South Africa supports all multilateral efforts to arrest the increase in temperatures, Minister of Water and Environment Affairs Edna Molewa said on Tuesday.

"The South African government is alive to the fact that we must all work together as be part of the international quest that seeks to address climate change at a multilateral structure like the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), " he said on the sidelines of the UN climate conference which began in Durban on Monday.

The summit, which runs until December 9, is aimed at getting countries to agree to cutting greenhouse gas emissions to levels that would keep any rise in global average temperature to below 2° C, to prevent catastrophic climate changes later this century.

"The science is clear that action to address the causes and impacts of climate change by a single country or small group of countries will not be successful, hence we support all the efforts that promote multilateral efforts to arrest this increase in temperatures."

She also stressed the role private sector should play in ensuring that the drive towards a low-carbon economy recognizes private sector as an integral part of the attainment of that dispensation.

Addressing climate change related challenges is not the responsibility of government alone; it requires business and society in general to work in concert, she said.

South Africa is always encourages by efforts of private sector organizations to scale up levels of investments that contribute towards transitioning to a low carbon development and our vision of a green economy.

The green economy path is not just about low-carbon, it is also about the reduction of resource usage, waste and the valuing of the ecosystem goods and services, she noted.

She said the country's climate change policy recognizes that in the medium-term, some of the options with the biggest mitigation potential include the shifting to lower-carbon electricity generation options.

Business and industry have a fundamental role in South Africa' s climate change response, she said.