Integrating Poor Populations in South African Cities - Agence ...

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Public Policies on Housing and Urban Integration in South Africa townships, and finally by financially democratizing first-time home ownership. On the income criteria alone (less than 3,500 rand 5 per month), 86% of South African households had, for instance, access in 1995 to the Housing Subsidy Scheme whose subsidy amounts were modulated in function of the beneficiaries’ incomes (Plancq- Tournadre, 2006; Royston, 2002). Aiming to normalize the situation of those excluded from formal housing, roll-out of the model relied on a partnership between a determined, instigating and facilitating government, private companies producing popular housing, and the “communities” supposed to participate in elaborating projects that concern them. It was innovative as an entirely subsidized urban offer: built on subdivided plots with individual connections to the electric grid and the water and sanitation network, the houses were offered to first-time home owners. This decision came from an ideological position that values the assumed virtues of owning land and real estate. By making the situations of numerous citizens more secure via access to private property, at least in theory, the goal was, of course, to strengthen an electoral base, favour the formation of middle classes made solvent by public action, and make new home owners likely to support urban financing by increasing their ability to pay for the services provided by the municipalities. The aim was also to integrate the poorest into the conventional market economy by mobilizing their “social capital” to serve local development. Spreading private property to liberate people’s economic initiatives and foster productive investments echoed the ideas made popular by theorists such as Hernando de Soto (2000). 20 Two modifications then brought the initial model into line with international orthodoxy. 6 The first was a 2002 revision of the financing system that instituted mandatory contributions by beneficiaries, which was already the case in the PHP programmes. The principle of making access to loans conditional on the financial participation of the recipients was made systematic, except for households considered to be indigent (incomes of less than 800 rand per month in 2002, and less than 1,500 rand in 2004). It introduced household “responsibility”, which was expected to strengthen the feeling of ownership. The second modification happened in 2004 and was an attempt to 5. 1 rand = €0.08 (2009). 6. The notion of orthodoxy here refers to the imperative of cost recovery through the financial contributions of households. Integrating Poor Populations in South African Cities © AFD 2009
Public Policies on Housing and Urban Integration in South Africa correct one of the flaws of the previous policy — the lack of a vast programme to restructure precarious informal housing. Thus, on 1 September 2004, the National Cabinet approved a new housing development plan and the next day the Minister of Housing, Lindiwe Sisulu, unveiled the Comprehensive Housing Plan for the Development of Integrated Sustainable Human Settlements, better known under the name of Breaking New Ground (BNG). The central aim of this plan was to eradicate precarious informal housing through in-situ restructuring operations and/or relocating households when restructuring was complicated or impossible. It also modified the approach to the issue, switching from the simple delivery of grouped residential units to the production of integrated spaces by completing the former package with social facilities and economic infrastructure. It was thought that the development of integrated, functional and lasting settlements would be ensured in this way. The New Fields of Action This housing policy was launched simultaneously with a vast politico-territorial restructuring based on dual movement: national decentralization and local reconcentration. The modalities of this restructuring were set forth in the 1996 Constitution and various laws defining three governmental “spheres” (national, provincial and local). The Demarcation Board reconfigured the territorial divisions by substituting, prior to the 1995-1996 elections, 883 local authorities for the 1,260 previous ones, and then by grouping the municipalities into 284 units before the 2000 elections. Three types of local authorities were defined: municipalities, the districts that encompass them and with which they share responsibilities, and the metros, selected based on criteria listed in the Municipal Structure Act No. 1117 of 1998. The six metros were given a great degree of autonomy, and exclusive executive and regulatory powers protected within their territory of jurisdiction over which true local government could be exercised, legitimized by democratic elections. In this context, the unified metropolitan municipalities, or unicities, were entrusted with ensuring local development, and the concept of “development local government” was included in the preamble to the Municipal Systems Act No. 23 of 2000. Relying on a “vision” of their economic future, public-private partnerships, and strategies negotiated with private companies and “communities”, the metropolitan governments must utilize specific planning tools and coordinate their development actions with those of the provinces and the central government. 21 © AFD 2009 Integrating Poor Populations in South African Cities
Page 1 and 2: Integrating Poor Populations in Sou
Page 3 and 4: The author Fanny Hervé, an enginee
Page 5 and 6: Abstract In South Africa, urban dev
Page 7 and 8: Résumé En Afrique du Sud, les enj
Page 9 and 10: Contents METHODOLOGY ..............
Page 11 and 12: Contents CONCLUSION ...............
Page 13 and 14: Methodology The purpose of this stu
Page 15 and 16: FOREWORD Public Policies on Housing
Page 17 and 18: Public Policies on Housing and Urba
Page 19: Public Policies on Housing and Urba
Page 29 and 30: Introduction At the end of aparthei
Page 31 and 32: PART ONE: An Urban Context Marked b
Page 33 and 34: An Urban History of South Africa: F
Page 35 and 36: 1. An Urban History of South Africa
Page 49 and 50: Current Challenges 2 The apartheid
Page 51 and 52: 2. Current Challenges 2.1.2. The Na
Page 53 and 54: 2. Current Challenges However, desp
Page 55 and 56: 2. Current Challenges Progressively
Page 57 and 58: 2. Current Challenges far from the
Page 59 and 60: 2. Current Challenges commutes are
Page 61 and 62: Urban Development Policies in a Uni
Page 63 and 64: 3. Urban Development Policies in a
Page 69 and 70: PART TWO An Uncertain Determination
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Planning as Implemented in South Af
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4. Planning as Implemented in South
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The Hindrances to the Effectiveness
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5. The Hindrances to the Effectiven
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Paths Toward More Profitable Planni
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6. Paths Toward More Profitable Pla
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PART THREE Develop Living Spaces fo
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Access to Housing: The Main End Goa
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7. Access to Housing: The Main End
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The Limits of the Government’s Ac
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8. The Limits of the Government’s
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Toward Greater Integration of Publi
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9. Toward Greater Integration of Pu
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Conclusion Nearly fifteen years ago
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Acronyms and Abbreviations ABM AFD
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Acronyms and Abbreviations RZ SACN
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Appendices Appendix 1: Interviews I
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Appendices • Claire Bénit-Gaffou
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Appendices Pretoria • Revelation
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Appendices Appendix 3: Map of Johan
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Appendices Appendix 5: Map of Ethek
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Bibliography Books DU TOIT, J., U.
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Bibliography Articles BÉNIT, C. (2
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Bibliography REPUBLIC OF SOUTH AFRI
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Publications Les titres de la colle
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Publications No. 23 : Libéralisati
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What is AFD? www.afd.fr Agence Fran
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