View/Open - University of Zululand Institutional Repository
View/Open - University of Zululand Institutional Repository
View/Open - University of Zululand Institutional Repository
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in South Africa and a new municipal demarcation was undertaken. Currently, the Ulundi<br />
Municipality's area <strong>of</strong>jurisdiction has increased from 40 km 2 to 4086 km 2 , the largest part <strong>of</strong><br />
which is rural and underdeveloped.<br />
Given the new mandate to ensure increased responsibilities over many previously<br />
disadvantaged rural communities, this study seeks to determine the various landscape and<br />
cultural attributes as land use existing in the Ulundi Local Municipality and establish their<br />
developmental relevance to the community. The setting <strong>of</strong> the study in this chapter focuses<br />
on the structure <strong>of</strong> the <strong>Zululand</strong> space economy, its economic development, physical<br />
infrastructure and social services. This chapter further discusses the existing resources in the<br />
<strong>Zululand</strong> District Municipality, its spatial development framework (SDF), poverty relief<br />
infrastructure programmes, agricultural development and tourism development programmes<br />
and other initiatives.<br />
5.2 THE STRUCTURE OF THE ZULULAND SPACE ECONOMY<br />
Understanding the functioning <strong>of</strong>an economy depends on the nature <strong>of</strong>settlement distribution<br />
and pattern <strong>of</strong> spatial features, their strengths and weaknesses as well as available<br />
infrastructure facilities connecting the settlement to its major economic centres and nodes.<br />
The <strong>Zululand</strong> space economy may be analysed in terms <strong>of</strong> four dimensions (lDP-<strong>Zululand</strong><br />
District Municipality, 2006):<br />
• The settlement and land use pattern;<br />
• Areas <strong>of</strong>strengths and weaknesses (relative welfare, need or opportunity);<br />
• The distribution <strong>of</strong>towns, service centres and other concentrations <strong>of</strong>economic<br />
activity; and<br />
• Transport networks and flows.<br />
The following sections analyse these aspects with emphasis on the trends and processes <strong>of</strong><br />
spatial change. A concluding section draws the findings together by summarising the main<br />
strengths and weaknesses <strong>of</strong> <strong>Zululand</strong>'s spatial structure. As this study examines the<br />
strategies already taken by stakeholders to stimulate local economic development to counter<br />
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