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South Africa

South Africa is a country on the southernmost tip of the African continent, marked by several distinct ecosystems. Inland safari destination Kruger National Park is populated by big game. The Western Cape offers beaches, lush winelands around Stellenbosch and Paarl, craggy cliffs at the Cape of Good Hope, forest and lagoons along the Garden Route, and the city of Cape Town, beneath flat-topped Table Mountain.

South Africa is one of the world's megadiverse countries, which, in addition to a very high level of species diversity and biodiversity, also has a large number of endemic species, genera and families of plants and animals, as well as diverse ecosystems. Among other things, it is home to more than 20,000 different plants. The Fynbos region, a stretch of land in the Western Cape province, is home to more than 9,000 species, making the area one of the most ecologically diverse places on earth. For this reason, botanists regard this region, known as the Capensis, as one of the six flora kingdoms on earth. It is by far the smallest of these plant kingdoms. Due to its high level of endangerment, the Cape flora is a hotspot of biodiversity on earth.

South African Environmental Observation Network (SAEON)

WEED can help SAEON with the validation of products using its own data from field surveys, expert knowledge and suitably verified local datasets. Should field sampling be required, SAEON can assist by providing vehicles and manpower to validate additional test areas within the Western Cape region. Workshops can be arranged, with partners such as SANBI, Cape Nature or the Western Cape Government, to discuss outputs and validate maps. There is great interest in mapping woody biomass and woody vegetation, especially from invasive alien plants in the western cape. If the product proves suitable for alien species detection, it will be possible to engage with a large community of practice. Similarly, SAEON participates in numerous stakeholder groups across the country and assessing land use change due to agricultural encroachment or informal settlement expansion.