Cape Town

Since the end of apartheid in 1994 South Africa is working on economic development and poverty alleviation. Some townships have been improved greatly. But many poor still live in depressing settlements on the outskirts of town, without jobs or economic opportunities. Transport to the city and business parks is expensive. People are trapped in poverty.

In Cape Town these townships are located on the Cape Flats, a name derived from the Afrikaner word Die Kaapse Vlakte. It’s a huge piece of sandy land where the majority of Cape Towns 3,5 to 4 million inhabitants live.

Philippi

Urban Matters will focus on Philippi, one of the larger townships. It is a relatively new township, which started to develop in the early eighties. The current total population living in Philippi is estimated at approximately 150,000. Philippi is a pivotal space within Cape Town, it is both a space where the legacy and damage of apartheid are most pronounced, as well as a space of great opportunity given its strategic central location and its place as a venue within the 2010 world cup arrangements.

Challenges

The government cannot fulfil its promise to deliver stone houses and basic services to all South Africans. Government facilities for housing loans are slow; interest rates for loans amount to 15 percent. Only half of the families have flush toilets and sewerage; community toilets are in bad shape and very unhygienic. Few people have shower facilities. Only half of the people have electricity. Candles and oil lamps cause fire accidents. Paraffin stoves for cooking cause lung and chest problems. Solid waste is collected irregularly or not collected at all. It piles up and scatters around.

Residents of Philippi spend too much household money on transport; the city centre and suburbs where they work are twenty or more kilometres away.

Education is free in theory, but 30 percent of Philippi children do not attend primary school, because books, fees and uniforms are too expensive. Public education is poor and many students drop out. Unemployment among youth is as high as 50 percent. HIV / aids is on the rise, but usually denied due to stigma. High use of alcohol and a drug called ‘tik’ fuels crime, violence, rape and street gangs. Youth lack study space, sports and training on subjects like safe sex.

Opportunities

As for opportunities for cooperation with Dutch companies/organisations initially three areas of key technical support have been identified, being:

• Urban catchment management – to address he sever drainage problems and severe flooding during winter, which is a regular occurrence for many in Philippi.
• The regulation of informal settlements and the associated land use management and tenure issues.
• Sustainable housing options versus affordability;
• Solid waste management – refuse collection and cleansing are major challenges, given the high settlement densities in key areas and the narrow access within the area.
• Urban or metropolitan agriculture; besides the small kitchen gardens providing food security to the families, there is a large horticulture area at the wetlands of Phillippi. What are the economic opportunities?

Other areas of potential partnership will emerge through the process.