Harnessing Green Finance to Foster Sustainable Agribusiness for Small-Scale Farmers in South Africa
摘要
This chapter analyzes the benefits and limitations of green finance in facilitating sustainable agribusiness for small-scale farmers in South Africa. It is grounded in a systematic review of 23 peer-reviewed articles and contextualized within the historical legacy of apartheid-era land dispossession and the growing risks posed by climate change. Utilizing the critical realist ontology and the Justice–Innovation–Transformation (JIT) conceptual framework, the chapter discusses seven interconnected themes: structural and institutional barriers, environmental hazards, epistemic justice and indigenous knowledge, technological innovation and pertinence, digital finance and inclusivity, green finance mechanisms, and institutional governance and trust. These themes are examined through the real, actual, and empirical dimensions of reality. The chapter argues that small-scale farmers face challenges in accessing financial instruments such as green bonds and mobile loan platforms designed to address climate change, due to enduring structural disparities and technical implementation issues. It concludes by promoting a redefinition of green finance as a politically integrated, socially inclusive, and justice-focused framework that is regulated to local situations and transformative in purpose.