the climate agenda
The civil society position paper was presented as a collective contribution to the implementation of the Climate Change Act. Developed through engagement with food-system constituencies, the paper approaches climate adaptation as a food-system issue rather than an agricultural issue alone.
It identifies guiding principles, including the right to food and meaningful participation, and proposes five priority areas for people-centred adaptation:
- Protect and improve working conditions in the food system
- Safeguard food-system livelihoods and extend social protection
- Provide effective disaster relief
- Build resilient and sustainable food production and distribution systems
- Make nutritious food affordable
The experiences shared by grassroots participants helped connect these priorities to the realities faced by people working across the food system. Smallholder farmers highlighted water insecurity and unpredictable seasons; fishers discussed declining stocks, changing sea conditions and barriers to permits and infrastructure; and informal traders raised concerns about insecure trading spaces, municipal support and exclusion from planning processes.
The roundtable created a space for direct engagement between grassroots food-system constituencies, civil society and policymakers and helped identify areas of shared concern and potential collaboration.
The IEJ and the Just Transition Network will continue engaging with policymakers on the connection points identified through the roundtable, support civil society participation in climate planning processes, and work with food-system constituencies to engage with upcoming consultations on sector adaptation plans, including those relating to agriculture and fisheries.
The roundtable forms part of a broader effort to ensure that climate adaptation is shaped by the experiences, priorities and rights of the people who produce, distribute and access food.