Mr L Zita made a brief introductory comment. He said that sustainable development is a pattern of resource usage that aims to meet human needs while preserving the environment so that these needs could be met not only in the present, but also in the indefinite future. Eradication of poverty is one of the biggest challenges confronting sustainable development in South Africa. Sustainable development can be conceptually deconstructed into three important parts: environmental sustainability, economic sustainability and socio-political sustainability.