A Spatial Data Infrastructure (SDI) is an evolving concept, essentially consisting of policies, institutional arrangements, Geographical Information Systems (GISs), data bases, networks, Web services and portals to facilitate and coordinate the availability, exchange and sharing of geospatial data and services between stakeholders from different levels.

This was a presentation at a Workshop on Development of an Interim Framework for the National Land Use Classification Standard, Methodology and Symbology for South Africa.  It shows why land use and land cover are not the same, why land use often cannot be determined from imagery alone, and why land use, zoning and planning are not the same.

The second national Urban Conference took place on 30 and 31 October 2018 in Johannesburg, South Africa. It was convened by the South African Cities Network (SACN) in partnership with the national departments of cooperative governance (COGTA), human settlements (DHS) and finance (National Treasury); the South Africa Local Government Association (SALGA), SA Council for Planners (SACPLAN), ICLEI – Local Governments for Sustainability, and the Gauteng Provincial Government.

Cities are about people, first and foremost. In addition, as the national integrated urban development framework states, South African cities should be safe, liveable socially integrated, economically inclusive and globally competitive, with an active citizenry. The 2016 State of Cities Report (SoCR) makes an important call to action for all segments of society, from communities and neighbourhoods to cities, from cities to the nation and from the nation to the global, to support the inclusive growth and development of South African cities.

The papers in this volume take a city perspective and provide both a critical reflection of and a pragmatic response to what cities are able to do given their current mandate and powers. The first paper begins by considering what the TOD agenda means for the urban poor. It questions whether TOD can adequately address the existing land challenges in South African cities, given the politics of land inequality and the skewed property markets.

L'urbanisation croissante a eu des conséquences profondes sur l’économie des pays africains et sur la vie des citadins. Le développement des grandes villes, notamment, est à l’origine d'un certain nombre de problèmes comme l'existence d'infrastructures et de services peu fiables, insuffisants et médiocres. Des études ont montré que dans des pays comme le Burkina Faso, l’Ethiopie, la Sierra Leone et la Somalie, un nombre croissant de citadins ont un accès au logement, au transport, à l’eau, a l’éducation et à des services de santé adéquats et/ou acceptables.

The major problem in Africa today understands the modern concept of town planning. Just as was true in Europe in the 18th and 19th centuries, in Africa today physical planning is regarded as a technique for the amelioration of the evils of urban development. Insanitary conditions, congestions, un-economic layout of streets, the inefficient use of public utilities or the absence of adequate sanitary facilities "brought about the enactment of public health laws, plumbing and building codes and regulations which controlled land-use.

Nigeria has a land area of 925,768 km2 or approximately 92,4 million ha., which places her as the 14th largest country in Africa. With a population estimated at 80 million, every inhabitant theoretically has only 1.15 ha of land available for meeting basic economic, industrial and social needs. Lying between latitudes 4°N and 12°N, on the west coast of Africa and with 680 km of coastline, land is not homogenous and is therefore not fully accessible ant! utilizable for any or all of these basic needs.

This paper presents the An assessment of urban environmental problems and policies in selected ECA member states, of the Ninth Session of the Conference of African Planners, Statisticians, Population and Information Specialists held at Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.