This publication provides an overview of the theory and practice of urban innovation together with perspectives, trends and international experiences in this area. The publication seeks to stimulate debate and creative thinking around different approaches to dealing with every day urban challenges by presenting a collection of potetnially replicable local and international case studies.

Despite numerous studies on townships, research into township economies and related commercial real estate markets is limited. The majority of studies refer to the economy only as part of a broader discussion about other themes such as housing. And, while the information in these studies is useful, it is not captured and discussed within an overarching conceptual framework, which would allow the relationships and causal factors that shape and drive such economies to be understood. 

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.

This report by Colin Marx and Margot Rubin explores how urban land is divided and re-divided within the context of the interaction between formal and informal land use management systems.

This is the first report to be issued by the SACN on the ‘State of South African Cities’. The report takes a hard look at the forces that have transformed the country’s largest cities over the decade since 1994 and asks, if the current trends continue, whether cities can expect positive or negative things in the years to come. As part of the process of celebrating 10 years of democracy, the Office of the President has led a ‘Ten Year Review’ to assess what has been achieved over the last decade, and to define the strategic challenges for the future.

The Neighbourhood Planning and Design Guide is a comprehensively updated and revised version of its predecessor, the Guidelines for Human Settlement Planning and Design, commonly known as the Red Book. The Red Book, published in 2000, was preceded by a series of guideline documents aimed at improving the quality of settlement planning and design.

In March 2018, The South African Cities Network (SACN) hosted its second Urban Land Dialogues Series in the provinces of Gauteng, Eastern Cape and Western Cape. The dialogues took place during a week when land was receiving widespread attention, as all eyes were on the Gordon Institute of Business Science in Illovo where the President had convened a Summit to discuss details of agrarian land expropriation without compensation policy,Under the overarching theme of inclusive urban land transformation, the aim of these dialogues was to build better shared understandings of the many issues that

South African cities are under the national and international spotlight again. Community protests over service delivery, disputes about councillor selection, mismanagement and underspending of municipal budgets, and recurrent billing problems have attracted growing public concern. Yet cities have also been fêted for rekindling a spirit of national unity during 2010, delivering world-class transport schemes and leading the economy out of recession.

Reforming Urban Laws in Africa, A Practical Guide, was written by Stephen Berrisford and the late Patrick McAuslan. It provides hands-on guidance to officials, practitioners and researchers working on the urgent task of improving, modernising and rationalising urban legislation in the Sub-Saharan region. 

This case study draws on research that investigated the perspectives and experiences of civil society organisations with regard to access to urban land by the poor. The research was conducted by Warren Smit, commissioned by Urban LandMark. An introduction to the case study is given below. On the back of this sheet some learning and reflection activities are provided. You can do these activities on your own or in groups, as appropriate for your learning session. Look carefully at these activities before you begin so you know what to look for while you are reading.

This case study draws on research that investigated the financial sustainability of cities in the Southern African region. The research was undertaken by the South African Cities Network (SACN). The project was jointly sponsored by the Public Private Infrastructure Advisory Facility and the World Bank. The contribution by SACN of the material for this document is gratefully acknowledged. The learning material presents an outline of the many challenges of financial sustainability and effective service delivery facing Southern African cities.

This case study is based on an existing booklet, Retail Centres and Township Developments: A Case Study (SACN, 2010) published by the South African Cities Network (SACN), the Training for Township Renewal Initiative (TTRI) and National Treasury. The booklet draws on prior research on