​Thabo Bodibe
This Arbor month, the Gauteng Government seeks to green townships through the Bontle Ke Botho campaign provides environmental support to communities through the cleaning of townships, informal settlements and hostels and aims to plant 1 million trees.
Led by the Department of Agriculture, Rural Development and Environment, the Government seeks to deal with high air pollution. The country produces more than 122 million tons of waste, and more than 45% is estimated to be produced in Gauteng.
The purpose of commemorating National Arbor Month is to promote awareness of the need to plant and maintain indigenous trees throughout the province, especially for the many disadvantaged communities who often live in townships and barren and water-stressed areas. 
Arbor Month is key as Bontle Ke Botho focuses strongly on waste management, awareness, and greening.
Arbor Month aims to promote better knowledge of trees, particularly indigenous trees, stress the necessity for everyone to plant trees and care for them, highlight the vital role of trees in our lives and contribute to the achievement of a green, dignified, and healthy environment in all parts of South Africa.
GDARD planted 70 000 trees/shrubs for September funded through Bontle Ke Botho Greening Army participants in the five corridors.
GDARD'S Environmental Empowerment Services (EES) Directorate is committed through the overarching Provincial Bontle Ke Botho (BKB) Project and the Gauteng 1 Million Trees programmee to address greening and provision of food to townships, informal settlements, newly developed human settlements, recreational areas and schools through planting indigenous and fruit trees. 
During Arbor month, the department partnered with different Gauteng municipalities in planting trees through the following successful projects.
BKB Greening project/ Gauteng 1 million Tree Planting Project – the project is funded through the Equitable share, it's also a public-private partnership which involves the mobilisation of resources and funding from private sector, government, churches, schools, civil society, Non-Governmental Organisations (NGO's) and Non-Profit Organisations (NPO's).
Indigenous, Ornamental and Food Crops Nurseries project – the project is funded through Equitable Share.
Green Army project- the project is funded through Equitable Share. The project involves job creation and skills development through waste removal, school gardens and greening of the province. Removal of waste, planting of indigenous and fruit trees and development and maintenance of school and community gardens.
This habitat loss for nature and species extinction is accelerating at a high rate. The climate crisis needs to feed and house the growing human population is putting immense pressure on intact ecosystems and biodiversity.