National Environmental Management Protected Areas Act, 2003.

This Act provides for the protection of areas defined by this Act. The objectives of this Act are: (a) to provide, within the framework of national legislation, for the declaration and management of protected areas; (b) to provide for cooperative governance in the declaration and management of protected areas; (c) to effect a national system of protected areas in South Africa as part of a strategy to manage and conserve its biodiversity; (d) to provide for a representative network of protected areas on state land, private land and communal land; (e) to promote sustainable utilization of protected areas for the benefit of people, in a manner that would preserve the ecological character of such areas; and (f) to promote participation of local communities in the management of protected areas, where appropriate.
The Act consists of 93 sections divided into 8 Parts: Interpretation, Objectives and Application of Act (1); System of Protected Areas in South Africa (2); Declaration of Protected Areas (3); Management of Protected Areas (4); South African National Parks (5); Acquisition of Rights in or to Land (6); Administration of Act (7); Offences and Penalties (8); Miscellaneous (9).
"Biological diversity" or "biodiversity" has the meaning ascribed to it in section 1 of the Biodiversity Act. The system of protected areas in South Africa consists of the following kinds of protected areas: (a) special nature reserves, nature reserves (including wilderness areas) and protected environments; (b) world heritage sites; (d) specially protected forest areas, forest nature reserves and forest wilderness areas declared in terms of the National Forests Act, 1998 (Act No. 84 of 1998); and (e) mountain catchment areas declared in terms of the Mountain Catchment Areas Act, 1970 (Act No. 63 of 1970). Section 7 deals with conflicts with other legislation. The Minister must maintain Register of Protected Areas (sect. 10). The authority for the management of a protected area assigned in terms of section 38 must, within 12 months of the assignment, submit a management plan for the protected area to the Minister or the Executive Council of a province in whose portfolio provincial protected areas in the province fall for approval.