cities

Overview of flagship programme
Situated in the heart of Gauteng, Ekurhuleni is home to three of South Africa’s seven poorest townships and
the hub of South Africa’s ailing manufacturing sector. However, it also hosts the largest airport in Africa and
effectively forms the gateway to the continent.
As the Aerotropolis grows and prospers, the citizens of Ekurhuleni will benefit from the creation of new jobs, the
expansion of social infrastructure, resulting in an improvement in the standard of living for all (EMM, n.d.).
However, to build the Africa Aerotropolis will require politicians and officials to think big, to think bold and to act
decisively!
In 2012/13, the EMM set up an Aerotropolis Project Office that has various objectives.
• To develop the Ekurhuleni Aerotropolis Master Plan.
• To coordinate and streamline spatial planning and land use management instruments, such as the
Municipal Spatial Development Framework (EMM, 2011) and Regional Spatial Development Framework.
• To align all other related master plans (i.e. those of other state entities such as Sanral, ACSA, IRPTN,
CIPR, Aerotropolis).
• To mobilise and coordinate air and bulk cargo movements.
• To develop the Ekurhuleni Aerotropolis value proposition and brand positioning.
• To mobilise and engage with stakeholders.
City of
Ekurhuleni
There is no question that millions, which we do not have, will have to be spent to develop the
Aerotropolis economy. The key, however, is to devise a bankable strategy that involves the publicprivate
sector. We have to create conditions that attract investment and funding of development.
Executive Mayor of Ekurhuleni Metropolitan Municipality
EMM appointed a consortium of five domestic and international companies, led by Aurecon, to help develop
a five-year Ekurhuleni Aerotropolis Strategic Implementation Plan and ultimately the 30-year Master Plan. This
multi-disciplinary consortium has extensive experience working on planning and infrastructure projects, both
within the municipality and internationally, and includes urban and transport planners, economists, financial
and logistics experts, environmental managers, market researchers and strategists. The Ekurhuleni Aerotropolis
Strategic Implementation Plan was completed in 2014. The next phase looks at information gathering, analysis,
scenario planning, evaluation and selection, defining economic clusters and identifying where new or
substantial infrastructure is required. The criteria in finalising development scenarios include:
• demographics (will the planned development adequately address the poverty, skills development and
unemployment objectives of the city?);
• proposed land-use (will this be efficient and create an attractive environment?);
• forecasted demand transport facilities (will this ensure the maximum efficiency of movement of people
and freight in the region, and within each facility?);
• economic growth (will this ensure the economic wellbeing of Gauteng and Ekurhuleni’s businesses and
community – from the smallest informal trader to the largest multi-national corporation?);
• predicted CO 2
emissions (how much of an impact on the environment will it have?)
A key aspect of the programme is land-use planning and management, and a detailed time-distance analysis
was undertaken in order to confirm and refine preferred spatial locations for targeted economic activity.
City of Ekurhuleni: Aerotroplis 331