Using a sector development agency to mobilize a local green economy

The document details the establishment and operation of GreenCape, a nonprofit sector development agency created by the Western Cape Government to bridge the public and private sectors. It outlines how GreenCape's independent structure, multidisciplinary team, and strategic alignment with government policies enabled it to facilitate significant private sector investment and job creation in renewable energy and other green sectors. The case study highlights key success factors, such as maintaining political neutrality and providing impartial market intelligence, and provides quantitative results of its impact between 2010 and 2015.

• GreenCape's success is attributed to its governance as an independent nonprofit that remains aligned with national, provincial, and local policies while staying separate from government, which provides it with "credibility as an independent agent of change" and allows for "impact oriented, agile delivery."
• The agency initially focused on renewable energy to build its reputation, later expanding its remit in 2013 and 2014 to include energy efficiency, the built environment, water, agriculture, and green finance.
• Between 2010 and 2015, GreenCape facilitated ZAR 17 billion (US$1.2 billion) in investment and over 2,000 jobs for renewable energy projects in the Western Cape, and ZAR 500 million (US$33.7 million) in investment and over 700 jobs for new renewable energy manufacturing.
• The Western Cape Industrial Symbiosis Programme (WISP) provided ZAR 25.3 million (US$1.7 million) in direct financial benefits to member companies and diverted 8,455 tons from landfill.
• GreenCape provides critical business support through free, impartial market intelligence, an advocacy platform to remove barriers, and the Green Finance Database Tool, which documents funding sources and eligibility requirements.
• The agency manages the development of the Atlantis Special Economic Zone (SEZ) for green technology, serving in a project management capacity to attract foreign investment in manufacturing facilities.

APA

Mulcahy, M., Basson, L., Baboolal, A., & Bronkhorst, S. (2016). Using a sector development agency to mobilize a local green economy. GreenCape. https://greencape.co.za/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/GreenCape-case-study-LEDS-FINAL-3.pdf

Chicago

Mulcahy, Mike, Lauren Basson, Aman Baboolal, and Salomé Bronkhorst. Using a sector development agency to mobilize a local green economy. GreenCape, 2016. https://greencape.co.za/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/GreenCape-case-study-LEDS-FINAL-3.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Mulcahy |first1=Mike |last2=Basson |first2=Lauren |last3=Baboolal |first3=Aman |last4=Bronkhorst |first4=Salomé |title=Using a sector development agency to mobilize a local green economy |publisher=GreenCape |date=June 2016 |url=https://greencape.co.za/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/GreenCape-case-study-LEDS-FINAL-3.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{mulcahy2016using, author = {Mulcahy, Mike and Basson, Lauren and Baboolal, Aman and Bronkhorst, Salomé}, title = {{Using a sector development agency to mobilize a local green economy}}, institution = {GreenCape}, year = {2016}, month = jun, url = {https://greencape.co.za/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/GreenCape-case-study-LEDS-FINAL-3.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }