Nkomazi Local Municipality 20 - Co-operative Governance and ...

The following main structuring elements influenced the spatial form of Nkomazi Municipality as it exists today:Past Political Ideologies – Apartheid planning resulted in the separation and isolation of the southern part of Nkomazi, which usedto be Kangwane homeland, from the more developed northern part. This created a distorted spatial structure and lead toinefficiencies and backlogs in service provision.Tribal Authority Areas – Dispersed settlements developed with no order. Ad hoc and unsustainable service and infrastructuredevelopment occurred.International Borders – the borders of Swaziland and Mozambique act as physical barriers limiting the movement of people, goodsand services to Swaziland through Jeppes Reef and Mananga Border Posts and to Mozambique through the Lebombo Border Post.Continuous influx of illegal immigrants from these countries contributes further to the mushrooming of informal settlements.N4 Maputo Development Corridor – the alignments of the N4 highway and railway line have played a vital role in the developmentof the main urban centes in the northern part of the municipality i.e. Malelane, Hectorspruit and Komatipoort.Major Roads – the two main provincial roads R570 (P80) and R571 (P179), linking the N4 highway to the south, have played asignificant part in the development of urban settlements along its alignments.Topography – the topography of the area determined its physical linkages in regional and national context. The Kaalrug Mountainslimits linkages to the west and the Lebombo Mountains limits linkages to the east. The N4 remains the only link between Maputo andthe economic hub of South Africa, i.e. Gauteng.Kruger National Park – the Kruger National Park dictates the type of land uses to be found adjacent to its border, includingagriculture, tourism related developments i.e. eco areas, conservancies and uses focusing on nature conservation.Figure 21__ proposed illustration structural elements(Source: Nkomazi Spatial Development Framework, 2010)NKLM Integrated Development Plan 2012_2013 121