Heading for South Africa

Build for all

With nearly 12 million South Africans, or one-fifth of the country's population, still living in the townships, South Africa remains a country steeped in profound inequalities. The contrast with the affluent neighborhoods of Cape Town and Johannesburg is striking. At the same time, however, a burgeoning middle class is emerging.

Against this backdrop, housing is often an indicator of social inequality, and its improvement a powerful vector for reducing it. Poor populations generally live in precarious, dilapidated dwellings, highly exposed to the impacts of climate change. This is as true in South Africa as it is in France or elsewhere. Climate change exacerbates inequalities, particularly through its impact on housing. And an increasingly unequal society is also a society more vulnerable, as a whole, to the impacts of climate change, because social cohesion is a vital component of a society's resilience. 

This is why improving housing can not only reduce vulnerability to the impacts of climate change, but also inequalities. In a society like South Africa, which is still marked by decades of segregation, strengthening social cohesion is a key priority. Building materials make a valuable contribution to this: with more sustainable materials accessible to all, the aim is to reduce both vulnerability and inequality, as the two go hand in hand. 

There is therefore an urgent need to build more resilient housing. Otherwise, climate change will lead to even greater inequalities within our societies. And these inequalities will threaten not only our resilience to the impacts of climate change, but also our ability to successfully transition to a more sustainable future.