cities

Figure 3.17: Annual growth in city population (2003–2013)
2.5%
2.4%
2.4%
2.0%
2.0%
1.8%
1.8%
1.5%
1.5%
1.5%
1.3%
1.0%
1.0%
0.5%
0.6%
0.6%
BUFF
CPT
EKU
ETH
JHB
MAN
MSU
NMB
TSH
SA
ALL
METROS
Source: Quantec (2015)
This strong population growth in large cities could surpass their capacity to deliver on critical basic
services, particularly water, sanitation and electricity, without which poor people become trapped in
a vicious poverty cycle. Previously underserved township areas and largely unserved burgeoning
informal settlements are particularly vulnerable, given their high population densities and levels of
poverty and deprivation (Turok and Borel-Saladin, 2014).
Therefore, it is encouraging that thus far city performance on delivering water, sanitation and electricity
services has tended to outstrip population growth, rather than the other way round (see Chapter 4).
The delivery of basic services to a greater proportion of the growing city population points to increasing
inclusivity and sustainability (Turok and Borel-Saladin, 2014). That said, it is important to examine
inclusivity in terms of economic development within townships and dynamics in the informal economy.
Township economic development
Home to about 18 million people, townships and informal settlements are the fastest growing settlement
areas in South Africa’s larger cities. During apartheid, townships were dormitory towns providing cheap,
unskilled labour pools for mining and other industries, with limited social services and economic
infrastructure. “Township” is also used to describe housing settlements developed through the
government’s Reconstruction and Development Programme (RDP). These settlements are often poorly
located on the periphery of cities and far away from economic activity and other opportunities.
116 State of South African Cities Report 2016