The Endangered Wildlife Trust (EWT) launched the LAWS website, providing important and up-to-date and information in a user-friendly format on the laws that govern Land, Air, Water and Species (LAWS) in South Africa: www.laws.ewt.org.za.
The LAWS website was developed to help non-legal minds decode the complex legal and governance framework relating to the environment in South Africa. This complex legal framework results from:
- A legislative mandate established in Schedule 4 of the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, 1996 (the Constitution), whereby the provincial and national departments have an environmental legislative mandate; and
- Legislation within other governmental departments but which is also applicable to the environment, specifically legislation under the Department of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development (DALRRD) and the Department of Mineral Resources and Energy (DMRE).
This complex legal framework is often confusing for the public to navigate. Access to meaningful information on the environmental legal and governance frameworks in South Africa is key to citizens ensuring that their rights are upheld, and that they are not contributing to illegal activities, and to ensure good governance by promoting transparency around environmental law and governance.
The EWT LAWS website provides access to and summary notes of current legislation, regulations, policy, judgments, and international environmental law. All information on the EWT LAWS website is available in five of the country’s official languages, namely: English, Afrikaans, isiZulu, isiXhosa, and Sesotho. In Addition to the written text to make the website accessible to everyone.
As the website expands, we will include live and recorded webinars and expand the languages to include other official South African languages.
The LAWS Website was made possible through the generous support of the Lewis Foundation, the British High Commission and the Embassy of Finland.
