A ‘bundu bash’ towards water, energy, and food security: a nexus approach for South Africa

This research explores South Africa’s critical challenges in achieving water, energy, and food (WEF) security amid resource constraints and climate change. The WEF nexus approach integrates resource management to optimize synergies and minimize trade-offs, ensuring sustainable development.

The study addresses three key questions:

Electricity security – Chapter 2 shows that shifting from coal to renewables under IRP 2030 can reduce water (-29%), land (-9%), and carbon emissions (-5.5%), despite a 34% increase in electricity production.
Sustainable agricultural trade – Chapter 3 finds South Africa’s agricultural trade mix to be resource-efficient and economically beneficial.
Impact of resource pricing on households – Chapters 4 and 5 reveal that rising water, energy, and food prices negatively impact consumption and increase food insecurity, especially for low-income households.

This thesis advances the WEF nexus framework by integrating economic and climate dimensions, providing policy insights for sustainable resource management. It highlights the urgent need for interdisciplinary research and evidence-based policymaking to address South Africa’s growing resource crisis and support global Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).