The Long Term Mitigation Scenario (LTMS) process lasted two years and was a combination of modelling and facilitated stakeholder engagement, which provided the South African Cabinet with a set of scenarios describing what the country could do to mitigate climate change.

The paper describes the core elements of the 2005-2007 LTMS process, considers how it entered the policy agenda in South Africa; considers whether it met its objectives; describes its role in the ongoing development of climate mitigation policy in South Africa; and reflects on what, if anything, this analysis could suggest for other countries or indeed for ongoing climate change mitigation policy in South Africa.

The paper argues that although a decade later the LTMS is acknowledged as being the ‘foundation’ of South African climate mitigation policy, the extent to which climate mitigation implementation has become a reality in the country is questionable.

[Adapted from source]