By Carmen Möllmann, JET Platform Analyst, JET PMU, The Presidency
From questions to opportunities and collaboration
South Africa faces deep climate, energy and economic risks due to our continued dependence on fossil fuels, coupled with high levels of poverty, inequality, unemployment, and energy security. To lead the way in tackling some of these challenges, the Just Energy Transition (JET) charts a path towards shifting the economy to clean energy economic opportunities while accelerating the decarbonisation of key sectors. Central to this, is the JET Investment Plan 2023–2027 (JET IP), which places justice at the heart of South Africa’s energy transition. It seeks to protect vulnerable workers and communities; strengthen energy security and access; drive industrial growth and innovation; diversify the economy; and promote inclusive development. Beyond environmental benefits such as cleaner air, the transition also carries the promise of meaningful socio-economic gains.
One of the key enablers of the JET IP is the operationalisation of a JET Funding Platform (FP) that was created as a matchmaking service connecting grant funders (including philanthropic foundations) with JET credible projects. By addressing critical grant funding gaps especially for smaller-scale projects and capacity-building initiatives, the platform helps unlock grant finance that is often out of reach. Not long ago, questions surrounded the JET FP – funders asked: How would it work? Who would benefit? And does philanthropy have a place? Only a short time later, the landscape looks very different. The platform has launched multiple funding windows, mobilised over R70 million in grant funding, and attracted more than 200 project applications. Crucially, there are a variety of funders including independent philanthropy collaborating to shape the future of the JET.
This momentum matters because South Africa faces enormous stakes. More than 80% of our electricity still comes from coal and while coal has powered industries and communities for decades, it has also created pollution, climate risks, and economic vulnerability as global markets shift to clean energy economic opportunities. The JET poses many challenges but more so an enormous opportunity to be a powerful catalyst for renewal, unlocking new industries, strengthening communities, and creating opportunities for the next generation. The transition is underway, but whether it becomes just, inclusive and transformative will depend on the choices we make today.
A shift in the funding landscape
The implementation of the JET in South Africa comes at a critical time. Global shifts present difficult decisions for all funders, underscoring the pressing need for South Africa to take ownership of our own development and ensure that available resources deliver maximum long-term, sustainable impact for both people and planet. In this context, philanthropy with its flexibility, long-term perspective, and appetite for innovation has a vitally catalytic role to play. Specifically, philanthropy can:
- De-risk innovation: Seed and pilot new approaches, from community-owned renewable energy models to green small enterprise development.
- Strengthen participation: Support grassroots organisations, advocacy groups, and civil society so that communities are genuine co-creators in the transition.
- Build capacity: Invest in training, research, and institutions that enable lasting systems change.
- Convene partners: Create neutral spaces where government, business, and communities can work on shared solutions.
In doing so, philanthropy does not replace government or commercial finance but amplifies their impact.
The JET Funding Platform : a corroborative experiment
Launched in late 2024, the JET FP was created to align and channel grant funding into credible JET-aligned projects. The platform bridges the funding gap for smaller-scale initiative and capacity-building efforts. In a short life, it has already shown the value of collaboration:
- Over 200 applications have been received, with 21 projects already in the pipeline.
- More than R70 million has been mobilised from development finance, philanthropy, and corporates.
- Projects range from Early Childhood Development (ECD) centres in coal-affected communities, to women and youth-led SMMEs in the green economy, to blended finance vehicles unlocking private capital.
What sets the platform apart is not only the funding it channels, but also the systems it puts in place. It supports project preparation, uses transparent selection and assessment criteria, produces quarterly reports, and channels non-aligned projects elsewhere. By doing so, it serves as a hub for climate and development funding, ensuring resources align with South Africa’s priorities.
For philanthropy, the platform offers a clear entry point into the JET. It reduces fragmentation, enables collective impact and ensures that even smaller contributions can unlock and leverage larger pools of capital. Crucially, it creates a space where funders can collaborate rather than compete.
The JET as a space for innovation
The JET is not just an implementation plan – it is a national development opportunity. Moving away from coal touches almost every pressing South African issue: youth unemployment, inequality, education, health, and food security. The JET, and the Platform in particular, can instead create poly-solutions: initiatives that address multiple priorities at once. Consider a few examples:
- Youth employment: Training programmes for solar technicians, energy auditors, and green entrepreneurs provide livelihoods while supporting the transition.
- Skills for the future: Education systems can prepare workers for industries such as electric mobility, circular economy and manufacturing/assembly of components needed in new green value chains.
- Social justice and gender equity: Women and marginalised groups can be prioritised in reskilling programmes, enterprise development, and community leadership roles.
- Community resilience: ECD centres, healthcare services, and local enterprise support in coal regions can ensure that vulnerable households are not left behind.
Writing a new story for South Africa
The Just Energy Transition is complex. It will face resistance, push-back from vested interests, and tough implementation challenges. But it is also a once-in-a-generation opportunity to reshape South Africa’s development path. Success will not be measured only in megawatts of solar and wind power installed, but in whether workers find dignified livelihoods; households gain affordable power; and communities see real, tangible improvements in their lives.
Philanthropy has always been at its best during times of disruption, backing bold ideas, amplifying marginalised voices, and mobilising unlikely partnerships. The JET Funding Platform is a new vehicle for philanthropy to do exactly that: to convene, catalyse, and co-invest in South Africa’s future.
Ultimately, this is South Africa’s story to write. By working together as government, business, philanthropy, and communities, we can turn the JET from a story of risk into one of renewal. For independent funders, the invitation is clear: step into this space of collaboration, innovation, and possibility. The transition is underway – the question is how boldly we choose to shape it.