South Africa will use Arbor Month to drive one of its most ambitious greening campaigns yet, with 10 million trees targeted for planting on Heritage Day.
September’s annual Arbor Month campaign will this year form part of the Presidential One Billion Trees Programme, significantly expanding efforts to mobilise communities around tree planting, environmental protection and climate resilience.
The national programme was launched by Deputy Minister of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment Bernice Swarts in May under the theme “My Tree, My Oxygen. Plant Yours Today.”
Government is aiming to plant 10 million trees across South Africa on 24 September 2026, with schools, community parks, health facilities and residential areas among the spaces identified for planting.
The target represents a significant increase on last year’s campaign, when 1.3 million trees were planted across the country on Heritage Day.
According to the department, the 2026 campaign will be supported by donors and partners, with the 10 million trees expected to be planted at no cost to government.
The initiative forms part of a much larger Presidential One Billion Trees Programme aimed at mobilising South Africans from across government, business, civil society, traditional leadership, faith organisations, youth formations and communities.
Arbor Month is commemorated every September to encourage the planting, protection and conservation of trees while raising awareness about the role forests and trees play in sustainable livelihoods and environmental protection.
But the department is increasingly connecting the country’s greening programme with broader social and economic challenges.
Trees can help mitigate the effects of climate change, support biodiversity and food security and improve living environments, particularly in communities where access to green spaces remains limited.
DFFE has also identified an economic opportunity within the programme.
Small and emerging nurseries are expected to be integrated into tree-planting initiatives, creating opportunities for local economic development in rural and peri-urban communities.
The department also plans to strengthen partnerships with the Departments of Basic Education and Human Settlements, including expanding tree planting at schools and within housing developments.
Indigenous trees are being encouraged where appropriate, with DFFE highlighting their potential contribution to water conservation alongside the broader environmental benefits of expanding South Africa’s tree cover.
The programme comes as communities increasingly face the consequences of extreme weather, environmental degradation and biodiversity loss.
For Arbor Month 2026, the message is therefore moving beyond simply encouraging South Africans to plant a tree.
The September campaign is being positioned as part of a much larger national effort to use greening to strengthen communities, improve environmental resilience and ultimately work towards planting one billion trees across South Africa.
