kwazulu-natal situational overview - KZN Planning Commission

KWAZULU-NATAL

SITUATIONAL OVERVIEW

Kwazulu-Natal Provincial Growth

and Development Strategy (PGDS)

AUGUST 2011

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Table of Contents

1 INTRODUCTION ......................................................................................................................... 5

2 KWAZULU-NATAL IN THE SOUTH/SOUTHERN AFRICAN AND GLOBAL CONTEXT ..................... 7

3 THE PHYSICAL LANDSCAPE ...................................................................................................... 9

3.1 INTRODUCTION ................................................................................................................................ 9

3.2 TOPOGRAPHY................................................................................................................................ 10 3.2.1 Elevation ..................................................................................................................... 10

3.2.2 Slope ........................................................................................................................... 11

3.3 GEOMORPHOLOGY ....................................................................................................................... 12

3.4 SOILS............................................................................................................................................. 13 3.4.1 Soil Depth .................................................................................................................... 13

3.5 MINERAL RESOURCES ..................................................................................................................... 15

3.6 HYDROLOGY ................................................................................................................................. 17

3.6.1 Water Catchments .................................................................................................... 17

3.6.2 Rivers and Dams within KwaZulu-Natal ..................................................................... 19

3.6.3 Water Demand Management .................................................................................. 22

3.6.4 Vulnerability of Community due to Dependence on Open Water Sources .......... 23

3.7 VEGETATION AND LAND COVER ..................................................................................................... 24 3.7.1 Vegetation ................................................................................................................. 24

3.7.2 Forestry ........................................................................................................................ 26

3.7.3 Land Cover ................................................................................................................. 27

3.7.4 Agriculture, Agri-processing and Land Reform ....................................................... 29

3.8 CLIMATOLOGY .............................................................................................................................. 30

3.8.1 Precipitation ............................................................................................................... 30

3.8.2 Evaporation ................................................................................................................ 34

3.9 CLIMATE CHANGE ......................................................................................................................... 35 3.9.1 Potential Impacts of Climate Change in South Africa............................................. 37

3.9.2 Responses to Climate Change in South Africa ........................................................ 38

3.9.3 Rural Development and the Impact on the Physical Landscape .......................... 40

3.10 SYNOPSIS: STRATEGIC PHYSICAL LANDSCAPE ISSUES ......................................................................... 41

4 THE ENVIRONMENTAL LANDSCAPE ........................................................................................ 43

4.1 INTRODUCTION .............................................................................................................................. 43

4.2 ECOLOGICAL BIOMES .................................................................................................................... 45

4.3 BIODIVERSITY ................................................................................................................................. 46

4.4 WETLANDS .................................................................................................................................... 47 4.4.1 Integrity of Wetlands .................................................................................................. 50

4.5 MARINE AND COASTAL ENVIRONMENT ........................................................................................... 51

4.6 PRESERVATION OF NATURAL RESOURCES ......................................................................................... 52

4.6.1 Sensitive Features ....................................................................................................... 52

4.6.2 Sensitive Species ........................................................................................................ 52

4.6.3 Vegetation Classes Remaining Intact ...................................................................... 53

4.6.4 Protected Areas ......................................................................................................... 57

4.7 ENERGY RESOURCES ...................................................................................................................... 58 4.7.1 Air Quality ................................................................................................................... 60

4.7.2 Wind Energy ............................................................................................................... 61

4.7.3 Solar Energy ................................................................................................................ 62

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4.7.4 Hydro Energy .............................................................................................................. 63

4.7.5 Biomass Energy ........................................................................................................... 65

4.8 HUMAN FOOTPRINT ........................................................................................................................ 67

4.9 SYNOPSIS: STRATEGIC ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES ................................................................................. 68

5 THE ADMINISTRATIVE LANDSCAPE ......................................................................................... 69

5.1 COMPLEX TERRAIN OF GOVERNANCE ............................................................................................ 69

5.2 OVERVIEW OF PROVINCIAL GOVERNMENT...................................................................................... 69

5.3 OVERVIEW OF LOCAL GOVERNMENT .............................................................................................. 71

5.4 TRADITIONAL COUNCILS ................................................................................................................. 76

5.5 SYNOPSIS: STRATEGIC ADMINISTRATIVE ISSUES .................................................................................. 77

6 THE DEMOGRAPHIC LANDSCAPE ........................................................................................... 78

6.1 INTRODUCTION .............................................................................................................................. 78

6.2 POPULATION GROWTH AND DISTRIBUTION ....................................................................................... 78

6.3 DENSITY ......................................................................................................................................... 80

6.4 LEVELS OF EDUCATION ................................................................................................................... 81

6.5 AGE DISTRIBUTION ......................................................................................................................... 82

6.6 GENDER ........................................................................................................................................ 83

6.7 MIGRATION ................................................................................................................................... 84

6.8 SYNOPSIS: STRATEGIC DEMOGRAPHIC ISSUES .................................................................................. 86

7 THE SOCIAL LANDSCAPE ........................................................................................................ 87

7.1 INTRODUCTION .............................................................................................................................. 87

7.2 QUALITY OF LIFE ............................................................................................................................. 91

7.3 HUMAN RELATIONSHIPS .................................................................................................................. 94

7.4 EDUCATION ................................................................................................................................... 98

7.5 HEALTH ....................................................................................................................................... 100

7.6 SAFETY AND SECURITY .................................................................................................................. 101

7.7 SUSTAINABLE HUMAN SETTLEMENTS ................................................................................................ 102

7.8 SYNOPSIS: STRATEGIC SOCIAL SECTOR ISSUES ................................................................................ 103

8 THE ECONOMIC LANDSCAPE ............................................................................................... 107

INTRODUCTION ......................................................................................................................................... 107

8.1 OVERVIEW OF KZN ECONOMY IN NATIONAL CONTEXT ................................................................. 108

8.2 OVERVIEW OF KZN DISTRICT ECONOMIES ..................................................................................... 117 8.2.1 Ugu ............................................................................................................................ 121

8.2.2 uMgungundlovu ....................................................................................................... 121

8.2.3 uThukela.................................................................................................................... 121

8.2.4 uMzinyathi ................................................................................................................. 121

8.2.5 Amajuba ................................................................................................................... 121

8.2.6 Zululand .................................................................................................................... 121

8.2.7 uMkhanyakude ........................................................................................................ 122

8.2.8 uThungulu ................................................................................................................. 122

8.2.9 iLembe ...................................................................................................................... 122

8.2.10 Sisonke .................................................................................................................. 122

8.2.11 eThekwini .............................................................................................................. 122

8.3 OVERVIEW OF KZN ECONOMIC NODES ....................................................................................... 122 8.3.1 Durban ...................................................................................................................... 123

8.3.2 Pietermaritzburg ....................................................................................................... 123

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8.3.3 Richards Bay ............................................................................................................. 124

8.3.4 Summary of the City Economies ............................................................................. 124

8.3.5 Other Centres of Economic Activity in KwaZulu-Natal .......................................... 125

8.4 DETAILED ECONOMIC SECTOR REVIEW ......................................................................................... 126 8.4.1 Agriculture ................................................................................................................ 126

8.4.2 Manufacturing ......................................................................................................... 130

8.4.3 Tourism ...................................................................................................................... 133

8.4.4 Finances and Services ............................................................................................. 136

8.4.5 Wholesale and Retail Trade, Hotels and Restaurants (Trade and Commerce) ... 137

8.4.6 Mining and Quarrying .............................................................................................. 138

8.4.7 The Green Economy ................................................................................................ 138

8.4.8 Property .................................................................................................................... 141

8.4.9 Logistics and Communications ............................................................................... 142

8.4.10 Informal Economy ................................................................................................ 143

8.5 INVESTMENT IN KZN ..................................................................................................................... 144

8.5.1 Domestic Fixed investment ...................................................................................... 144

8.5.2 Foreign Direct Investment ........................................................................................ 146

8.6 SYNOPSIS: STRATEGIC ECONOMIC ISSUES ...................................................................................... 150

9 THE INFRASTRUCTURE LANDSCAPE ....................................................................................... 153

9.1 INTRODUCTION ............................................................................................................................ 153

9.2 TRANSPORT OF FREIGHT ................................................................................................................ 154

9.2.1 Freight Logistics ........................................................................................................ 154

9.2.2 Harbours and Ports ................................................................................................... 158

9.2.3 Road Transport of Freight......................................................................................... 160

9.2.4 Rail Transport of Freight ............................................................................................ 167

9.2.5 Air Transport .............................................................................................................. 170

9.2.6 Pipelines .................................................................................................................... 172

9.3 PUBLIC TRANSPORT ...................................................................................................................... 173

9.3.1 Road and Rail Public Transport .............................................................................. 173

9.3.2 Rural Transport Strategy ........................................................................................... 176

9.4 WATER AND SANITATION .............................................................................................................. 177

9.4.1 Backlogs in Water Provision ..................................................................................... 177 The quality of water is also an area that demands attention both nationally as well as in the

province. ........................................................................................................................................ 177

9.5 ENERGY AND ELECTRICITY ............................................................................................................ 180

9.5.1 Backlogs in Electricity Provision ............................................................................... 180

9.5.2 Diversified Energy Sources ....................................................................................... 182

9.6 INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGIES (ICT) ........................................................ 183 9.6.1 Overview .................................................................................................................. 183

9.6.2 Limited and expensive bandwidth ......................................................................... 184

9.6.3 ICT education in the province is severely underdeveloped ................................. 184

9.7 SYNOPSIS: STRATEGIC INFRASTRUCTURE ISSUES ................................................................................ 184

10 INSTITUTIONAL AND POLICY LANDSCAPE ........................................................................ 186

11 FUNDING CHALLENGES .................................................................................................... 188

12 CONCLUSION ................................................................................................................... 194

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1 Introduction

The statement is often made that although significant progress has been made in the

development of our Country and Province since the inception of the new democratic

dispensation in 1994, most of our people are still not enjoying the fruits of this freedom. It is

against this backdrop that the KwaZulu-Natal Provincial Government initiated a process to

review the Growth and Development Strategy of the Province. This Provincial Growth and

Development Strategy (PDGS) is intended to:

Promote vertical, horizontal and spatial alignment;

Focus on a clear vision for the Province;

Mobilise all development partners to achieve predetermined development

objectives and targets;

Build on the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats of the Province;

Set a long term (20 year +) vision and direction for development in the province;

Serve as the overarching strategic framework for development in the Province

applying the 80/20 principle (that the PGDS is not an inventory of all we do);

Spatially contextualise and prioritise (not just what, but also where and when);

Guide the activities and resource allocation of provincial government and other

spheres of government, business sectors, organised labour and other role players from

civil society that can contribute to development in the province;

Develop a clear institutional arrangements to secure buy-in and ownership, through a

structured consultation process with all sectors and development partners;

Define clear targets and indicators;

Direct commitment to the allocation of resources to manage and implement this

strategy;

Capitalise on the wealth of information available, which should be drawn on during

the preparation of the new PGDS, and that

Building a strong centre with decisive leadership roles to achieve the desired

outcomes.

It was with this in mind that the Premier and Provincial Cabinet appointed the KwaZulu-Natal

Provincial Planning Commission (PPC) in February 2011 tasked this PPC to guide the review of

the KwaZulu-Natal PGDS, and to submit a first version of this revised strategy for adoption to

the Provincial Cabinet Lekgotla in August 2011.

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Structure of this Report

The “Situational Overview Report” is intended to be a prelude to the Strategic Analysis and

drafting of the revised Provincial Growth and Development Strategy. This report captures, in

summary form, the key data and analysis of the Province as it relates to growth of the

economy, the development of its people and the state of the environment. The situational

overview focuses on what the needs of the people of the Province are, and points to the

state of the key sectors making up the economy. Thereafter, using this as a basis, a Strategic

Analysis Report is developed that attempts to go beyond mere reporting of the status quo – it

provides analysis of recent trends, shifts in policy and strategy, emergence of new needs and

relationships between stakeholders that impact on the growth and development trajectory.

With such analysis and data, the report can then form the basis for more informed strategy

development, which will be the next phase of the PGDS Review process.

The situational overview in this report was undertaken using a sectoral analysis methodology,

i.e. the state of each key sector of the Province’s growth and development framework was

assessed in turn and within this sectoral framework, the main cross-cutting issues which

impact on virtually all sectors were analysed.

The Situational Overview Report is structured according to the sections identified below,

namely:

KwaZulu-Natal in the South/ Southern African and Global context;

The Physical Landscape;

The Environmental Landscape;

The Administrative Landscape;

The Demographic Landscape;

The Social Landscape;

The Economic Landscape;

The Infrastructure Landscape;

The Institutional and Policy Landscape

Funding Challenges

Each section captures the current relevant profile of KZN, identifying the potential areas of

backlog, constraints and vulnerability in relation to growth and development. Thereafter,

opportunities for growth and possible high level prioritisation are highlighted.

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2 KwaZulu-Natal in the South/Southern African and Global

Context

The global economy has undergone significant change in the past decade. Growth

has been driven by new technological production processes and global trading

markets, shifting economic and financial systems, as well as the impact of climate

change.

Global production markets have been driven largely by the development of new

production processes and sophisticated supply chains. South Africa, and specifically

KwaZulu-Natal, has not kept in pace with these global changes which has lead to a

relative decline in productivity. This is partially due to a lack of investment (domestic

and foreign) which has seen a reduction in investment into new technology,

equipment and machinery, and skills.

In addition, there has been a substantial shift in economic power towards emerging

Asian economies. High levels of growth and production achieved by countries such

as China have placed pressure on countries who seek to compete in international

markets. Additionally, many European countries now face increasing pressure to

reduce government spending in an effort to balance trade accounts and reduce

public debt. These shifts have had a major impact in that new trading partnerships

are being formed. South Africa has recently entered the BRICSA agreement, and

therefore seeks to strengthen its relationship with other BRICSA nations. Additionally,

there is expected to be a global shift towards investment into Africa in the next

decade, and the province must ensure that the correct fundamentals are in place to

take advantages from this and other global economic shifts.

Climate change has altered the way in which countries view economic growth, in

that nations are increasingly being held accountable regarding their carbon

emissions and thus must explore cleaner sources of energy. This has caused a shift

towards new ‘green’ production processes and renewable energy generation, and a

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new way of thinking with regards to economic growth and development planning.

The relevance for South Africa and KwaZulu-Natal lies in the need to invest in new

renewable energy sources, and to attract investment that applies green principles

and employs ‘green’ technologies. This also has major implications for the province in

that food security, as well as sustainable resource management, will have an ever-

increasing role to play, and the province needs to position itself to take advantage of

the opportunities presented by moving towards a green economy.

KwaZulu-Natal’s role in the broader integration of South Africa into the African and

global economy is set to grow. This is largely due to the Province’s location, ports and

infrastructure which position KZN as a gateway to Southern Africa. This position has

been strengthened through further developments such as the aerotropolis, Dube

Trade Port. Therefore, in its’ long-term development planning, KwaZulu-Natal must

be mindful of both the impact of and the opportunities in growing linkages with

southern Africa and Africa as a whole.

In terms of the global economy, the National Planning Commission reports that in the

short term, the impact of the recent international downturn will continue to affect

South Africa’s large trading partners in Europe and North America. In the longer term,

however, it is likely that a substantial shift in global economic power will continue with

rapid growth in Brazil, Russia, India and China and other middle-income countries.

These changes will have significant direct implications for South Africa’s economy as

well as for the wider African region.

It is noted that Sub-Saharan Africa has posted strong rates of economic growth in

recent years, although much of this growth is off a low base. If current trends

continue, South Africa’s regional dominance will decline over the planning period.

Already, competing sub-regional development poles are emerging in Nigeria,

Angola and the East African community.

KwaZulu-Natal’s development strategy over the next 20 years must therefore

carefully select the economic and development drivers which will enhance the

benefits of growing integration into Africa and the global economy. Trade and

tourism will remain the lead instruments of this integration process, but many new

areas of opportunity must also be fully explored and developed. As a major

manufacturing hub, KZN business has new opportunities for export into Africa.

Already some of the leading sectors in the local economy, such as the automotive,

aluminium smelting and sugar manufacturing, are highly integrated into the global

economy, and need to stay globally competitive. Many further opportunities for new

global integration are developing for the commercial sector, information and

communication technology sector, and many sectors related to human and

community development. This new context provides challenges but more

importantly new opportunities. Africa, as an emerging and growing economic block,

and as a voice for development and greater global equity, is set to rise. KwaZulu-

Natal, as a leading province of South Africa, must rise too. That is one of the key

challenges of the new KwaZulu-Natal growth and development strategy.

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3 THE PHYSICAL LANDSCAPE

3.1 Introduction

South Africa lies at the southern tip of the African continent. Physically it is larger than

Germany, France, Italy, Belgium and Holland combined. The country is dominated by a

plateau of over 1 200 meters and a narrow coastal belt washed by the cold Benguela

current on the west and the warm Mozambique current on the east. It has a coastline of

over 2 900 kilometres, from the Indian Ocean on its eastern shores to the Atlantic on the west.

Within its borders, the large variety of climatic zones allows a wide diversity of plant and

animal kingdoms to flourish.

The province of KwaZulu-Natal, on the eastern coast of the country, is bordered by the warm

Indian Ocean to the east and the escarpment of the Drakensberg, separating it from the

mountain kingdom of Lesotho, to the west. It covers almost 8% of the country’s geographic

area. The relatively low-lying coastal strip rises to rolling hills in the Midlands before reaching

the high altitudes of the mountains and escarpment. The province boasts two of the

country’s major natural harbours at Durban and Richards Bay. It also boasts two World

Heritage Sites – The Greater St Lucia Wetland Park and the uKhahlamba Drakensberg Park.

KwaZulu-Natal can be described as a province of contrasts. The topography differs from

mountains and hills to a coastal plain which broadens considerably to the north and

contains important wetlands such as the St Lucia System, Lake Sibaya and the Kosi Bay

System. The vegetation varies from alpine veld in the high-lying areas of the Drakensberg on

the border with Lesotho to subtropical coastal forests along the Indian Ocean. A very

prominent characteristic of this province is the deeply cut parallel valleys and ridges formed

by a large number of short, fast-flowing rivers which can be seen as the result of a large

variation in altitude over a very short distance: from Mont-aux-Sources (3,282 meters), on the

border with Lesotho and the Free State to sea level over a distance of just 200 kilometers.

The very character of KwaZulu-Natal, combined with the large-scale poverty experienced

within the rural areas as well as the acknowledged vulnerability of rural communities to

variable economic conditions, service delivery and even climate variability, suggests that

any spatial planning and growth and development interventions will have a significant focus

on rural development. It is currently estimated that 50% of the all rural households within

KwaZulu-Natal live in poverty while the largest portion thereof do not have access to

acceptable levels of sanitation. The rural development focus should extend beyond

development planning and include practical interventions such as facilitating the transition

from non-sustainable traditional agricultural methods towards more sustainable methods

within a sustainable livelihoods approach.

Much of the landscape of KwaZulu-Natal is characterised by dispersed rural settlements in

terrains where infrastructure service delivery is particularly challenging. The under-resourced

rural communities are however at the heart of the history and culture of the province. A

unique attribute of land within the province is the fact that almost 40% of the land within

province falls under the custodianship of the Ingonyama Trust Board and as such

accommodates a large portion of the population of the province, mainly in the form of rural

and communal villages, which are amongst the most vulnerable in the province. The

communal nature of the land and the vast extent thereof has, in the past, impacted on the

development investments intended by both government and private sector. Effective

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investment towards growth and development will require a more streamlined approach

toward spatial planning and development investment on the Ingonyama Trust Land.

3.2 Topography

3.2.1 Elevation

The elevation of KwaZulu-Natal varies from the interior to the coast. The height above sea

level ranges from 3,448m on the escarpment of the Drakensberg, to 0m at the coast, as

illustrated by the map below.

Map 1: KwaZulu-Natal Elevation Map

Source: NASA, 2010

The elevation character of the province impacts on human settlement and production

patterns. Firstly, the scattered settlement pattern in many part of the more rural areas of the

province is the result of the undulating hills and the tendency of households in communal

and rural areas to settle either on the crests of the hills or (where more even slopes occur)

near the rivers as source of water for consumption and/or agricultural production. Secondly,

the elevation of the various biological production regions impacts especially on agriculture

and the crops that could be cultivated within specific regions. Thus the primary economic

base for the various regions will differ based on their specific landscape.

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The resulting scattered nature of settlements and production practices impacts on the cost-

effectiveness of infrastructure development in certain areas and contributes to the

vulnerability of communities as a result.

3.2.2 Slope

The mountainous character of KwaZulu-Natal provides for the presence of a number of steep

slopes. The largest part of the province has slopes that range between 9 to 58 %.

Map 2: KwaZulu-Natal Slope Analysis Map

Source: NASA, 2010

The slopes create a relatively large number of quaternary water catchment areas which in

itself creates an opportunity for localised management of water resources and quality. This

might contribute to the fact that KwaZulu-Natal has fairly good river ecosystems compared

to other provinces as discussed later in this report.

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The steep slopes impact on construction options and cost and further contribute to the

scattered development pattern of the rural areas, where traditional construction practises

situate the uMuzi’s on top of the hills and ridges. The map below depicts the slopes across the

province. On certain slopes (> 12 degrees) planned development should take visual

sensitivities into account as well as the reduction of cut-and-fill construction that might cause

erosion and loss of topsoil.

At a localised level the slope would impact on the cost of the provision of services (due to

the need for addition pump facilities) as well as the feasibility of commercial agricultural

production which uses mobile equipment such as tractors which can only be operated on

slopes of less than 12 degrees.

3.3 Geomorphology

The elevation and slopes within KwaZulu-Natal create one of the most mountainous

landscapes in South Africa, which gradually descends from the high Drakensberg mountains

in the west with a number of escarpments in the interior of the province, to low mountains in

the midlands, to highly dissected, low, undulating hills adjacent to the coast in the east.

Map 3: KwaZulu-Natal Landscapes Map

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The landscapes give form to the terrain morphological units illustrated by the map below. The

evidently highly dissected, low, undulating mountains pose a number of challenges with

regards to planning. This terrain form is oriented with waterways running towards the ocean

with the exception of the Pongola area where waterways turn northwards as they reach the

sandy plains of the lakes region. These geo-morphological units result in most regional roads

routing mainly in an east-west direction between the high-lying areas to the low lying coastal

areas. Due to high construction costs and natural settlement patterns, there is very little

north-south cross connectivity between communities and between economic production

areas, which makes some areas inaccessible and difficult to service.

Map 4: Terrain Morphological Units - KwaZulu-Natal

3.4 Soils

3.4.1 Soil Depth

There appear to be a direct correlation between the soil depth profile of KwaZulu-Natal and

the distribution of biological productivity within the province. Due to mountainous terrain, the

largest parts of KwaZulu-Natal are characterised by medium to shallow soil depths, with only

the northern regions of the province, north of Richards Bay displaying substantial soil depths

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as illustrated by the map below. A high volume of rainwater therefore cannot be absorbed

by the ground and flows to the rivers and eventually to the sea. The relatively shallow soil

depths impact on the potential for erosion and increases the risk of floods to communities.

Map 5: KwaZulu-Natal Soil Depth and Variance

Source: Department of Water Affairs, 2002

The province has high biological production potential, but its varied soil conditions do not

make the production of all types of products viable within the province. Although sugarcane

is well suited to the soil and climate conditions, recent studies indicated that a large portion

of the sugar market in South Africa is being filled by imported sugar and that farms within

KwaZulu-Natal, previously utilised for cane production are now laying fallow. Alternative

agricultural crops which might thrive within KwaZulu-Natal’s soil types need to be researched

and produced to adapt to market and cost impacts.

The above soil depths and general soil conditions are echoed by the generalised soil

descriptions as illustrated by the map below.

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Map 6: Generalised Soil Description within KwaZulu-Natal

Source: Environmental Protection Atlas of South Africa, 2002

The more fertile soils are situated north from Richards Bay and are comparable to the deeper

soil depths prevalent in this area. Soil depth and soil classification, compared with

precipitation, should be utilised to identify the types of agricultural products that will be best

suited for production within the province.

3.5 Mineral Resources

The main mineral and/or mining commodities in KwaZulu-Natal consist of coal deposits and

are located mainly within the north western parts of the province. The map below depicts

the coal deposits within the Province.

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Map 7 – KwaZulu-Natal Coal Fields and Mines

The number of closed coal mines indicated on the above map is evidence of coal deposits

being depleted at an alarming rate. The number of abandoned mines within the coal fields

of the province is anticipated to have contributed to firstly the high levels of poverty

recorded in these regions and secondly to the influx of people to urban centres such as

Madadeni, Emondlo and Ezakheni. Rehabilitation of abandoned mines is critical if the

province is to avoid the negative effects of acid drainage and contamination of aquifers.

KwaZulu-Natal can arguably not compete competitively with the mineral mining of Gauteng

and North West Provinces, and the focus needs to be on growing sectors where the province

has a competitive advantage, such as the forestry sector.

Mineral extraction from coastal dunes might impact on the environmental quality and

amenity and compete with conservation, tourism and lifestyle development options along

especially the northern coastal areas.

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3.6 Hydrology

3.6.1 Water Catchments

The province’s water resources are driven by four main catchment areas, namely

Mzimvubu River Catchment

Mkomazi River Catchment

Tugela River Catchment

Mfolozi/Pongola River Catchment

The extent of the above-mentioned catchment areas is depicted by the maps below:

Map 8: KwaZulu-Natal Primary Catchment Areas

The majority of the provinces population and economic activities are concentrated within

the Umvoti-Umzimkulu and Usutu-Mhlathuze Primary Catchment areas and at a provincial

level, it is imperative that these catchments are managed to address water demand, system

health and potential pollution.

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The quaternary catchments (illustrated below) provide a clearer indication of the locality of

the “water factories” within the province. Evidently the catchments with the highest mean

annual runoff are found in Sisonke District, attributed to the Drakensberg as well as the

northern parts of Amajuba District and the larger part of the Umkhanyakude District from St

Lucia northwards.

Map 9 - KwaZulu-Natal Catchment Runoff

Source: Department of Water Affairs, 2010

It is critical that the high run-off quaternary catchments be well managed to avoid water

shortages to communities living downstream. Spatial and development planning at a

quaternary catchment level is most vital towards managing the impact of land use and

extraction from these critical water distribution units. Such planning and management

interventions will need to address:

Impact of land use on water quality.

Soil erosion and sedimentation of water courses (including sand and gravel extraction) and stability of banks.

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Salinity caused by land clearing

Loss of habitat.

Floodplain management (including flood mitigation).

Effect of land and water management on coastal and marine environments.

Spread of noxious organisms (weeds and blue-green algae).

Competition for resources and water availability.

3.6.2 Rivers and Dams within KwaZulu-Natal

The map below illustrates the overall status of the river ecosystems within South Africa.

Map 10: River Ecosystem Status within South Africa

The map above provides a perspective on the quality of rivers within KwaZulu-Natal in

comparison the rest of the South Africa. It illustrates that the eastern part of the country,

including Mpumalanga, KwaZulu-Natal and the northern portions of the Eastern Cape

general has the least threatened river ecosystems when compared to the central provinces

of Gauteng, Free State, Western Cape and the southern portions of the Eastern Cape.

The map below highlights the status of river ecosystems within KwaZulu-Natal specifically.

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Map 11: KwaZulu-Natal River Ecosystem Status

Source: Department of Water Affairs

In broad terms the map above illustrates that the river eco systems within KwaZulu-Natal are

mostly considered vulnerable, although there are river eco systems within Sisonke and

uMkhanyakude Districts especially, which are considered endangered and the river systems

within the northern regions of Amajuba District are considered to be critically endangered.

Furthermore a number of river systems traverse local and regional boundaries and thus the

quality of the rivers are determined by adjoining districts, provinces and even countries.

It is evident that the quaternary catchments with the highest runoff, i.e. those within Amajuba

and uMkhanyakude Districts, also have some of the most critically endangered river eco-

systems in the province and could be considered priority areas for water catchment

management.

Within the rural context of the province it is further imperative to protect the riverine areas, to

ensure that health risks such as cholera do not contaminate the water sources.

The KwaZulu-Natal State of the Environment Report (2004) evaluates the “health” of the rivers

by evaluating the number of species (endemic to the environment) that are present. The

index that is being used is the South African Scoring System (SASS).

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Map 12: Health of rivers as indicated by aquatic invertebrates

Source: KwaZulu-Natal State of the Environment Report, 2004

The above alternative perspective on the health quality of the rivers differs extremely from

one tributary to the other. Very few river systems are still in their natural state.

There are at least fifteen major dams within the province serving as water storage areas for

potable water, irrigation, recreation and hydroelectricity, as listed below.

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Table 1 –KwaZulu-Natal Major Dams and their Capacity

Dam Maximum

Capacity

(mil.cub.m)

River

Albert Falls Dam 288.1 Mgeni River

Craigie Burn Dam 22.5 Myamvubu River/Mooi River/Buffels River/Tugela

River

Driel Barrage Dam Thukela River (Tugela)

Goedertrouw Dam 301.3 Mhlatuze River

Hazelmere Dam 24 Mdloti River

Hluhluwe Dam 25.9 Hluhluwe River

Inanda Dam 241.7 Mgeni River

Midmar Dam 235.4 Mgeni River

Ntshingwayo Dam 194.6 Ngagane River/Buffels River/Tugela River

Pongolapoort Dam 2267.1 Pongola River

Qedusizi Dam

Spioenkop Dam 270.6 Tugela River

Woodstock Dam 373.3 Tugela River

Wagendrift Dam 55.9 Boesmans River/Tugela River

Zaaihoek Dam 184.6

Source: www.ewisa.co.za

As far as could be determined, only Pongolapoort Dam, Inanda Dam and Hazelmere Dam

have formal Resource Management Plans to guide development around and access to the

water resource. Other major dams such as Albert Falls, Goedertrouw, Spioenkop, Midmar

and Woodstock Dams would also benefit from Resource Management Plans to ensure

sustainable community utilisation of these water resources.

Implementation of management plans for the mentioned dams will ensure more equal

distribution of water, less wastage of resources, and subsequently higher availability of water

to the various industries and communities.

3.6.3 Water Demand Management

In general terms water demand for any region is primarily driven by demographics, land use

and development planning trends. As the PGDS intends to stimulate economic growth, it is

important to consider that in a growing economy there is a tendency to use more water

which in turn impacts on sustainability.

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3.6.4 Vulnerability of Community due to Dependence on Open Water Sources

The map below provides a multi-level analysis combining areas of poor river health,

communities with high dependency on unprotected water sources, poor sanitation services

and the incidence of cholera. The highest incidence of cholera occurs in Amajuba,

uMkhanyakude, uThukela, iLembe & uMzinyathi District Municipalities.

Map 13 - Vulnerability of Households to Water-Borne Diseases

Source: KwaZulu-Natal State of the Environment Report, 2004

The above map indicates that the highest concentrations of vulnerable households as a

result of inadequate water sources and the prevalence of water borne diseases are located

in Nongoma, Hllabisa, Msinga, Nkandla, uMlalazi, Maphumulo, Ubuhlebezwe and Ezinqoleni

Local Municipalities. It should be noted that the base study informing the above map was

conducted prior 2004, and education and public information campaigns might have

reduced the severity of the situation since then.

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Map 14: Groundwater Vulnerability within KwaZulu-Natal

Source: CSIR

Education campaigns which make communities aware of the dangers related to water

borne diseases and the treatment of water only address symptoms of a larger problem and

are not solutions to the real problem of contamination. The real solutions lie in water

management planning. Contamination of water sources affects not only the health of

communities, but also raises the costs of treatment of water, which again increases

operating budgets of the water services authorities thus using funds which could inter alia

have been used for improving or installing additional infrastructure to meet the rising

demand for development and expansion.

3.7 Vegetation and Land Cover

3.7.1 Vegetation

KwaZulu-Natal has a wide variety of vegetation types. It is clear that the vegetation changes

systematically as one moves the further away from the coast. The main type of vegetation

types includes the Ngongoni Veld, and the Coastal Forest & Thornveld. To a limited extent

the following vegetation types are spread throughout the province:

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Natal Sour Sandveld

Ngongoni Veld of the Natal Mist belt

North eastern sandy Highveld

Northern Tall Grassveld

Southern Tall Grassveld

Valley Bushveld

Zululand Thornveld

Themeda Festuca Alpine Veld

Map 15: KwaZulu-Natal Vegetation Zones Map

Vegetation types may impact to a certain extent on the livelihood of communities as it

determines the carrying capacity of the field in terms of livestock units. The scarcity of

vegetation again determines whether crop production or livestock farming should be

practised.

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3.7.2 Forestry

Commercial plantation forestry in South Africa encompasses large planted forests

established to supply raw materials to satisfy mining, construction and industrial markets. The

main species planted in South Africa are pine (52, 2 %) eucalyptus (38, 92 %) and wattle (8, 3

%), which are all grown with success within KwaZulu-Natal. The figure below depicts the

locality of the forestry activities within South Africa. Northern KwaZulu-Natal and

Mpumalanga produce the largest quantities of wood annually.

KwaZulu-Natal accounted for 356,355 hectares of hardwood and 183,554 hectares softwood

in 2005. The forestry industry in KwaZulu-Natal covers approximately 740,000 hectares (8.2% of

the total area of the province). The locality of these forestry plantations is illustrated as part of

the land cover map following in the next section.

In comparison to other provinces, KwaZulu-Natal has the largest physical area assigned to

forestry (see below table) which illustrates a comparative advantage for wood production

and wood by-products.

Figure 1 - South African Plantation Areas by Species & Province

Source: CSIR

55% of all timber used in South Africa is processed in KwaZulu-Natal and, of the 13 pulp,

paper and board processing plants in South Africa, 10 are located in KwaZulu-Natal. Other

industries that are significant in KwaZulu-Natal due to the presence of the forestry industry

are:

2nd largest pulp and paper mill in SA (Richards Bay)

2nd largest newsprint mill in SA(Durban)

world's largest producer of rayon pulp (Umkomaas)

largest hardboard plant in SA (Estcourt)

the only 2 SA woodchip export plants (Richards Bay)

the 2 largest SA producers of wattle extract (Hermannsburg and Dalton)

the 2 largest SA producers of charcoal for export and local consumption (Dalton-

Greytown).

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KwaZulu-Natal has a comparative advantage over the rest of the country (in terms of

forestry) through the area assigned to the forestry industry. A large amount of the area

earmarked for forestry has, however, not been planted. A large portion of this land is in

private ownership. Still KwaZulu-Natal has the opportunity to provide in South Africa’s timber

need by ensuring resources are optimally used, and that processes in timber production are

streamlined.

Important to note however, is the fact that an increase in forestry activities have a direct link

to the reduction of water. Despite the possible opportunities for communities’ livelihoods and

greater economy of the province, the advantages need to be weighed against the loss in

regard to this most important resource.

3.7.3 Land Cover

The land cover across the province was derived from satellite imagery during 2000-1 and is

illustrated by the map below. This clearly indicates the settlement pattern within the province

as well as the areas being used for agricultural production and forestry.

Map 16 - KwaZulu-Natal Settlement Distribution and Land Cover

Source: CSIR

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Patterns that stand out are the sugar cane agriculture along the central and southern coast.

Some dryland agriculture is evident West of Lake St. Lucia, Bergville/Winterton as well as in

the Vryheid/Utrecht/Dundee triangle.

Map 17: KwaZulu-Natal Existing Agricultural Activities

Another clear pattern emerging is the “Natural grasslands” in the West on the shallow rocky

soils of the mountains and foot slopes. As one moves towards the East there is a transition to

“Thicket” with “Forest plantations” in a North-South band in the Midlands area. Areas that

focus on forestry are: Ixopo, Donnybrook, Harding, Greytown, Vryheid and the area between

Nkandla and Ulundi. The unstoppable march of technology has cut into the profitability of

forestry and paper operations and this will need to be taken into account when choosing

the most viable land use for each part of the province. Plantations are often located in

catchments with the highest rainfall and tend to have an adverse effect on river volumes.

The remaining “Indigenous forests” are along the coast in the iSimangaliso Wetland Park with

patches on the Lubombo mountains, South of Nkandla, North of Howick and West of

Newcastle. The presence of natural and planted forests creates opportunities for economic

activities which includes forestry activities as well as tourism opportunities.

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Subsistence agriculture affects quality of the soil/land cover/environment and

although important for survival, poses a threat to endangered species.

Subsistence agriculture is evident in the densely populated rural areas with surrounding

degraded land. Where these areas increase in density even further one notices the start of

more formal areas, which in terms of land cover is called “Built-up (informal)” These could be

seen as areas requiring social and infrastructure support.

Map 18: KZN Land cover: Commercial and Subsistence Agriculture

3.7.4 Agriculture, Agri-processing and Land Reform

This sector is key to addressing poverty in the province since the poorest people lin KZN live in

the rural areas. Agriculture’s contribution to the provincial economy is currently small but it

has the potential to increase significantly if its full potential were realised. The commercial

agriculture sector is the major employer in the majority of municipalities and forms the

economic anchor of these municipalities. Subsistence agriculture is by far the most important

source of sustenance for rural households. In order to achieve a reduction of unemployment

and poverty the challenge is twofold: to grow and transform the commercial agricultural

sector by assisting the development of emerging commercial farmers and to stimulate the

development of subsistence agriculture towards more sustainable practices thereby

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increasing food security. A range of infrastructural necessities will be required eg. irrigation

schemes, transport routes and market structures. The Agricultural Revolution and the Land

Reform Programme are key instruments for the achievement of these objectives and they

need to be aligned.

The Provincial Department of Agriculture and Environmental Affair’s Agrarian Revolution

programme and Land Reform’s New Strategic Framework, focusing on integrated

development models based on area-based planning, partnership, and empowerment of

beneficiaries at a local level, are both aimed at making a positive impact on commercial

agriculture. With about 1 250 000 ha of the province’s white-owned agricultural land due to

be transferred to black owners by 2014, the Department of Land Affairs acknowledges that

an integrated approach is needed to scale up delivery and maximize positive impact on

poverty alleviation, job creation and economic growth. An economic strategy that links

land reform projects to key provincial agrarian revolution programmes and projects will

capitalise on the transfer of agricultural land into an economic growth opportunity for the

province.

In spatially locating areas of agricultural potential in the province emphasis is placed on the

need to release latent potential which exists in the lands under custodianship of the

Ingonyama Trust Board, and the resolution of the land reform initiatives in the province.

3.8 Climatology

3.8.1 Precipitation

From the map below it is clear that the coastal regions and the western mountainous regions

have the highest annual precipitation: ranging between 913mm and 1,251mm per annum.

The more evenly-sloped areas situated in the north western parts of the province record the

least amount of rain with a maximum of 721mm per annum. The province receives most of its

rainfall during the summer months with some parts of the coast in the Richards bay area

receiving some winter rainfall.

Due to the varied topography of the province and the unavoidable interaction between

waterways and settlements, occasional flooding occurs, threatening both property and lives.

It is subsequently necessary to develop reaction plans/disaster management plans to deal

with such instances. Although policies exist, it is necessary to implement proper

policing/enforcement of policies to prevent human and commercial development in

dangerous localities. Due to dependency on the water source, communities will always settle

as close as possible to water sources.

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Map 19: KwaZulu-Natal Average Annual Precipitation

Source: CSIR

A number of municipalities record “water shortage” as a reason for not being able to

provide potable water to communities. This can be ascribed to a number of factors, of which

water management is probably the most significant reason. A substantial number of

municipalities cannot account for substantial water losses. The term “water losses” in this

instance refers to water that is processed through the water provision and reticulation system,

but does not reach the intended consumers due to loss of water at unknown locations in the

water infrastructure. Subsequently water service providers and authorities cannot be

remunerated for the provision of water. A number of communities therefore receive water

only for a short period of the day, as reservoirs run dry very quickly.

On a provincial level, strategies need to be devised to assist the municipalities to upgrade

infrastructure, and be accountable for the loss of water. The difference in precipitation

between summer and winter is quite significant, where the maximum rainfall drops from

195mm in the summer to 71mm in the winter.

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Map 20: KwaZulu-Natal Winter Rainfall Distribution Map

Source: CSIR

Map 21: KwaZulu-Natal Summer Rainfall Distribution

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Map 22: KwaZulu-Natal Winter Temperature Minimum Averages

Map 23: KwaZulu-Natal Summer temperature Maximum Averages

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3.8.2 Evaporation

The annual rainfall distribution within the province needs to be considered along with the

actual evaporation within the various biological regions. The map below illustrates the

average annual evaporation recorded within the various regions of the province. From the

map it is evident that the northern portion of the province includes most part of

uMkhanyakude, Zululand and Amajuba Districts experiences the highest average annual

evaporation with areas such as Pongola and Newcastle recording more than 2000 mm

evaporation per annum. This natural occurrence has an impact on the number of crop

growing days per year available to farmers.

In contrast, the southern coastal areas within the UGu District as well as the mountainous

regions of uThukela and Sisonke Districts experience the lowest average annual evaporation

rates. These evaporation rates have a significant influence on the type of agricultural

production suited to various regions.

Map 24: KwaZulu-Natal Average Annual Evaporation

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3.9 Climate Change

Popular media, thousands of scientific papers and a series of reports from the International

Panel on Climate Change all report that greenhouse gas emissions, often expressed through

increases in atmospheric CO2 concentrations are increasing and with that global

temperatures and sea level as indicated below.

Figure 2 - Indicators of Global Climate Change

Source: International Geosphere-Biosphere Program, 2010

These and other evidence of climate change have been used by the International

Geosphere-Biosphere Program to produce a composite climate change index, similar to

composite stock exchange indices, and the figure overleaf shows the clear rise in this index

since 1980.

According to Professor Roland Shulze (Shulze, 2010) further projected changes in global

climates in the future, will result in changes in the South African water production and

agriculture sector. Although it is not exactly known what the resultant consequences of future

global climate change will be in South Africa. According to Shulze, South Africa lies in one of

the regions of the world that is most vulnerable to climate variability and change. The impact

of climate change will thus drastically impact on the communities, their livelihood and the

food source of KwaZulu-Natal and South Africa as a whole.

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Figure 3 - Composite Climate Change Index

Source: International Geosphere-Biosphere Program, 2010

The potential impacts from a changing climate on South Africa can be considerable and

different regions of the country will likely be affected in many different ways.

A recent study aimed at mapping the

South African Farming Sector’s Vulnerability

to Climate Change and Variability,

conceptualized vulnerability to climate

change is as a function of three factors:

exposure, sensitivity, and adaptive

capacity as illustrated by the figure below.

Analyses of vulnerability of various

provinces in South Africa to climate

variability demonstrate vast diversity in

environmental and socioeconomic

conditions. The coastal provinces such as

KwaZulu-Natal, Eastern Cape and the

Western Cape exhibit the highest

frequency of extreme events (droughts

and floods) over the past century, whereas

the desert region of the Northern Cape

and the steppe arid regions of the North

West and Free State provinces exhibit the lowest frequency.

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The most agriculturally sensitive provinces—mainly due to their high proportion of smallholder

subsistence farmers—are the KwaZulu-Natal, Eastern Cape and Limpopo. Smallholder

farmers constitute 70 percent of the farming population in the Eastern Cape, KwaZulu-Natal,

Mpumalanga, and the North West province, and inappropriate land uses in these regions

have severely degraded land and reduced production capacity. Combining the indicators

for sensitivity and exposure, KwaZulu-Natal, Limpopo, and the Eastern Cape are predicted to

suffer the largest impacts of climate change and variability. With the exception of Limpopo,

these provinces have both the largest exposure and the highest sensitivity. A resulting ranking

of the relative vulnerability of the various provinces to climate change and variability is

illustrated by the figure below. It is evident that KwaZulu-Natal is considered to be the third

most vulnerable province after Limpopo and the Eastern Cape. Subsequently in order to

prevent possible loss of life, and ensure continuous food source for the province, KwaZulu-

Natal needs to prepare disaster management plans as well as strategies to systematically

change agricultural crops and productions methods along with weather patterns.

Figure 7 - Vulnerability Ranking in South Africa by Province

Source: International Food Policy Research Institute, 2009

3.9.1 Potential Impacts of Climate Change in South Africa

This section is extracted and adapted from a recent publication on the effects of climate

change by the Department of Social Development.

Climate Change and Variability may result in significant impacts on various sectors of South

African society and the economy. The South African Country Studies Programme identified

the health sector, maize production, plant and animal biodiversity, water resources, and

rangelands as areas most vulnerable to climate change. In brief summary the following

impacts could be expected:

• The geographic range of malaria could more than double in the next 50 years, putting

almost 8 million people at risk of whom 5 million did not previously live in areas at risk from

malaria;

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• Biophysical impacts will be most severe in the western part of the country, with a

projected complete loss of the unique Succulent Karoo.

• Mortalities and increased incidence of infectious diseases and respiratory diseases due to

increased surface temperatures.

• The incidence of malaria could increase with the expansion of habitats suitable for

mosquitoes that transmit malaria.

• Climate change may also alter the magnitude, timing, and distribution of storms that

produce flood events.

• Climate change could affect the frequency and spatial extent of livestock disease

outbreaks, such as foot and mouth disease.

• An increase in pests and diseases attributed to climate change, would also have a

detrimental effect on the agricultural sector, and invasive plants could become a

greater problem.

• The KwaZulu-Natal forestry industry is highly sensitive to climate change and the general

aridification in some areas, due to lower rainfall and higher air temperatures, could affect

the optimal areas for the province’s major tree crop species, and raise the marginal costs

associated with planting in sub-optimal areas.

• Climate change scenario modelling indicates that the area in South Africa covered by

the current biomes will decrease by 38–55% by the year 2050.

3.9.2 Responses to Climate Change in South Africa

In August 1997 South Africa ratified the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate

Change (UNFCCC) as well as the Kyoto protocol. It is the objective of the UNFCCC is to

achieve stabilisation of the concentrations of the greenhouse gases in the atmosphere at a

level that would prevent dangerous anthropogenic interference with the climate system.

The Department of Environmental Affairs and Tourism has been nominated to serve as the

lead department responsible for co-ordination and the implementation of South Africa’s

commitments and related matters in terms of the Convention.

The National Committee on Climate Change (NCCC) was established to act as an advisory

body to the Minister of Environmental Affairs and Tourism. Representatives from relevant

government departments, as well as representatives from business and industry, mining,

labour, community based organisations and non-governmental organisations constitute the

NCCC.

At government level a similar structure in the form of the Government Committee on Climate

Change (GCCC) was established. The purpose of the GCCC is to advise the directorate

climate change and ozone layer protection on matters relating to national responsibilities

with respect to climate change, and in particular in relation to the United Nations Framework

Convention on Climate Change and the Kyoto protocol. The GCCC does not advise the

National Committee for Climate Change (NCCC), but participate equally in the NCCC to

strengthen Government’s position

One of the first responses by the committee was the Initial National Communication on

Climate Change (2000) prepared in accordance with Article 12 of the UNFCCC. As required,

the Communication reported on: the national circumstances; the national inventories of

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greenhouse gases for 1990 and 1994; South Africa’s vulnerability to climate change and its

potential to adapt; the systematic observation and research undertaken in this field;

education, training and public awareness programmes required; projections and policies

made and measures taken; mitigation options and possibilities for adaptation; and a

preliminary needs assessment.

In 2002 South Africa hosted the World Summit on Sustainable Development (WSSD) or Earth

Summit in Johannesburg, convened to discuss sustainable development and related action

plans at a global level. During the summit the impacts of climate change on sustainable

development was acknowledged and reiterated within the resulting Johannesburg

Declaration on Sustainable Development as commitment by signatories to address this and

other sustainability factors.

In 2004 South Africa published a National Climate Change Response Strategy to serve as

framework for both public and private roleplayers. The strategy assists in guiding the key

research and response areas to climate change. The strategy further highlighted the need

for more detailed research in the South African context as well as the potential impacts of

climate change on key vulnerable regions and sectors within the country.

The result has been a number of research publications both scientific and awareness

oriented and included, inter alia:

South African Risk & Vulnerability Atlas, published by the Department of Science and

Technology in 2010,

Atlas of Climate Change and the Agricultural Sector in South Africa, published by the

Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries in 2011,

Atlas of Climate Change and Water Resources within South Africa, currently being

prepared by the Department of Water Affairs.

Since the UNFCCC entered into force, the parties have been meeting annually in

Conferences of the Parties (COP) to assess progress in dealing with climate change, and

beginning in the mid-1990s, to negotiate the Kyoto Protocol to establish legally binding

obligations for developed countries to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions. The 2011 COP

17 will be hosted by Durban in November 2011. At the World Economic Forum on Africa in

2010, President Jacob Zuma commented that “There are parts of the world where the

challenge [of climate change] is very severe. For some, it is a question of life or death. The

question that faces all of us is how we respond: Are we ready to have a legally binding

agreement that would try to accommodate all of us?”

Meeting the overall Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) by 2015 is highly challenged.

However, with the recent food, fuel and financial crises there is now more unlikely that these

target will be met, especially those related to health, education, and food security. As

gender equality, a critical element in achieving all MDGs cuts across all these key livelihoods

indicators, the threat of losing out on achieving gender equality and women’s

empowerment is much greater than ever before.

Added to this is the increased threat of climate change which is further likely to compromise

the limited gains made with regards to women’s role in food security and natural resources

management. The recent food crisis has resulted in calls for a clear focus on mitigating the

impact of climate change for increased and sustainable food security in support of rural

livelihoods. This has created a clear opportunity for addressing some of the constraints faced

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by women such as ensuring access to safe drinking water as well as sustainable

management of water resources, reducing land degradation, increasing forest conservation

and sustainable natural resources management. These have a direct impact on women’s

capacity to generate income and maintain livelihoods at the household level.

3.9.3 Rural Development and the Impact on the Physical Landscape

The Physical Landscape of the Province as illustrated in the preceding section has

highlighted a number of times that the province’s rural nature is firstly established by its

landscapes but also that the rural areas of the province is vulnerable due to the sensitivity of

the physical environment. For this reason it is imperative to consider the current focus on rural

development. The Ingonyama Trust Land within the province is briefly highlighted here as

any assessment of the physical environment has to consider the nature of land tenure which

impacts on land use and management of physical resources.

The map below illustrates the distribution of Ingonyama Trust Board (ITB) land within the

province. The trust is by far the largest private land holder in the Province: 40% of KZN’s total

land cover is under the custodianship of the ITB. This land is predominantly rural in context in

areas where high poverty levels prevail. This land is also in areas of high vulnerability in terms

of environment and water systems. The requirement of service provision and socio-economic

development in these areas is clear.

Map 25: Ingonyama Trust land within KwaZulu-Natal

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It is imperative that The Board operate in a strategic fashion in the development of these

areas if agricultural and development potential is to be unlocked in a responsible and

sustainable manner.

Issues of land tenure and release for development remains a vital aspect to address in order

to increase the tempo of service delivery and economic investment within rural areas. The

relatively low process productivity in accessing infrastructure delivery and development

options on Ingonyama Trust land especially needs to be improved and streamlined in order

that the communities within these areas benefit from public development programmes and

private sector investments.

Related to this is the need for increased pace in the Rural Land Reform process and the

necessity of establishing ownership rights and obligations on productive agricultural land. This

will include the empowerment of local farmers through skills development, equipment,

access to markets, capital finance and other support measures.

These rural areas are however still characterised by poor rural infrastructure and services

development due to a variety of reasons, ranging from inaccessibility and the sparse nature

of the settlements to a lack of maintenance and a shortage of skills.

3.10 Synopsis: Strategic Physical Landscape Issues

From the brief analysis of the Physical Landscape the following key challenges and impacts

have been identified as issues to be considered during the further phases of the PGDS

process:

KwaZulu-Natal is well endowed with water resources, however increasing demand

coupled with population and economic growth is leading to added pressure on the

water sources.

The quantity of surface water is under pressure due to the demands by forestry,

agriculture (irrigation), domestic and industrial users, which leads to decreasing

ecological health of water sources.

Water demand exceeds availability in two of the three Water Management Areas in

the Province (uThukela, uMvoti and uMzimkhulu) and these areas thus become

susceptible to drought.

Pressures for urban settlement, economic growth and associated infrastructure which

results in the permanent loss of prime arable land.

Declining returns from agriculture is driving farmers to sub-divide and transform their

land to other more profitable, non-farming uses.

There is an alarming decline in the area of high potential land which is under

cultivation.

KwaZulu-Natal is rated as one of the two provinces within South Africa with the most

serious levels of land degradation.

The area of eroded land in the Province increased by 57% from 1994 to 2000.

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The fertility of arable soils has declined as a result of continual agricultural production

that removes nutrients and causes other impacts such as soil acidification and

compaction. This results in increased production costs.

KwaZulu-Natal's coastal environment is under threat from increasing demand for

supply facilities for shipping, mining, poor catchment management, water

abstraction, invasive alien species and climate change.

Exploitation of coastal resources along the KwaZulu-Natal coast is mounting with the

growing global demand for seafood products which is a strong economic

inducement for fisheries.

There are four designated Marine Protected Areas along the KwaZulu-Natal coast.

Current Protected Areas do not meet the minimum necessary for the protection of

estuaries or fish and there are no open or deep water Protected Areas.

Climate Change is anticipated to have a significant impact on weather variability

and agricultural production within KwaZulu-Natal which will in turn impact on the

most vulnerable rural communities.

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4 THE ENVIRONMENTAL LANDSCAPE

4.1 Introduction

The diversity of the natural resources in the province of KwaZulu-Natal is enormous. The

topography ranges in elevation from sea level to over 3 000 m, resulting in a considerable

range in temperature, while the topography varies from the undulating coastal plains of

Maputoland to the rugged, broken terrain of the Valley of a Thousand Hills and the

precipitous mountains of the Drakensberg. The rainfall also varies considerably, from

approximately 580 mm to over 2 000 mm per annum. The geological formations of the

Province run roughly north to south across an eastern-sloping terrain while the river systems

run west to east, resulting in deeply incised valleys, cutting through the geological layers.

With this great variation in topography, climate and geology, one could expect a wide

variation in soil patterns and this is indeed so. Deep sands are found along the northern

coastal belt, young weathering soils in the steep valleys, well-drained, deep soils are a

feature of the midlands and the highland areas and poorly drained and duplex soils are

common in the upland areas where the rainfall is below 750 mm per year.

In turn, the vegetation is affected by the changes in topography, rainfall and soils. Bushveld

is found in the low-lying hot and dry areas of northern KwaZulu-Natal and in most of the river

systems. In the high rainfall areas of the coastal belt, the midlands mistbelt, highland sourveld

and the mountains of the Drakensberg, different forms of forest are found in areas which are

protected from fire. In the northern plains of the province a tall grassveld is characteristic

while in the cold highland areas the grassland is typically short.

The importance of the correct use of the natural resources to the overall economy of the

KwaZulu-Natal region cannot be over-emphasised. The degradation of the natural resources

is also a matter of grave concern and both this and the economic pressures placed on

agriculture indicate the urgent necessity for matching crop and animal requirements with

the production potential of the natural resources.

This great variation in the natural resources in turn leads to variations in the type of farming

and levels of production throughout the province. It can be seen that the challenge of

providing for sound ecologically based development planning in agriculture and other fields,

is a major problem when the complexity of the KwaZulu-Natal natural resources is

considered.

The long term Environmental Integrity of KwaZulu-Natal is dependent on addressing the

anticipated impacts of not only the strategic growth and development interventions

envisaged by the Provincial Growth and Development Strategy, but also the existing

unsustainable practices and survivalist strategies employed by communities. Recent studies

has further revealed that KwaZulu-Natal is both largely dependent on its natural resources for

growth and development, as well as arguably the most vulnerable province to

environmental degradation from both the human and external factors such as climate

change and variability.

Compared to most of the central and western provinces of South Africa, KwaZulu-Natal has

productive land. The land productivity is however constantly being affected by land use

change and land degradation resulting in long term threats. The province however still have

the potential to ensure food security for its vulnerable rural communities as well as its growing

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urban populations through effective and sustainable land management to properly

development the land potential while drastically reducing land degradation.

The rivers, dams and freshwater sources within KwaZulu-Natal accounts for almost 40% of all

the water within South Africa. However, the quality and availability of these water resources

to communities and economic activity is questionable. The demand for the provinces water

resources further increases with the demand for improved standards of living envisaged

within the provinces growth and development path. This implies that planning for the

development of the province, need to be balanced with the improvement and

management of water resources as well. Especially the riverine areas area anticipated to

hold the key to improved water management within KwaZulu-Natal. It is along the 400 000

km of river frontage within the province where the largest impact on the extraction and

pollution of water occurs.

An evaluation of the status of the river eco systems revealed that all of the major rivers within

KwaZulu-Natal are vulnerable, including the Mzimkulu, Mkomazi, Mgeni, Tugela and Pongola

Rivers and these will need to be rehabilitated and managed as key environmental corridors

within the province. Apart from the vulnerability of the major rivers, the Slang / Bivane river

(between Volksrust & Utrecht ) as well as the Mzinene, Wya & Nyalazi rivers flowing into Lake

St. Lucia are recorded as the most endangered river eco systems within the province and will

require intervention.

The biodiversity of KwaZulu-Natal represents some of the most unique systems in the country

and need to be protected for countless potential benefits in terms of food security,

environmental health, variability resilience as well as the vast economic potential it holds for

all sectors of the economy from agriculture to tourism. There exist a fine interaction and

interdependency between development and biodiversity and as the demand for

development increase, so too does the need to better manage the province’s biodiversity.

Although various public and private roleplayers are actively dedicated to protecting and

managing the balance between biodiversity and development within KwaZulu-Natal, these

efforts are still widely un-coordinated and will need to be addressed to achieve a singular

effort towards integrated sustainable development. As a number of the eco-systems of the

province crosses its borders, it is vital that effective partnerships towards sustainable

development is forged not only by internal roleplayers, but with the provinces of the Eastern

Cape, Free State and Mpumalanga as well as with the three international neighbours of

Swaziland, Mozambique and Lesotho. The further strengthening and management of the

existing Trans Frontier Conservation Areas (TMCAs) could play a vital role in this regard and

provide a vehicle for such international co-operation and partnerships.

The province does not currently produce its own electrical power and the economy has an

energy intensive coal based nature. The growth and development of KwaZulu-Natal is

believed to require that the province becomes more self-sufficient in its electricity production

as well as to use its unique environment towards the production of electricity form alternative

and more renewable resources. The province has some of the highest hydro-electrical

potential within South Africa due to the velocity of the water flow in its rivers as well as the

escarp of the Drakensberg providing the best localities. Both Macro and micro hydro-

electricity production has a significant potential in the province. Other forms of alternative

energy production such as Wind, Solar and Biomass generation has also shown potential

within the province and could further be explored.

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4.2 Ecological Biomes

Ecological Biomes can be defined as the major ecological communities of the world,

classified according to their predominant vegetation and characterised by adaptations of

organisms to that particular environment. The 8 Biomes in South Africa includes the

Succulent Karoo, Savannahs, Fynbos, Grasslands, Forests, Nama-Karoo, Marine and Coastal

Ecosystems and Wetlands.

For KZN, the biomes of Savannah, Grasslands, Forests, Marine and Wetland biomes are

important. Biomes are composed of several ecosystems and represent a regional community

of organisms named after the dominant vegetation.

Map 26: KwaZulu-Natal Vegetation Bioregions

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4.3 Biodiversity

Biological productivity or primary productivity can be expressed as the harvestable yield in

tons per hectare at a specific location for a complete growing season, giving an indication

of the ability of landscapes to facilitate vegetation growth. This can also be viewed as the

ability of the land to produce crops or the ability of the natural biomes to produce

vegetation essential to sustain game, cattle, sheep or goats. Biological productivity is

therefore a very important factor in the quest for sustainable use of the environment and

economic activity.

Interestingly enough the Biological Productivity of KwaZulu-Natal is limited as depicted on the

map below. Despite the high level of precipitation, a maximum of 55 tons per capita of

harvest is yielded annually. It is therefore necessary to implement strategies to circumvent the

low productivity by focussing on crops most suited to grow in the prevalent conditions.

Map 27 - Biological Productivity per Capita within South Africa

Of note is that this phenomenon is further aggravated by the current settlement patterns,

uncontrolled and co-ordinated land uses, in-appropriate application of agricultural practices

especially within the rural context. This implies loss of arable land, hence the need to

unlock/release and increase land productivity.

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4.4 Wetlands

The 24 wetlands identified and addressed in the KwaZulu-Natal State of the Environment

Report, are depicted in the table below:

Table 2 - Wetland Goods & Services within KwaZulu-Natal

Wetland Name Comments Concerning goods & services

Pongola Floodplain

Easily the largest subsistence fishery from a natural inland wetland in South Africa. Also very

extensive grazing lands, although both have been reduced through the effects of the

upstream dam and through extensive on-site cultivation.

Muzi Swamp Extensive harvesting of Phragmites reed beds, particularly within the Tembe Elephant

Reserve.

Mkuze Swamp An extremely important role in trapping sediment that would otherwise enter Lake St Lucia.

Multiple resource use, including papyrus for weaving.

Mfolozi Swam Provide very productive land for what is probably the most extensive wetland area in

south Africa which has been drained and planted to commercial sugar cane.

Aloeboom Performs a critical function in the trapping and retention of pollutants from coal mine

drainage in the wetlands catchment.

Mvamanzi Pan Prior to its desiccation it was important for subsistence fishing. Now is an important source

of grazing and SchoenopIectus corymbosus for weaving.

Stilwater

Pre-dominantly temporary to seasonal nature of the wetland makes it readily accessible

for agriculture.

Mhlatuze Swamp

The strategic location of the wetland around lake Mzingazi (which is a water source for

Richards Bay Town) and the Mhlatuze estuary makes the wetland very important for waste

assimilation.

Blood River 0ne of SA's largest inland wetlands providing extensive and very important grazing lands.

Paddavlei

Very important grazing lands. Entire wetland 1s accessible to livestock.

Boschoffsvlei Important for livestock grazing & cutting hay

Groenvle

Important for livestock grazing

Wakkerstroom One of the most important wetlands in south Africa for bird watching,

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Nyamvubu Important breeding site for red data Species

Hlatikulu Important for environmental education, being located next to an environmental

education centre.

Boschberg Important for livestock grazing

Ntabamhlope One of the best hydrologically monitored wetlands in south Africa, making it of high

research value.

Stillerus Site for breeding red data species – the most endangered ?

Mvoti One of the largest natural permanent reed marshes in SA

uMngeni “Sponge” Very Important site for breeding red data species

Franklin A high level of agricultural activity, sewerage and other waste disposal from the town of

Franklin adjacent to the wetland. The wetland is assimilating pollutants that could

potentially contaminate the water supply to Kokstad. Also supports Red Data bird species.

Kromrivier Vlei Important for grazing / very scenic

Ntsikeni Site for breeding Red Data bird species.

The Swamp Cyperus marginatus growing in the wetland-used as a fibre source for weaving a variety of

traditional and new products.

Source: State of Environment report KZN, 2004

Of the indicated wetland areas, seven of these are major wetlands, with four of the seven

registered as RAMSAR sites. RAMSAR refers to the Convention on Wetlands which is an

intergovernmental treaty that provides the framework for national action and international

cooperation for the conservation and wise use of wetlands and their resources. It was

adopted in the Iranian City of Ramsar in 1971 and came into force in 1975, and it is the only

global environmental treaty that deals with a particular ecosystem. The Convention's

member countries cover all geographic regions of the planet.

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Table 3 - RAMSAR and Wetlands International Sites within KwaZulu-Natal

Site Information RAMSAR Summary Description

St. Lucia System

RAMSAR No: 1ZA006

Designation date: 02-10-

1986

Coordinates: 28°04'S

032°28'E

Elevation: 0 m - 130 m

Area: 155,500 ha

St. Lucia System. 02/10/86; Kwazulu/Natal; 155,500 ha; 28º04S 032º28E. Added to the

Montreux Record, 4 July 1990, removed from the Record, 11 March 1996. Wetland

Park, State Forest Reserve. Coastal wetlands system associated with Lake St. Lucia

and consisting of several principal habitat types. Supports the largest estuarine

prawn nursery area in South Africa. An important migratory bird staging area,

feeding ground for flamingos, and spawning and nursery area for many of the 82

species of fish supported. It is also a breeding area for crocodiles. Large mammals

include hippopotamus and black rhino. Human activities have included cattle

grazing, slash and burn cultivation, and the planting of Pinus elliottii. The site is an

important recreational area offering many facilities and activities. The site was

threatened by large-scale mining for heavy metals but spared. Subject of a Ramsar

Advisory Mission in 1992. A case study is available. Ramsar site no. 345. Most recent

RIS information: 1998.

Kosi Bay

RAMSAR No: 1ZA011

Designation date: 28-06-

1991


032°48'E


Area: 10,982 ha

Kosi Bay. 28/06/91; Kwazulu/Natal; 10,982 ha; 27º01S 032º48E. Nature Reserve.

Composed of four interconnected lakes subject to tidal influence, an estuarine

channel, and three extensive swamps. Fresh water is derived from three permanent

rivers. Principal habitats include swamp and mangrove forest, reedbeds, dune

systems with associated woodland, and coastal grassland. The site supports a diverse

bottom-dwelling invertebrate fauna (30 species) and a rich fish fauna, including

eight endangered species. Several birds, mammals, butterflies, and plants are

endemic, threatened or endangered. Large areas of swamp forest have been

subjected to non-sustainable slash and burn cultivation practices. Human activities

include subsistence farming and fishing. Ramsar site no. 527. Most recent RIS

information: 1988.

Lake Sibaya

RAMSAR No: 1ZA012

Designation date:28-06-1991


032°38'E


Area: 7,750 ha

Lake Sibaya. 28/06/91; Kwazulu/Natal; 7,750 ha; 27º20S 032º38E. The largest natural

freshwater lake in South Africa, separated from the ocean by forested dunes;

includes areas of swamp forest and wet grassland. A large variety of endangered or

endemic species of reptiles, fish, birds, mammals and plants occur. The site is

important for numerous species of breeding birds and supports the second largest

population of hippopotamus in Kwa Zulu. The lake supports a diverse zooplankton

fauna, 15 species of aquatic and 43 species of terrestrial molluscs, as well as flora

and fauna unique to South Africa. A research station is located within the site. The

lake provides water for Mbazwane and Vasi. Human activities consist of livestock

grazing and cultivation. Ramsar site no. 528. Most recent RIS information: 1988.

Natal Drakensberg Park

RAMSAR No: 1ZA013



029°45'E


Area: 242,813 ha

Natal Drakensberg Park. 21/01/97; Kwazulu/Natal; 242,813 ha; 29º30S 029º45E.

Wilderness Area, Nature Reserve, Game Reserve, Provincial Park, State Forest. Set in

an extremely rugged area that includes three altitudinal zones along the border

between South Africa and the Kingdom of Lesotho, The Drakensberg is regarded as

the most important mountain catchment in South Africa due to its high yield and

water quality, supplying rural, agricultural, urban and industrial users downstream.

Conserved since the turn of the century, the entire wetland system is in near-pristine

state. The three largest rivers in Kwa Zulu-Natal originate here, supporting extensive

wetlands of various types within the Afro-alpine and Afromontane belts. The area

supports numerous endemic and endangered plant and animal species. Human

activities include nature conservation and a variety of outdoor recreation activities.

There are a research station and a conservation education center available. The site

is renowned for the quantity, quality and variety of prehistoric rock art. Many parts

are declared wilderness areas. Ramsar site no. 886. Most recent RIS information: 1996.

Ndumo Game Reserve

RAMSAR No: 1ZA014

Ndumo Game Reserve. 21/01/97; Kwazulu/Natal; 10,117 ha; 26º53S 032º16E. Nature

Reserve. Situated at the junction of the Usuthu and Pongolo floodplain systems, the

site forms the largest floodplain system in South Africa, consisting of five wetland

types, from fresh to brackish, permanent to ephemeral lakes, marshes and pools, as

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032°16'E


Area: 10,117 ha

well as riparian and gallery forest. Well known for its abundant bird life and diversity

of species, internationally important numbers of several species are supported,

including many that are rare or vulnerable. Human activities include controlled

harvesting of reeds and sedges, low-density tourism, an important fishery, illegal

black and white rhinoceros hunting, and collecting river water for sale in nearby

communities. A large agricultural irrigation scheme is operating erratically south of

the reserve in the catchment area. Ramsar site no. 887. Most recent RIS information:

1996.

Source: Department of Environmental Affairs & Tourism (DEAT)

Each of these areas represents both a significant ecological resource as well as a major

tourism opportunity.

4.4.1 Integrity of Wetlands

The KwaZulu-Natal State of the Environment Report depicts the “health” of wetlands and

rivers by evaluating the number of species (endemic to the environment) that are present.

Wetland integrity is measured in terms of the number of Wattled Crane Breeding Pairs

present. Wattled cranes are the rarest of the Crane species, and will only thrive in optimal

conditions. Subsequently it is a very good indicator of the condition of a wetland.

Map 28: Number of breeding pairs of wattled cranes

Source: KwaZulu-Natal State of the Environment Report

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The above figures depicts that wetlands in the western region of KwaZulu-Natal are better

preserved than in other areas. These are also the least densely populated areas within the

Province. This indicates that aggressive strategies should be implemented in order to protect

the remaining wetland areas, which fulfil environmental roles such as water storage, stream-

flow regulation, flood attenuation, sediment trapping, waste assimilation, wildlife protection,

recreation and education, crop production, livestock grazing, fish (food), and fibre (building

material/weaving).

4.5 Marine and Coastal Environment

The coastline of KwaZulu-Natal stretches for 640km and encompasses two bio-geographical

zones (Natal and Delagoa) and supports a greater number of marine species than any other

equivalent length of the South Africa Coast. In total, 73 estuaries enter the sea in the

province and the coast is heavily ultilised for a variety of purposes.

Worldwide, growing population and industrialisation have made oceans increasingly

susceptible to damage; to the extent that all human activities impact on the coast.

Urbanisation places increasing burdens on the storm water drainage of cities, with sanitation

systems also contributing to pollution and damage of the coastal environment. The

following potential impacts will need to be considered during the further consideration of

development strategies within the province:

• Increasing demand for extension of port operations: facilities for freight-handling and

increased accommodation of vessels leads a port to become an industrial zone – with

potential threats to the environment. In the case of Durban Port – a delicate balance will

have to be sought as the port is also supposed to cater for the tourist trade.

• Mining, poor catchment management, illegal and unplanned water abstraction,

invasive alien species and the effects of climate change in temperature, rainfall can

result in serious habitat loss. This not only affects the positive natural balance of

biodiversity but also threatens the tourist trade.

• Property development of any type on the coast results in land transformation which

interrupts sand replenishment of beaches and dunes and sediment flow through

estuaries. Coastal pollution and poor water quality in the ocean is also inhibiting various

ecological processes and the delivery of associated goods and services.

• Up to 50% of the estuaries in the Province are likely to be negatively affected by pollution,

to the extent that their functioning as estuarine ecosystems may be impaired. Others may

be unfit for human recreation. Of particular concern is the cluster of estuaries

immediately south of Durban Bay.

• Exploitation of coastal resources along the KwaZulu-Natal coast is mounting with the

growing global demand for seafood products which is a strong economic inducement

for fisheries. Marine and coastal biodiversity is therefore declining and stocks of several

resource species have collapsed or are severely over-exploited.

• There are four designated Marine Protected Areas along the KwaZulu-Natal coast.

Current Protected Areas protocols do not meet the minimum requirements necessary for

the effective protection of estuaries or fish, and neither are there open or deep water

Protected Areas as part of the protocol. Overall coastal protection in the Province is

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relatively high, however the distribution of services (shore patrols and boat inspections)

along the coast is uneven.

4.6 Preservation of Natural Resources

The following discussion on the preservation of KZN’s natural environment considers both the

identification of sensitive / vulnerable landscapes and species and it considers the current

conservation and protection status of these areas. The information is presented in some

detail to provide the basic information about how preservation can be managed but also to

illustrate that it is a complex process which requires strict regulation and this is where the

authority of the Province should be directed.

4.6.1 Sensitive Features

The Environmental Potential Atlas of South Africa depicts the total number of all sensitive

features. These features include Wetlands, Sandstone, Residential Areas. Each item has been

assigned a value of 1 (sensitive) or 0 (not sensitive), thereby identifying whether a specific

feature is considered environmentally sensitive.

The areas with the highest number of sensitive features are on the western boundary of the

province, North Eastern part of the province, and on the boundary between KwaZulu-Natal

and Mozambique. This is also where the two RAMSAR sites are situated. As with biologically

sensitive areas, methods need to be devised to ensure minimal negative impact to these

sensitive features from human activity.

4.6.2 Sensitive Species

For biodiversity conservation to be effective, actions for the conservation of regional species

should be representative of the biodiversity found within the particular region. This approach

provides a basis for determining priority within regional conservation action plans.

These species are identified on the following basis:

Range found within a region (relative endemism),

Regional occupancy (density of distribution),

Taxonomic distinctiveness (uniqueness)

Threat of local extinction in terms of their vulnerability, based on Red Data Book status

The map below represents the total number of sensitive species of fauna found in a specific

area.

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Map 29 - Concentration of Total Number of Sensitive Species

Subsequently it is required to implement measures that will ensure the safety and survival of

the mentioned species. This can be done through sensitive and formalised land use planning,

and the implementation of development procedures to minimise the uncontrolled impact of

human activity onto habitats. Especially relevant in this case is the planning and land use

management of the land under the jurisdiction of traditional authorities, where settlement of

the population is uncontrolled from the point of view of sustainable environmental practise –

based on larger strategic planning and land use management principles.

4.6.3 Vegetation Classes Remaining Intact

The map below illustrates the percentage of each vegetation class remaining intact after

human impacts. Here is presented information on the naturally-occurring vegetation classes

which remain intact today after the impact of human and commercial development. It is

important from the point of view of preserving bio-diversity and for creating / maintain

pleasant conditions in and around development nodes.

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Map 30 - Vegetation Classes Remaining Intact within KwaZulu-Natal

In correlation with the population distribution of the province, the vegetation classes

remaining intact are least around the populated areas of eThekwini and Pietermaritzburg. In

addition, the entire central and southern coastal region of the province has limited intact

vegetation classes within only about 45% of the vegetation classes remaining intact.

As could be expected, the terrain within the mountainous western portions of the province as

well as the northern portions of Amajuba and uMkhanyakude districts are some of the most

intact areas within the province. The concentration of eco-tourism within these areas are a

testimony to this and hence also dependant on the retention of these vegetation classes

and ecosystems.

Similar to the percentage of vegetation classes remaining intact, the observed conservation

status refers to the level to which habitats are threatened due to the presence of human

activity and the subsequent impact made on the vegetation in the region are illustrated by

the map below (using the standardise IUCN classification). As with the previous map, this

layer was scored by a panel of botanists from the South African National Biodiversity

Institute).

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Map 31 - Need for Conservation Map

From the map above it is evident that selected areas on the coastal region are critically

endangered, especially to the north on the more evenly sloped areas in uThungulu and

uMkhanyakude Districts. One specific vegetation type that stands out is the “Sand Forests”

that occur on high terraces inside and to the South of Tembe Elephant Park.

Most of the coastal areas are considered endangered and this could be ascribed to the

high impact that the population densities and settlement patterns have on these areas.

Presently about 40% of the world’s population live along the coast. Sensitive dune habitats

will there for always require protection. The interior of the province is largely classified as

vulnerable. It must be noted, that although previous impact on the environment is the cause

of the vegetation being classified as endangered, currently these areas are properly

managed. It should however also be noted that there is often less land use management in

the interior and highly rural areas of the province which needs to be monitored carefully.

When comparing the Need for Conservation to the Protection Status map, it is clear that the

critically endangered vegetation do receive protection. This is in the form of formally

managed parks but also community conservancies where the hosts of the land choose

conservation and ecotourism as the most viable land use with the conservancy being

managed for their benefit. In this communities could manage their land sustainably as it is

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seen as a land use option that unlocks the potential of their resources, and this is a model

which could be replicated with great advantages.

The map below illustrates the vegetation types classified according to the current level of

formal protection they enjoy under the national conservation estate. The number of hectares

in which each vegetation type is protected in the national conservation estate is calculated

as a percentage. The higher percentages point to a sufficient level of protection. The effect

of the uKhahlamba Drakensberg Park is evident with some of the local vegetation types

being up to 90% protected. The lower the percentage, the higher the priority to afford some

level of protection becomes. Similar areas where formal protection affects this calculation

positively is the iSimangaliso Wetland Park with Tembe Elephant Park, Ndumo Game Reserve

and the Usuthu Gorge Community Conservation area which all contribute to the protection

of the internationally recognised Maputaland Biodiversity Hotspot. These areas are also world

heritage sites, and attract large volume of international tourists within the Province.

Areas highlighted as requiring further protection are the southern parts of the Indian Ocean

Coastal Belt and the Sub-escarpment savanna. These are places where community

conservation areas could be investigated if found to be the ideal land use given the

biophysical conditions and parameters of access and development.

Map 32 - KwaZulu-Natal Protection Status Map

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4.6.4 Protected Areas

The map below depicts the current provincial conservation estate in a broad range of

protection classes from provincial nature reserves, community conservancies and partnership

parks. It also highlights as focus areas to possibly be included as part of the National

Protected Areas Expansion Programme (NPAES) within KwaZulu-Natal based on keeping

biodiversity corridors intact.

It is further important to note that the potential expansion areas identified as part of the

National Protected Areas Expansion Programme can further be prioritized at a provincial

level by considering the scientific conservation worthiness of areas outside of the national

conservation estate with specific consideration of areas playing a role in connecting other

areas of important and high biodiversity. The result is an identification of the conservation

worthy areas according to a Critical to Low scale set as illustrated by the map below.

Map 33: KZN Conservation-worthy potential Expansion Areas

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Transfrontier Conservation Areas

KwaZulu-Natal is partial hosts to two Trans-Frontier Conservation Areas (TFCA) namely the

Moluti/Drakensberg TFCA, as well as the Lubombo TFCA.

The Maloti-Drakensberg Transfrontier Conservation Area is a collaborative initiative between

the Governments of the Kingdom of Lesotho and the Republic of South Africa. The main

objectives of the project are to conserve the globally significant biodiversity that occurs in

the catchments of the 300km border straddling the Maloti and the Drakensberg mountains,

and to stimulate integrated nature-based tourism development with maximum participation

of local communities. The two components are in stark contrast as the KwaZulu-Natal side is

actively managed for conservation while the Lesotho side is communal land where stock

grazing is one of the few activities that takes place.

The Lubombo TFCA is a unique and complex TFCA, consisting of five smaller TFCAs. The

Lubombo Transfrontier Conservation and Resource Area (TFCA) Protocol was signed

between the Governments of Mozambique, South Africa and Swaziland on 22 June 2000. It

also hosts a strong marine component with many turtle nesting sites present with popular

diving and other ecotourism destinations. These smaller TFCAs are as follows:

Ndumu-Tembe-Futi TFCA, between Mozambique and South Africa (SA).

Ponto do Ouro-Kosi Bay Marine and Coastal TFCA, between Mozambique and SA.

Nsubane-Pongola TFCA, between SA and Swaziland .

Lubombo Conservancy-Goba TFCA, between Mozambique and Swaziland

Songimvelo-Malolotja TFCA, between SA and Swaziland (recently incorporated into

Lubombo TFCA.

The maps below depict the locality of the TFCA, as well as the three accompanying border

posts situated near the Conservation areas, but do not form part of the conservation areas.

An important aspect to consider is that tourists can cross international borders with minimal

effort (so called “soft” border posts). It is therefore necessary to ensure proper management

of the movement of people. It is also necessary to ensure that complete memoranda of co-

operation and agreement are entered into between the two governments and that

responsibilities are clearly defined.

Another important consideration is that wildlife, domestic animals, and people are coming

into contact more frequently and formal policies and more importantly, practice, on animal

disease control are required otherwise there will be negative impacts on public health,

agriculture and commerce if not managed correctly.

4.7 Energy Resources

A global phenomenon and challenge that South Africa is continually faced with is the issue

of cost effective and renewable energy. Energy is critical to virtually every aspect of the

province’s economic and social development, contributing to about 15% to the country's

gross domestic product (GDP). Depending on the manner in which it is produced,

transported and utilised, it can contribute to environmental degradation, such as air

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pollution, impact on biodiversity, global warming and other related environmental problems,

principally effecting climatic change.

Providing affordable, adequate, and reliable modern energy supplies remains a major

challenge, even though access to electricity has increased from one-third to two-thirds of

the population since 1994. (Winkler, 2003)

Ensuring affordable energy is within reach of everyone is a key national goal and due to

large coal deposits, South Africa is able to offer cheap (by international standards) electrical

power to its residents and industries. At the same time, planning ensures that this key driver of

economic growth is delivered reliably and cost-effectively to industry, commerce and

agriculture. The Department of Minerals and Energy’s Energy Policy is based on the following

key objectives:

attaining universal access to energy by 2012

ensuring accessible, affordable and reliable energy, especially for the poor

diversifying primary energy sources and reducing dependency on coal

practising good governance, which must also facilitate and encourage private-sector investments in the energy sector

providing energy in an environmentally responsible manner.

Investment in renewable energy and energy efficiency is important to reduce the negative

economic, social and environmental impacts of energy production and consumption in

South Africa. The aim of renewable and sustainable energy refers therefore to the

generation of electricity whilst the carbon footprint of the operation is reduced. Potential

sources of renewable energy includes wind, bagasse, wood, hydro, solar, agricultural waste,

wood waste, to name a few. Apart from the availability of resources, it is also necessary to

reduce the carbon footprint of operations on the environment, whilst considering the

following:

Researching sources, applicability and cost effectiveness of the different types of

renewable energy

Waste recovery and recycling

Considering and implementing “Green Economy” principles

The different types of Food for Work and Food for Waste programmes

As indicated before, there is a strong dependency within the province on coal based

energy generation. It is therefore prudent that the province investigates, considers and

commit to potential alternative sources of energy as a matter of priority to ensure a more

sustainable energy mix by 2030. Fossil fuel generation will undoubtedly still be a substantial

part of the equation. However, it is clear that any future low carbon energy infrastructure will

have to include a significant proportion of energy generated from renewable sources – most

scenarios showing the proportion of primary energy having to reach 40-50% by 2050. Some of

the leading technology contenders are emerging and, in some cases have begun to build

significant experience.

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4.7.1 Air Quality

Air pollution can be classified as the emission of chemical compounds into the air as a result

of anthropogenic and natural activities, which have the potential to impact negatively on

air quality and the environment.

Closely related and very involved with global warming and the search for alternative energy

sources, the below images depicts how the present level of smoke as well as sulphur dioxide

in the air increased during the period 1950 to 1999.

Map 34: Mean Winter Smoke Concentration

Source: Data obtained from CSIR National Survey of Smoke and Sulphur Dioxide

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Map 35: Mean Winter Sulphur Dioxide Concentration

Source: Data obtained from CSIR National Survey of Smoke and Sulphur Dioxide

It is clear that emissions into the air peaked during the 1980’s. With the growing awareness of

global warming, as well as improved technology, the emissions declined slightly towards the

end of the century. Presence of smoke and sulphur dioxide is still very high, and measures

need to be implemented to reduce emissions harmful to the environment.

4.7.2 Wind Energy

Wind Energy can effectively be categorised into two main areas, namely:

Offshore Wind: When the best sites for onshore wind have been snapped up, the next

place to look for large quantities of renewable energy is offshore. Offshore wind offers

enormous potential, with stronger more predictable winds and almost unlimited

space for turbines. Planning permission can be easier to obtain than onshore, farms

can be built at cost effective scales impossible on land, and the availability of space

is almost unlimited if deep waters are mastered.

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Onshore Wind: The most mature of the renewable energy sectors, the onshore wind

industry saw 21GW built in 2007, bringing installed capacity to over 100GW.

Within KwaZulu-Natal, the highest wind energy potential is mainly concentrated within the

northern coastal areas of uMkhanyakude District as illustrated adjacent.

Map 36 - Wind Power Potential within South Africa

4.7.3 Solar Energy

Solar Energy can also effectively be categorised into two main areas, namely:

Solar Photovoltaic Power: Photovoltaic (PV) technology has made very rapid strides in

the past four years, in terms of reducing the cost of crystalline silicon (its main

component) and commercializing thin film technology.

Solar Thermal Electricity Generation: While PV is ideal for smaller projects and

integrated into buildings, the technology of choice for big solar plants in the world’s

deserts looks set to be Solar Thermal Electricity Generation (STEG): concentrating the

heat of the sun to generate steam, which can be used in conventional and highly

efficient turbines.

Productive solar energy requires sufficient annual shortwave radiation in order to be deemed

feasible. The annual direct and diffuse solar radiation for South Africa is mapped below.

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Map 37: Annual Solar Radiation within South Africa

From the map above it is evident that the western and north western regions of South Africa,

mainly the Northern Cape and North West Provinces receive the highest annual solar

radiation and are thus best suited to the production of solar energy. The KwaZulu-Natal coast

from Durban southward represents an area with the least recorded annual solar radiation

and subsequently the least potential for the large scale production of solar energy. This

comment does not exclude the micro-scale installations on individual buildings – which still

remains a cost effective option for the user. The only possible areas suitable for large scale

solar energy generation are within the western inland areas of the province within the

uThukela District.

4.7.4 Hydro Energy

The CISR, Eskom Corporate Technology, and the Department of Minerals & Energy, jointly

conducted a study to determine the possibility of hydroelectricity as an alternative means to

generate electricity. They distinguish between macro hydro-electricity schemes which

generate electricity for regions, as well as micro hydro-electricity schemes which generate

electricity for localised areas to supplement existing and more traditional means of electricity

generation.

Macro power potential was determined using the cumulative mean annual flow volume

along a river length. Due to the topography and the high rainfall, KZN provides ample

opportunity to implement macro hydro electrical schemes.

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Map 38 - South African Macro Hydro Power Potential

In comparison, micro power potential is modelled using the mean annual flow volume for a

one kilometre stretch along a river. This approach gives a better estimate of local energy

potential and highlights the potentials of fast flowing water (steep gradients) as opposed to

large volumes of water. The map above depicts the areas with potential to establish Micro

Hydro Power plants. Small plants refer to less than 10MW, hydropower plants.

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4.7.5 Biomass Energy

The main sources of biomass are for in-house heat and electricity generation and consist of

the following materials

Fuel Wood;

Bagasse – Waste created during sugar production;

Pulp – Waste created during wood processing.

Bio fuel can also be created through agricultural production of energy crops (Maize,

Sunflowers and Jatropha Trees). Global investment in bio fuels is on the increase, but most of

this flowed into corn-based ethanol, which is more expensive to produce than sugar-based

ethanol, subject to volatile prices and controversial because its feedstock is a food staple

around the world.

The map below depicts that the northern parts of KwaZulu-Natal has a low yield of biomass

whilst the Southern areas of the province produces a medium quantity of biomass fuel.

Map 39: South African Biomass Energy Potential

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Summary of Environmental Challenges

KwaZulu-Natal faces two critical environmental challenges, namely the effects of climate

change, as well as the environmental degradation within the province. The figure overleaf

clearly illustrates that the majority of the ecosystems in KZN are deemed to be vulnerable to

degradation from human activity with the most populated coastal areas being the most

endangered.

Within recent times the province experienced an anomaly in weather patterns, whereby

unusually high levels of precipitation was measured for the time period in which it occurred,

resulting is loss of lives and significant damage to properties and infrastructure investments.

The significance of this is that the province needs to respond to the possible recurrence of

such an environmental disaster by implementing mitigating measures to prevent such loss.

The province is currently undergoing a project whereby considering climate changes and

consequential impacts as a result of such through projections and analysis that relates to

flood risk areas. Six pilot projects are underway and have proven valuable to prevent and

mitigate potential impacts. The said study will eventually cover the entire province and will

assist and guide future public and private investment and will assist with pro-active response

to any disaster events.

Environmental degradation is still happening on a daily basis, whether intentional by

developers, or unintentional by over grazing communal land, or over population and

settlement within sensitive environmental areas. In general the trends of ignorance towards

environmental protection depict a need for better management and enforcement of

environmental legislation. According to the Wildlife and Environment Society of SA (WESSA),

there are many environmental concerns which need to be addressed, which inter alia

include:

Pipelines along the KwaZulu-Natal coast appear to be showing a trend of increasing

pollution.

On-going escalation of unlawful incursions into Game Reserves, especially the

Ndumo Game Reserve

Illegal reduction flow activities which affect fresh water biomes

Applications in contradiction to National and Provincial Legislation and Guidelines.

There are numerous environmental committees tasked to manage and promote protection

of specific environmental aspects, which should be included and consulted, to assist

government efforts, or either be provided with capacity to monitor environmental status.

These committees inter alia include:

Provincial Coastal Committee

KwaZulu-Natal Stream Flow Reduction Activities Licence Assessment Advisory

Committee

Licence Advisory Forums and stakeholder forums for marine outfall pipelines

KwaZulu-Natal Wetland Forum

KwaZulu-Natal has a lot to offer in terms of Environmental Tourism, and the environment

needs to be protected as a strategy towards revenue generation - the means of attracting

tourism.

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There is therefore a definite need to implement strategies which will affect or improve the

following aspects within the province:

Protection of bio-diversity

Provision of Quality and sufficient quantity of water

Reduction in green gas emissions

Improved Sustainable Environmental Management.

4.8 Human Footprint

From a spatial planning perspective, it is vital to consider the current and future pressure on

or impact of human activities and development on the environment and resources. The

resulting human footprint represents the areas where the human impact on the environment

is the greatest, and is related to the population density, infrastructure investment and

economic activities as depicted by the following map.

Map 38- Current Human Footprint within KwaZulu-Natal

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The most intensive interaction between humans and the natural environment is around the

movement corridors, namely the N3, and the N2 National Roads. Impact in these regions is

classified as high to very high. When new roads are constructed it is therefore imperative

that the specific rural area first compiles a land use plan that sets aside areas for

development as well as areas for ecotourism which requires relatively untouched natural

landscapes.

4.9 Synopsis: Strategic Environmental Issues

From the brief analysis and overview of Environmental Landscape described above, the

following key challenges and impacts have been identified as issues to be considered during

the formulation of strategies in support of growth and development within the province:

Loss of biodiversity eventually reaches a tipping point from where it cannot recover,

further compounded by current climate changes;

Loss in Biodiversity will impact on agricultural production ability, in turn affecting a

variety of processing and manufacturing processes on which the provincial economy

is dependant.

Inland regions (associated with most rural communities) of the province are

considered environmentally vulnerable, hence the need to preserve and protect

through creating harmonious balance;

Negative impact from the lack of reporting on International treaties and protected

areas;

The conservation status of broad vegetation types is declining, with four critically

endangered and 17 endangered;

The conservation status of birds in the Province has declined over the last 20 years;

The Province has a disproportionately high number of extinct and critically

endangered plants when compared with other provinces;

Increasing demand for electricity and energy production outweighing traditional

production methods and will impact on natural resources;

Household quality of living and commerce directly affected by availability of

electricity;

Potential investment is directly influenced by the availability and cost of electricity;

and

Increased localised deforestation for fuel wood associated with most rural

communities.

In conclusion, the identification of potential programmes to guide public and private

investment, research, policy directives, partnerships and other strategic interventions will

need to address the dynamics of Environmental Integrity with the province.

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5 THE ADMINISTRATIVE LANDSCAPE

5.1 Complex Terrain of Governance

In terms of Government and the institutional framework of government, KwaZulu-Natal has a

complex environment. For the growth and development strategy process, the following key

features of the governance framework, and the inter-relationship between these features,

become relevant :

A provincial government administration with 16 separate departments,

At least eight provincial public entities/agencies,

A number of national departments who implement their programmes locally,

A number of key national state-owned enterprises such as Transnet and Eskom, as

well as regionally-based water boards,

The metro of Ethekwini, which is by far the most strategically important node for KZN,

10 District Municipalities which are meant to coordinate and support local

municipalities,

50 local municipalities with varying degrees to viability and of capacity to fulfil their

developmental mandate,

The Ingonyama Trust Board, appointed custodian of traditional land, holding about

40% of the land of the Province,

A number of local development agencies.

A KwaZulu-Natal House of Traditional Leaders and nine local houses of traditional

leaders (at District level) and a large number of traditional councils at local level.

5.2 Overview of Provincial Government

Provincial Government is constituted of 16 Departments:

1. Agriculture, Environmental Affairs and Rural Development

2. Arts & Culture

3. Economic Development & Tourism

4. Education

5. Health

6. Human Settlements

7. Office of the Premier

8. Legislature

9. Provincial Treasury

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10. Royal Household

11. Community Safety & Liaison

12. Social Development

13. Sport & Recreation

14. Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs

15. Transport

16. Public Works

Each of the departments are expected to develop and facilitate implementation of plans to

develop all of the areas of KwaZulu-Natal, and to work collaboratively with other spheres of

Government and relevant agencies in their respective sectors. The work of these

departments is coordinated mainly through the Cabinet Clusters, with there being four

clusters into which the departments area arranged :

Economic Sector and Infrastructure Development

Social Protection, Human and Community Development

Governance and Administration

Justice, Crime Prevention and Security.

In addition to the departments, there are also a number of provincial public entities which

are meant to provide specialised capacity and support to the Province, to local government

and to civil society in their respective fields of mandate. Some of the key public entities

which are particularly relevant to growth and development planning, include :

Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife

Amafa Heritage KZN

Ithala Development Finance Corporation

KZN Growth Fund

KZN Tourism Authority

Trade and Investment KZN

KZN Agricultural Development Agency

Dube Tradeport Corporation

These entities report to the Provincial Legislature through their respective parent

departments, but in many cases develop independent strategies and structures for planning

and coordination of their work with relevant municipalities and/or other institutions.

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5.3 Overview of Local Government

The province is divided up into 10 districts and one metropolitan (eThekwini) municipality.

Additionally the province has what are termed District Management Area’s (DMA’s) which

are the two World Heritage Sites: the ukaHlamba Drakensberg Transfrontier Park and the

iSimangoliso Wetland Park. The two northernmost district municipalities, Zululand an

Umkhanyakude are the largest and combined make up 30% of the total land area of the

province. As a general trend, the closer one goes to centres of economic development the

smaller the district municipality is. The two district municipalities immediately north and south

of the eThekwini Metropole (iLembe and Ugu) only make up a combined total of 8,7% of the

total land area. The localities of the above mentioned district municipalities are depicted on

the map below.

Map 39 KZN District Municipalities and Metro

The District Municipalities are further broken down into 50 local municipalities.

District and Local Municipalities fulfil a broad range of functions from integrated

development planning, electricity provision, sewerage and waste disposal, health services to

the promotion of regional tourism.

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Map 40 Metro and Local Municipalities

The above map illustrates the fact that the province is adjoined by three international

countries with associated border posts as listed below:

Lesotho: Sani Pass International Border Post within Sisonke District,

Swaziland: Golela International Border Post within Zululand District, and

Mozambique: Manguze International Border Post within uMkhanyakude District.

Apart from these international neighbours, it should be remembered that the entire coastline

of the KwaZulu-Natal serves as an international boundary of the Republic of South Africa.

Domestically, the province also shares borders with the provinces of Mpumalanga, Free State

and Eastern Cape.

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The district municipalities are in turn divided into a total of fifty local municipalities.

Name Seat Area (km²) Population (2007)

eThekwini Metropolitan Municipality Durban 2,292 3,468,086

Ugu District Municipality Port Shepstone 5,047 709,918

Vulamehlo Local Municipality Scottburgh 973 74,017

Umdoni Local Municipality Scottburgh 238 74,437

Umzumbe Local Municipality Mtwalume 1,259 176,287

uMuziwabantu Local Municipality Harding 1,089 104,527

Ezingoleni Local Municipality Izingolweni 648 56,369

Hibiscus Coast Local Municipality Port Shepstone 839 224,281

uMgungundlovu District Municipality Pietermaritzburg 8,934 988,837

uMshwathi Local Municipality Wartburg 1,818 113,054

uMngeni Local Municipality Howick 1,567 84,781

Mpofana Local Municipality Mooi River 1,652 31,518

Impendle Local Municipality Impendle 949 39,401

Msunduzi Local Municipality Pietermaritzburg 634 616,730

Mkhambathini Local Municipality Camperdown 915 46,570

Richmond Local Municipality Richmond 1,231 56,772

uThukela District Municipality Ladysmith 11,326 714,908

Emnambithi/Ladysmith Local Municipality Ladysmith 2,965 236,748

Indaka Local Municipality Wasbank 992 101,557

Umtshezi Local Municipality Estcourt 2,130 83,906

Okhahlamba Local Municipality Bergville 3,475 151,441

Imbabazane Local Municipality Ntabamhlophe 827 140,745

uMzinyathi District Municipality Dundee 8,589 495,737

Endumeni Local Municipality Dundee 1,610 54,447

Nquthu Local Municipality Nquthu 1,962 164,887

Msinga Local Municipality Tugela Ferry 2,501 161,894

Umvoti Local Municipality Greytown 2,516 114,509

Amajuba District Municipality Newcastle 6,911 442,266

Newcastle Local Municipality Newcastle 1,855 327,637

eMadlangeni Local Municipality Utrecht 3,539 23,263

Dannhauser Local Municipality Dannhauser 1,516 91,366

Zululand District Municipality Ulundi 14,799 902,890

eDumbe Local Municipality Paulpietersburg 1,943 75,096

uPhongolo Local Municipality Pongola 3,239 137,756

Abaqulusi Local Municipality Vryheid 4,185 247,628

Nongoma Local Municipality Nongoma 2,182 244,501

Ulundi Local Municipality Ulundi 3,251 197,908

uMkhanyakude District Municipality Mkuze 12,821 614,046

uMhlabuyalingana Local Municipality Kwangwanase 3,619 163,694

Jozini Local Municipality Jozini 3,056 207,250

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/EThekwini_Metropolitan_Municipality

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Durban

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ugu_District_Municipality

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Port_Shepstone

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vulamehlo_Local_Municipality

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scottburgh

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Umdoni_Local_Municipality

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scottburgh

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Umzumbe_Local_Municipality

http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Mtwalume&action=edit&redlink=1

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/UMuziwabantu_Local_Municipality

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harding,_KwaZulu-Natal

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ezingoleni_Local_Municipality

http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Izingolweni&action=edit&redlink=1

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hibiscus_Coast_Local_Municipality

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Port_Shepstone

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/UMgungundlovu_District_Municipality

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pietermaritzburg

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/UMshwathi_Local_Municipality

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wartburg,_KwaZulu-Natal

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/UMngeni_Local_Municipality

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Howick,_KwaZulu-Natal

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mpofana_Local_Municipality

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mooi_River_(town)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Impendle_Local_Municipality

http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Impendle&action=edit&redlink=1

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Msunduzi_Local_Municipality

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pietermaritzburg

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mkhambathini_Local_Municipality

http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Camperdown,_KwaZulu-Natal&action=edit&redlink=1

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richmond_Local_Municipality

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richmond,_KwaZulu-Natal

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/UThukela_District_Municipality

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ladysmith,_KwaZulu-Natal

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emnambithi/Ladysmith_Local_Municipality

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ladysmith,_KwaZulu-Natal

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indaka_Local_Municipality

http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Wasbank&action=edit&redlink=1

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Umtshezi_Local_Municipality

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Estcourt

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Okhahlamba_Local_Municipality

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bergville

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Imbabazane_Local_Municipality

http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Ntabamhlophe&action=edit&redlink=1

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/UMzinyathi_District_Municipality

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dundee,_KwaZulu-Natal

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Endumeni_Local_Municipality

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dundee,_KwaZulu-Natal

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nquthu_Local_Municipality

http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Nquthu&action=edit&redlink=1

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Msinga_Local_Municipality

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tugela_Ferry

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Umvoti_Local_Municipality

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greytown,_KwaZulu-Natal

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amajuba_District_Municipality

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Newcastle,_KwaZulu-Natal

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Newcastle_Local_Municipality

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Newcastle,_KwaZulu-Natal

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/EMadlangeni_Local_Municipality

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Utrecht,_KwaZulu-Natal

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dannhauser_Local_Municipality

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dannhauser

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zululand_District_Municipality

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ulundi

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/EDumbe_Local_Municipality

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paulpietersburg

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/UPhongolo_Local_Municipality

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pongola,_KwaZulu-Natal

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abaqulusi_Local_Municipality

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vryheid

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nongoma_Local_Municipality

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nongoma

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ulundi_Local_Municipality

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ulundi

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/UMkhanyakude_District_Municipality

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mkuze

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/UMhlabuyalingana_Local_Municipality

http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Kwangwanase&action=edit&redlink=1

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jozini_Local_Municipality

http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Jozini&action=edit&redlink=1

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The Big Five False Bay Local Municipality Hluhluwe 1,061 34,991

Hlabisa Local Municipality Hlabisa 1,417 150,557

Mtubatuba Local Municipality Mtubatuba 496 46,596

uThungulu District Municipality Richards Bay 8,213 894,260

Mbonambi Local Municipality KwaMbonambi 1,210 118,081

uMhlathuze Local Municipality Richards Bay 793 332,156

Ntambanana Local Municipality Empangeni 1,083 94,190

uMlalazi Local Municipality Eshowe 2,214 175,372

Mthonjaneni Local Municipality Melmoth 1,086 47,010

Nkandla Local Municipality Nkandla 1,828 127,451

iLembe District Municipality KwaDukuza 3,269 528,198

Mandeni Local Municipality Mandeni 582 122,665

KwaDukuza Local Municipality KwaDukuza 633 162,055

Ndwedwe Local Municipality Ndwedwe 1,157 134,322

Maphumulo Local Municipality Maphumulo 896 109,157

Sisonke District Municipality Ixopo 11,127 500,082

Ingwe Local Municipality Creighton 1,991 114,116

KwaSani Local Municipality Himeville 1,213 14,281

Greater Kokstad Local Municipality Kokstad 2,680 46,724

Ubuhlebezwe Local Municipality Ixopo 1,604 80,905

Umzimkhulu Local Municipality Umzimkhulu 2,435 243,242

The goals of the local government system are to: provide democratic and accountable

government for local communities; ensure the provision of services to communities in a

sustainable manner; promote social and economic development; promote a safe and

healthy living environment; and encourage the involvement of communities and community

organisations in the matters of local government.

Integrated Development Plans

All development in the province needs to be developed in accordance to national and

provincial plans. These include the:

Accelerated and Shared Growth Initiative for South Africa (ASGISA)

National Spatial Development Perspective (NSDP)

KZN Provincial Growth and Development Strategy (PGDS)

Provincial Spatial Economic Development Framework (PSEDS)

These strategies have been tabled to all municipalities in the province and form the basis for

a series of municipal development and growth summits that have been held. While urban

areas in the province have good infrastructure and service delivery, past inequalities have

left a legacy of problems, particularly in rural areas with low population densities.

In order to plan for interventions to address municipal needs, local municipalities in South

Africa use "integrated development planning", as a method to plan and deliver future

development in their areas. An Integrated Development Plan (IDP) is a wide-ranging plan for

an area that gives a general framework for development. The plans aims to co-ordinate the

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Big_Five_False_Bay_Local_Municipality

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hluhluwe

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hlabisa_Local_Municipality

http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Hlabisa&action=edit&redlink=1

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mtubatuba_Local_Municipality

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mtubatuba

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/UThungulu_District_Municipality

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richards_Bay

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mbonambi_Local_Municipality

http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=KwaMbonambi&action=edit&redlink=1

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/UMhlathuze_Local_Municipality

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richards_Bay

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ntambanana_Local_Municipality

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Empangeni

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/UMlalazi_Local_Municipality

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eshowe

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mthonjaneni_Local_Municipality

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Melmoth,_KwaZulu-Natal

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nkandla_Local_Municipality

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nkandla

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ILembe_District_Municipality

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/KwaDukuza

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mandeni_Local_Municipality

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mandeni

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/KwaDukuza_Local_Municipality

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/KwaDukuza

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ndwedwe_Local_Municipality

http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Ndwedwe&action=edit&redlink=1

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maphumulo_Local_Municipality

http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Maphumulo&action=edit&redlink=1

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sisonke_District_Municipality

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ixopo

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ingwe_Local_Municipality

http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Creighton,_KwaZulu-Natal&action=edit&redlink=1

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/KwaSani_Local_Municipality

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Himeville

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greater_Kokstad_Local_Municipality

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kokstad,_KwaZulu-Natal

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ubuhlebezwe_Local_Municipality

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ixopo

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Umzimkhulu_Local_Municipality

http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Umzimkhulu&action=edit&redlink=1

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work of local and other spheres of government in a coherent manner in order to improve the

quality of life for all the people living in an area.

The district municipalities are mandated to play the lead role in coordinating and supporting

local municipalities in executing their developmental mandate. Although for a have been

established to facilitate such coordination, they have had limited success, as has been

noted in assessment reports of the Provincial and National departments of Cooperative

Governance.

Provision of Water services

The district municipalities also hold the status of “water service authorities”, along with the

local municipalities of Ethekwini, uMhlatuze, uMsunduzi and Newcastle. However there seems

to be some disjuncture between the alignment of these water service authorities and the

appointed water service providers in the Province, the leading providers being Umgeni

Water (southern KZN & Midlands areas), Mhlutuze Water (northern KZN) and uThukela Water

(north western KZN).

Provision of Electricity

As regards electricity provision, there are 25 local municipalities who are holders of electricity

distribution licenses. These take responsibility for the onward distribution/sale of electricity

from Eskom (the national electricity supplier) to the areas within their jurisdiction. For other

municipal areas, Eskom is the direct supplier to consumers, and uses its own planning and

financial frameworks to decide on prioritisation of reticulation of electricity supply to un-

serviced areas.

Provision of Housing

As regards housing provision, each local municipality has a mandate to plan housing

development and to then liaise with the Provincial and National departments of Human

Settlements to have these proposed developments approved and funded. Often such

developments are done without a properly integrated plan for the provision of other key

services, such as appropriate roads, water, sanitation and electricity provision plans being in

place. These inconsistencies in the planning and distribution of the core services to

communities point to the need to greatly improve the level of coordination amongst the

spheres of Government, service and support institutions at Provincial and National level, and

communities who have particular expectations of Government with regard to the nature

and timeframes for service delivery or project implementation.

Local Economic Development

Local Economic Development (LED) has been identified as one of the key options that

compel local areas to become more pro-active in developmental terms.Some local and/or

district municipalities have also established their own local development agencies, with most

being given a mandate to promote inward investment and local economic development.

Some of these include :

Durban Investment Promotion Agency (Ethekwini Metro)

Enterprise Ilembe (Ilembe District)

Hibiscus Coast Development Agency (Hibiscus Coast Municipality

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Umhlosinga Development Agency (Umkhanyakude District Municipality)

Midlands Investment Initiative (Umgungundlovu District Municipality)

Sisonke District Municipality is also in the process of establishing its local

development agency.

Many districts and local municipalities also have local tourism promotion agencies which

work with the local private sector to promote tourism in their respective areas. Additional

support for development is given to municipalities through KwaZulu-Natal Local Government

Association (Kwanaloga). From national level, support is also given, albeit in an inconsistent

manner, by agencies such as the Development Bank of Southern Africa (DBSA) and the

Industrial Development Corporation (IDC).

5.4 Traditional Councils

A KwaZulu-Natal House of Traditional Leaders and eleven local houses of traditional leaders

(at District level) and 265 traditional councils at local level.

The Ingonyama Trust Board, appointed custodian of traditional land, holding about 40%

of the land of the Province

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5.5 Synopsis: Strategic Administrative Issues

For the purposes of this analysis, three specific challenges stand out and need to be

addressed in the PGDS:

a) In terms of the legislative framework, there are a number of competencies which are

shared amongst national, provincial and local spheres of government. Whilst this is

fully supported by all as a principle, the sharing is not matched at the level of

planning and implementation. The Premier’s Coordinating Council, where the Premier

of the Province meets with the mayors and municipal managers of all municipalities,

is making a very important start, by promoting a shared vision and commitment to

collaboration between Provincial and local structures and leadership. But beyond

this, the inter-governmental relations system is arguably not being implemented in a

practical integrative manner as is evidenced by the continuation of uncoordinated

planning and project formulation in a range of sectors including water and sanitation,

human settlements, local economic development, etc.

b) There are very serious capacity challenges at provincial and local government

spheres. There are many factors that feed into these capacity challenges, but the

impact of the challenges are undoubtedly being felt most severely at local municipal

level. The National and Provincial departments of Cooperative Governance has

detailed their assessments of these capacity problems and a number of initiatives are

being explored to address the problem. One that has clearly stood out is the difficulty

rural municipalities (especially the more remote municipalities) experience in

attracting professionals into their ranks. These and other factors need to be

integrated into the Local Government Turnaround Strategy and be monitored

through intergovernmental mechanisms. However the urgency of a very

comprehensive local government capacity building programme cannot be under-

estimated. A PGDS will ultimately only be as meaningful as the ability to implement it

at the local municipal level and thus this must take a place of priority in the PGDS.

c) There is a need to strengthen relations between local municipalities and traditional

councils in their respective areas. Given that such a large proportion of the land

under rural municipalities is under the custodianship of the Ingonyama Trust and

traditional leadership, it is imperative that more effective systems and processes for

integrating municipal planning and service delivery in Ingonyama areas be

developed. In turn there is a need for enhancement of the participation of members

of traditional councils in the processes of municipalities.

In summary, the very complex and multi-institutional nature of governance in the province,

and the enormity of the service delivery challenges that exist, mean that the PGDS must seek

to propose new pragmatic mechanisms to improve integration amongst the planning and

implementing institutions active at provincial and at local spheres. These mechanisms must

be formulated on the basis of the priority initiatives which the PGDS will identify so that the

methodologies for the integration of planning and for partnerships in implementation are

focused on a joint action agenda of all the existing institutions of governance in KwaZulu-

Natal.

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6 THE DEMOGRAPHIC LANDSCAPE

6.1 Introduction

The nine provinces of South Africa have widely differing physical, geographical and socio-

demographic features, which impact on the nature and extent of the developmental

challenge confronting government and society in the respective regions. The formulation of

provincial Growth and Development Strategies must therefore necessarily be predicated on

the socio-economic profile of the region in question and specifically, the developmental

challenges arising from this profile. In crafting a Growth and Development Strategy

appropriate to KwaZulu-Natal’s unique circumstances, therefore, it is important at the outset

to provide a snapshot of KwaZulu-Natal’s key distinguishing physical and socio-demographic

features. The following maps, graphs and tables summarise the key socio-economic and

demographic features of the province.

6.2 Population Growth and Distribution

The eThekwini Municipality hosts the largest share of the province’s 10.6 million people with

33.9%, far in excess of any of the other areas (see figure below). Zululand (which includes

Vryheid and Ulundi), Uthungulu (including Richards Bay, Eshowe and Empangeni) and

uMgundundlovu (Pietermaritzburg) each have in excess of 8% of the population of the

province. Sisonke is the smallest council in terms of population with just over 350 000

inhabitants as compared to eThekwini’s 3.4 million and Uthungulu’s 1 million. That said, the

majority of the provinces district municipalities are fairly evenly matched in terms of

population with between 5 and 10% of the provincial total each.

KZN Population per District

The map below reveals that the populations of all district municipalities have grown over the

period from 1996 to 2006, What is particularly noteworthy about the data is that the fastest

growth rate has not been recorded in eThekwini, which might have been forecast due to

predictions of migration to the city for economic benefits, but rather has been in the

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predominantly rural area of Sisonke (DC 43), which has experienced a growth rate far in

excess of the national average. Uthungulu (DC 28) which includes Richards Bay-Empangeni

and Uthukela (DC 23) which includes Ladysmith and Estcourt have also recorded growth

rates far in excess of Durban’s. Ilembe (DC 29) and Umgundunlovu (DC22) have the lowest

growth rates, at 2.57 and 3.15% over the five year period respectively.

Map 40 –Population 1996, 2001 and 2006

Map 41 –Population Density and Age Distribution 1996, 2001, 2006

Source: KZN COGTA 2006 13Spatial Representation of KwaZulu-Natal : Profile 2006

Department of Local Government and Traditional Affairs

Population Growth (1996, 2001 and 2006),

Population Density and Age Distribution (2006)

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6.3 Density

The population density distribution throughout the province is depicted in the map below:

Map 42 – Population Density

From the map above, it is evident that the highest concentrations of population densities are

found within the eThekwini and Pietermaritzburg complexes, followed by the Newcastle and

Richards Bay complexes. A third level of density concentrations are also evident in the areas

of Ladysmith, eMondlo, Port Shepstone and KwaDukuza and Mandeni. In general, the

highest population densities are recorded within the coastal regions.

The most densely populated areas described above, also represents the areas where the

highest number of social challenges including lack of access to services such as education,

markets, health care, and lack of services including water, sanitation, roads, transportation,

and communications occur. Evidently the concentration of people in these areas generates

additional pressures on all these services and requires adequate local and provincial

responses.

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6.4 Levels of Education

Education is one of the most important factors in the development of any economy, and this

is particularly true in South Africa where a lack of appropriate skills are seen as one of the

most important supply side constraints to growth.

Nationally 17.9% of the population (on average) had no schooling in 2001; the figure for

KwaZulu-Natal is 22%. This is a marked improvement from the very high figure of 33.6% in 1996,

but some areas still have very high numbers of people who haven’t gone to school. The worst

are Msinga (KZ244), Umhlabuyalingana (KZ271) and Jozini (KZ272) with rates of 68%, 54% and

51% respectively.

Adults with No Schooling

The map below reveals the proportion of adults in the province’s municipal areas with no

education at all. This figure only includes individuals over 20 who have not even completed

Grade 1 level education. It is immediately apparent that there are enormous disparities

when it comes to these figures, with areas such as eThekwini and Msunduzi having fewer

than 11% at this level, while most of the former KwaZulu homeland area has exceptionally

high percentages of people who have not had the opportunity to attend school.

Map 43 –Percentage Population of local municipalities over the age of 20 without schooling

2006

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Literacy

Adult literacy has improved in both percentage and absolute terms in KZN since 1990, with

almost 4 million more literate adults in 2006 then there were in 1991 and an increase of ten

percentage points in the proportion of the population that are literate. These figures reveal

the enormous strides made by the government when it comes to ABET. That said, there are

still pockets of the province where low literacy rates prevail. In Msinga the illiteracy rate is 33%

while in Nquthu and Umvoti the rates of illiteracy are 30 and 23% respectively.

6.5 Age Distribution

KZN hosts more than 21% of the country’s population. 54% of the province’s population is

rural. Adult life expectancy at birth in the province has dropped from 53 years in 1996, to 51.6

in 2000 was predicted to drop to 40 years by 2005 and 37 years by 2010 (Actuarial Society of

South Africa model; 2005)

The accompanying population pyramid for KwaZulu-Natal provides a breakdown of the age

and sex profiles of the province in 2007. Unlike in most developing countries, the bottom of

the pyramid curves inward, revealing that there are fewer 0-4 year olds and 5-9 year olds

then 10-14 year olds in the population. This is unusual in a developing country with basic

health care where there is usually a greater proportion of the population in the lower age

ranges. Secondly, there are more males between the ages of 0 and 19 than females, while

there are significantly fewer males then females over 40.

KZN Population by age and sex, 2007

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Population Age Distribution

0-4 years 1.1 million 11%

5-19 years 3.4 million 34%

20-64 years 4 million 50%

65+ years 0.5 million 5%

6.6 Gender

As has been found in previous studies of KwaZulu-Natal, the highest concentration of women

in district and local municipalities is in the rural areas where high male absentee rates prevail,

though women outnumber men in all district municipalities in KwaZulu-Natal. When we look

at the Local municipalities, men are concentrated in greatest numbers relative to women in

urban areas and in areas of labour intensive activity, such as in areas where mining takes

place.

This preponderance of women in rural areas is as a result of a number of factors including the

persistence of migrant labour as well as the relative mobility of males. Men are more likely to

have acquired skills and education, are less likely to have dependants that they are obliged

to look after on a daily basis, and if married, are often more likely to leave their wives and

children in the rural areas while they seek work than vice versa.

Map 44 –Proportion of Males / Females per district / Metro Municipality and percentage

females per local municipality

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6.7 Migration

Assessing the extent of internal migration is crucial for assessing the needs and development

goals of communities and the province as a whole. While Posel (2003) argues that it is difficult

to differentiate between permanent and transitory migration, the data used in the

accompanying graphs attempts to control for the effects of migrant labour and temporary

absence.

As can be seen from the map below, the majority of migration into KwaZulu- Natal comes

from the neighbouring provinces of Gauteng and the Eastern Cape, with only small numbers

of migrants coming in from distant provinces such as the Northern Cape and North-West.

While data on why substantial internal migration occurs is somewhat lacking, there is

evidence to suggest that much of the migration that does occur is for economic reasons

and is often non-permanent, resulting in the sending of remittances to the area of origin

(Posel:2003). This can help to explain the high level of migration from relatively

underdeveloped provinces like the Eastern Cape, while much of the migration from

Gauteng may be due to returning migrants.

Inward migration to KwaZulu-Natal can be a source of vital skills and expertise, but can also

increase the demands on basic services which, if not catered for, can exacerbate current

service delivery problems. While Posel (2003) suggests that the very poor are unlikely to move

from rural areas as they are trapped by poverty, low skilled or untrained migrants also place

pressure on local populations already facing high unemployment and job scarcity.

Map 45 – In Migration to KZN

With regard to outward migration, residents of KwaZulu-Natal are most likely to move to

Gauteng, shown in the map below, most likely in search of employment, and continuing a

trend that has been in evidence for much of the last century. Other significant outflows are

toward the Western and Eastern Cape and Mpumalanga. Outward migration at these levels

can have serious detrimental effects, particularly on rural areas likely to suffer the detrimental

effects of the so called “brain drain” and resultant skills shortages. While difficult to curb,

necessary improvements in job provision and basic services need to be made to encourage

individuals with skills to remain part of the provincial economy. That said, migrants often

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retain close links with their families and dependants in the provinces, and continued flows of

remittances may help local communities.

Map 46 –Out Migration from KZN

The final migration map below shows the net migration figures for KwaZulu-Natal, the total

number of immigrants from other provinces minus the number of emigrants. From this we can

see that KwaZulu-Natal is a net exporter of people and skills to the rest of the country. Only

the Eastern Cape is a significant source of net migration into the province.

Map 47 – Nett Migration Patterns

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6.8 Synopsis: Strategic Demographic Issues

In summary the major demographic changes over the period 2008 and 2009 include the

following;

Population mid-estimate has increased from 10014500 to 10645400

From 2000 to 2009 KwaZulu-Natal’s share of the national population increased from 20.9

percent to 21.3 percent. However, population growth rate has decreased from 0.47

percent to 0.28 percent.

o Adult life expectancy at birth in the province has dropped from 53 years in 1996, to

51.6 in 2000 to 43 years in 2009.

o High adult mortality rate predominantly due to HIV infections.

o Lower fertility rates have led to a declining population growth rate: in KZN

population.

52% of the population live in the 7 municipalities making the largest contribution to KZN

economy.

48 % of population live in areas where economic development has not been performing;

Need to accommodate an additional 3.6 mil people in urban environment by 2030 of

which 85% will migrate to eThekwini if the current situation prevails.

Furthermore, the fact that Kwazulu-Natal’s population is predominantly rural with 54% of the

population living in rural areas makes it one of the most rural provinces in the country and this

puts considerable pressure on provision of social services and infrastructure on which

economic growth and development relies.

The most densely populated areas described above, also represent the areas with the

highest number of social challenges.

Adult life expectancy at birth in the province has dropped from 53 years in 1996, to 51.6 in

2000 to 43 years in 2009. (Actuarial Society of South Africa Model; 2005 and Institute of Race

Relations, South Africa report 2009).

Researchers attribute this high mortality rate predominantly to HIV infections. Further,

researchers say the spread of HIV/Aids as well as lower fertility rates has led to a declining

population growth rate: in KZN Population Growth rate is 0.28 % a 2010 estimate, showing a

decline from previous years.

Statistics SA report that KZN has 15.8% of the population infected with HIV/AIDS. This

increased from 15% in 2005 (Global Insight Poverty Indicators).

Being the leading province in both the prevalence and incidence of HIV and AIDS and

tuberculosis, any social sector development strategy for KwaZulu-Natal should take into

account and devise intervention mechanisms to halt these afflictions that both deplete and

incapacitate its stock of human capital.

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7 THE SOCIAL LANDSCAPE

7.1 Introduction

While KwaZulu-Natal is the most populous province in the country, for purposes of human

capital formation and development, and its’ contribution to the province’s economic

growth and development, it is less the number of people and more the quality of its’ stock of

human capital that is relevant. Being the leading province in the prevalence and incidence

of HIV and AIDS and Tuberculosis, any development strategy for KwaZulu-Natal should take

into account and devise intervention mechanisms to halt these afflictions that both deplete

and incapacitate its’ stock of human capital.

Growth

It is widely accepted within the PGDS framework that economic growth is the axis on which

all other dimensions of prosperity, including Social Sector development, will turn. This is also

the central and guiding principle of Accelerated and Shared Growth Initiative for South

Africa (ASGISA); that in order for social development, as measured in reduction of

unemployment, poverty, inequality and other cardinal development indicators, to take

place, there has to be growth in the first place, before its proceeds can be shared.

The role and objective of a sustainable development strategy should therefore be to

facilitate the development of the social sector in such a manner that those components that

are typically and currently excluded from participating in the generation of growth and

wealth, do come to share in the proceeds of growth.

Development

In the context of social sector development, the operative term development in the PGDS

framework relates to the following key aspects:

a) Human capital formation and development

The realisation of any economic growth pathway is predicated upon the availability of

requisite human capital skills in direct relation, proportion and assortment to the skills base

and repertoire dictated by the chosen economic growth pathway. The social sector

development strategy to support a revitalised KZN PGDS should therefore address issues of

human capital formation and development in the form of directly linking general education

and skills development to the requirements of industry and other customer institutions. At the

same time a social sector development strategy must be directed to the overall well-being

of the society, boosting the quality of life and human relations.

In the absence of such a tightly integrated and fine-tuned alignment of social sector

development strategy with growth and national development, the province will continue to

be afflicted by perennial challenges of structural unemployment, characterised by the

experience of concurrent rising unemployment and critical skills shortages.

b) Social capital formation and development

Social capital, the ‘stock of a community's goodwill and trust acquired by (a collective such

as a province) over the years, through its understanding and addressing of the concerns and

priorities of the citizens’, is a crucial aspect of any social sector strategy. it is the existence, or

lack of such a stock of social capital that determines, more than anything else, whether a

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collective such as a province can respond to and take advantage of developmental

opportunities as they arise. These are issues of social cohesion and they have a direct

bearing on the extent that the province has trust in the capabilities and intentions of its

political leadership and the exercise of goodwill towards developmental initiatives, for

example, as manifested in the quality and quantum of participation in social development

initiatives.

KZN is typically characterised by entrenched multiple and competitive political formations,

which, while intuitively good for democracy, tend to undermine and threaten any

sustainable and long term visioning and deployment of social sector development strategies.

The polarity of differences in the understanding and prioritisation of what constitutes social

and general developmental challenges facing the citizens of the province, as expressed

through multiple political formations, to the extent that it is most pronounced in KwaZulu-

Natal compared to the rest of the provinces, undermines social capital formation evidenced

by the lack of strong and collectively shared meaning in the province.

c) Household and community capacitation

Households and communities are the ultimate repositories of both human and social capital.

While human capital stock formation and development target individuals through education

and skills development interventions, households as well as communities as units of analysis

are the major targets for and indicators of the success or otherwise of social sector

development strategies.

It is evident from this review process that the social issues under evaluation are systematically

related. The provincial growth and development imperatives are emergent outcomes that

are driven by complex and systematically related elements; first, within the larger system of

the provincial economy, and secondly by the first-line determinants of provincial growth and

development, namely by the economy, our stock of natural resources, our infrastructural

base and our spatial framework.

While the province represents the larger and total system, which is in turn influenced by the

state of the national economy, which is itself a derivative of the regional and global

economies; the social sector itself, the unit of analysis for this submission, is unto itself an open

and dynamic system.

This level of understanding of the interrelatedness of social issues and challenges can further

be corroborated with the following construct adapted from Chambers (1983).

Figure 1: Poverty as an expression of exclusion and its relatedness to institutional spaces

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In the context of the PGDS review process, the following construct seeks to conceptualise the

provincial economy and locate social issues in relation to the larger system.

Figure 2: Mapping Social Sector Development Factors

Na

This construct demonstrates the dynamic complexity of the social sector as a social system

that is governed by the following principles:

+

+

+

+

+

+ +

+

+ +

+

The Global

Economy

The National Economy

KZN PROVINCIAL GROWTH AND DEVELOPMENT STRATEGY

Natural

Resources

Policy

Environment

Spatial

Development

The

Economy

Infrastructure The

Environment

THE SOCIAL SECTOR

Protection and

advancement

of women

Education

Youth

Developme

nt

Sustainable

Human

Settlements

Health

Arts, Sport

&

Recreation

Welfare Safety &

Security

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A large number of elements (stakeholders)

i) Dynamic interaction of the elements

ii) Rich interaction of the elements (no directly discernible outcomes), non-linearity

and the likelihood of outcomes disproportionate to triggers

iii) The existence of feedback loops among the dynamically interactive elements

which drive recurrency (amplification/stimulation or detracting/inhibitive)

iv) System history and the co-creation of outcomes between the past and the

present

v) The emergent properties of the system through interaction among the elements,

and the role of information in directing the system to its desired states

It is evident from this construct that the social sector is a complex, open and dynamic system,

and that it undergirds the rest of the dimensions of the PGDS framework and the review

process. The ultimate unit of analysis of the success of the PGDS is society. It is society that

must be the ultimate beneficiary of the growth and development of the provincial economy,

The Social Issues in KwaZulu-Natal

For the purposes of this Situational Overview ‘social’ is classified into three meanings, viz,

quality of livelihoods, human relationships, and essential human necessities. This assists in

classifying the social sectors and issues discussed here into some conceptual map. A social

issue relating to quality of livelihoods is poverty alleviation and eradication. Sectors and issues

relating to human relationships are Social Welfare, youth development, gender, generational

relationships, moral regeneration and institutional development. Sectors classified as essential

human necessities are sustainable human settlements, health, education, arts and culture,

and safety and security. In each sector or issue we seek to briefly:

paint the objective picture of challenges of each sector

pinpoint what its status/role is in the growth and development challenges of the

province.

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7.2 Quality of life

Poverty

The figure below summarises trends 2001 – 2007 in the composite deprivation index for KZN.

Source: Nerve Centre – KZN Office of The Premier

EThekwini Metro showed a significant decline in Deprivation Composite Analysis, an

estimated (19% decline) as compared to other municipalities, and Uthukela District

municipality shows an increase in Deprivation Composite Analysis by an estimated 9.6%. The

western parts of Umzinyathi declined whereas the Uthungulu generally worsened as well as

the central parts of Umkhanyakude.

General statistics on poverty:

5.3 million people were living in poverty and 1.2 million people were living on less

than US$1 a day (R6.50 a day or R200 a month),

the estimated poverty gap is Rbn18.3 (the amount required to raise the income of

the above-quoted 5.3 million people to the poverty line),

15 per cent of the population, 20 years or older had no schooling, 41 per cent

had no secondary schooling, and 73 per cent had not completed grade 12 (Stats

SA, Census 2001).

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Indicators of poverty over the years and in relation to different social groups is as follows:

Kw

aZu

lu-N

ata

l Period Black_HDI Indian_HDI White_HDI Coloured_HDI Total_HDI

1996 0.42 0.7 0.87 0.66 0.51

1997 0.37 0.68 0.86 0.63 0.48

1998 0.42 0.71 0.86 0.66 0.51

1999 0.44 0.72 0.86 0.68 0.53

2000 0.44 0.72 0.86 0.68 0.53

2001 0.47 0.73 0.86 0.69 0.55

2002 0.48 0.74 0.86 0.72 0.55

2003 0.49 0.74 0.87 0.71 0.56

2004 0.49 0.75 0.87 0.71 0.56

2005 0.50 0.75 0.88 0.72 0.57

2006 0.51 0.76 0.88 0.72 0.58

2007 0.53 0.77 0.88 0.74 0.59

2008 0.54 0.78 0.88 0.75 0.60

2009 0.55 0.78 0.88 0.76 0.61

2010 0.57 0.79 0.88 0.76 0.62

Whites’ HDI is as high as 0.62, although Whites form only 5% of the entire population of the

province. Blacks, being the majority in the province, have hardly exceeded the 0.50 mark in

terms of HDI (although this grew from 0.42 in 1996 to 0.50 in 2005). In formulating a growth

and development strategy, it is essential to give particular attention to this aspect as it plays

a pivotal role in the growth of the province.

In terms of a qualitative definition of poverty KwaZulu-Natal has a lot of people who are

experiencing varied levels of poverty. The General Households Survey (GHS) depicts KwaZulu-

Natal as having the highest recipients of social grants and social relief packages in the

country. 25% of the population that received such assistance in South Africa were in KwaZulu-

Natal alone, followed by 17% in the Eastern Cape1. Of the recipients of social relief packages

in KwaZulu-Natal 93% are Black and 53% are female. (GHS report 2009: 92).

In terms of economic activities of low skill resulting from the Extended Public Works

Programme, KwaZulu-Natal has had 30% of the country’s participants in these, followed by

Gauteng at 23%, with the Eastern Cape at 11%. KwaZulu-Natal is thus a province dealing with

huge economic challenges and using the largest proportion of the country’s methods of

poverty alleviation as opposed to economic opportunities produced by the mainstream

economy.

These figures have been converted to percentages for purposes of this report to avoid a long explanation on

sampling procedures (in the GHS).

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Besides non-participation in mainstream economy, KZN is also lagging behind in the

potential for decentralised economic sustainability. This is illustrated by clear trends of

population densities in urban centres with the eThekwini Metro leading the population figures

in 2010 at 3 610 844 and uMgungundlovu containing the next biggest figure at 1 028 563

people. There is a need to examine the patterns of circular migration and issues of inequality

within the urban space in order to declare suggestive statements about what this means for

these urban centres (see work generated by the Three Cities Project – Bouillon, Freund,

Hindson and Lootvet 2002). What is observable from previous research is that circular

migration allows for rural migrants to subsidise the urban spaces through labour whilst little

investment is ploughed back to rural areas by way of compensating attention.

Poverty is an area of intervention that requires sustainability of effort of government and non-

government agencies in empowering communities. It is also an area where the pressure to

review monitoring and evaluation paradigms is apparent – so that M&E informs justifiable

decisions about the intensity of support rendered to a community, the quality of support and

when to systematically pull away support and instil independent local economic and social

development of communities.

There are clear efforts of alignment of strategic outcomes between the province and

national government - as reflected for instance in the Strategic Framework of the KZN

Department of Social Development. There is a need for a further step in relating this to three

strategic impact initiatives:

- Mapping out the extent of poverty qualitatively in the particular areas of the province

– qualitative mapping refers to the integrated multitude of necessities that would

make it possible to achieve social mobility within any spatial location. This would

guide an affirmative deployment of resources.

- The KwaZulu-Natal government must be committed to investment in social

development in particularly under-resourced areas in order to bring the population

towards an upward development trend - the better to be able to contribute to

growth.

- Technical knowledge relating to stimulating economic growth within the particular

spatial framework must be deployed.

Social Welfare Services

The vision of the Department of Social Development in KwaZulu-Natal is to “Enhance the

quality of life through an integrated system of Social Development Services”. Their mission is a

commitment to “the promotion of developmental Social Welfare Services and Community

Development to the people of KwaZulu-Natal in partnership with stakeholders”. It is clear

from these statements that there is an acknowledgement of the complexity of the task as

both the quality of life issue and the need for an integrated approach are acknowledged in

the vision. In fact the Department of Social Development deals with many issues that are

dealt with by other stakeholders and agencies in government such as poverty, youth

development and HIV and AIDS besides their more focused areas such as dealing with

children and adults at risk, capacity building of non-profit organisations, etc. Of necessity, the

Department’s work overlaps with the work of other agencies / government departments. Its’

methodologies and strategies should be more sophisticated than they are currently –

ensuring more effective and sustainable operations; it cannot simply be a provider of welfare

packages.

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The Department of Social Development has a programme called Developmental Social

Welfare Services under which most of community oriented or social impact work is done. This

is work relating to children, special needs (including attention to older persons, people with

disabilities, the youth), restorative services (relating to dealing with drug abuse, social crime

prevention and victim empowerment), HIV and AIDS, and social relief of distress in relation to

war against poverty. In reviewing the annual reports of the department it is clear that there is

much activity in relation to all these aspects of the department’s work. However, this

reportage consists of the department’s current responsiveness: reaction to issues that come

to their attention. There is very little systematic research-based scoping of the social problems

in order to plan for deliberate and exhaustive attention to the roots and actual extent of the

problems.

Thus whilst there is ample statistical projection of what the current cases dealt with are and

what is targeted for years to come – it is not rooted in real projections of population, poverty

and need. For example, the number of social relief applications approved in 2008/9 financial

year was 143 553. This was what was budgeted for the following year 2009/10. The targeted

applications for 2010/11 and 2011/2012 respectively is 150 730 and 158 266. It is not clear

whether this target is established against the extent of the problem, against previous

reporting patterns, If there was information available on the extent of need on a spatial basis,

informed resource deployment would be the mode of operation.

A Department such as the Department of Social Development requires sophistication in its

oversight role as it deals issues that are observable in the province whose complexity requires

an integrated approach. These are such problems as:

- skip-generation households: which happen as a result of HIV and AIDS prevalence;

requiring resourcing of health facilities and availability of information; co-ordination of

community development efforts – live centres of support towards community projects

to match the level of (il)literacy affecting people’s capacity for institutional

negotiation especially in rural areas;

- asset-based community development – underuse of land from land reform projects;

capacitation of NPOs and Community Property Associations to become nodes of

support for community development );

- marginal urban existence: food security issues in the urban setting; circular migration

and lack of security of livelihoods – as security of tenure is not equal to security of

livelihoods.

These are simply illustrative examples of how the mandate of social development, dealing

with the welfare of people needs to be as dynamic as the complex manifestation of social

issues which include poverty, institutional capacity within communities, social trends that

worsen the quality of life of children, and so on.

7.3 Human relationships

Youth Development

KZN is understood to host as much as 22% of the country’s teenagers, followed by Eastern

Cape at 18%, the Northern Province at 15% and Gauteng at 13%. These findings are

consistent with the earlier citation of KZN as predominantly rural, and Gauteng being largely

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populated by a migratory, focussed and purposeful population for whom child-making does

not rank as a priority. The systemic relationship between male youthfulness and crime has

already been cited, and is extensively documented. Teenage pregnancy is one of the most

prevalent social challenges in both rural areas and in tertiary institutions in KZN, and the

implications of the phenomenon on the risk of HIV/AIDS are self-evident. Drop-out rates in

some of the province’s institutions have been cited elsewhere to be as high as 50%.

The fiscal pressures of teenage pregnancies in the form of social assistance grants can only

be more pronounced in KZN, the further implication of which is diversion of resources among

competing ends.

The above review of social welfare issues and the emphasis on a role of a champion (in the

form of the Department of Social Development) demonstrates also the integratedness of any

stage of human development in the human development cycle. The same issues that affect

all people in the community will affect the youth, albeit in different ways given the youth’s

stage of development and concomitant needs. However a desktop review of youth

organisations especially through their websites shows that although there is weak

conceptualisation of youth focus in South Africa, there is (an almost intuitive) societal worry

about the youth and a clearly expressed need to focus on them. Again this is where the

shortcomings of a positivist approach of “throwing-in-objective-necessities-and-stirring” shows

itself. Many organisations that deal with the youth rightly seeks to respond to youth

unemployment, to provide for youth fun, and to capacitate the youth with business skills.

They often fall short of sustainable socialisation methods for the youth, despite some of them

being rooted on religion.

There is a need to mainstream youth focus into community development initiatives rather

than only approaching the youth on the so-called “youth matters”. In the context of broken

homes and skip-generation households resulting from a recent high death rate of the middle

generation, there is a need for continuous exposure to motivational social life development

programmes that so not simply take the structured ‘Life Orientation’ approach provided at

school. Despite the political changes that have seen the youth of today theoretically living in

an equal opportunities environment, the socio-economic situation as well as the social

challenges (of HIV and AIDS) has seen the youth fending for itself whilst adult support is

focused on economic migrant activities to support households in terms of livelihoods. This is

more of the case in rural homes. Marginal socio-economic existence has also produced

youth that must quickly find its feet.

Technicalities of outlawing child labour are actually a luxury to deliberate upon in such

settings. It is in this context that social ills of substance abuse and street living also take place.

Thus there is a need to review whether the youth in various parts of the province need the

following type of attention:

- person directed development – personal development producing healthy motivated

individuals with good orientation to life

- social skills/competence – socially responsible, community oriented living

- material and technical development – directed at education and skilling for

materially well-endowed and technically competent youth

Many programmes that are channelled by national agencies and civil society organisations

do elements of these spheres of development in an ad hoc fashion based on some

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stereotype of the youth as focused on fun. A holistic approach to youth development needs

to be devised for the province and integrated within other projects in various communities.

Gender and the empowerment of women

In terms of the current population statistics there are 5 132 855 males and 5512654 females in

KwaZulu-Natal. Issues of gender pertain to relationships structured and influenced by culture

and general human tendencies. Gender as a social issue classified as human relationships

signifies the difficulties of reportage of social issues. All the stakeholders can work with is those

cases that reach the attention of institutions; even though qualitative research shows that a

lot of problematic gender issues go unreported (see issues raised the CGE’s work on the

Victim’s Charter, for instance). Generally even with the approach adopted by institutions, it is

clear that gender quotas are met in some areas of performance but gender difficulties,

especially for women, remain acute (see Hicks, CGE). Gender empowerment has been

theorised more than it has been implemented in South Africa as a whole and KwaZulu-Natal

is not exception to this. The agencies that deal with gender development such as the

Commission on Gender Equality are however aware of province specific challenges (such as

cultural dogmatism within which women are seen as minors, underdevelopment of women

and their association with the household, etc.).

Again it cannot be over-stressed that the main hindrance in gender change management2

is more the approach rather than laxity or lack of awareness on quotas for equality in

material gain and provision of policy environment enabling gender equality and

empowerment of women. A recent review of Millennium Development Goals indicated that

the goals are now too modest for the kinds of problems currently manifesting in KwaZulu-

Natal – simply seeking equal numbers of males and females in the classrooms, the workplace

and parliament.

Current challenges in relation to gender inequalities include:

- Making men to be carers (by dealing with patriarchy and elements of negative

cultural socialisation)

- Economic empowerment of women in order for them to be able to asset use the

rights embodied in legislation against their abuse. Civil society organisations have

established a link between difficulty to deal with continuous abuse of women and

domestic violence with their lack of economic independence

- A generic approach of statutory bodies that is not rooted in area-specific challenges

and monitoring and evaluation of gender change management in specific areas is

problematic. An agency-centred approach that takes its cue from the state of

gender consciousness of people within a given setting is recommended. This will

2 Gender change management is the term proposed by Sithole (2010) referring to the need for those in intervention

positions to analyse issues of gender within the setting of their operation and mutually plot change holistically with

those affected in order to change the whole environment to be conducive to lasting gender equity. Sithole suggests

that mainstreaming has self-defeating elements in that it does not change mindsets of all cultural agents involved in

keeping a double-day for women in tact despite chaperoning their inclusion in all sectors. The privatisation of

gender inequality happens because the household is not reached by formal agents to deal with gendered framing

of male and female responsibilities and regard of women as minors in the identity ladder.

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supplement, rather meaningfully the generic approaches of rights awareness and

complaints-driven mandates of these organisations

- Institutional transformation is oblivious to dealing with the holistic experience of

womanhood, thus creating pressure on women to be ‘miraculous’ performers when

the informal prejudice and the double-day issues are not the subject of discussion in

the workplace. Qualitative approaches need to be formulated for dealing with

institutional change management on gender issues. This will supplement the rights

driven approaches against sexual harassment, support for women in management

positions and quota-driven approach to institutional change.

Social Cohesion (Generational issues, disability, moral regeneration and institutional

empowerment)

There is a host of issues that are not part of the key mandate of any department or agency

but which some national driven policies try to enforce awareness thereof3. These are issues to

do with older persons, disability and moral and institutional empowerment. Within KwaZulu-

Natal these issues are dealt with in an ‘if-we-manage-to-devote-some-attention-fashion’, yet

there is serious recognition of the significance of these issues in social life of communities.

Disability suffers from an unfair ‘lack-of-majority’ syndrome because the marginal attention

and resourcing of attention to disability seems to be rooted in the fact that people with

disability are in the minority. Yet they are equally affected by all the other social problems

that affect other people whether it is poverty or HIV and AIDS (see Create, 2009 for the

articulation of how youth living with disability are affected by HIV and AIDS). Older persons

have been affected by HIV and AIDS in that they have become a generation taking up the

burden of orphans whilst they have their own needs that are not easy to fulfil especially

within developmentally-strained communities.

Morality is a subject of serious worry within communities over which there are visible and

conceptual challenges. There is a visible challenge of crime as has been articulated here in

relation to safety and security issues. There is also a serious problem of conceptual stuttering

related to the overwhelming emphasis on rights and less emphasis on responsibilities making

generational differences pronounced and frustrating particularly to the older generation. This

is made worse in the context where teenage pregnancies, crime, and social laxity about

development are generally associated with the youth on the one hand, and the need to

provide economically and being there for the youth is the strain of the older generation on

another hand.

In terms of approach this conflation of issues is generally associated with the concept of

social cohesion which has gained serious mileage in South Africa (see the KZN DSD Strategic

Framework). Within KwaZulu-Natal stakeholders are doing different initiatives with little

conceptual coherence. Not even the social welfare paradigm, with its emphasis on life-

stages seems to be approaching these issues in any conceptually coherent fashion. Social

cohesion itself as a concept is generally located within the arts (whose mission would be to

use it to for a social engineering fashion to foster love between people) or located within the

3 Some of the major initiatives that need scoping have been located within the Office of the Premier and delegated

to other stakeholders within government. These will be tracked carefully during stakeholder consultations.

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realm of political scientists who approach it as a tool to make previously segregated society

forge some ‘political love’ for each other.

In the context of all this disability often receives an advocacy-centred moral approach that

suggests a mainstreaming solution to disability. Whilst this is necessary, it is not sufficient

against the tide of unfair discrimination in terms of resourcing initiatives towards disabilities.

Most approaches end at the level of creating forums that simply advance the moral

standpoints. Sign language is not one of the subjects, not even in one designated school

grade within the province (perhaps replacing Life Orientation totally within that grade).

Many people who cannot speak are the problem of their families and cannot hope to

communicate effectively with the population of the province generally. In other words there

has not even been sufficient thought dedicated to use of current resources in relation to

mainstreaming disability in the province.

In addition to social morality issues there are problems of corruption and institutional morality

issues which stakeholders articulated during the research consultative phase. The issues

raised were both of about the difficulties of articulating these problems objectively since the

nature of the deeds is such that they are done so as to make it impossible to track them.

Corruption seems to be infesting all ranks of life in the bureaucracy and it was suggested that

it is both a result of a crisis of leadership together with lack of role modelling of honest

professional practice on the one hand, and on another hand, the lack of systematic and

integrated efforts at dealing with corruption – in punitive and proactive preventative ways.

Government stakeholder groups lamented the institutionalised nature of corruption, whilst

civil society lamented the incapacitating despondency of both the citizens and civil society

itself with respect to corruption. It was clear that whistle-blowing has been successfully

circumvented by the mainstreaming of corruption into practice, the normalising of corrupt

practices even in the ‘normal’ dealings with the private sector has created a facade out of

possible efficiency of whistle-blowing.

7.4 Education

Education Enrolment progression statistics in KZN - 2009

Level Numbers

Pre-Grade 9,492

Grade R 154,881

Primary (Gr 1-7) 1,627,717

Secondary (Gr 8-12) 1,030,755

SNE 4,274

Total 2,827,335

Total females in the system 1,401,827

Total Educators 89,377

Total female educators 62,661

Total of public schools 5,928

Total of independent Schools 163

Total schools 6,091

While KZN has more than 6 800 schools, Media24 estimates that as much as 75% of them lack

specialised facilities in the form of laboratories and libraries, and up to 25% of them are

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deemed “unsuitable for teaching”. Setting aside the controversy surrounding their integrity,

Matric results show a marginal improvement from 57.6% in 2008, to 61% in 2009 and 67% in

2010.

Provincial Overview: Education

Key Indicator 2008 2009

% of adults with no education 12 10

% population aged 15 literate 87 89

% adults with degree or higher education 3.3 2

Matric pass rate 57 61.2

University entrance pass rate 14 20

Of the 132 176 who sat the Matric examination in 2009, the number who qualified for

acceptance in universities was 26 287.

While any pattern that suggests improvement is encouraging, the fact remains that a 67%

pass rate by implication means that the 33% failure rate represents wasted resources and

time over a very long period. The quality of educators is indicted as the leading cause of this

failure, and KZN educators are reported to be absent from duty 1 out of 8 days on average,

or for 42 days in every year, although they are only entitled to 12 days leave in the same

period, excluding scheduled school holidays.

Another issue of grave concern in education is that for Mathematics and Science, the

subjects at which the majority of schools perform most dismally, 30% is considered a pass

mark. The implications of this inexplicable laxity on university performance, competence and

productivity in the work world and ultimately, on the country’s competitiveness are far-

reaching and staggering.

Many segments of the society are consumers when it comes to science and technology

products rather than seeing themselves as contributors in science. There is little evidence in

the province to suggest that institutions of Higher Learning, the National Research Foundation

or the department of Science and Education are concerned about the bifurcation of

indigenous knowledge and science in the minds of the population. Science and technology

is far from decentralised to communities. The youth is therefore not motivated to being

producers of scientific knowledge and links with gaps on the issue of youth development as

discussed in this submission.

StatsSA (2010) reports that attendance at Early Childhood Centres in KZN is 25%; higher only

than that of the Northern Province at 21.1%, against records as high as 39.4% in the Western

Cape and 42.6% in Gauteng. Furthermore, availability of Early Childhood facilities at Day

Care Centres in KZN was only 20.2%, again higher only than that of the Northern Cape at

19.7%, against 36.7% in Gauteng and 35.8% in the Western Cape.

Nationally, 72.8% of the population in the 7 – 24 age group attended some form of

educational institution, while the KZN average was 45.2%, higher only than that of the Eastern

Cape at 38.8%. The predominant reason given in KZN for non-attendance was lack of

money.

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The percentage of people aged 20 and above without any formal education in KZN was

8.5%, versus 2.1 in the Western Cape and 2.9 in Gauteng.

Close to 5% of the 13 – 19 age group in KZN were pregnant, and this has serious implications

on the prevalence of HIV/AIDS.

7.5 Health

Provincial Overview: Health

Key Indicator 2008 2009

Adult mortality rate 72% 71%

Under5 Mortality rate 90% 88%

Immunization coverage children U1 83% 83%

Proportion of HIV+ women attending antenatal clinics 39.1% 39.9%

Total HIV infections 1,560,573 1,572,457

AIDS related deaths 115,483 115,716

New Infections 2009/2010 131,858

TB cases reported 105,705 118,162

Public sector Doctors per 100,000 35

Public health professionals vacancy rate (2008) 33.3%

Ratio of population to beds in public hospitals (2005) 405

Ratio of population to beds in private hospitals (2008) 2 615

People without medical cover 9,084,000 (87.4%)

The KZN Social Sector Cluster Flagship Programmes initiative acknowledges that the province

has the highest burden of diseases associated with underdevelopment and poverty, among

them HIV&AIDS and Tuberculosis (TB), which have been identified as the top causes of

mortality in the province. It is estimated that 1 in every 3 females in the sexually active age

group in the province is HIV infected, and while the provincial HIV/AIDS prevalence is the

highest in the country, estimated at close to 16%, it is frequently more than double this

prevalence in densely populated and poor areas. The prevalence of TB is estimated at 1 054

cases per 100,000, making it more than five (5) times higher than the WHO accepted levels.

Life expectancy in the province has decreased from 53 years in 1996 to 47 in 2005, and

estimated to be much lower in 2010.

The Council for Medical Schemes data (2010) indicates that only about 7 million South

Africans are on private health care cover, and this figure has been largely stagnant in the

past 10 years, although significant reductions were noted as a result of retrenchments during

the global economic meltdown. At the same time, there are more than 7 million South

Africans who are employed in the low income bracket but have no medical cover. While the

national medical cover average is just below 18%, in KZN only about a quarter of households

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had at least one member covered on medical aid (StatsSA 2010), and this was in sharp

contrast to 24.4% in the Western Cape and 26.5% in Gauteng.

The predominantly rural character of KZN is reflected in the fact that the province has the

second highest Under 5 child mortality rate, better than only that of the Eastern Cape. More

than 70% of the Under 5 mortality rate occurs in rural areas, and 43% in urban areas.

Furthermore, there is a strong correlation between levels of education, conditions in the

household and child mortality; close to 84% of child mortality occurs in households with less

than Sub-Standard 3 levels of education.

7.6 Safety and Security

Provincial Overview: Safety and Security

Key Indicator 2008/2009 % Change (base 1994)

People per Police Official 478

Murder rate 47 (50.5)

Sexual Offenses rate 131 44.9

Aggravated robbery rate 255.9 18.9

Stock theft rate 74.6 (33.2)

Business burglary rate 110.6 (45.8)

Residential burglary rate 372.6 (20.9)

Motor vehicle theft rate 120.1 (47.8)

Drug related crime rate 235.7 123.2

KZN, accounting for 183 of the 1,100 police stations countrywide (second highest allocation

after the Eastern Cape with 194), is a safety and security hot-spot.

Featuring murder, attempted murder, rape, burglary, abductions and farm murders, KZN

records the second highest farm attacks after Gauteng (StatSA 2010). While the national

average of farm attacks involving murder is 10.5%, that of KZN is 14.4%, and 33.9% of such

attacks included serious injury.

The underlying significance of Safety and Security in the context of the Social Sector

Development strategy in the context of the PGDS is that crime, or the absence of safety and

security, undermines the province as an alternative and viable investment and dwelling

destination, drains the provincial treasury coffers through the costs of maintaining a large

criminal justice system, and depletes the province’s stock of potential human capital through

murders and incarceration.

There are quite recent accounts that still lament KZN to be host to the country’s ‘murder

capital’, KwaMashu, where employment is recorded as 28%, and more than half the

population is under 25 years of age (Centre for the Study of Violence and Reconcialiation,

2008). The relationship between young males and crimes is well documented Walklate, S.

2007). While these figures may look dramatic, they accurately mirror the state of safety and

security in KwaZulu-Natal’s poor communities and neighbourhoods. The Institute for Security

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Studies (2008), established a direct and positive relationship between poverty and incidence

of crime, “the wealthier you are, the less likely you are to be a victim of crime”, and

implicated public transport systems, run-down neighbourhoods, inability to install security

systems and poor policing services as some of the causes of high crime rates among the

poor.

On account of the leading role of the young male segment of the population in the

perpetration of crime, Youth Development through Education, Sport and Recreation, among

other interventions, become instructive as a component of the Social Sector Development

strategy initiative of the PGDS. In line with what has been argued above on the need for a

holistic development of the youth, there is need to ensure sustainable community

development projects that are not once off fun-oriented or correctional projects. Personal,

social and technical development of the youth must be tracked through the sum-total of

community development initiatives in the province.

7.7 Sustainable Human Settlements

The challenge of housing in KwaZulu-Natal has to be viewed against the statistics of what is

available and progress made in providing houses at any given point in time. According to

statistics by 2010 the province had 1 183 381 brick structures in the form of a house and

roughly the same amount in (solid) traditional housing and shared town type arrangements

such as flats. It is obvious that government initiatives in relation to human settlements are

taking place in the context of some challenges since for informal housing there seems to be

an increase rather than reduction when comparing 1995 an 2010.

Type of structure Number of units 1995 Number of units 2010

House or brick structure 624 437 1 183 381

Traditional dwelling 554 240 610 043

Informal dwelling in backyard 41 639 57 029

Informal dwelling NOT in backyard 147 182 167 671

There are two challenges here. The first is the population dynamics relating to migration,

growth and new independent households are emerging. However more qualitative data is

necessary to interpret these trends as there are indications also that the middle generation is

affected by a higher death rate and skip-generation households are resulting. The second

challenge is to reflect the social organisation patterns correctly such that it is clear what the

definition of a “household” is in urban and rural contexts. There are big households in rural

areas that are big merely on account of living together because of identity and coping

issues actually incorporating elementary households within the extended households.

Whether such households are counted as single households or not is not clear from the

current statistics and it requires a more nuanced qualitative data to discern.

Besides these challenges, government initiatives towards sustainable human settlements

have to contend with the conviction that rural homesteads are expensive to provide with

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service delivery and that more clustered settlements must be encouraged (Provincial

Planning and Development Commission, 2008). This is a problem since this is a statement of

competition between ‘what works’ for institutional ease of manipulation and ‘what matters’

for the receipts. Rural households are known to appreciate the possibilities of eking out a

livelihood at less cost in rural areas through the sum-total of possibilities in accordance with

available social capital (Sithole, 2006). Rural households balance the deployment of their

members in marginal urban spaces for meagre financial gains, limited livestock and seasonal

agricultural cultivation. This achieves some limited security of livelihood, albeit in difficult

situations in terms of accessing services. To ask them to trade these ways of economic

coping for ease of reach by government in provision of services is to suggest bureaucratic

egoism over people-centeredness.

The thinking on sustainable human settlements is also an area that demonstrates the need to

contend with the historical political challenges in that government (and especially local

government) has not devised an appropriate strategy to deal with the human rights issues

and access to service delivery of people who are farm dwellers. It is not clear whether the

provision of decent housing and the necessary services is part of any negotiation forum with

commercial farmers who have many Black people subjected to poverty in relationships of

patron-clientalism on farms. Whilst the sensitivities of this subject matter are appreciated

given a land reform programme in South Africa that shied away from opening historically

sensitive questions of land dispossession directly (rather opting for a willing seller-willing buyer

approach to land reform), it is important to regard people on farms as deserving of decent

settlements. They are also affected by the vicissitudes of poverty and other social challenges

(including HIV and AIDS) like other people within the country (see AFRA 2005).

7.8 Synopsis: Strategic Social Sector Issues

The Province of KwaZulu-Natal has obviously not been oblivious the fact that social problems

present themselves in complex ways which require integrated sector focus and nuanced

strategies. This is seen in the manner in which clusters have been formed and progress is

being monitored in relation to cluster plans. In February 2010 the KwaZulu-Natal Cabinet did

a review of its progress in relation to the key national outcomes that have been identified at

priority also for the province. Their reflection indicates how the various stakeholders locate

themselves not only within the clusters but also in relation to the Outcomes they are

responding to. Various clusters aligned themselves with the Outcomes in the following way:

However despite this significant sense of awareness on the crosscutting mandates and need

for integrated focus, sector initiatives are still undertaken in rigid silos and without a joint

identification of areas requiring simultaneous attention and ripple effects thereof. Many

departments are working on quantitative inputs in different areas – there is no clear

separation of inevitable mandated coverage of all citizens, on the one hand, from key

strategic projects done deliberately in partnerships so as to achieve systematic sustainable

growth and social development over time, on another hand. There are several issues that

require sharper attention in order to achieve sustainable development and in order to reach

the ideal of decentralised growth that was articulated earlier in this report. These are:

Qualitative monitoring and evaluation on specific areas – i.e. area-based approach

on cluster plans perhaps via district municipalities. District municipalities could

perhaps not simply compete for disaggregation on functions with local municipalities

but rather be the first level of serious kneading of oversight and discretion in relation

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to integrated approach and sustainability issues. Such will however require serious

institutional capacitation for these municipalities so that they do not understand their

role as merely “cracking the whip” on local municipalities. That kind of institutional

capacitation would have to be directed at both the bureaucratic and the political

arms of the municipalities. There will be a need to direct focus on: evaluation of

regional integrative capacity for growth and development, indigenous knowledge

issues for the district, and measures of sustainability

Planning for the rural-urban trends in the province linked to sustainability of livelihoods

(ways to decentralise the economy and persuading business to partner on

sustainable LED). This requires a consideration of several issues related to spatial

planning and land tenure issues. The first is recognition that security of tenure has not

really meant security of livelihoods within a certain range of socio-economic stratum.

Thus a healthy attitude needs to be developed towards land under iNgonyama Trust

which has in fact provided security of livelihoods for many. Secondly, there is a need

to forge practical and useful linkages on spatial planning and land use management

systems between traditional leaders and municipalities.

Each sector department needs to highlight provincial coverage based on their

centralised expertise but also monitoring of progress on integrated area-based plans

relating to cluster priorities. Lack of no accountability on integrated strategy projects

must be dealt with a provincial level and perhaps a lower level (via

Intergovernmental relations frameworks or a revised District mandate)

Inter-governmental relations designed from the point of view of recipients of service –

as individuals (efficient intergovernmental referrals), in terms of community

development (centering communities in designing access to services and socio-

economic development) and in terms of responding to key social issues (the

desirable outcomes of development be the centre of monitoring rather than the

sector plans for their own sake).

Summary of Key Strategic Issues

Field Issues to Consider Strategic Issues

Dealing with Poverty and

Inequality – the Quality of

Life issue

- Area-based social

mapping of KwaZulu-Natal

in terms of extent of

inequalities, social sector

necessities, as well as the

necessary key integrated

projects directed at

upward social mobility of

the population

- A specific department

(e.g. Social Development)

to be tasked with

accountability and

negotiating discretionary

prioritisation of specific key

identified joint projects.

- Treasury to support the

discretionary movement

of funds between the

stakeholders. Treasury to

explore new ways of

planning and budgeting

that allow the necessary

timeous investments on

projects whilst enforcing

accountability

- Engagement of business

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on decentralising

economic investment in

the province. Treasury

expenditure protocols to

allow a project centred

management of these

funds.

- Identification of policy

red-tape whilst allowing

strict accountability and

prioritisation of project

sustainability at the same

time.

Social Issues with respect to

human relationships

- Area social mapping of

KwaZulu-Natal in relation to

social issues – in terms of

human relationships

(gender, disability, youth

development)

- Identification of relevant

approach that covers the

whole province and

relevant approach for

specific local areas

affected by specific issues

– e.g. abduction of women

- Design of asset based

community development

(land at the core of this) –

this is an socio-economic

issue but it is first a human

relations issues since land

reform is a sensitive

historical/political matter

- National and Provincial

stakeholders to identify

key joint projects.

- Top political leadership in

the province to negotiate

key issues related to

access to services for

farm-dwellers.

- Top leadership to

negotiate with national

government and land

owners on speedy land

reform including invitation

to beneficiaries of colonial

plunder and apartheid to

donate portions of their

land (as a Social

responsibility programme),

as well as live support

centres for emerging

farmers

Designing Human

settlements with the people

- Servicing needs related to

access to housing and

services must be balanced

with servicing socio-

economic livelihoods

- Populations trends and the

rural urban circular

migration strain on people

- A provincial spatial plan

that sees the links between

social issues and economic

growth but also a

progressive move to

decentralise the economy

identifying potentially

thriving LED centres

- A holistic design of

settlements with early

consideration of services,

arts and culture, sports

and recreation, youth

development needs and

socio-economic survival –

an integrated approach is

necessary.

- It might be useful for the

Department of Human

Settlements to plan based

on municipal integrated

development plans rather

than adopting a top-

down planning approach

where the department has

independent planning as

a provincial department

making its own

identification.

- A need to ensure a

transport network that links

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people’s settlements with

markets and centres of

livelihoods

- Research on land

availability to

municipalities, iNgonyama

Trust and the political

sensitivities around long

leases done during the

Apartheid era and on the

eve of the democratic

dispensation

Improved Institutional

Capacity - Provincial

planning and development

strategies that seek to

include qualitative data

- Technical and quantitative

information is useful but

there are serious historical,

political and social issues

that are in nuanced social

relations not captured by

objective counting. This is

often where the potential

for strategy formulation is

hidden

- A need to convert rhetoric

into practical outcomes –

integration, sustainability

must be attached to

accountable hosts (even if

they are sector

departments)

- Engaging civil society

regularly on social issues

- Indigenous knowledge

must be sought –

especially on households,

belief systems (that impact

on gender and healing)

and on human relations

related to disability, stigma

of diseases and gender

orientation to caring

- All stakeholder must be

responsive to area-based

identification of social

problems but must also do

their own research in

relation to the relevant

local dynamics and

indigenous knowledge

- Inter-governmental

relations must not be

bureaucratic information

sharing vehicles but must

be designed with useful

referrals for the users of

government institutions

Quality of Service issues

- Finding ways for qualitative

assessments by the people

who are users.

- Urban-rural differentiation

in terms of quality of

services

- Sector departments to

explain and feature in their

performance reporting the

urban-rural quality of

service differentiation (e.g.

in terms of quality of

education, health services

and safety and security)

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8 THE ECONOMIC LANDSCAPE

Introduction

The economy of KwaZulu-Natal is the second largest within South Africa, contributing

approximately 16% to national Gross Value Added (GVA). The economic base within the

Province is diverse, with being driven largely by the manufacturing sector, and supported by

tertiary services such as tourism, finance and insurance, transport and storage, and other

business services. The province is however under-performing relative to population share,

and is faced with three structural constraints to growth, namely; increasing unemployment,

poverty and inequality. These constraints were further exacerbated by the recent recession,

which placed pressure on financial and economic systems, and caused substantial job

losses.

National Government has recently developed the New Growth Path (NGP), which has

placed emphasis on the need to create sustainable employment within the country in order

to achieve growth and development, and to assist in achieving the Millennium Development

Goals (MDG). Job creation is therefore a key concern for the PGDS, which will ensure that

the creation of employment is prioritised through the promotion of key sectors, and that no

further jobs are lost through the enhancement of business retention and expansion (BR&E)

initiatives.

A substantial decline in investment into the primary and secondary sectors (predominately

agriculture and manufacturing) over the past decade has reduced employment

(particularly within agriculture and textiles manufacturing), and has reduced the potential of

growth and development considerably. As a consequence, the province’s industrial base

has lost share of the national market, while the province has become a net-importer of

agricultural goods, which poses a threat to food security. The tertiary sector has however

performed well, with sectors such as ICT experiencing good growth off a low base. Priority

must therefore be given to strengthening the key sectors of manufacturing, agriculture,

tourism, and transport and logistics, as well as emerging key sectors such as ICT and green

energy production and processes.

The decline in key primary and secondary sectors is due to factors such pending land claims,

a lack of serviced and zoned industrial land, access to Ingonyama Trust Board land for

commercial and community agriculture, the rising cost of capital and other input costs (i.e:

machinery, electricity and labour), skills shortages, and the inflexibility of labour. These

challenges need to be addressed as a matter of urgency to ensure that the Province boasts

strong economic fundamentals, which will stimulate new investment and the expansion of

existing business.

Within the spatial context, the economic contribution to provincial GVA is largely driven by

eThekwini (53%), uMgungundlovu (12%) and uThungulu (8%). This indicates that economic

activity is dominated by the three cities of Durban, Pietermaritzburg and Richards Bay, with

the remainder of the smaller towns and rural areas contributing less than 30% to total GVA.

This is largely due to the infrastructure that exists within the city economies, and highlights the

need for investment into economic infrastructure within less dominant towns.

The Province current has a number of comparative advantages such as the Durban and

Richards Bay Ports, the Dube Trade Port, the Richards Bay IDZ, vast agricultural land, and a

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strong industrial base. However, these comparative advantages have not been translated

into competitive advantages and the Province has therefore not reached its full economic

potential. Constraints such as low productivity within the Durban Port, degrading road and

rail infrastructure, a slow take-off at the Richards Bay IDZ, and uncertainty about the future of

land for commercial farming have slowed the pace of potential growth within the Province.

Emphasis must be placed on the comparative advantages of the Province, to ensure that

these are strengthened and ultimately translated into competitive advantages, in order to

provide a conducive business environment that entices expansionary and new productive

investment.

Given the location of the Province, its economic assets, and a substantial labour force

(although largely un-skilled), there is a significant amount of potential to become an

economic gateway, not only within South Africa, but also within the rest of Africa. The

requirements to achieve such success are numerous, but generally include an educated

and skilled labour force, provision of reliable infrastructure and services, reduction of

bureaucracy and red-tape surrounding development, strong policy direction from the public

sector, and confidence from the private sector.

In terms of provincial planning, although the Province has been not been successful in

effectively and efficiently supporting SMME’s, expanding exports and attracting investment

in the past decade, a number of provincial strategies have recently been completed, or are

in the final draft phase, and will assist in guiding growth and development planning within the

provincial government. These strategies are aimed at creating a more conducive business

environment within the province, to encourage new investment, SMME development, and

expansion of export potential. These include the KZN Investment Strategy, KZN Export

Strategy, KZN Industrial Strategy, SMME Development Strategy, and the KZN Cooperatives

Strategy. The province must focus on implementing the strategic recommendations within

each of these strategies to ensure that the fundamentals are in place to support, promote

and enhance economic activities ranging from informal sector business to large multi-

nationals.

8.1 Overview of KZN Economy in National Context

A prerequisite to undertaking an assessment of the provincial economy is to provide an

overview of each province in the context of the national economy. This section provides a

brief assessment of the performance of each of the provincial economies in order to

contextualise the current position of KwaZulu-Natal.

The table below displays the total Gross Value-Add (GVA)4 for each of the provinces over a

period from 2000 – 2009:

4 GVA is a measure of the value of goods and services produced in an area, industry or

sector of an economy, and is useful when measuring the Gross Regional Domestic Product

for entities smaller than a whole economy.

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Graph 1: GVA per Province

Source: Quantec Database – Standardised Regional Dataset

KZN is the second largest provincial economy after Gauteng, contributing just over

16% to national GVA in 2009, equivalent to R260 billion in GVA.

This is an indication that the province is underperforming relatively, considering that

KZN comprises over 21% of the total national population.

The most comparable provincial economy to KwaZulu-Natal is the Western Cape

which contributes almost 15% to national GVA.

The graph below displays the provincial share of total national GVA from 1995 to 2009.

R 0

R 100 000

R 200 000

R 300 000

R 400 000

R 500 000

R 600 000

Ran

d (M

illio

ns)

in C

on

stan

t 200

5 P

rice

s

Western Cape

Eastern Cape

Northern Cape

Free State

Kwazulu-Natal

North West

Gauteng

Mpumalanga

Limpopo

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Figure 1: KZN Share of National GVA


The province has remained fairly stable in terms of national GVA contribution, ranging

between 16.0% and 16.4% of national GVA.

Decline in industries such as agriculture and manufacturing have therefore been

offset with growth in the tertiary sectors of the Province.

The table below displays the GVA Per Capita for each of the provinces in order of highest to

lowest.

Table 4: GVA Per Capita (2009)

Province GVA per Capita

Gauteng R 50 955.07

Western Cape R 46 434.07

North West R 30 589.83

Northern Cape R 30 117.50

Free State R 28 476.87

Mpumalanga R 27 874.44

Kwazulu-Natal R 24 653.72

Limpopo R 18 763.79

Eastern Cape R 18 668.74


Gauteng has a per capita GVA of almost R51,000, followed by the Western Cape

with just over R46,400.

The remainder of the provinces all fall under R31,000 per capita, with KZN at R24,650

per capita – the third lowest per capita income nationally.

15.85%

15.90%

15.95%

16.00%

16.05%

16.10%

16.15%

16.20%

16.25%

16.30%

16.35%

16.40%

1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009

Pe

rce

nta

ge o

f to

tal N

atio

nal

GV

A

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Of importance is the disparity between the province’s position as the second largest

economy, and the province’s position as third-lowest per capita income province.

This indicates that the province has under-performed relative to the size of the

residing population and strategic economic assets.

The table below displays the GVA per industry within each of the provinces:

Graph 2: GVA per Industry and Province


KZN is comparatively strong within the national Manufacturing industry, contributing

just over 20% to total manufacturing GVA in the country.

KZN is the top contributing province in terms of Agriculture, producing approximately

29% of total agricultural GVA.

With the exception of Mining, the province contributes over 16% to total GVA across

all other sectors, specifically contributing 22% to total GVA in the national Transport

and Logistics sector.

Although the Western Cape contributes less than KwaZulu-Natal to national GVA

within the Manufacturing, Agricultural and Logistic sectors, the Western Cape

contributes more in the Construction and Finance, Insurance, Real Estate and

Business Services sectors.

0

20 000

40 000

60 000

80 000

100 000

120 000

140 000

160 000

Western Cape Eastern Cape Northern Cape Free State Kwazulu-Natal North West Gauteng Mpumalanga Limpopo

Ran

d M

illio

ns

in C

on

stan

t 2

00

5 P

rice

s

Agriculture Mining and Quarrying

Manufacturing Electricity, gas and water

Construction Wholesale and retail trade, catering and accommodation

Transport, storage and communication Finance, insurance, real estate and business services

Community, social and personal services General government

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With regards to total GVA growth and sectoral growth rates, the tables below display the

average annual real growth rate in GVA for all industries, and for each of the sectors from

2000 – 2009, for the country and each province.

Table 5: Average Annual GVA Growth (2000 – 2009)

Region GVA Growth (2000 – 2009)

South Africa 3.6%

Western Cape 4.3%

Eastern Cape 3.2%

Northern Cape 2.0%

Free State 2.6%

Kwazulu-Natal 3.8%

North West 2.6%

Gauteng 4.1%

Mpumalanga 2.5%

Limpopo 3.3%


The country has achieved an average annual growth rate of 3.6% since 2000, while

KZN has achieved a slightly better performance than the national average at 3.8%.

The Western Cape and Gauteng have performed the best, with growth rates of 4.3%

and 4.1% respectively.

The Eastern Cape and Limpopo have also achieved relatively good growth with 3.2%

and 3.3% respectively, while the Northern Cape, Free-State, North-West and

Mpumalanga have performed less successfully than the national average.

With regards to sectoral growth performance, the province has performed in line with other

provinces as well as with the national average in most sectors.

Table 6: Average Annual GVA Growth per Sector (2000 - 2009)

Ag

ric

ultu

re

Min

ing

an

d

Qu

arr

yin

g

Ma

nu

fac

turin

g

Ele

ctr

icity

, g

as

an

d w

ate

r

Co

nst

ruc

tio

n

Wh

ole

sale

an

d

reta

il tr

ad

e,

ca

terin

g a

nd

ac

co

mm

od

atio

n

Tra

nsp

ort

,

sto

rag

e a

nd

co

mm

un

ica

tio

n

Fin

an

ce

,

insu

ran

ce

, re

al

est

ate

an

d

bu

sin

ess

serv

ice

s C

om

mu

nity,

soc

ial a

nd

pe

rso

na

l

serv

ice

s

Ge

ne

ral

go

ve

rnm

en

t

South Africa 1.4%

-

0.8% 2.0% 2.4% 9.0% 3.1% 5.2% 6.5% 3.6% 2.7%

Western

Cape 2.2% 2.4% 1.8% 3.4% 8.6% 3.5% 5.3% 6.7% 3.5% 2.6%

Eastern Cape 2.1%

-

1.0% 1.5% 0.3% 9.6% 1.5% 4.4% 6.0% 3.5% 2.3%

Northern

Cape 2.7%

-

1.8% 2.2%

-

0.2% 5.8% 2.9% 4.2% 4.9% 3.9% 2.9%

Free State -2.5%

-

1.0% 1.6% 2.4% 5.5% 1.8% 3.6% 5.9% 3.5% 2.7%

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Ag

ric

ultu

re

Min

ing

an

d

Qu

arr

yin

g

Ma

nu

fac

turin

g

Ele

ctr

icity

, g

as

an

d w

ate

r

Co

nst

ruc

tio

n

Wh

ole

sale

an

d

reta

il tr

ad

e,

ca

terin

g a

nd

ac

co

mm

od

atio

n

Tra

nsp

ort

,

sto

rag

e a

nd

co

mm

un

ica

tio

n

Fin

an

ce

,

insu

ran

ce

, re

al

est

ate

an

d

bu

sin

ess

serv

ice

s C

om

mu

nity,

soc

ial a

nd

pe

rso

na

l

serv

ice

s

Ge

ne

ral

go

ve

rnm

en

t

Kwazulu-

Natal 1.8% 0.1% 1.9% 1.9% 7.6% 3.9% 5.3% 6.5% 3.6% 2.8%

North West 0.1%

-

0.6% 2.3% 3.6% 8.2% 2.1% 5.2% 6.8% 3.7% 2.5%

Gauteng 1.1%

-

1.3% 2.2% 2.6% 10.5% 3.5% 5.4% 6.6% 3.9% 2.8%

Mpumalanga -0.4%

-

1.0% 2.1% 2.1% 9.3% 2.7% 5.2% 6.1% 3.5% 2.9%

Limpopo 4.6%

-

0.1% 2.1% 4.0% 5.8% 3.1% 6.8% 6.1% 3.9% 2.6%


Within Agriculture, although KZN contributes almost 30% to total GVA, growth has

been less than Limpopo, and the Northern, Eastern and Western Cape, indicating

that more needs to be done within the province to stimulate growth within this sector.

The province contributes very little to the mining sector, and low growth in this sector

(0.1%) is indicative of this.

Within the manufacturing sector, the province has under-performed relative to some

other provinces, although not by a large degree.

KZN achieved a 1.9% GVA growth rate in Manufacturing from 2000 – 2009, just below

the 2% national average. This growth is the third slowest in the country, which is not

sufficient given the large contribution that this sector makes to provincial GVA. This

indicates that the Province needs to do more to achieve greater levels of growth

within the manufacturing sector in order to stimulate employment.

The Province has been successful in achieving the highest growth rate nationally

within the Wholesale, Retail, Catering and Accommodation Sector, with an average

annual GVA growth rate of 3.9%.

In terms of Transport, Storage and Communications, KZN has experienced a 5.3%

average annual growth rate, slightly higher than the national average, but well

below Limpopo who achieved 6.8% average annual GVA growth.

The graph below displays the contribution of each province to total domestic fixed

investment in 2009. This picture is similar to the GVA contributions of the national total.

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Graph 3: Provincial Contribution to Total Domestic Fixed Capital Investment (2009)


Gauteng has succeeded in capturing a third of total domestic fixed capital

investment, followed by KwaZulu-Natal with almost 17%, and Western Cape with just

over 13%.

The remainder of the provinces collectively contribute the remaining 36.8% of total

domestic fixed capital investment.

KwaZulu-Natal’s contribution is less than the relative population contribution of 21%,

indicating the need to enhance the province’s contribution of domestic fixed capital

investment.

This highlights to the importance of strengthening Business Retention and Expansion

(BR&E) programmes, as well as enhancing the effectiveness of investment promotion

and attraction activities.

The above assessment of each province has highlighted the significance of the KwaZulu-

Natal economy within the national context, contributing just over 16% to total GVA, as well as

over 20% of national GVA in Manufacturing and 29% of GVA in Agriculture. However, it was

also noted that KwaZulu-Natal is far behind most of the other provinces with regards to GVA

per Capita, which indicates that more needs to be done to transfer the economic benefits

of the province to the people.

7.6%8.9%

33.0%

6.3%

16.9%

4.8%

2.4%

6.8%

13.4%

0.0%

5.0%

10.0%

15.0%

20.0%

25.0%

30.0%

35.0%

Co

nri

bu

tio

n t

o N

atio

nal

To

tal

Limpopo

Mpumalanga

Gauteng

North West

Kwazulu-Natal

Free State

Northern Cape

Eastern Cape

Western Cape

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It is also important to understand the position of the labour market in the province in

comparison to the rest of the country.

Table 7: Employment and Unemployment per Province


Approximately 62% of the province’s population is within the working age bracket (15

– 65 years of age), in comparison to 63.7% in the country.

Of the working age population, 33.7% are employed either formally or informally,

compared to almost 39% within South Africa.

This is much lower than most of the other provinces, especially the Western Cape

(50.8%) and Gauteng (47.3%), which indicates that the province is lagging in terms of

employment creation relative to the main competing provincial ‘metro’ economies.

Although the province has the lowest number of unemployed individuals (10.2% of

the working age population), it has the second highest number of not-economically

active persons in the country.

Over half of the potential workforce is either not actively seeking work, or have been

discouraged from seeking employment, and points towards the importance of

implementing a comprehensive Human Resource Development (HRD) Strategy, as

well as enhanced demand-driven skills development and training, including

apprenticeships and internships, especially for the youth.

The graph below displays breakdown of employment into the formal and informal sectors.

Percentage Contribution

So

uth

Afr

ica

Weste

rn C

ap

e

Easte

rn C

ap

e

No

rth

ern

Cap

e

Fre

e S

tate

Kw

azu

lu-N

ata

l

No

rth

West

Gau

ten

g

Mp

um

ala

ng

a

Lim

po

po

Working Age

Population

(percentage of total

population)

63.7% 64.8% 60.4% 64.1% 65.5% 61.9% 62.7% 68.8% 62.8% 59.8%

Employed (Formal

and informal) 38.9% 50.8% 32.3% 38.6% 39.1% 33.7% 42.6% 47.3% 36.3% 25.5%

Unemployed 13.0% 14.1% 11.8% 14.7% 14.8% 10.2% 15.3% 15.3% 13.5% 10.7%

Non-participation 48.0% 35.2% 55.9% 46.7% 46.0% 56.1% 42.1% 37.4% 50.2% 63.8%

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Graph 4: Formal and Informal Employment by Province


Almost 80% of those employed are employed in the formal sector, with the remaining

21% employed in the informal sector.

This is very similar to the national trend but varies substantially from provinces such as

Western Cape, Northern Cape, North-West and Gauteng.

The Eastern Cape, Mpumalanga, and Limpopo have a larger percentage of the

population employed in the informal sector (25.3%, 23.6% and 28.9% respectively).

Of importance is the position of the province with regards to skills in the formal employment

sector.

Graph 5: Skills Profile of Formally employed per Province


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KwaZulu-Natal sits on the national average with regards to highly-skilled individuals,

with 12.5% of formally employed individuals, while Gauteng has the highest number

of highly-skilled workers (14.1%).

With regards to skilled individuals, again the province is similar to the national average

(42.7%), with 43% of those formally employed being classified as skilled.

Over 40% of those employed are semi or un-skilled, again indicating the need to

enhance the effectiveness of education and skills development, and the promotion

of demand-driven training.

8.2 Overview of KZN District Economies

KwaZulu-Natal’s Economic Profile identifies key sectors’ opportunities and constraints and

provides a synopsis of the levels of investment, growth and beneficiation processes, as well

as employment in key sectors within the provincial economy.

Graph 6: KZN Economy Overview


The four largest economic sectors in KwaZulu-Natal are Manufacturing (21.5%),

Finance, Real Estate and Business Services (20.2%), Wholesale and Retail Trade, Hotels

and Restaurants (13.9%), and Transport and Communications (13.6%).

The other important economic sectors in the province are: General Government

Services (12.7%), Community, Social and Other Personal Services (6.5%), Agriculture,

Forestry and Fishing (4.4%), Construction (3.1%), Electricity and Water (2.3%), and

Mining and Quarrying (1.7%).

Source: TIKZN: 2010

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Tourism, which is not classified under the category of economic sectors, is also a

major contributor to KwaZulu-Natal’s economy, contributing about 10% of the

provincial economy (TIKZN, 2010)5.

The provinces gross value added (GVA) is indicated below. The table is devised to show the

long-term growth trend (1995 -2009) and the short-term growth trend (2000 – 2009).

Table 8: Provincial GVA Growth Rates

Provincial GVA Growth 1995 - 2009 2000 - 2009

Agriculture, forestry and fishing 2.4% 1.8%

Mining and quarrying -0.1% 0.1%

Food, beverages and tobacco 2.4% 3.5%

Textiles, clothing and leather goods 0.0% 0.8%

Wood, paper, publishing and printing 0.9% 0.6%

Petroleum products, chemicals, rubber and plastic 3.6% 1.4%

Other non-metal mineral products 0.0% 2.0%

Metals, metal products, machinery and equipment 3.1% 2.5%

Electrical machinery and apparatus 3.7% 3.0%

Radio, TV, instruments, watches and clocks 1.7% 3.4%

Transport equipment 2.8% 2.8%

Furniture and other manufacturing 0.8% 0.1%

Electricity 0.8% 0.5%

Water 6.6% 6.0%

Construction 4.1% 7.6%

Wholesale and retail trade 4.0% 3.9%

Catering and accommodation services 2.3% 3.8%

Transport and storage 3.7% 4.0%

Communication 9.5% 8.3%

Finance and insurance 8.5% 10.1%

Business services 3.9% 4.2%

Community, social and personal services 3.5% 3.6%

General government 1.7% 2.8%


From the data presented the following trends are evident:

Agricultural growth rates declined considerably in the short-term;

Petroleum product growth slowed in the short-term;

Small electronic manufacturing increased in the short-term;

Similarly construction experienced an upswing from 2000 onwards, possibly due large

infrastructure projects in preparation for the 2010 World Cup as well as development

of Bridge City, the King Shaka Airport and Dube Tradeport;

5 KZN Investment Strategy, 2011

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Growth in the communication sector was almost constant over the long-term, with a

evident small dip in the short-term;

Finance and Business Services are the highest growth sectors in the province, mostly

focused in the short-term;

Government sector GVA has increased more significantly in the short-term;

Textiles, a sector badly affected by the removal of import substitution, indicates some

small measure of recovery in the short-term, however, the low long-term growth rate

an indictor of a sector in massive decline;

Furniture reflects a decline in the short-term, and this is a concern for the

manufacturing sector.

The following graph describes the Gross Value Added at a district level, and it is evident that

only uThungulu has experienced significant decline in the short-term. The other districts and

metro areas have all indicated small increases in the same period.

It should be noted that uThungulu’s decline is likely due to a contraction in the mining sector

and electricity and these only two contractions were significant enough to reflect a total

decrease in GVA for the district in the short-term relative to the long-term trend as reflected

for the district in table 7 below.

Graph 7: GVA Per District


R 0

R 20 000

R 40 000

R 60 000

R 80 000

R 100 000

R 120 000

R 140 000

R 160 000

Ra

nd

s (M

illi

on

s) i

n C

on

sta

nt

20

05

Pri

ces

1996

2000

2004

2009

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Table 9: GVA Growth (2000 – 2009) per District and Industry

Ugu uMgungundlovu uThukela uMzinyathi Amajuba Zululand Umkhanyakude uThungulu iLembe Sisonke eThekwini

Agriculture, forestry and fishing -0.2% -1.4% 8.9% 2.1% -5.7% 2.0% 7.1% 0.9% -1.1% 0.0% 8.9%

Mining and quarrying -8.1% 10.5% 1.4% 7.2% -7.9% 1.7% 1.9% -3.5% 4.0% -2.5% 4.1%

Food, beverages and tobacco 7.1% 4.1% 5.8% 10.6% 1.2% 11.0% 15.0% 4.3% 4.1% 14.5% 1.0%

Textiles, clothing and leather goods 5.2% 3.0% 0.6% 14.2% -2.1% 13.8% 17.0% 2.0% -0.5% 11.3% 0.5%

Wood, paper, publishing and printing 3.8% -0.2% 1.6% 6.3% -1.6% 5.8% 13.4% 2.4% -0.1% 8.1% -1.1%

Petroleum products, chemicals, rubber and plastic 5.8% 2.0% 4.0% 9.4% -0.6% 12.2% 18.1% 2.1% 0.7% 13.2% 0.6%

Other non-metal mineral products 5.9% 2.3% 5.0% 7.0% -1.7% 11.5% 12.9% 3.3% 0.0% 9.2% 0.0%

Metals, metal products, machinery and equipment 7.4% 2.8% 3.5% 13.2% 2.4% 16.1% 12.1% 1.9% 1.8% 13.8% 1.5%

Electrical machinery and apparatus 8.4% 4.1% 2.3% 9.6% 2.3% 14.3% 11.0% 6.0% 1.7% 13.9% 2.0%

Radio, TV, instruments, watches and clocks 7.9% 3.9% 3.0% 15.3% 0.5% 13.8% 16.3% 4.7% 2.8% 11.6% 2.1%

Transport equipment 7.1% 4.5% 6.6% 12.2% 1.1% 17.1% 17.5% 4.7% 3.0% 13.0% 2.0%

Furniture and other manufacturing 4.3% 0.7% 2.2% 10.3% -2.3% 11.0% 13.7% 0.7% -0.4% 15.3% -1.3%

Electricity -2.3% -2.2% -1.2% 10.4% -0.6% 1.1% -0.1% -0.5% -5.5% 4.4% 1.7%

Water 1.7% 2.8% 10.4% 10.2% 6.5% 6.5% 6.9% 4.7% 4.2% 15.3% 6.9%

Construction 7.2% 7.6% 11.8% 11.7% 4.5% 12.3% 11.7% 7.8% 6.5% 11.4% 6.9%

Wholesale and retail trade 3.5% 2.3% 7.5% 4.3% 2.9% 8.3% 12.4% 5.6% 5.6% 1.9% 3.1%

Catering and accommodation services 3.2% 2.3% 7.6% 4.1% 2.9% 8.4% 13.5% 5.2% 4.0% 2.0% 2.9%

Transport and storage 5.7% 5.9% 7.8% 7.5% 4.9% 4.8% 6.6% 5.1% 1.6% 10.3% 3.0%

Communication 10.6% 11.3% 11.5% 11.7% 9.2% 10.7% 13.3% 9.6% 4.8% 12.1% 7.4%

Finance and insurance 11.8% 8.4% 14.0% 10.4% 12.2% 9.7% 12.2% 12.2% 15.1% 15.3% 9.5%

Business services 4.9% 3.1% 9.3% 5.7% 6.9% 4.5% 6.4% 6.4% 5.0% 10.9% 3.6%

Community, social and personal services 3.2% 3.8% 5.3% 4.8% 3.0% 5.0% 4.6% 2.9% 4.0% 4.7% 3.3%

General government 2.5% 2.9% 4.2% 3.1% 2.3% 4.3% 4.2% 2.0% 3.1% 4.0% 2.4%


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8.2.1 Ugu Ugu experienced contractions in the following sectors: Agriculture (-0.2%); Mining (-8%) and

Electricity (-2.3%). However, the district’s economy showed greater diversification and

widening as key manufacturing sectors experienced extensive growth, notably in metal

products, transport equipment and electrical machinery. In addition, communication and

finance both grew considerably in the short-term, both experiencing growth rates in excess

of 10%.

8.2.2 uMgungundlovu Mining and Communications appear as the two lead sectors in uMgungundlovu, both

experiencing growth of over 10% in the period. Agriculture, wood and publishing, and

electricity are the three sectors that contracted in the period. Transport experienced

moderate growth; however, manufacturing appears to be in serious decline relative to long-

term performance in the other leading sectors.

8.2.3 uThukela uThukela has experienced good growth off a low base; notably Agriculture, Water,

Construction, and Finance and Insurance have performed well in the last decade. However,

much of the regional spend has been dominated by public sector, and this is evidenced in

the low levels of beneficiation and manufacturing locally.

8.2.4 uMzinyathi The Agricultural sector is fairly stagnant in uMzinyathi, with growth of only 2.1% shown for the

period. Service provision in Water and Electricity has significantly buoyed the local economy.

Local Mining and Quarrying has maintained its level of significance in the district.

8.2.5 Amajuba

Amajuba has experienced significant contraction in Agriculture and Mining, to historically

key sectors in the region. Their diversification to Manufacturing in the late 1990s and 2000s

has also gone through a decline, as is evidenced in the table above. However, the tertiary

sector, notably Financial Services and Communication have experienced good levels of

growth, showing a maturing of the region’s economy.

8.2.6 Zululand This area has experienced substantial local investment in the past decade and has

responded with high levels of GVA growth off a very low and previously undiversified base. In

particular, Food and Beverage services as well as Transport Equipment and Machinery

manufacture have grown.

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8.2.7 uMkhanyakude Interestingly, the district has experienced good growth in Manufacturing, virtually across all

production types. However, relatively lower growth in Transport, Business Services and

Community and Social Services indicate that there remains limited diversification.

8.2.8 uThungulu uThungulu’s decline is reflected by a contraction in the Mining sector and Electricity, and

continued steady growth in Manufacturing. Interestingly, the district has had good tertiary

sector growth in Financial Services, Communications and Retail.

8.2.9 iLembe iLembe has experienced declines in a range of sectors including Agriculture, Paper

Manufacturing, Textiles, Furniture and Electricity. However strong growth in Construction,

Communication, Business Services, and Finance and Insurance ensured that the district’s

total GVA grew in the period.

8.2.10 Sisonke Sisonke has experienced good growth off a very low base, with Food and Beverages,

Textiles, Metal products manufacturing, Furniture, and Finance and Insurance having

performed well in the last decade. In total, growth in GVA has been maintained at just below

6%, however off a very low base comparatively.

8.2.11 eThekwini

Interestingly, despite eThekwini’s highly urbanized setting, Agriculture GGP has grown just

below 9% in the last decade. There is evidence of stagnation in Manufacturing, and a clear

decline in Wood and Paper, as well as Furniture production. Construction rates remained

high for the period as did Communication and Financial Services.

8.3 Overview of KZN Economic Nodes6

Economic activity in KwaZulu-Natal is largely concentrated in three main centres, namely,

Durban, Pietermaritzburg and Richards Bay. Below is an overview of these three economic

centres.

6 Source: KZN Investment Strategy (2011)

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8.3.1 Durban Durban, which falls within the jurisdiction of the eThekwini Municipality, is South Africa’s third

largest city and the third largest city in South Africa after Gauteng and Cape Town

respectively. Durban is the biggest city on the east coast of the African continent, covering a

land area of 2,292 square kilometres. The city of Durban is connected to the other major

economic hubs of South Africa, namely, Pietermaritzburg and Richard’s Bay in KwaZulu-

Natal, and Johannesburg and Pretoria in Gauteng Province by road and rail. It is also

connected to the latter by road.

The other major economic features of Durban include:

The largest and busiest port in Africa: As a result, Durban is a major importer of both raw

materials and manufactured goods. Furthermore manganese, chrome ore, coal, sugar, and

grain are exported through the city;

A modern, world-class international airport, which started operating just before the start of

the 2010 FIFA World Cup hosted by South Africa;

A world-class convention centre, which has hosted many international events, such as

conferences. This centre has been voted the best in Africa at least the past six times. It is also

amongst the top 10 in the world;

A well-developed physical infrastructure; and

A variety of other attractions ranging from busy shopping malls, to sunny beaches and

gardens.

8.3.2 Pietermaritzburg

Pietermaritzburg in uMgungundlovu District Municipality is the capital city and

administrative/legislative centre of KwaZulu-Natal. Situated approximately 80 kilometres

north-west of Durban, Pietermaritzburg lies astride the N3 highway between Durban and

Johannesburg. The N3 is the busiest development corridor in South Africa. Pietermaritzburg is

the second largest city in KwaZulu-Natal. As a capital city, Pietermaritzburg has a strong

services sector and is the central location for different inland towns and settlements in

KwaZulu-Natal. The city is also host to many parastatals and government departments

(Pietermaritzburg-Msunduzi Government, 2010)7.

Pietermaritzburg is a regionally important industrial centre and offers a wide range of

products, including timber products, dairy products, footwear, and cloth. The city is also host

to about 15 motor-component producers. Various types of motor vehicles and a truck brand

are assembled in the city. Furthermore, Pietermaritzburg is also host to the main operations of

one of the largest producer of rolled; extruded and other semi-fabricated and finished

aluminium products in Africa.

7 Pietermaritzburg-Msunduzi Government. A Clever Strategy for Marketing Investment Opportunities (2010).

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8.3.3 Richards Bay Richard’s Bay is one of the fastest growing industrial areas in KwaZulu-Natal. It is the centre of

operations for South Africa's aluminium industry operations, producing over 4% of the world’s

aluminium exports. The Richards Bay Coal Terminal, which is located in this town, is the largest

coal export facility in the world. This terminal has been instrumental in securing South Africa's

position as the second-largest exporter of steam coal in the world. Furthermore, Richards Bay

Minerals is one of the largest sand-mining and mineral-processing operations in the world

(KZN Top Business, 2010).

Richards Bay is situated on a 30 square kilometre lagoon of the uMhlathuze River, which gives

it one of the country's largest harbours. The Port of Richard's Bay is South Africa's premier bulk

cargo handling port and is well situated to serve the KwaZulu-Natal and Mpumalanga coal

fields, and has expanded into other bulk and break bulk cargos including timber and granite

from as far away as the Eastern Cape and Northern Cape. The port handles in excess of 85

million tons of cargo per annum and is one of the few South African ports with the flexibility to

expand with demand to become one of the largest ports in the world. Exports remain the

main activity of this port.

The Richards Bay IDZ presents a number of opportunities for the expansion of industrial

development within uMhlathuze. However, a number of constraints such as the high initial

capital cost, environmentally sensitive areas, as well as high levels of existing pollution are

reducing the potential of the IDZ to make a dramatic impact. The attraction of investment to

the IDZ is of critical importance for growth and development of the region, not to mention

the province.

8.3.4 Summary of the City Economies

KZN’s current economic composition clearly indicates that economic activity is

largely concentrated in the three abovementioned urban centres, with these cities

dominating the share of provincial GVA.

This suggests that more needs to be done to establish or strengthen other smaller

urban-nodes to distribute economic activity more evenly within the province, and

create opportunities outside of these three leading cities – while at the same time,

ensuring that investment into these existing economic powerhouses continues to

support the growth and development of the province.

The sub-section to follow provides an assessment of the other significant nodes within the

province.

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8.3.5 Other Centres of Economic Activity in KwaZulu-Natal

The map below illustrates the locations of the major economic activities in the KwaZulu-Natal

Province, including those discussed above.

Figure 4: The District Municipalities and Main Towns/Cities within KZN

Source: TIKZN Annual Report (2008/09)

In addition to the three main economic centres, there are a number of smaller

economic centres that are generally supported by the surrounding rural and urban

settlements.

To the north-west of the province are Newcastle and Ladysmith, which both have

substantial manufacturing capacity.

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On the south coast, Port Shepstone is an economic node that has a strong light-

industrial sector as well as a significant trade and commerce sector.

To the north of Durban is the iLembe District which has, more recently, experienced a

substantial amount of investment in hotel properties and other high-end residential

estates, retail, and office and light-industrial capacity.

The Stanger town centre has a strong business sector as well as a fair amount of

industrial activity.

8.4 Detailed Economic Sector Review

8.4.1 Agriculture

KwaZulu-Natal’s agriculture, forestry and fishing sector is the smallest contributor to the

provincial economy, contributing about 4.4% to the province’s GDPR. However, it is the

leading contributor to the national output in this sector, with a contribution of about 29%

(TIKZN, 2010).

The province’s agricultural sector is focused mainly on the following (TIKZN, 2010):

Crops: Sugar and maize;

Horticulture: Sub-tropical fruits especially pineapples and bananas,

cashew nuts, potatoes, and Vegetables;

Animal Husbandry: Beef, sheep (mutton and wool), pigs, poultry; and

Forestry: South African pine, black wattle, eucalyptus, and poplar.

Forestry plays an important role in the economy and large plantations are found in

the northern part of the Province.

Timber production accounts for 6.5 percent of KwaZulu-Natal's agricultural output

and the forestry and paper industry had seen a huge inflow of foreign direct

investment into the province, amounting to R2.7-billion (Global Africa Network, 2007)

In terms of fishing, the marine life is diverse in KwaZulu-Natal, and it makes sea-fishing

a highly popular activity along the entire KwaZulu-Natal coastline.

Trout fishing is popular inland, while recreational fishing is popular with tourists and

locals (TIKZN, 2010).

The local fishing industry is regulated by Marine and Coastal Management. Three

TACs (Total Allowable Catch) are set every year.

The Government has also published a set of policy guidelines for the allocation of

commercial fishing rights (TIKZN, 2010).

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Despite this, KZN has seen a decline in commercial farm numbers since 2002, declining from

4038 farms to 3574 farms by 2007 (Census of Agriculture, StatsSA: 2011). However, levels of

absolute production have not followed a similar decline across the board. Major crop

production in KZN includes: Sugar, Timber, Soya Beans, Bananas, Cattle and Dairy Farming.

Maize production has increased substantially at 36% from 2006/7 to 2007/8 and

continued to increase the following year by just under 7%, and by a marginal 0.5% in

2009/10.

The smaller increases are due, in no small part, to the poor rains experienced.

Table 10: Maize Production, Selected Years

Year Commercial Production of Maize

(1000t)

2006/07 359

2007/08 489

2008/09 521

2009/10 524

Employment in the agricultural sector has been steadily declining at both a national and

provincial level.

Figure 5: Formal and Informal Employment in Agriculture


The graph above clearly illustrates the sharp decline experienced in agricultural

employment since 2000 at a national level, with an approximate 46% decline in the

total persons employed in agriculture between 2000 and 2009.

KwaZulu-Natal has experienced an estimated 56% decline in employment over the

same period.

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It is believed that a major reason for this constant decline is:

The lack of value-adding to agricultural and other primary sector goods within the

country and KwaZulu-Natal in particular.

The reality is that KwaZulu-Natal has effectively become a net importer of agricultural

products which could explain the experienced decline in employment.

The potential downward spiral associated with this will need to be addressed swiftly in

order to counter this trend and its long-term impact on the economy of the province.

Another possible reason for the decline in agriculture is the large amount of land

owned by the Ingonyama Trust (about 40% of the land within the province), and the

lengthy process of negotiating transfer of this land for agricultural development. This

issue needs to be addressed through consultation with the Ingonyama Trust Board

(ITB).

Land Tenure in KwaZulu-Natal has a major impact on agricultural production and

development within rural areas.

Outstanding and unresolved Land Claims directly impact on the access to land for

many rural communities and /or emerging farmers and will need to be concluded as

a matter of urgency.

The number of outstanding rural land claims within KwaZulu-Natal (as at 31 March

2010) represented 35 % of all the outstanding claims within South Africa, as illustrated

by the figure below.

Figure 6: Outstanding Land Claims

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The Provincial Department of Agriculture and Environmental Affair’s Agrarian

Revolution programme and Land Reform’s New Strategic Framework, focusing on

integrated development models based on areas based plans, partnership, and

empowerment of beneficiaries at a local level, are both aimed at making a positive

impact on commercial agriculture.

With about 1 250 000 ha of the province’s white-owned agricultural land due to be

transferred to black owners by 2014, the Department of Land Affairs acknowledges

that an integrated approach is needed to scale up delivery and maximize positive

impact on poverty alleviation, job creation and economic growth.

An economic strategy that links land reform projects to key provincial agrarian

revolution programmes and projects will capitalise the transfer of the 30% of white-

owned agricultural land into an economic growth opportunity for the province.

Constraints to the Agricultural Sector

Re-tape surrounding Land Reform and Ingonyama Trust Board processes;

Limited value-adding occurring locally - extensive exports of raw materials through

our port system and to our hinterland provinces;

Increased international competition due to subsidisation of most international farmers;

Lack of small-scale agri-industries;

Migration by youth to urban settlements; and

Net-importer of agricultural goods due to highly specialised mono-cropping

practices.

Opportunities in Agriculture

Agro-industry development through beneficiation activities (notably dairy, bio-fuels,

timber and sugar);

Food security – “one household one garden”; community and agri-cooperative

towards commercial agriculture;

Agriculture exports – agri-hubs and processing hubs at key points like Dube Trade Port;

Alignment of Agricultural Planning Processes and the integration of Departmental

efforts;

Implementation of the ‘Framework of Rural Development Strategy’;

Supporting rural development and small-scale agricultural activities to retain and

grow the rural agricultural skill base and rural agricultural output;

Rapid conclusion of Land Restitution and Land Reform efforts;

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Creating access to local and international markets for all framing operations and co-

operatives;

Improving agricultural skills base;

Aqua-culture development;

Reducing input costs (i.e. fuel, fertilizers, electricity, etc.) and access to finance;

Continue the support to black commercial farmers and reform projects undertaken

by the Agribusiness Development Agency (ADA);

Initiate, facilitate and manage partnerships between farmers and markets;

Create linkages between new agricultural graduates and commercial farms.

8.4.2 Manufacturing

KwaZulu-Natal’s manufacturing sector (21% of national manufacturing GVA) is the second

largest in the country, after the Gauteng Province (41% of national manufacturing GVA). The

manufacturing sector is geared for export, with nearly a third of South Africa’s manufactured

exports being produced in KwaZulu-Natal. Its diversified nature is significant in the province’s

economic growth, and generates approximately 20 percent of provincial employment.

The manufacturing sector is the largest component of the broader industrial sector of

KwaZulu-Natal. As the largest economic sector in KwaZulu-Natal, the manufacturing

sector contributes a steady 21% to its GVA.

The potential for further development in the province’s industry and manufacturing

sector is anchored by the nodes of eThekwini and Umhlatuze. The corridors between

these two nodes and extending up to Howick form the primary zone of industrial

development in the province.

The cities of Newcastle, Ladysmith and Port Shepstone serve as important secondary

nodes of industrial development potential.

The graph below shows the levels of gross value add (GVA) in the province which indicates

the intrinsic levels of value-added to the provincial economy.

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Figure 7: Manufacturing GVA, KZN in Constant 2005 Prices


Petroleum products and chemicals account for 22% to total value added in the

manufacturing sector.

The next largest grouping of GVA is metals and machinery production at 20%, and

food, beverages and tobacco production at 18% of total value added.

Sub-sectors that contribute less to the province’s GVA include motor vehicles and

parts, printing and publishing, non-electrical machinery, and wood furniture.

The South African vehicle-manufacturing industry has created a considerable

multiplier effect in component and service providers. The automotive leather industry

has grown rapidly, with exports significantly increasing foreign exchange earnings.

The provinces’ automotive industries are located in Newcastle, Ladysmith, Dundee,

Richards Bay, Durban, Hammarsdale, Richmond, Pietermaritzburg, and Mandeni.8

KwaZulu-Natal has also recently undergone rapid industrialisation, due mainly to its

abundant water supply and labour resources.

Constraints in the Manufacturing Sector

The recent trend however within almost all to the abovementioned industrial centres has

confirmed a declining manufacturing base, mainly due to;

A shortage of zoned and serviced industrial land;

8 Global Africa Network. 2007.

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Lack of seamless logistical networks;

Inconsistency and cost of bulk services;

Restricted investment attraction;

Low levels of export from local industry;

High cost of capital and inflexibility of labour;

Out-migration of skilled persons to Johannesburg, Cape Town and overseas.

Opportunities in Manufacturing

The following potential opportunities towards promoting change in the manufacturing sector

can be identified:

Facilitate the provision of zoned and serviced industrial land;

Improved co-ordination towards seamless logistical networks;

Foreign and domestic investment promotion;

Demand-lead training programmes and apprenticeships;

Reducing capital inputs costs;

Promote knowledge and innovation sectors;

Development of harbour and coastal-based industries such as the Richards Bay IDZ;

Promote and support the Green Industries;

Implementation of the KwaZulu-Natal Industrial Development Strategy which suggest

sub-sector interventions relating to:

o Developing cluster or value chain networks;

o Supporting joint industrial and research;

o Developing cluster focused public procurement and local purchasing

agreements;

o Providing cluster or sector specific information;

o Developing joint marketing efforts;

o Developing demand led skills and education training programs;

o Developing shared logistical capabilities;

o Promoting trade and investment for these designated value chains.

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8.4.3 Tourism The Tourism industry is a key contributor to the KwaZulu-Natal economy. The province's

tourism attractions, perhaps less well known internationally, surpass the national norm in many

respects and are structured around five components. These are:

The coastal holiday areas;

Sunshine, boating, surfing and fishing;

The wildlife game parks, in the northern part of the province;

The historical battlefields;

Two World heritage sites have been declared recently, namely, the Greater Lucia

Wetlands, and Park, and uKhahlamba/Drakensberg Mountain Reserve.

In KwaZulu-Natal, tourism contribution to GDRP is standing around R30 billion - about 10% of

the provincial economy.

The Province currently attracts about 1.3 million foreign visitors and 13.9 million domestic

tourism trips on an annual basis.

Overseas arrivals to South Africa have been declining slightly but KwaZulu-Natal is visited by

approximately a third of all South Africa's international air arrival visitors.

Surveys indicate that foreign visitors spend on average 7.9 nights in South Africa, down from

11 three years ago. Most foreign tourists come from the United Kingdom, then Germany,

Africa, North America, Netherlands and France.

In terms of domestic tourism, recent surveys indicated that KwaZulu-Natal remains the most

popular destination of all provinces, capturing in excess of 35% of all domestic tourism trips in

the country.

The tourism products of provincial importance are:

Arts & crafts routes in Midlands Meander and Albert Falls Amble;

Durban, south coast and north coast beach tourism linked to cultural tourism in

the interior;

Drakensberg region;

iSimangaliso Park;

Game Parks of the North Coast;

Zulu Heritage & Cultural Trail;

Battlefields Route.

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Tourism is a growing economic sector internationally, nationally and provincially and this

sector is of importance because of its’ employment-creation potential, and its’ potential to

contribute to the region’s economic growth.

Figure 8: Destinations by Foreign Tourists, 2008

Source: SAT, 2009

Figure 9: KZN Destinations by Domestic Tourists, 2008

Source: SAT, 2009

According to SA Tourism (2009), KZN is the second major source of tourism and a

major destination market followed by the Eastern Cape.

KwaZulu-Natal continues to dominate the domestic tourism market, however the

Province’s share of the international market has declined slightly.

In KZN the average international tourist night stay is lower than the national average,

at 6.8 nights. As a result foreign tourists and tour operators are only including what are

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regarded as the core icons in a typical South African itinerary such as Cape Town,

the Garden Route and the Kruger National Park.

KZN is losing market share, however the development of the new King Shaka Airport

and the establishment of international flight routes directly to KZN will likely stem this

loss.

KZN is developing packages in partnership with leading outbound operators to

enable this area to be sold as a ‘stand alone foreign destination’ for periods of up to

seven nights, as Cape Town and the Garden Route have already successfully done.

Examining the TKZN statistics, it is evident that foreign tourists who used air travel preferred the

following activities:

Shopping (74%);

Nightlife (92%);

Visiting natural attractions (67%);

The beach (58%); and

Wildlife (51%).

An overwhelming number of domestic visitors preferred:

The beach (53%);

Live show/theatre/concert (12%);

Live sport events (14%);

Museums/galleries/historical buildings (16%);

Nature/wildlife/game reserve (18%).

This bodes well for coastal municipalities in KZN. Present indications are that the KwaZulu-

Natal coast will continue to draw tourists for the next 10 years due to its beaches, excellent

weather, golf courses and shopping facilities.

Constraints within the Tourism Sector

Although these key attractors represent a quality tourism base, it remains limited to

the beach attractions, natural environment and cultural tourism product and there is

a significant need to not only diversify offerings in this sector, but also better

integrated the various products with each other.

An increasingly antiquated tourism product and limited investment in expansion and

renewal in this sector means that the province may systematically be losing its current

competitive edge to competing attractions, not only within other parts of South

Africa, but the SADC region (i.e. Mozambique).

A fundamental concern however is the lack of the spread of tourism benefits

presented by this potential investment both to impoverished communities, as well as

the geographical spread of tourism activities from the current attractors to the lesser

known inland areas with significant potential in this regard.

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Opportunities in Tourism:

Resort development;

Struggle Heritage Tourism;

Adventure Tourism;

Capturing Local Emerging Markets;

Development of Health Tourism;

Promoting Better Universal Accessibility;

Renewal and Differentiation of Tourism Products (especially South Coast);

Rural Community Based Tourism development;

Enhance education and training in hospitality and other tourism-related industries;

Encourage KZN-loyal tour operators.

8.4.4 Finances and Services

The South African banking sector has long been rated among the top 10 globally. All the

major banking groups in the country, namely ABSA, First Rand Bank, Nedbank and Standard

Bank, operate in various parts of KwaZulu-Natal. All of these banking groups have

considerable assets, own retail distribution and electronic banking networks, which include

internet facilities. They offer a wide variety of banking and financial services. In recent years,

many foreign banks and investment institutions have set up operations in South Africa. A

significant number of them have branches in KwaZulu-Natal, especially in Durban.

Additional to the commercial banks, there are a number of development banks and

financial institutions that have been set up to provide funding and other financial assistance

to investors. These include the Development Bank of South Africa (DBSA), the Industrial

Development Corporation (IDC), The KZN Growth Fund, and iThala Development Finance

Corporation.

Business Support Programmes and Investment Incentives

There are a variety of business support programmes that are offered by the DTI that are

aimed to encouraging investment in South Africa and KwaZulu-Natal. In addition, the DTI

offers a wide range of fiscal and non-fiscal incentives to domestic and foreign companies

investing in strategically targeted sectors of the economy. Theses business support

programmes and incentives are:

Enterprise Investment Programme (EIP)

Black Business Supplier Development Programme (BBSDP)

The Critical Infrastructure Programme (CIP)

Business Process Outsourcing and Offshoring (BPO and O)

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The Sector Specific Assistance Scheme (SSAS)

The Co-Operative Incentive Scheme (CIS)

Film Production Incentives

Foreign Investment Grant

Skills Support Programme

SMME Development Programme

Export Marketing and Investment Assistance EMIA

In addition, SEDA has a number of programmes geared towards expanding SMME’s within

the country and province. Demand for SEDA services continued to grow in the 2009/2010

financial year, with 111% of the Enterprise Development Fund (EDF) being accessed. This is a

positive sign as it indicates that small business is being relieved from the pressures caused the

global financial crisis.

8.4.5 Wholesale and Retail Trade, Hotels and Restaurants (Trade and Commerce)

KwaZulu-Natal offers a range of shopping experiences from mega-malls, such as Gateway

Shopping Centre, to rural micro-markets. The ongoing construction of new shopping malls

and the expansion of existing ones across the Province give evidence to the fact that retail

trade is expanding. The malls are home to major shopping chains such as Woolworths and

Edgars. They also house shops selling a range of goods such as household necessities,

electronics, clothing, jewellery, and more specialised items.9

The increasing middle class is contributing to the surge in consumerism in KwaZulu-

Natal, even in many of the smaller towns of the province. They include taverns,

clothing stores, car-repair shops, cafes, stores selling household goods, and cell

phone kiosks for placing calls.

Brands are growing and access to new markets is occurring on an incremental basis.

Branded chains such as Engen, Standard Bank, Kentucky Fried Chicken are found on

the main roads, which form centres of business activity.

Small towns and communities benefit from projects which allow them to produce

and sell arts and crafts. This is of particular relevance to the upliftment of women who

often have few skills and little opportunity to find employment (TIKZN, 2010).

KwaZulu-Natal's hotels and restaurants are impressive. Scattered across the province

are a variety and range which suit all holiday styles and pockets, from cosy self

catering cottages to exclusive and luxurious private game resorts.

9 TIKZN ( 2010)

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Bed and Breakfast accommodation is a growing phenomenon, popular with both

tourists and business people.

The cross-cultural mix of people also ensures a wide choice of restaurants and

entertainment options. Township tourism and an overnight stay and meal in the local

community are growing in popularity, creating income opportunities (TIKZN, 2010).

8.4.6 Mining and Quarrying

There is some mining of coal and iron ore taking place in KwaZulu-Natal. However, the

contribution of this sector to the provincial economy is low. This increases an underlying

opportunity to expand the existing collieries in the province which have closed down, or to

explore unexplored mines. An agreement between Trade and Investment KwaZulu-Natal

(TIKZN) and Mintec would see the scanning of available mineral resources in the province to

realize investment opportunities in minerals (TIKZN, 2010).

Extensive sand mining and quarrying is evident throughout the province. In many instances

this is not a formally recorded activity, which has negative environmental consequences.

There is potential to formalise sand mining and quarrying in order to ensure supply to the

local construction industry.

Constraints in Mining and Quarrying:

Ecological and environmental degradation if not accurately managed;

Application for mineral rights licensing process is long and arduous and managed at

a national level, and is not transparent enough;

There is considerable risk of land tenure for local communities as well as the constraint

of unsettled land claims;

Mining vs Tourism potential along coastal areas.

Opportunities in Mining and Quarrying:

Highly labour intensive sector with good job growth potential;

Community mining and quarry is already extensive and can be formalized and

enhanced;

Small-scale coal mining;

Attraction of investment into new technologies for cleaner extraction and re-

processing;

Further expansion of building material mining;

Incentivise the beneficiation of minerals.

8.4.7 The Green Economy The green economy is a recent economic phenomenon, which according to the UNDP

refers to the development of an economy that is “low carbon, resource efficient and socially

inclusive”. In a green economy, growth in income and employment should be driven by

public and private investments that reduce carbon emissions and pollution, enhance energy

and resource efficiency, and prevent the loss of biodiversity and ecosystem services.” (UNDP:

2011).

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The Green Economy is developed around the notion that there does not need to be a trade-

off between environmental sustainability and economic development, but rather that the

two are mutually beneficial.

The KZN DEDT recently undertook to develop a report entitled “Unlocking the Green

Economy” with the intention that this would assist initiate the development of a Green

Economy Unit within the Department and assist direct future policy development. The report

identified the following priority areas:

Greening tourism;

Greening food production;

Greening energy production;

Greening water production;

Supporting the development of the Green Services Sector.

The report also went to some length to unpack the existing constraints as well as future

opportunities of the sector. These have been summarized below.

Constraints in Developing The Green Economy

Lack of regulations and standards;

Lack of incentives;

Lack of technology and/or research and development;

Lack of skills and capacity;

No access to capital;

Limited market demand;

Supply chain issues;

Lack of institutional support;

Lack of infrastructure;

Food insecurity promotes non-sustainable harvesting in protected areas;

Promotion of nodes of heavy and dirty industry affecting quality of life;

Service provision not also achieved in environmentally sustainable manner;

Insufficient policies developed to support green economy initiatives;

Difficulty in policing (emissions);

Will need to provide alternative to extraction activities that are contra-green

economic principles.

Opportunities for Developing The Green Economy

These include those identified in the KZN DEDT (Report D: Survey of KwaZulu-Natal Economy)

as: the existing opportunities for economic benefit from the management of natural

resources and their harvesting and transformation into goods and services (e.g. medicinal

tea, indigenous plants, subsistence fisheries and coastal recreation and leisure, rainwater

harvesting,).

Organic farming, especially for emerging farmers and in traditional authority areas,

food security initiatives linked to rural housing programmes, and reinvestment in our

prime agricultural assets;

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Areas of potential within the tourism sector include green tourism accreditation, the

clustering of tourism activities, niche tourism, and sourcing products from local

communities;

In energy: wind and biomass energy; the forestry reframing itself as an energy industry

relating to biofuels and carbon trading; a growing energy services sector;

neighbourhood mini-grids; and a carbon fund for the province;

There also exists the potential to completely transform the building and construction

supply chain through the development of green building materials, retrofitting existing

buildings, and creating decent jobs through the reintroduction of apprenticeships;

Likewise in the transport sector, there is scope for the development of alternative

road materials and fuels, to improve efficiencies in freight movement (particularly

from road to rail), the reform of public transport, and the greening of road

construction activities.

At the broader level of cities and towns, a continued effort to bring sustainability into

planning and development activities is required through training and capacity-

building;

Within the retail and manufacturing sectors, opportunities exist for foreign investment

in greening initiatives, especially niche markets, but also to provide support to

informal traders and co-operatives;

The waste management sector provides particular potential for socially orientated

programmes such as buy-back centres, ‘Waste for Food’, as well as reuse and

recycling (e.g. the recycling of building components);

The environmental consulting, policy and research sector is continuing to expand

with the growth of the green economy, and the demand for green professional

services and related innovative research is likely to continue;

Across sectors, green procurement and tendering processes provides a considerable

growth opportunity for the green economy as does the potential for corporates to

invest in green social responsibility projects10.

In addition:

Waste recycling – good initiatives in eThekwini and, eMnambithi already in operation;

Food packaging minimization – linkages to the paper industry already well

established in KZN;

Promotion of green technology development as a part of the provinces ICT focus;

Service delivery for electrification of households should focus on green solutions (solar

panels and turbines);

Water provision can also be focused on sustainable practices (run-off capture and

rain water solutions where possible);

Target public investment into green projects;

10 KZN DEDT: 2011, Unlocking the KwaZulu-Natal Green Economy

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Greening procurement processes;

Improving provincial and district environmental rule enforcement;

Promote sustainable and ecologically friendly agriculture, forestry, freshwater, and

fisheries methods to help conserve soil fertility and water resources in KZN with a

special focus on supporting subsistence farming.

8.4.8 Property Since bottoming out on 2009, South Africa’s house prices have steadily improved, partly as a

result of the stimulus of an accumulated 550 basis point interest rate reduction since

December 2008 and easier lending criteria. However the pace of acceleration in the

average price of domestic residential property started moderating from middle 2010,

indicating that house price inflation may be breaking.

This was confirmed by an increase in the length of time that properties have

remained on the market, initially about 12 weeks in the first quarter on 2010, and

extending to 17 weeks by the second quarter;

The property markets will continue to be affected by the affordability of houses which

remains under pressure along with high levels of house debt and high unemployment;

The year on year change in the average price of residential property in the middle

segment of the market as measured by Absa, improved marginally from a negative

3.8 percent in May 2009 to a positive 12.9 percent in April 2010, before slowing to 7.1

percent in August of last year;

FNB Property Index showed an annual improvement of 12.2 percent from 2009 April to

May 2010, and again, slowing in August to 7.2%;

The change in the Standard Bank median house price improved on a year-on-year

basis from a negative 5,2 percent in September 2009 to a positive 8,3 percent in

August 2010.11

Figure 10: Average Property Prices

Source: KZN Treasury

11 SA Reserve Bank (2010).

As is indicated in the graph

alongside: Industrial property (industrial and

warehousing) experienced

marked decline in total square

meters available, peaking in

2008.

Office and banking space follows

a similar trend, declining from

2009.

Shopping space has followed a

more moderate growth and is

continuing to increase at a

declining rate at present.

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8.4.9 Logistics and Communications Transport, logistics and communications accounts for 14% of the GVA of the province, and

equates to approximately R35,25 billion. There are numerous existing constraints facing the

sector, largely caused by the poorly integrated platform for intermodal freight movements

and the slow migration from road to rail of heavy freight. This has had a massive impact on

the road infrastructure in the province and has resulted in high cost (physical and

opportunity) of road maintenance. In addition, the global slow-down has resulted in a slower

than anticipated development of the Dube Trade Port area, as global markets have resulted

in a significant slow-down of freight related development.

As can be seen in the freight movements depicted in the graphic below, the container

traffic base through the port of Durban is substantially greater than the sum of the rest of the

remaining ports of South Africa.

Figure 11: Containerised Cargo in South African Port System

Constraints in Logistics and Communications

Lack of Integrated Networks of road, rail and harbours networks;

Slow progress Road to Rail –high cost of road maintenance;

Upgrading & Redesign of Transport Infrastructure;

Positioning of the KSIA & DTP;

Non-competitive ICT & Communication Sector.

Key Opportunities in Logistics and Communications

Optimisation of the KSIA, DTP, Richards Bay IDZ & port utilisation & efficiencies;

Further Port Development and Expansion (Durban Dig-Out Port);

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Seamless Logistical Infrastructure & Networks;

Durban-Richards Bay Corridor;

Broad Band and Optic Fibre application in the Province.

8.4.10 Informal Economy

The informal economy is a broad term used to describe a very large and growing sector of

the global economy where the world’s working poor earn a living. The term seeks to capture

the reality of the large share of the global workforce that remains outside the world of full-

time, secure, stable and protected jobs and in many cases with no form of social

protection. The importance of the informal sector within KZN is underpinned by the fact that

over 20% of those employed are within the informal sector.

Informal work traverses many occupations, including self-employed and own-

account workers, migrant, casual and temporary workers in an increasingly

globalising world economy;

The informal economy also comprises different sectors - apart from street vendors,

informal market vendors and hawkers, there are also waste collectors, home-based,

informal transport and agricultural workers;

Informal employment is a population-based definition. It includes informal wage

employment outside informal sector. To be precise, casual workers in formal sector,

employers in informal enterprises, own-account workers in informal enterprises, unpaid

family workers both in formal as well as informal enterprises.

Informal sector as production-based definition includes employment and production

that take place in small and unregistered enterprises;

In KZN, the informal economy’s employment level is indicated at 21% of the total

employed population, and equates to 462 855 persons12. This figure represents a

significant share of the employed; and has considerable implications for safe working

environments; tax revenue collection and the integration of this informal economy

into the first.

Constraints within the Informal Economy

Little control over informal working environments (health and safety; worker rights and

levels of exploitation);

Little control of the legality of economic activity undertaken;

Low levels of trust and cooperation.

12 Quantec 2011, Standardised Regional Dataset: Employment KZN

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Informal Economy Opportunities

Formalisation of informal sector workers will in the long-term assist in contribution to

the regional tax base;

Business support and training to provide informal businesses and entrepreneurs with

the skills to expand, and eventually move into the formal sector.

8.5 Investment In KZN

8.5.1 Domestic Fixed investment

This section briefly reviews the amount of fixed investment (i.e. plant, buildings, transport

equipment and transfer) that each key sector has experienced in the last decade in the

province.

Figure 12: KZN Gross Domestic Fixed Investment per Industry


The transport sector has experienced a massive and rapid level of investment. This is

in no small part related to the levels of freight transported via road haulage in KZN,

most notably from the Ports of Durban and Richards Bay;

Manufacturing has experienced a sharp decline since 2008, after growing at a

steady rate for the preceding 8 years;

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General government has expanded on fixed investment, notably in additional

buildings and social service related resources, although this spending too has

tapered in 2009;

Electricity, gas and water has continued to be a major factor in fixed investment as

provincial backlogs continue to be worked upon and service delivery provided;

Wholesale, retail and trade has flattened since 2008.

This sectoral spend is indicated in terms of the categories of fixed domestic investment.

Figure 13: KZN Gross Domestic Fixed Investment Per Category


Interestingly, it is only in 2009 that buildings overtake machinery and other equipment;

Prior to 2009 machinery and other plant equipment were more heavily invested in

with KZN;

The cause of this may be that firms do not have the capital to replace machinery

and/or are not investing in expansion of their activities due to the recessionary

pressures;

The implication of this is that manufacturing sector may face a situation where capital

and technology become outdated and they find it even more difficult to exist and

remain competitive.

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8.5.2 Foreign Direct Investment

This section reviews the level and impact of foreign direct investment.

Table 11: Foreign Direct Investment into KwaZulu-Natal, 2003 – 2010 (Rand, millions)

Source: fDi Markets.com: Crossborder Investment Monitor (2010) FDI into KwaZulu-Natal – All

projects January 2003 – June 2010; Urban-Econ Calculations (2010)

* Investment to June 2010 has been accounted for the year 2010

As shown above, the levels of investment per annum for the period 2003 – 2010 (June)

indicate that:

Foreign direct investment was highest in 2008, at R 13 246 million;

The lowest foreign direct investment occurred in the 2009, at R 907 million. This low

level of foreign direct investment is most likely due to the global economic slowdown;

For 2010, R 316 million in foreign direct investment has taken place in the province

between January to June;

Total foreign direct investment for the period 2003 – 2010 is R 35 644 million.

8.6.2.1. Foreign Direct Investment per Municipality

Foreign direct investment projects have taken place in a range of areas within KwaZulu-

Natal with varying number of projects and investment value per municipality and city/town.

The graphs below provide the investor destination of foreign direct investment into KwaZulu-

Natal per municipality and city/town in terms of number of investment projects and value of

investment projects for the period 2003 – 2010.

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Figure 14: Investment Destination per KZN Municipality and city/town in terms of number of

projects, 2003 – 2010

Source: fDi Markets.com: Crossborder Investment Monitor (2010) FDI into KwaZulu-Natal – All projects January 2003 –

June 2010; Urban-Econ Calculations (2010)

As illustrated by the graphs above:

Most foreign direct investment projects have occurred in the eThekwini Metropolitan

Municipality. The municipality has attracted 59% of investment projects. This

investment has occurred in the following towns within the municipality: Durban which

has attracted the most investment (47% of investment projects), Umhlanga,

Umbogtwini, Pinetown and Umkomaas;

Umgungundlovu and Uthungulu District Municipalities have each attracted 8% of

investment projects. Within Umgungundlovu District Municipality investment occurred

within Pietermaritzburg which attracted 8% of investment projects in relation to other

towns. Within Uthungulu District Municipality investment occurred within Richards Bay

which attracted 4% of investment projects in relation to other towns;

iLembe District Municipality has attracted 6% of investment projects. Within the

municipality the towns of Zimbali has attracted 4% and Isithebe has attracted 2% of

investment projects in relation to other towns;

Uthukela District Municipality has attracted 4% of investment projects. Within the

municipality the town of Ladysmith has attracted 4% of investment projects in relation

to other towns;

Amajuba District Municipality has attracted 2% of investment projects. Within the

municipality the town of Newcastle has attracted 2% of investment projects in

relation to other towns.

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Table 12: Investment destination per KZN Municipality and city/town in terms of value of

investment, and investment per Municipality and city/town as a percentage of total

investment, 2003 – 2010

Investment

Destination per

Municipality

Investment

(Rand,

Million)

Percentag

e of Total

Investment

Investment

Destination

City/Town

within

Municipality

Investmen

t

(Rand,

million)

Percentag

e of total

investment

Uthungulu DM 13 687 38.4% Richards Bay 13 687 38.4%

eThekwini MM 9 614 27% Durban 6 882 19.3%

Umbogintwini 1 413 4%

Umhlanga 991 2.8%

Umkomaas 328 0.9%

Pinetown* 0 0%

iLembe DM 3 565 10% Zimbali 3 482 9.8%

Isithebe 83 0.2%

Umgungundlovu

DM

1 136 3.2% Pietermaritzbur

g

1 136 3.2%

Uthukela DM 335 0.9% Ladysmith 335 0.9%

Amajuba DM 285 0.8% Newcastle 285 0.8%

Not Specified 7 023 19.7% Not Specified 7 023 19.7%

TOTAL 35 644 100% 35 644 100%



As indicated by the table above:

The highest value of foreign direct investment occurred in Uthungulu District

Municipality, which attracted 38% of total foreign direct investment. Investment within

this municipality occurred within Richards Bay;

This was followed by eThekwini Metropolitan Municipality and iLembe District

Municipality which attracted 27% and 10% of investment, respectively. Within

eThekwini Metropolitan Municipality investment occurred in Durban, Umbogtwini,

Umhlanga, Umkomaas and Pinetown. Most investment in eThekwini Municipality

occurred in Durban which attracted 19.3% of investment. Within iLembe District

Municipality investment occurred in Zimbali and Isithebe. Most investment within the

District occurred in Zimbali with attracted 9.8% of investment;

Foreign direct investment in Umgungundlovu District Municipality was 3.2%. This

investment occurred in Pietermaritzburg;

Foreign direct investment in Uthukela District Municipality was 0.9%. This investment

occurred in Ladysmith; and,

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Foreign direct investment in Amajuba District Municipality was 0.8%. This investment

occurred in Newcastle.

Figure 15: Investment Destination per KZN Municipality and city/town in terms investment per

Municipality and city/town as a percentage of total investment, 2003 - 2010

Source: fDi Markets.com: Crossborder Investment Monitor (2010) FDI into KwaZulu-Natal – All projects January 2003 –

June 2010; Urban-Econ Calculations (2010)

This indicates that investment and economic activity is still highly concentrated in the

major ‘city’ economies of eThekwini, uThungulu and uMgungundlovu.

8.6.2.2. Foreign Direct Investment per Sector in KwaZulu-Natal

Foreign direct investment projects have occurred in a wide range of sectors within KwaZulu-

Natal. The table below provides of the number of projects per sector between 2003 and

2010. The table also provides the number of projects as a percentage of total projects.

Table 13 Number of new foreign direct investment projects per sector, 2003 – 2010

Sector Number of New Foreign

Direct Investment

Projects

Number of projects as

Percentage of Total Projects

Automotive Components 5 10%

Automotive OEM 4 8%

Building & Construction

Materials

1 2%

Chemicals 4 8%

Coal, Oil and Natural Gas 2 4%

Communications 1 2%

Consumer Products 3 6%

Financial Services 1 2%

Hotels & Tourism 4 8%

Industrial Machinery,

Equipment, Tools

2 4%

Metals 4 8%

Minerals 1 2%

Non-Automotive Transport OEM 1 2%

Paper, Printing & Packaging 2 4%

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Sector Number of New Foreign

Direct Investment

Projects

Number of projects as

Percentage of Total Projects

Real Estate 1 2%

Rubber 4 8%

Software & IT services 3 6%

Transportation 3 6%

Wood Products 3 6%

TOTAL 49 100%



As indicated by the table above:

The leading sector in terms of the number of projects was Automotive Components,

which had 5 projects or 10% of total foreign direct investment projects;

The following sectors had 4 projects or 8% of total foreign direct investment projects:

Automotive OEM; Chemicals; Hotels & Tourism; Metals; and Rubber;


Consumer Products; Software & IT services; Transportation; and Wood Products;


Coal, Oil and Natural Gas; Industrial Machinery, Equipment, Tools; Paper, Printing &

Packaging;

The following sectors had 1 project or 2% of total foreign direct investment projects:

Building & Construction Materials; Communications; Financial Services; Minerals; Non-

Automotive Transport OEM; and, Real Estate.

8.6 Synopsis: Strategic Economic Issues

The economy of KwaZulu-Natal is the second largest within South Africa, contributing

approximately 17% to national Gross Value Added (GVA).

The economic base within the Province is diverse, with the provincial economy being driven

largely by the manufacturing sector (22%), and supported by tertiary services such as tourism,

finance and insurance, transport and storage, and other business services.

The province is faced with three structural constraints to growth, namely; increasing

unemployment, poverty and inequality. These constraints have been further exacerbated by

the recent recession, which placed pressure on financial and economic systems and caused

substantial job losses. The province is under-performing relative to national population share

(21% of the national population), and currently has the third lowest per capita income

nationally (R24,650 compared to Gauteng with R50,955 ).

National Government has recently developed the New Growth Path (NGP), which has

placed emphasis on the need to create sustainable employment within the country in order

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to achieve growth and development, and to assist in achieving the Millennium Development

Goals (MDG). Job creation is therefore a key concern for the PGDS, which must ensure that

the creation of new employment is prioritised (by attracting new foreign and domestic

investment), and that no further jobs are lost, through the extension and support of business

retention and expansion programmes.

A substantial decline in investment into the primary and secondary sectors (predominantly

agriculture and manufacturing) over the past decade has reduced employment

(particularly within agriculture and textiles manufacturing), and reduced the growth

potential of the provincial economic substantially. As a consequence, the province’s

industrial base has experienced a declined national market share, and the province has

become a net-importer of agricultural goods, which illustrates the threat to food security and

the loss of export potential. The tertiary sector has however performed well, with sectors such

as ICT experiencing good growth albeit off a low base.

Tourism is a key sector within the KZN economy and holds much potential. KZN is a leading

domestic tourism destination, but lags as international destination. The Province’s Tourism

Strategy presents a thorough analysis and makes recommendations which address local and

international appeal such as marketing of SA’s urban centres more vigorously, diversifying the

appeal to be wider than nature-based tourism, as well as recommending development of

new products such as resorts.

Employment in the agriculture sector has declined by 64% since 2000, with employment in

manufacturing declining by 20% over the same period.

In spatial-economic terms, the economic contribution to provincial Gross Value Add (GVA) is

largely driven by eThekwini (53%), uMgungundlovu (12%) and uThungulu (8%). This indicates

that economic activity is dominated by the three cities of Ethekwini, Msunduzi and

Umhlatuze, with the remainder of the smaller towns and rural areas contributing less than 30%

to total GVA. This is largely due to the infrastructure that exists within the city economies, and

highlights the need for investment into economic infrastructure within less dominant towns to

create other significant contributing economic nodes.

Despite the Province enjoying a number of comparative advantages such as the Durban

and Richards Bay Ports, the Dube Tradeport, the Richards Bay industrial complex, vast tracts

of agricultural land, and a traditionally strong industrial base, these comparative advantages

have not been translated into competitive advantages. The Province has therefore not

reached its full economic potential.

Constraints such as low productivity within the Durban Port, degrading road and rail

infrastructure, a slow take-off at the Richards Bay IDZ, and uncertainty about the future of

land for commercial farming have slowed the pace of potential growth within the Province.

Emphasis must be placed on the comparative advantages of the Province, to ensure that

these are strengthened and ultimately translated into competitive advantages.

Given the location of the Province, its economic assets, and a substantial labour force

(although largely un-skilled), there is a significant amount of potential to become an

economic powerhouse, not only within South Africa, but also within the rest of Africa. The

requirements to achieve such success are numerous, but generally include an educated

and skilled labour force, provision of reliable infrastructure and services, reduction of

bureaucracy and red-tape surrounding development, strong policy direction from the public

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sector, and confidence from the private sector. In order to achieve these requirements, all

stakeholders need to work in a coordinated manner to ensure that development is correctly

planned and the public sector resources are channelled into the correct interventions in the

correct locations.

Priority must therefore be given to strengthening the key sectors of manufacturing,

agriculture, tourism, and transport and logistics, as well as emerging key sectors such as ICT

and green energy production and processes.

Key constraints facing the province and causing a decline in the key primary and secondary

sectors include:

A lack of serviced and zoned industrial land;

Lack of or delays in gaining access to Ingonyama Trust land for commercial

development and community agriculture;

Slow pace and failure of land reform programmes;

The rising cost of capital and other input costs (i.e: machinery, electricity and

labour);

Skills shortages; and

The inflexibility of labour.

These challenges need to be addressed as a matter of urgency to ensure that the Province

boasts strong economic fundamentals, which will stimulate new investment and the

expansion of existing business, and create a more conducive business environment.

In terms of provincial development planning, the Province has realised the importance of

such a platform to coordinate development. Policies and strategies in progress or recently

completed include the KZN Investment Strategy, KZN Export Strategy, KZN Industrial Strategy,

SMME Development Strategy, and the KZN Cooperatives Strategy. These strategies are

aimed at creating a more conducive business environment within the province in order to

encourage expansion of existing business, new domestic and foreign investment, SMME

growth and development, and the expansion of export potential.

The 2011 PGDS will need to provide an overarching framework through which the province

can coordinate the implementation of strategic recommendations within each of these

strategies to ensure that the fundamentals are in place to support, promote and enhance

economic activities ranging from informal sector business activities to the activities of large

multi-nationals.

9 THE INFRASTRUCTURE LANDSCAPE

9.1 Introduction

Although the term infrastructure refers to a wide range of hard (technical) and soft

(institutional) systems, the commentary presented in this section is limited to a selected range

of “hard” infrastructure which is supportive of both community and social well-being and that

which is necessary to enhance economic engagement.

Infrastructure has a direct impact on both basic services as well as the economy.

There exists a continuing problem of lack of integration with regard to service delivery

infrastructure as well as economic infrastructure developments resulting in glaring gaps

achieving infrastructural efficiencies. Coordinated advances in both areas area needs to be

prioritised. For example, improvements in service delivery infrastructure could lead to greater

economic activities in rural areas.

Important to community and social well-being are the “service delivery” components: water,

sanitation, electricity and human settlements.

As the world undergoes rapid urbanization and greater numbers of people in developing

countries move to the cities, the need to improve basic services and infrastructure such as

drinking water, waste disposal, transportation infrastructure and the ability to turn on a light

bulb has reached a critical point.

The currently exists a serious backlogs and shortages of water, sanitation and electricity. The

delivery in the area of human settlements is slow, random and uncoordinated. Out public

transportation system is predominately taxi dominated. Adding to this transportation issue,

the province has an overburdened road network and underutilized rail transportation system.

From the point of view of providing a world class platform for economic engagement, this

section raises issues around transportation of freight, ports and telecommunications. The Rural

Transport Strategy is raised as well as an area of need.

Transport, logistics and communication are important components of the services sector,

and the province already enjoys considerable comparative advantages in these sectors. A

major priority for the province therefore is to further build on this comparative advantage by

further investment in positioning KwaZulu-Natal as the trade entrance into the continent. This

requires further investments in building a modern infrastructure, particularly transportation

and logistics, that reduces business costs, enhances competitiveness and creates

employment for firms. The Dube Trade Port in particular is regarded as the key intervention by

the provincial government to cement its position as the premier transport, logistics and

communication hub on the continent. It is expected to act as catalyst for economic

development and labour-intensive growth throughout the province. However, at present the

Dube trade port as well as the King Shaka International Airport is underutilized.

Key among the province’s superior physical infrastructure facilities are the two strategically

situated ports of Durban and Richards Bay. Together, the two ports handle nearly 80% of

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South Africa’s cargo tonnage. Moreover, the province has an extensive rail and road

network connecting other parts of the country and linking the Province to Mozambique and

Swaziland. With the development KSIA and DTP, the province’s competitive edge in

transportation and freight logistics is likely to be further enhanced, in addition it provides an

effective platform for forging trade linkages between provinces within the country,

neighbouring states and the rest of the world (particularly the Asian and South American sub-

continents), offering the province considerable investment spin-offs and opportunities.

In summary, the province’s competitive and comparative advantages include:

The ports of Durban and Richards Bay, handling nearly 80 % of South Africa’s cargo

tonnage.

Richards Bay is the country’s centre of aluminium industry operations, producing over

4% of the world’s export of aluminium. It is also the seat of the world’s largest sand

mining and mineral-producing operations.

Leading producer of timber, processing over half of all timber used in the country,

and accounting for a significant percentage of the country’s wood exports.

The Province has the highest export propensity, as well as the highest level of

industrialization in the country.

The province is second only to Gauteng province in terms of its percentage

contribution to South Africa’s GDP.

Theoretically any improvements in a logistics system will result in widely felt benefits e.g.

Through a streamlined freight system, products can be exported to reach their global

markets faster, more cost efficiently and in better condition thereby netting higher

returns;

Through investment in infrastructure to address increases in projected demand,

growth can be facilitated and congestion lessened;

Through improved visibility of supply chains, bottlenecks are addressed resulting in

improved through-put for all role-players who are able to share in supply chain

improvements.

However, backlogs in infrastructure and investment and in some cases market structures that

do not encourage healthy competition, contribute to high costs of moving goods,

operational inefficiencies, and a poor logistics system.

9.2 Transport of Freight

9.2.1 Freight Logistics

The figure below depicts the relationship between freight transportation and the economy. It

is deduced that an improved transport system can lead to increased economic growth. This

is also applicable to freight transport. In order to achieve this, the following aspects must be

analysed:

The economic policy framework

The relationship between economic growth and freight volumes

To derive freight trends based on economic indications

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Figure 7.16: Transportation and the economy

The main functions for the public sector within the transport sector are identified by the

National Freight Logistics Strategy (NFLS) as follows:

To regulate the freight system to ensure economic efficiency

To own and provide financing for strategic or common user infrastructure

components in either the Infrastructure Utilities or State-Owned Enterprises (SOEs), and

to pave the way for increased private financing of facilities

To promote better physical and operational integration of seaports, airports and land

transport networks

Increased Competitiveness

Efficient Transportation Infrastructure Investment

Increased Transportation Capacity, Efficiency,

Reliability and Level of Service

Transportation Cost

savings

Transit Time Savings

(Reliability Improvement)

Business Expansion

(Relocation and Restructuring)

Increased Productivity

Increase Economic Growth

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To ensure appropriate safety conditions in transport activities and to exercise

effective supervision of environmental and security elements of the freight system

To contribute to the trade facilitation process at all borders and interfaces, and thus

to help ports and land transport entities (whether public or private) to act as creative

partners in international trade development

The following are functions identified for private sector in the transport sector:

To provide superstructure and / or operations investment

To provide operational management within appropriate regulatory environment,

free from unnecessary public sector activity crowd-out

To promote operational integration and efficiency, in order to foster economic

growth and development

To invest in infrastructure from both a debt and equity perspective

This strategy therefore seeks to address a number of issues that undermine the competitive

advantage that South Africa enjoys, thereby rendering the country less competitive and

relevant in world markets. In the context of the critical role that the freight system plays in

building and maintaining the South African economy, the problem statement that this

strategy responds to is:

“The freight system in South Africa is fraught with inefficiencies at system and firm levels. There

are infrastructure shortfalls and mismatches; the institutional structure of the freight sector is

inappropriate, and there is lack of integrated planning. Information gaps and asymmetries

abound; the skills base is deficient, and the regulatory frameworks are incapable of resolving

problems in the industry.”

The main challenge facing transport performance is the fact that funding and financing of

transport infrastructure, network development and maintenance is not constant and

responsive to transport demand and infrastructure utilisation over the long-term. The main

causes of inefficiency and poor service reliability are an aged asset base, low accountability

for operational efficiency and a poor service culture, which are strongly evident in ports and

rail.

The figure clearly shows that both ports and rail transport need generally need higher levels

of intervention as opposed to road freight transport.

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Figure 7.17:Efficiency and Service Reliability by Mode

Uncoordinated planning of freight transport infrastructure and facilities

The provision of freight transport infrastructure at the provincial and municipal level is

very limited. There is a need to define the roles and responsibilities of the province

and municipalities in providing freight transport infrastructure such as truck stops and

intermodal transfer facilities, in order to support the efficient and economic operation

of freight transport networks.

At the national level there is a working relationship between the DoT, the Department

of Trade and Industry, and the Department of Public Enterprises in respect of policy,

legislation, funding, management and operations. These departments are not directly

duplicated at the provincial level. The provincial DoT is the custodian of policy

formulation for freight. In KwaZulu-Natal, the national DTI is represented by the

Department of Economic Affairs and Finance. Its role is to ensure that provincial

freight policies will attract investments and facilitate economic development.

Furthermore, at the provincial level there is a particular need for setting up similar

interdepartmental co-ordinating structures that will ensure effective planning and

implementation of policy. A Freight Task Group – comprising representatives of

national and provincial departments as well as State Owned Enterprises (SOEs) – has

been operating since 1998. However, improvements and / or other initiatives are still

required. This forum should continue as an ongoing concern.

Low levels of investment in certain infrastructural and operational equipment.

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Ageing rail rolling stock and port-operating equipment that undermine efforts by

government and port authorities to turn these entities around in order to respond to

the demanding global growth of freight movements.

Rigid costing approaches that are not customised.

Costing methods used to develop and set tariffs are rigid and are not activity-based.

9.2.2 Harbours and Ports

KwaZulu-Natal ports are the main entry point for importing of goods to South Africa, as well

as exporting to the world. When assessing the information depicted in graph below, it clearly

depicts that the Durban Port, handles approximately 67.74% of all containers that is either

imported to South Africa, or exported. Although a decline is noted during the period 2008

and 2009 for Durban and Richards Bay, the overall import and export of goods through the

country has reduced in the number of container handling.

9.2.2.1. Port of Durban

The port of Durban is strategically placed on the world’s shipping routes, and it is South

Africa’s main general cargo and container port. It handles approximately 60% of all the

containers in the country, and about 32% of the ships calling at all the South African ports.

Cargo handled by the port during the 2006/07 fiscal year amounted to the following:

Cargo including oil and petroleum products – 41 483 950 tonnes

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Containers – 2.335 million TEUs (or ±32 million tonnes)

Port Limitations

• The port of Durban operates 24 hours a day 365 days a year. During daylight ships are

supposedly restricted to 243.8m length with a maximum width of 35m and a draught

of 11.9m, or 12.2m according to tide and harbour master's clearance. Larger vessels

are common, and ships up to 300m lengths and 37m beams are regular callers in

Durban. Night restrictions are for a ship length of 200m, a beam of 26m, and

maximum draught of 11.6m. The harbour master has to be consulted for permission if

larger vessels are to enter port.

• Pilotage is compulsory for all vessels from a point three miles northeast of the port

entrance, with a helicopter performing most pilot transfers, backed up by pilot boat

when the helicopter is unavailable. Navigation (including all shipping movements

inside port limits) is subject to VTS (vessels tracking service system) controlled from the

Millennium Tower on the Bluff. Tug assistance is required. Draught within the port varies

according to location.

• Through the Ports Master Plan (PMP), Transnet and the National Ports Authority (NPA)

has identified several new projects for the port of Durban. This includes the widening

and deepening of the Durban harbour mouth to enable safer access and access to

larger ships at a cost of R1.7 billion. The width of the channel will be increased to

220 m at its narrowest point, flaring into 300 m beyond the south breakwater. The

depth will vary from 19 m in the outer channel to 18 m in the inner channel, and 16 m

in the inner port channels and basins.

9.2.2.2. Port of Richards Bay

Richards Bay is South Africa’s premier bulk port and the most modern. Richards Bay handles

in excess of 80 million tons annually, representing 55% of South Africa’s seaborne cargo. This

makes it the country’s largest port in terms of volumes handled. Richards Bay serves the

coalfields of KwaZulu-Natal and Mpumalanga as well as timber and granite exporters from as

far away as the Eastern Cape and Northern Cape. The port is now handling an increasing

variety of bulk and neo-bulk cargo in addition to break-bulk. Much of the general cargo has

migrated away from Durban in recent years. Exports remain the main activity of the port.

9.2.2.3. The Dube Trade Port

The Dube Trade Port became active in 2010 there is direct and indirect benefits on a national

and provincial level expected in the following logistical areas:

Creation of logistical efficiencies

Support of high-value manufacturing, value-added logistics and perishables

Alternative use of the Southern Industrial Basin (port- or mixed manufacturing

perspective)

Increase in international trade

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The major issues that are not addressed by the Dube Trade Port is that there is

currently no rail connection planned that directly links the Trade Port with the national

rail network which means that cargo will have to be transported by road, which

places pressure on existing road infrastructure and is not the most efficient means of

transport.

Incentives for IDZ needs to be addressed

Currently, it thought that although IDZ incentives do exist, they are insufficient in

attracting increased volumes of economic activity.

9.2.3 Road Transport of Freight

The total length of roads in KwaZulu-Natal is 25,600 km. This includes 1,147 km of the road

network in the eThekwini Metro area and 1,138 km of national routes. 6,656 km are surfaced

and 18,943 km are gravel.

The main national routes are the N3 (Durban to Gauteng), N2 South (Durban to Kokstad) and

the N2 North (Durban to Pongola). The N3 to Gauteng is the busiest road freight corridor in

South Africa, carrying a volume of over 1.5 million vehicles per year on the Durban to

Pietermaritzburg section. The authorities charged with the maintenance of provincial roads

face the continual challenge of maintaining the condition of roads with limited funds, in spite

of increasing usage.

The N11 route between Ladysmith and Newcastle is recorded as the second busiest freight

route in the province.

Empangeni is a major freight transport hubfrom a vehicles and tonnage perspective, with N2

route to Matubatuba and Mtunzini carrying a large proportion of road freight within the

province. Not developed fully as a hub.

The combined effect of national policies of deregulation of road transport,

commercialisation of rail, increased legal axle-mass loads and gross combination mass of

heavy vehicles has resulted in a continual shift of cargo from rail to road transport. This results

in an increase in road damage, accidents, congestion and gas emissions.

The situation is aggravated by endemic overloading of heavy vehicles which, though better

controlled in KZN than the rest of the country, has negative consequences for the life of the

roads in the province.

The cumulative effects of increasing road usage and accumulated deficits in the funding of

road maintenance are felt by all road users in terms of increased vehicle operating costs. The

deteriorating condition of roads in KwaZulu-Natal is a cause for grave concern as it

contributes to rising costs, inflation and increasing accident rates. It is noteworthy that the

Department has in recent years, placed considerable emphasis on the development of

roads in remote rural areas and is in the process of upgrading several major provincial roads

such as the P700 route to Ulundi and the P496 John Ross Highway from Empangeni to

Richards Bay.

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It will in the near future be critically necessary to reassess the provision of road infrastructure

between the N3 corridor and the Port of Durban as increasing congestion and delays are

having a negative impact on the efficiency of the logistics system surrounding the port.

KZN has the busiest freight corridor in South Africa, linking Durban with Gauteng, and one of

the main logistical objectives for the province should be the efficient and effective

movement of goods by road and rail to and from the interior. Durban harbour is also the

busiest container terminal in South Africa and third in the country when it comes to bulk and

break-bulk cargo handled. Only Richards Bay harbour and Saldanha handle more bulk

cargo. These port nodes are very important when the efficiency of the logistics chain is

measured and any delay or problem here will have a direct influence on the efficiency of

the corridors that serve these ports.

Road Freight Volumes

The estimated road freight carried on the KwaZulu-Natal Road per annum was calculated

through a series of surveys on key provincial routes. The routes and the point of survey, is

depicted on the map below.

The estimated road freight carried on the KwaZulu-Natal Road per annum was calculated

through a series of surveys on key provincial routes.

Map 48 - Road Freight in KwaZulu-Natal

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Table 14- Total Vehicles and Tonnage on KwaZulu-Natal Road Freight Routes

Survey Points Total Vehicles Total Tons

(General Commodity)

Tons

(Dangerous Goods)

013-N3-Mariannhill-Pietermaritzburg 1 496 340 34 529 550 4 303 890

041-N3-Howick-Mooi-River 1 227 240 29 544 984 2 480 688

044-N2-Tongaat-Stanger 513 906 10 329 918 1 422 408

027-N2-Park Rynie-Port Shepstone 466 344 9 760 788 1 171 368

045-N2-Durban-Tongaat 457 200 9 321 900 1 364 100

014-M13-Durban-Shongweni 394 848 6 971 904 183 744

036-N2-Port-Shepstone-Harding 355 500 7 292 016 746 076

053-R33-Dundee-Greytown 336 000 468 300 2 400

026-N2-Mtunzini-Empangeni 329 160 6 951 048 1 013 376

032-N2-Empangeni-Mtubatuba 287 364 6 126 120 661 122

004-N11-Newcastle-Ladysmith 270 480 6 122 760 678 300

042-N2-Mountayliff-Kokstad 229 146 4 485 723 398 562

005-R103-Ladysmith-Durban 208 860 4 398 804 979 872

002-R23-Volksrust-Standerton 200 100 4 179 000 343 500

054-R69-Vryheid-Louwsburg 176 400 4 115 100 207 300

007-R103-Estcourt-Ladysmith 170 496 3 208 788 141 192

024-M53-Umkomaas-N2 157 500 2 285 100 109 500

028-R612-Umzinto-Ixopo 143 856 2 184 732 129 600

012-R74-N3-Colsenso 143 400 3 158 400 558 600

025-R102-Empangeni-Mtunzini 131 454 1 653 312 123 933

031-R61-Port Shepstone-Port Edward 118 950 1 879 410 205 875

040-R603-Winkelspruit-Camperdown 113 472 1 303 746 37 824

018-R33-Vryheid-Dundee 113 160 2 568 180 123 924

006-R103-Ladysmith-Harrismith 95 931 1 929 279 315 282

038-R617-Howick-Bulwer 85 200 3 136 400 81 000

039-R56-Ixopo-Richmond 83 400 1 437 600 81 600

051-R34-Melmoth-Vryheid 76 200 1 628 400 136 800

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009-R103-Mooiriver-Estcourt 69 600 1 284 300 22 200

023-R621-Dundee-Dannhauser 66 000 1 418 400 9 600

020-R34-Nkwalini-Empangeni 53 700 1 155 300 67 500

046-R33-New-Hanover-Seven-Oak 48 900 769 500 63 000

010-R602-N11-Dundee 48 300 924 000 158 100

011-R74-N3-Bergville 47 400 862 500 30 000

019-R66-Nkwalini-Gingindlovu 42 900 789 300 94 500

037-R612-Ixopo-Donnybrook 42 000 661 800 4 800

043-R614-Tongaat-Wartburg 41 700 393 000 9 600

008-R103-Howick-Notthingham Road 41 400 655 800 2 400

022-R34-Vryheid-Utrecht 38 100 674 700 86 700

003-R34-N11-Utrecht 32 100 703 800 33 600

052-R614-R33-Wartberg 30 600 443 400 19 800

015-N2-Golela 29 100 524 700 135 300

033-R56-Stafford-Post-Ixopo 27 600 487 200 8 400

049-R33-Vryheid-Paulpietersburg 23 700 458 400 24 300

034-R56-Kokstad-Matatiele 23 400 381 900 54 000

047-R74-Greytown-Weenen 23 400 311 700 0

029-R617-Underberg-Edendale 21 600 381 900 25 200

016-R618-Hlobane-Ngome 20 700 282 900 0

048-R74-Greytown-Kranskop 20 700 303 000 8 400

021-R33-Ulundi-Nongoma 16 800 255 300 8 400

055-N2-Piet-Retief-Pongola 15 000 273 600 7 200

035-R617-Kokstad-Underberg 14 700 279 000 13 200

050-R68-Melmoth-Nquthu 8 100 118 200 7 500

030-R612-Underberg-Ixopo 6 300 143 100 19 200

017-R66-Magudu-Pongola 4 800 61 800 19 200

TOTAL 9 240 507 185 969 762 18 933 936

From the table above can be derived that the largest number of vehicles is carried by the

route between Marian-Hill and Pietermaritzburg. This is where a number of the routes start to

split to other destinations.

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The upgrading and maintenance of the linkages from the harbours to the interior of South

Africa is very important in order to support economic growth and expansion of the province.

The transportation corridors will also support the newly King Shaka International Airport and

the associated Dube Trade Port.

The following key interventions need to be considered to ensure service delivery and to

improve and capacitate economic growth within the Province:

Coordinated and Integrated service delivery

Local construction capacity.

The intention of the Department (Transport) is to promote accessibility and the safe,

affordable movement of people, goods and services through the delivery and maintenance

of transport infrastructure that is sustainable, integrated and environmentally sensitive, and

which supports and facilitates social empowerment and economic growth. This includes

road, rail and air.

The main thrusts presently are:

To construct, re-construct, upgrade and rehabilitate road and transport

infrastructure

To effectively maintain road and transport infrastructure

Provide infrastructure planning for all modes of transport including the movement

of goods and passengers to integrate transport and spatial planning, integrated

modal transport facilities and systems including non motorised transport

To facilitate the provision of road safety audits on all transport modes of

movement

The provision of data collection services; research to provide management

information systems for the provincial road network. (e.g. road condition, traffic

counts and accident data)

To provide design of road and transport infrastructure including all necessary

support functions such as Environmental Impact Assessments, Traffic Impact

Assessments, survey, expropriation, material investigations and testing

Key Issues to be addressed:

Lack of integrated land use and transport planning

There is a lack of integration between land use and transport development due

to the fragmentation of responsibilities for administering, planning, and regulating

the various aspects of land use, infrastructure, operations and regulations. There is

a growing local interest in the co-ordination of transport and land use planning.

However, in most rural areas there is very little land use planning with which to

coordinate. While most local municipalities have comprehensive plans for urban

areas, rural areas and their transport problems are not addressed.

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Lack of consultation and communication

There is a need to strengthen the communication and consultation between the

KZN DoT and other provincial departments in the social cluster, as well as

between the KZN DoT and municipalities. While the roles of the KZN DoT and

municipalities are clearly described in the policy framework, there is a need to

improve the interaction between the department and municipalities on the

planning and implementation of transport projects

The impact of growth in private and freight transport on the provision of

infrastructure

Heavy vehicles also have a high impact on traffic congestion that needs to be

managed. Freight has moved away from rail due to underinvestment, poor

service levels, high rates, lack of rolling stock, security issues and the deregulation

of road freight in the 1980s. This has had a major impact on the maintenance of

provincial roads.

Higher levels of growth in the national and provincial economy have led to

increased car ownership, and the escalation in the quantity of goods conveyed

by road freight. However, the financial resources and space available to

accommodate the growth in infrastructure needs as well as the increase in traffic

volumes are limited.

Limited development opportunities in transport infrastructure and services

In KwaZulu-Natal, Broad-Based BEE and job creation in the delivery of transport

infrastructure and transport services is still limited. In addition, the implementation

of developmental opportunities to accompany activities such as roads

infrastructure delivery has not been maximised and all possible avenues to

promote this will need to be explored.

Uncoordinated functions between government spheres

Provinces and municipalities have concurrent road traffic enforcement and road

safety enhancement functions. This has resulted in the unclear delimitation of

responsibilities and the inadequate co-ordination of functions and systems, which

has impacted negatively on road safety situations and on the enforcement of

traffic laws and regulations. The problem has been exacerbated by a lack of

efficient liaison structures, integrated systems, and integrated emergency

response services.

Fragmented and inefficient management of public transport operations

The procurement of government-subsidised public transport operators and

management of the subsidy system has been devolved by the DoT to the KZN

DoT. However, various stumbling blocks at the national level prevented the

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effective implementation of the tendered contract system, and the KZN DoT is

merely performing administrative functions on behalf of the DoT.

Funding

There are major backlogs in the provision of new infrastructure and maintenance

of existing infrastructure. The shortage of funding for infrastructure development

and the provision of transport services is endemic, and is partly due to insufficient

use of alternative funding mechanisms for road infrastructure, public transport,

and rail transport.

Shortage of skills in the transport sector

The National Skills Development Strategy includes prioritising critical skills for

sustainable growth, development and equity; promoting and accelerating

quality training for all in the workplace; and promoting employability and

sustainable livelihoods through skills development. These have been carried

through into the Human Resource Development Strategy of the KZN DoT.

The roads of the province are deteriorating rapidly and the overall condition is

already poor and funding levels are low.

Unless this situation is adequately addressed, the efficiency and costs of road

transport will be adversely affected. A sustainable road maintenance programme

is essential to ensure the long term competitive advantage of KwaZulu-Natal.

Backlogs in road network maintenance and expansion /upgrade to ensure an

equitable and balanced network

There are about 11 000 kilometres of earth roads in the province that are vital to

the road network, but have not yet been upgraded to a maintainable condition.

The backlog in the provision and maintenance of roads impacts negatively on

the human and economic development of rural communities, as well as the

economic growth of the province.

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9.2.4 Rail Transport of Freight

Key focus remains on rail transportation in the province as a means to alleviate the pressures

on road transportation of delivering goods and passengers to destinations. This is a major

infrastructure improvement priority.

Map 49 - Road Freight in KwaZulu-Natal

KwaZulu-Natal has a total of 6 Main Freight Rails, with the main purpose of transporting

imported goods from the harbour and export goods to the harbour. The main lines are the

following:

Durban-Empangeni-Golela (and Swaziland) Secondary Main Line

Durban-Kelso-Port Shepstone-Simuma Secondary Main Line

Durban-Ladysmith-Volksrust (and beyond to Union in Gauteng)

Glencoe-Dundee-Vryheid Main Line

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Ladysmith-Van Reenen (and the Free State) Main Line

Richards Bay-Vryheid East-Piet Retief-Ermelo (the coal line)

From these main lines a number of secondary/branch lines feeds into the main lines. The

branch lines are the following:

Victoria

Kranskop

Mount Alida

Glendale

Bruyns hill

Masons Hill

Underberg

Matatiele

Richmond

Bergville

Nkwalini

Hlobane

The localities of the

main and branch lines are depicted on the adjacent map.

From the table below can be seen that a total of 104, 320, 651 million tons are transported

every year.

Table 7.15- Total Annual Tonnage Transported via KwaZulu-Natal Railways

Table Fwd Tons Received Tons Transit tons Total Tons

Durban-Empangeni-Golela

(and Swaziland) Secondary

Main Line

1 777 508 3 763 768 286 444 5 827 720

Durban-Ladysmith-Volksrust

(and beyond to Union in 6 125 970 10 924 499 768 764 17 839 233

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Recent developments include the development of the King Shaka International Airport

(KSIA), as well as the establishment of the Dube Trade Port (DTP) which positions KwaZulu-

Natal as a very strong export centre in South Africa. This will however put further pressure on

the current transportation system. The completion of the KSIA and the DTP puts KwaZulu-

Natal in a position to capitalise on the presence of these entities, and a need therefore arises

to develop an integrated transport system which can capitalise on the strengths of both rail,

air, sea and road transport.

Rail is a significant provider of transportation capacity; however, its market share of general

freight traffic has declined in recent years.

It is necessary for the province to monitor this situation. By virtue of the provincial requirement

in terms of the NLTTA to provide an integrated modal transport and freight transport plan, it

will be necessary for the province to monitor the market share of freight cargo carried by the

different modes of transport. Some three years ago, the national government at cabinet

level approved a general policy to encourage greater use of rail transport. This resulted in a

complete evaluation of the assets, liabilities and market status of the railway administration.

The recently announced R 80 billion recapitalisation programme by Transnet is the first major

state intervention to also address declining rail cargoes. For KZN to ensure maximum benefit

from this railway investment programme, joint planning will be necessary.

An increase in rail market share assumes that the substantial investment planned for rail

infrastructure, rolling stock and locomotives will facilitate a significant improvement in rail

service delivery. It must be appreciated that, as the railway investment programme has

barely commenced, there will be some delay before an overall improvement in service

delivery is evident. In this respect the administration is likely to follow a targeted marketing

Gauteng)

Durban-Kelso-Port

Shepstone-Simuma

Secondary Main Line

629 334 879 458 0.00 1 508 792

Glencoe-Dundee-Vryheid

Main Line 342 740 365 1 231 001 1 574 106

Ladysmith-Van Reenen

(and the Free State) Main

Line

54 004 1 805 398 1 859 402

Richards Bay-Vryheid East-

Piet Retief-Ermelo (the coal

line)

370 449 55 833 124 17 926 649 74 130 222

All Branch Lines 1 567 602 13 574 0.00 1 581 176

Total Tonnage 10 867 607 71 414 788 22 018 256 104 320 651

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approach, concentrating initially on specific commodities or areas. The province needs to

ensure that the targeted areas for improved performance are in line with its developmental

plans.

Unclear role of province in rail transport

National policy states that rail branch lines may be devolved to provinces, and the national

government is considering issuing concessions for the operation of rail freight services. The

future role of the province, and especially the KZN DoT, in respect of rail needs to be clearly

set out in policy.

The role of the province in planning, funding and operating rail infrastructure and rail freight

services has not been decided (at the time of publishing the Green Paper). In the meantime,

the rail network in the province is underutilised and lacks maintenance, especially the

branch lines. The rail network, including some narrow-gauge lines, does have potential to

play a role in freight transport. Revitalising the rail network in rural areas will probably only be

feasible when the provincial government becomes involved in planning, funding and/or

operating rail infrastructure and services. Transnet is developing a branch line strategy and is

waiting for a proposal from the DoT about a takeover of lines.

Rigid management practices formed by supply driven strategies

In the rail sector, for example, management should change its’ rigid approach to rail service,

which places customers at the end of the supply driven strategy and service-delivery ethos,

and thus undermines their responsiveness to their clients and results in lost business.

9.2.5 Air Transport

KZN Province airport infrastructure shows that there are currently 130 airstrips in the province.

These consist of numerous airports and airstrips from small dirt landing strips to regional

airports. The development of an airport strategy in the province is borne out of the thinking

that small airports can be integrated into the public transportation system in such a way that

these smaller airports support and complement each other, can operate as a co-ordinated

public transportation system while providing affordable service to the user. Additionally and

importantly, landing facilities are cited by the Department of health as being necessary to

the provision of health services and disaster management.

Until now, there has never been a co-ordinated or managed policy with regard to small

airport development and maintenance in the province. Small airports and airstrips have the

potential to contribute effectively towards sustainable and equitable development.

To this endeavour, an assessment of the actual state of the airports is necessary including

those that are proposed for future development in order that an overall provincial and

logistics plan could be developed within a holistic agenda.

It is a given that some municipal airports are busier that others and some contribute more to

economic growth than others.

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The municipal airport infrastructure in KZN includes the following municipal airports (with the

exception on King Shaka Airport which is operated by ACSA):

Pietermaritzburg

Virginia

Old Durban airport

Margate

Richards Bay

Ulundi

Ladysmith

Vryheid

Newcastle

Mkuze

Some of these airports are currently in use as scheduled airports, while others are used as

general aviation airports to charter flights for the public and also government officials. Some

of these airports are managed by municipalities themselves and others are managed by

private companies.

King Shaka International Airport

South Africa's new international airport became operational on 1 May 2010. The R7.9-billion

greenfield airport, South Africa's second-largest transport infrastructural project after the

Gautrain rapid rail link, is situated at La Mercy, 35 kilometres north of Durban.

Named after the great 19th century Zulu warrior-king, King Shaka International Airport

represents a major expansion over Durban International, with huge growth potential.

With 102 000m² of floor area in its passenger terminal building (compared to 30 000m² at the

old airport), King Shaka International has the capacity to handle 7.5-million passengers

annually (old airport: 4.4-million), with room for significant future expansion.

Its 3.7-kilometre runway (old airport: 2.4km) is capable of accommodating the world's largest

aircraft, including the double-decker Airbus A380, with provision for future construction of a

second runway.

It also boasts 34 aircraft parking bays (versus 23 at the old airport), 16 air bridges (versus 0), 72

check-in counters (versus 52), 18 self-service kiosks (versus 4), 52 retail outlets (versus 23), over

6 500m² of retail space (versus 2 900m²), and 6 500 vehicle parking bays (versus 2 500).

The passenger terminal building incorporates the latest design concepts to make passenger

movement from arrival to departure as smooth and pleasant as possible.

And for those passing through, King Shaka International offers the full range of banking, forex

and car rental services that one would expect of a world-class airport, along with a wide

choice of restaurants, bars and duty-free shops.

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Airlines operating at the airport as of 1 May 2010 are: Emirates Airlines and Air Mauritius (flying

international routes), along with South African Airways, SA Express, SA Airlink, Mango Airlines,

Interlink Airlines, Kulula Air, British Airways Comair and 1Time.

9.2.6 Pipelines The pipeline systems in South Africa have been created primarily to serve the petroleum

industries. The pipelines have established their place in the transportation system as the most

efficient and cost effective means of transporting large quantities of liquids and gases over

long distances safely and efficiently. The cost of transporting bulk liquids by pipeline is lower

than for other modes over extended periods but there is very high capital investment

required to establish the infrastructure. In South Africa the pipeline system has been

controlled and operated by the parastatal transport company Transnet and due to lack of

competition, the costs to users are not as low as could be anticipated, in relation to road

and rail transport. Durban is the main import point for crude oil and the main centre of

pipeline activity on the coast.

Transnet Pipeline Operations

The pipeline division of Transnet, provides transport services for gas, crude oil, aviation turbine

fuel, diesel, alcohol and various grades of petrol over varying distances, using over 3 000 km

of high pressure pipelines..

Sasol Gas Operations

As a large scale producer with near monopoly powers Sasol Gas has significant influence

over the pricing of all pipeline gas in South Africa. The cost of pipeline gas has historically

been linked to the Singapore spot price of bunker oil and the PPI; but the company on

occasions offered gas to certain large steam generating accounts at extremely attractive

rates in order to secure a portion of the market in the KwaZulu-Natal and Durban coastal

region.

Refineries

In South Africa, liquid fuels are produced at four crude oil based refineries and at the

synthetic fuels plants at Secunda and Mossel Bay. The refineries that produce liquid fuel

include Calref in Cape Town, Enref and Sapref in Durban, and Natref at Sasolburg. The Sasol

ll and Sasol lll plants at Secunda produce synthetic fuels (synfuels) using coal as feedstock.

The Mossgas plant at Mossel Bay, which is owned and operated by PetroSA, produces liquid

fuel from natural gas using a synfuel process similar to that of Sasol. Distribution of petroleum

products is done by inter-company coordination in an integrated fashion using road, rail, sea

tanker and pipeline transport to move product in the most efficient manner and ensure

uniformity of pricing and supply over the whole region.

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9.3 Public Transport

9.3.1 Road and Rail Public Transport

Existing public transport is not sustainable under present operational management practices.

A large percentage of households in KZN have limited access to public transport or cannot

afford it. Some 15 % have limited access both urban and rural. Some 43% of households using

public transport spend more than 10% of their household income on it.

There are also delays in road based public transport services caused by busses and mini-bus

taxis having to operate in congested traffic streams making public transport less attractive to

commuters. Added to this are the overcrowded minibus-taxis adding to the perceptions that

this mode of transport is unsafe.

With rising car ownership and use, pressure on the road network can be expected to mount

considerably in the coming decades. The poor quality of public transport services influences

this rise in car ownership. Rising car ownership and use in the metropolitan areas and large

urban centres, giving rise to serious congestion and unacceptable levels of air pollution and

wasteful use of valuable urban land taken up by roads and car parking.

Aged and, in some cases unsafe, rolling stock and public transport vehicles, are subject to

breakdowns and are considered uncomfortable and unattractive to passengers.

Serious user dissatisfaction with almost all attributes of train, bus and minibus taxi services

often lead to vandalisation of vehicles and an incipient tendency to burn vehicles as a form

of protest against non-delivery of adequate services.

Public operators are not incentivised to offer improved services or limit operating losses.

There is a vast difference between rail service and line capacity. Service capacity has

declined because of a failure to invest in new rolling stock. Failure to maintain and upgrade

line and signal systems will also result in a reduction of line capacity.

A very high percentage of scholars and workers walk to school (79%) or to their place of

employment (18%) and cognizance of this is required in the provision of transport

infrastructure.

There is also perception of a lack of safety from crime on the accesses to public transport

services, crime at stations and on trains.

Rail Operational Problems

There is only one inter-regional service in the province, while there is a potential

for more services, given more funding and higher quality of service.

Old rolling stock and signalling equipment becomes a safety problem.

Lack of suitable facilities and infrastructure impact on efficient transfers at stations

external to Durban.

Under-utilisation of rail transport.

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Low quality services for the lower income markets.

High and rising subsidies for rail

Long-distance rail suffers from very old rolling stock, low demand and hence low

profitability.

Security at stations and on trains is an ongoing concern, but are being addressed

by the new rail way police strategy

Bus Operational Problems

Traffic congestion during peak times makes it difficult for long-distance bus

services to access the Durban station, and other congested areas in the

metropolitan area.

Duplicating and competing taxi services on certain routes

There is potential for more services, given more funding and higher quality of

service, and effective regulation of taxis so that they do not compete on routes

best served by bus.

Dispersed and hilly settlements served by gravel roads are difficult and costly to

access. This becomes impossible during rainy periods

Fragmentation of governance and operational structures.

Lack of uniform standards in terms of safety or operational compliance.

Under-utilisation of bus / coach transport

Low quality bus services for the lower income markets.

High and rising subsidies for bus

Existing public transport is not sustainable under present operating and

management practices, targeting the lower income markets.

Low profitability for many private operators, resulting in a failure to adequately

maintain and recapitalise fleets.

Manpower capacity and ineffectual management are the main cause of low

productivity in the transport system, apart from the ageing fleets of vehicles and

rolling stock.

Minibus-Taxi Operational Problems

Access problems as with bus transport: Dispersed and hilly settlements served by

gravel roads are difficult and costly to access. This becomes impossible during

rainy periods

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Lack of suitable facilities and infrastructure impact on efficient transfers between

different modes of transport..

The large volumes of taxi-commuters during peak times.

Minibus-taxi mode is relatively inefficient and can be done more efficiently by

means of bus and train.


Lack of uniform standards in terms of safety or operational compliance, but is

being addressed by Minibus-taxi Recap program. However, the Recap program

experiences various problems and delays.

Existing public transport is not sustainable under present operating and

management practices, targeting the lower income markets.

Low profitability for many private operators, resulting in a failure to adequately

maintain and recapitalise fleets.

High prices charged by taxis for tourists

Traffic safety is a major problem. This is often the result of poor driving,

unroadworthy rolling stock, long driving hours, and lack of effective law

enforcement.

Manpower capacity and ineffectual management are the main cause of low

productivity in the transport system, apart from the ageing fleets of vehicles and

rolling stock.

Overall Analysis of Problems

The following problems are common to all modes of transport:


Lack of uniform standards in terms of safety or operational compliance.

For bus, taxi and rail: lack of suitable facilities and infrastructure impact on

efficient transfers; Long-distance stations and termini external to Durban are in

poor condition and generally not integrated with other supporting land-uses, such

as shopping and employment centres.

Lack of a common fare structure, transfer agreements and protocols between

the different modes and operators, and lack of an integrated ticketing system;

Lack of a common livery (signage) for public transport in the province to facilitate

efficient inter-modal changes.

Rising car ownership and use are not sustainable in terms of their energy,

environmental and road safety;

Lack of modal integration of long-distance public transport services.

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There is traffic congestion on inter-regional roads during weekends and peak

holiday times.

Inadequate policing and law enforcement, particularly relating to unsafe driving,

un-road-worthy vehicles and poor observance of traffic laws.

Operating License Boards lack capacity - resulting in delays with issuing of

operating licenses.

Uncertainty with regard to future demand patterns depending on future changes

in the economy, demographics and technology, such as information

communication technology.

9.3.2 Rural Transport Strategy

The plight of rural people has been highlighted by numerous policy studies and other

strategic interventions in rural areas. Whereas 50% of the population of South Africa is rural,

the rural areas contain 72% of those members of the total population who are poor.

Compared to their urban counterparts, rural people also have vastly inferior access to basic

social services and the economic mainstream. Given this context, the delivery of rural

transport infrastructure and services can be a significant catalyst for sustainable economic

development, improved access to social services and poverty alleviation in South Africa’s

rural areas

The Rural Transport Strategy is aimed at developing balanced and sustainable rural transport

systems by supporting local infrastructure and services. The emphasis is on improving access

roads, developing passable roads, and addressing neglected infrastructure and corridors,

which are linked to markets and other social services. The Rural Transport Strategy proposes

that the delivery of rural transport infrastructure and services be done in terms of the

following main categories:

Rural transport infrastructure – not only access roads, but also district roads, public

transport interchanges, tracks and other non-motorised transport infrastructure.

Village-level or intra-farm transportation, where communities – particularly women –

and farmers themselves provide transport services that involve head loading, as well

as the use of non-motorised and intermediate means of transport (such as tractor-

trailers), trucks and light delivery vehicles (LDVs).

Rural passenger and (small-volume) freight transport services to and from “deep”, rural

areas, where operators of LDVs (the so-called “bakkie sector”) and animal-drawn

carts are the main service providers

Bulk freight transportation to and from processing plants, distribution centres, markets

and suppliers– provided mainly by commercial producers and transport operators.

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9.4 Water and Sanitation

9.4.1 Backlogs in Water Provision

The current backlog of water provision in the province (July 2011) is estimated at 2 million

people residing in approximately 400,000 houses/households. In order to alleviate the

backlog and provide in this need, a total of R22,000 million is required to provide basic

minimum standards of services of which only R9,500 million is currently being allocated.

Furthermore, the available resources allocation does not compare favourable as currently

only R1, 000 million per annum is available through the Municipal Infrastructure Grant (MIG)

Programme.

The quality of water is also an area that demands attention both nationally as well as in the

province.

The fitness for use of water can range from being completely unfit for use to being 100 % or

ideally fit for a specific use. The narrative descriptions commonly used to express judgements

about the fitness of water for use are:

Ideal; 100 % fit for use; desirable water quality; target water quality range (TWQR)

Acceptable

Tolerable, usually for a limited time period only

Unacceptable for use

Completely unfit for use

Ugu 45,248

uMgungundlovu 20,236

Uthukela 45,587

Umzinyathi 43,640

Amajuba 10,533

Zululand 66,592

Uthungulu 35,277

Ilembe 35,538

Sisonke 52,943

Umkhanyakude 44,299

Ethekwini 10,089

Source :Dept Water Affairs : Backlogs:

Province (households)

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The quality of water for KwaZulu-Natal (rated 77.1%) compares very favourably with the

average of South Africa which is rated at 44%.

However, DWAF in the monthly sample of 700 glasses of water continue to find traces of

ecoli, total coliforms and chlorine residue, amongst others.

The cost of water is rapidly increasing in KZN. Nationally, KZN has the highest cost of water

per unit.

The rate of increased costs of water and sanitation among households in the province is also

rapidly increasing – almost doubling from 2006 to 2008.

Unit Cost of Water: Increasing unit costs per household (distribution)

Unit cost - water (R / hh) - medium sized scheme (5000 people)

0

1,000

2,000

3,000

4,000

5,000

6,000

7,000

8,000

EC FS KZN LP MP NC NW WC

Province

R / hh

0

2000

4000

6000

8000

10000

12000

14000

16000

2006 2007 2008

Year

R / hh

Water

Sanitation

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The current backlog of sanitation services in province is estimated at 2, 63 million people

residing in approximately 526 000 houses/households. A total of R4, 900 million is required to

provide in this need, of which only R1, 200 million is available. Of note, is that only R260 million

per annum is available through the Municipal Infrastructure Grant (MIG) Programme. It is

clear that current funding is inadequate to provide in the need.

Sanitation backlogs

Sanitation in some rural areas is being provided in the form of dry-pit VIP toilets and the

strategy is to implement these simultaneously with the roll-out of water services. This ensures a

more effective impact with health and hygiene awareness training.

Some urban areas have proper water borne sanitation systems, but rural areas rely on pit

latrines or no system at all. This places tremendous strain on the environment and poses a

health risk.

Refuse removal is limited mainly to the urban areas. Dumping of refuse has become a major

problem, particularly in denser rural settlements. This poses serious environmental problems

and risks. Efforts are needed to increase people’s awareness of the advantages of good

waste management practices.

Ethekwini 27,354

Ugu 13,697

uMgungundlovu 5,724

Uthukela 15,757

Umzinyathi 34,800

Amajuba 3,948

Zululand 39,475

Umkhanyuakude 35,452

Uthungulu 41,127

Ilembe Sisonke

15,137

Sisonke

15,137

9.5 Energy and Electricity The current infrastructure in South Africa is inadequate to provide for the increased electricity demand that is systematically increasing over

time. Providing affordable, adequate, and reliable modern energy supplies remains a major challenge, even though access to electricity has

increased from one-third to two-thirds of the population since 1994.

9.5.1 Backlogs in Electricity Provision

The current backlog (July 2011) is estimated at 600 000 houses/households with a total of R9, 000 million required to address such. R3, 300 million

is currently available.

Electricity provision backlogs by district

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The spare power plant available to provide supply at any time of the day is known as the reserve capacity and the spare plant available when

the highest demand of the year is recorded, is known as the reserve margin. South Africa has historically enjoyed a large reserve margin, but

that has declined over the recent past as a result of robust economic growth and the associated demand for electricity. This decline is depicted

in the figure below:

Figure 18: Peak Demand and Capacity Requirement

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Electricity supply demands will be met comprehensively with the completion of the two

power stations Khusile (in 2013) and Meduphi (in 2015). This will generate sufficient and

reliable energy for the short to medium term however it is predicted that the overall energy

demand in the country will still outstrip supply within a decade.

With the new capacity to generate electricity it is anticipated that sharp electricity price

increases will be necessary to finance the investment / debt of the new power stations so

Eskom will have to increase prices to cover maintenance and investment programmes.

Affordable special tariffs for low-income families will become important.

At municipal level there are issues around reliable grid networks to transport the electricity to

users. The challenges faced in the system of regional electricity distributors has to be

addressed in order to address maintenance and investment shortfalls.

At national level there are challenges around an institutional mechanism to decide who

should build required infrastructure for delivery of electricity. Resolution of issues around the

procurement of electricity from independent power producers will assist in regularising

access to electricity.

Eskom in KwaZulu-Natal has plans to build more sub-stations with special emphasis on rural

areas, and to integrate water and electricity provision: using electricity to provide water

through strategically-located pump stations and generating electricity in low demand times

through small scale hydro-stations. This will require close co-operation between Dept of

Water Affairs and municipal planning officials.

9.5.2 Diversified Energy Sources

Production of Renewable Energy

The two new coal-fired power stations will generate sufficient and reliable energy for the

short to medium term; however it is predicted that the overall energy demand in the country

will still outstrip supply within a decade.

To be able to meet the needs of residents and to market KwaZulu-Natal to international

Investors, a sustainable electricity provision is required.

A global phenomenon and challenge that South Africa is continually faced with is the issue

of cost effective and renewable energy. Energy is critical to virtually every aspect of the

economic and social development, contributing to about 15% to the country's gross

domestic product (GDP).

The Department of Minerals and Energy’s Energy Policy is based on the following key

objectives:

Attaining universal access to energy by 2012

Ensuring accessible, affordable and reliable energy, especially for the poor

Diversifying primary energy sources and reducing dependency on coal

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Practising good governance, which must also facilitate and encourage

private-sector investments in the energy sector

Providing environmentally responsible energy

Energy as source is largely generated through coal-fired power stations, whilst additional

electricity is generated through Nuclear Energy as well as Hydroelectric and pumped

storage schemes. The National Cabinet approved a Nuclear Energy Policy for South Africa in

June 2008, which aims to increase the role of nuclear energy as part of the process of

diversifying South Africa’s primary energy sources to ensure energy security.

Oil and gas

South Africa has very limited oil reserves and imports from the Middle East and Africa meets

about 95% of South Africa’s crude oil requirements. To produce further refined petroleum

products such as petrol, diesel, and paraffin and LPG gas for example, the following

processes are followed:

Refining crude oil (oil refineries)

Converting coal to liquid fuels and gas to liquid fuels (Sasol)

Turning natural gas into liquid gas (PetroSA)

Investment in renewable energy and energy efficiency is important to reduce the negative

economic, social and environmental impacts of energy production and consumption in

South Africa. The aim of renewable and sustainable energy refers therefore to the generate

electricity whilst the carbon footprint of the operation is reduces. Potential Sources of

renewal energy includes Wind, Bagasse, Wood, Hydro, Solar, Agricultural waste, Wood

waste, amongst some.

Apart from the availability of resources, it is also necessary to reduce the carbon footprint of

operations on the environment, whilst considering the following:

Researching sources and applicability of Renewable Energy

Waste Recovery and Recycling

Considering and implementing “Green Economy” principles

Food for waste

9.6 Information and Communication Technologies (ICT)

9.6.1 Overview

Key to positioning the province as South Africa’s opening to the world for export and import is

Information and Communications Technology (ICT).

Areas with poor ICT availability are likely to be considered less favourable for economic

investment, thereby limiting growth and development of enterprises, and limiting job creation

which is the main focus of economic development. It is therefore necessary to effectively

deploy ICT which may enable the province to accelerate the economic growth rate, on the

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basis of the potential of ICT to increase efficiency and productivity and to open up access to

new markets (HSRC, 2006).

9.6.2 Limited and expensive bandwidth

Bridging the digital divide remains a critical challenge for KZN. This situation has serious

implications especially in the rural areas as access to such infrastructure has significant

impact on the economic development. A significant retarding factor has been the high cost

of bandwidth in Africa. However, Government has committed to addressing this, and major

projects are under way to optimize the use of the South Africa – Far East undersea cable

which lands at Mtunzini – KZN west coast.

9.6.3 ICT education in the province is severely underdeveloped

Urgent attention is required with regard to greater educational initiatives with regard to the

youth being educated and proficient in the use of information technology tools. Efforts

should also be made in the areas of adult education where possible as well. There is an

insufficient focus on this area in the structure of our school curriculum.

Analysts believe that the ICT industry may have suffered extensively from 2009 onwards due

to a skills shortage predicted to have been as large as 25%. This is attributed in part to the

fact that domestic supply is far below demand. Depths of skills are even scarcer than entry

level skills.

9.7 Synopsis: Strategic Infrastructure Issues

• KZN has the two largest ports in Africa which serve as a gateway to South and

Southern Africa. Together, the two ports handle nearly 80% of South Africa’s cargo

tonnage. Serious backlogs and shortages of water, sanitation and electricity are also

prevalent.

• There exists a well developed but crumbling infrastructure. However, the need to

improve basic services and infrastructure such as drinking water, waste disposal,

transportation infrastructure and access to electricity has reached a critical point.

• Port inefficiencies exist and ports are reaching their capacity. One of the serious

constraints to development are the inefficiencies and congestion in the Durban Port

operations: back of port facilities for de-stuffing, transport out-of-port and processing

facilities for low-value goods are factors which are being addressed in the Transnet

2050 Plan.

• An over-burdened road network and under-utilised rail network are factors

contributing to infrastructural deficiencies in KZN.

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• The infrastructure stakeholders have recognised the need for multi-modal facilities

which cater for fast-moving consumer goods as well as bulk minerals and lighter

manufactured goods.

• Currently, the Dube Trade Port & KSIA; are severely underutilised. A major priority for

the province therefore is to further build on this comparative advantage by further

investment in positioning KwaZulu-Natal as the trade entrance into the continent.

• Taxi dominated public transport and lack of integrated public transport;

• Rising cost of electricity;

• Poor rural access roads and lack of secondary road network maintenance;

• Current water planning excludes agricultural demand and potential.

• Slow, random and unco-ordinated delivery of human settlements.

• In KwaZulu-Natal there exists a continuing problem of lack of integration with regard

to service delivery infrastructure as well as economic infrastructure developments

resulting in glaring gaps in achieving infrastructural efficiencies.

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10 INSTITUTIONAL AND POLICY LANDSCAPE

The National Planning Commission (NPC) has formulated an analysis of the governance

and institutional landscape of South Africa in its report “Institutions and Governance

Diagnostic” (2011), which is equally relevant to KwaZulu-Natal. In that report, the NPC

argues that there is a need to build a system and culture of governance which espouses

the principle of inclusion of people and communities in the planning and

implementation of the policies, strategies and regulations which relate to the

development of our society.

Given KwaZulu-Natal’s history of a very fragmented system of Government pre-1994,

and the governance divide that existed between large parts of the rural areas of the

Province versus many urban areas, there is a need to formulate changes to the

governance system which promotes unity amongst the wide range of communities in

KZN. The changing role of traditional leadership and maturing of the traditional

leadership institutional framework is an area that will require greater attention in the

development strategy of the Province.

The Situational Overview notes that KZN has successfully developed a stable

governance framework, with local municipalities increasingly coming to grips with the

fact that their integrated development plans (IDPs) need to speak to the needs and

aspirations of both urban and rural citizens and communities.

However it is fair to note that there is still no institutional framework for meaningful

engagement of all development partners. Whilst the regulated process for formulation of

municipal Integrated Development plans (IDP’s) requires consultation with

Government’s development partners – private sector and civil society – there is still a

great need to find institutional form for this partnership at local and provincial levels.

Provincial Government has taken the first steps towards addressing this in the

establishment of the KwaZulu-Natal Economic Council, which brings together the social

partners at provincial level to join forces around plans to grow the economy and

address economic inequalities. However at local levels there are but few, sporadic

instances of such institutional partnerships developing. A few district municipalities have

set up local development agencies which try to bring the private sector and civil society

into a structured partnership around a local development agenda, but these agencies

are often poorly resourced and rely on under-funded development programmes of

local municipalities.

As local government has become established as the centres of service delivery at a

local level, and because of a range of different factors, including reductions in donor

funding available, many organisations of civil society have been weakened or have

ceased to exist. In many instances this has made it more difficult for communities to

make local government accountable. It is widely known that the ward committee

system is not operating well in most parts of the Province.

The Province has a range of public entities which are meant to provide specialized

development support services across the Province. These include agencies focused on

economic development, for example: Ithala, Trade and Investment KZN, the KZN

Tourism Authority, the KZN Agricultural Development Agency, the KZN Growth Fund.

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Whilst these agencies have made an impact in their respective service areas, there is a

need to formulate mechanisms of collaboration with local and district municipalities that

facilitates better support for development at local levels.

The Situational Overview also focuses on the importance of the larger cities and towns of

the province in promoting better governance and accelerated growth and

development, as urbanization of the population increases. Presently there is a dilution of

input from eThekwini Metro and the larger cities and towns to Provincial decision-

making, compared to the population housed in those cities/towns and their contribution

to the economy.

In seeking to accelerate the pace of delivery of basic services and economic

development to all areas of the Province, the principle of densification of human

settlements and systematically linking nodal development to economic strategy must be

promoted. The PGDS will need to assess possibilities for strengthening collaborative

planning and policy implementation with these bigger urban centres in particular.

An important area of challenge and of opportunity which relates in particular to

governance and development of the more rural parts of the Province, is that of the

Ingonyama Trust, and land that is under the custodianship of the Trust. Whilst the Trust has

played and continues to play a very important role in overseeing the development of

land in KZN, there is a need to greatly improve the alignment in planning and in

development facilitation between the Trust, Provincial Government and local

municipalities.

The economic development strategy of this Province depends to quite a large extent on

better utilization of land as a resource to unlock value in the economy, but this will

require all stakeholders tackling the difficulties related to Ingonyama Trust land in an

honest and balanced manner. The on-going challenge around unresolved land claims

as well as the unsuccessful land reform programmes is also an area that the PGDS must

address, to ensure that land becomes a much stronger tool for empowerment of

communities and for equitable economic development.

A further issue regarding rural housing is the contradictory practices / policies in relation

to densification and the current provision of rural housing which follows existing scattered

rural patterns.

The range of challenges presented across sectors and across the different levels and

spheres of government point unequivocally to the need for clear spatial policies which

enable prioritized, co-ordinated and integrated development.

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11 FUNDING CHALLENGES

The Provincial Growth and Development Strategy is intended to be a guide for resource

allocation for all three spheres of Government as well as for the private sector and civil

society. It is however, clear that Government funding will play a lead role in driving

strategic investment into the strategies to unlock and accelerate development.

KwaZulu-Natal still receives the lion’s share of National Government funding in

comparison to the other provinces, in line with the proportion of the population resident

in KZN.

For the 2011/2012 financial year, the total Provincial Government budget amounts to

almost R75 billion. This is up from about R60 billion in the 2009/2010 financial year and is

expected to increase further to almost R80 billion in the coming financial year.

This reflects the significant growth in the amount of financial resources available to the

Province to address the backlogs in service delivery and to make advances in

development. Despite this growth in available funding, the Province still has major

backlogs in service delivery. This implies that the Province needs to continually assess

alternative mechanisms for addressing the “funding gap”. These mechanisms obviously

include further exploring of opportunities for generating own revenue. But more

importantly, Provincial Government needs to identify and create opportunities for

leveraging private sector investment into targeted service delivery areas.

Proportion of National Government Funding to Provinces

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Provincial Government Funding Allocations 2010/2011

In the 2010/2011 financial year, the allocations for the provincial government

departments were:

The above chart graphically illustrates how the bulk of the Provincial Government

budget (some 74%) is allocated to health and education. This is likely to remain the case

for the foreseeable future as health and education needs are expected to grow in the

years ahead. However, this leaves very limited financial resources available for

investment in more directly productive programmes of a PGDS. The financing strategy of

the PGDS will have to be focused on:

harnessing the existing resource base by integrating programme and budget

planning across those departments and Government agencies which contribute to

a specific development priority;

adopting innovative funding models and partnerships with private sector;

packaging of new programmes and initiatives which cannot be accommodated in

the present provincial budget framework and seeking special development funding

from National Government;

At local government level there are severe limitations to the financial contributions that

municipalities are able to make. A large proportion of the municipalities in KZN are

already hamstrung by their very poor rates base, and in many cases, a precarious

financial situation. However many municipalities are not making best use of the national

funds which are available for the promotion of growth and development in their areas.

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Figure 11.2 : Provincial Government Expenditure per District (2010/2011)

Source: KZN Provincial Treasury: KZN Payment Estimates per District

KZN Provincial Treasury has begun the process of analyzing these expenditure trends with the

aim of being able to better align demand and need with the spatial framework for

budgeting at Provincial and Departmental levels. However it is clear that Provincial

Government can play a strong facilitatory and support role in helping municipalities and

local development agencies to access funds such as the sector and project development

funds available from the “Neighbourhood Development Partnership Fund” operated by the

National Treasury. Similarly with the recent launch of the “Jobs Fund” being managed by the

Development Bank of Southern Africa, opportunities are opening up for innovative funding

partnerships around catalytic development projects at local level.

There is a need for Government to develop a focused financing strategy for key elements of

the PGDS, which will involve leveraging the spend of the private sector and the resource

investments that can be made by civil society as well.

KZN Provincial Treasury has undertaken an analysis of the expenditure of provincial

government departments and assessed this against the measured levels of poverty per

municipality. The table below reflects the degree of variation in terms of the financial

investment in services made through Provincial Government expenditure at local level.

28.2, 28%

6.1, 6%

22.3, 22%

5.0, 5%

4.1, 4%

3.7, 4%

7.4, 8%

5.8, 6%

8.4, 8%

4.7, 5% 4.2, 4%

Provincial Government Expenditure per District 2010/11

eThekwini

Ugu

uMgungundlovu

Uthukela

Umzinyathi

Amajuba

Zululand

Umkhanyakude

uThungulu

Ilembe

Sisonke

Table 11.1 : Provincial Government Expenditure per Municipality (2010/11)

Municipality

Number of

People in

Poverty

Poverty Index

Provincial

Infrastructure

Expenditure

Munic

OPEX

Munic

CAPEX

Provincial

Government

Expenditure

1 Abaqulusi 139 384 26.15 327 389 156 155 523 130 31 921 000 1 583 722 454

2 Dannhauser 76 737 15.58 36 655 919 1 195 581 0 336 999 508

3 eDumbe 73 279 18.46 295 384 229 44 709 194 4 572 000 469 273 206

4 Emadlangeni/Utrecht 32 539 17.85 23 737 590 18 534 021 185 000 318 102 614

5 Emnambithi/Ladysmith 146 986 25.04 38 480 162 265 901 636 15 686 000 2 984 017 467

6 eNdondakusuka/

Mandeni 65 655 22.68 25 773 583 68 182 170 13 168 570 213 348 194

7 Endumeni 34 663 19.30 33 436 424 97 438 346 31 492 710 3 384 927 775

8 eThekwini 1 028 091 32.52 638 375 704 13 245 077 290 3 511 819 960 15 840 358 482

9 Ezingoleni 35 838 13.27 21 110 683 0 0 100 543 402

10 Greater Kokstad 55 289 24.64 55 631 585 122 024 932 21 551 546 1 086 108 324

11 Hibiscus Coast 99 596 26.68 20 298 913 374 377 843 103 686 084 1 886 707 159

12 Hlabisa 124 561 17.69 116 006 081 37 503 938 10 917 585 1 149 025 710

13 Imbabazane 77 606 15.53 28 316 664 22 206 915 23 915 229 156 945 798

14 Impendle 12 876 14.72 45 030 647 9 814 103 4 237 084 133 554 158

15 Indaka 91 414 21.22 31 863 668 26 197 065 5 479 000 323 498 335

16 Ingwe 82 315 17.21 52 276 076 27 873 107 11 167 808 537 231 077

17 Jozini 154 472 21.79 59 755 340 36 575 616 9 421 170 1 842 075 495

18 Kwa Sani 154 472 17.01 102 322 557 577 123 143 78 356 180 116 864 973

19 KwaDukuza 60 406 29.11 35 956 925 16 968 114 0 674 791 855

20 Maphumulo 64 183 14.67 40 837 676 31 853 138 9 036 000 376 738 993

21 Mbonambi 56 014 19.47 25 684 138 0 8 372 232 235 418 697

22 Mkhambathini 43 999 22.43 40 845 687 20 285 505 2 265 000 224 752 325

of 194

23 Mooi Mpofana 28 317 18.74 39 237 896 37 532 533 28 161 310 204 643 442

24 Msinga 112 439 13.45 69 565 287 0 0 1 009 407 555

25 Msunduzi 221 763 30.53 43 790 963 1 945 012 298 248 290 500 8 233 887 223

26 Mthonjaneni 53 499 21.31 29 891 023 33 183 400 4 541 000 686 093 647

27 Mtubatuba 25 143 16.01 37 630 095 28 755 603 2 072 000 196 182 247

28 Ndwedwe 62 934 13.24 49 951 861 31 242 000 10 866 000 829 789 930

29 Newcastle 173 494 29.04 56 210 845 0 0 2 005 397 317

30 Nkandla 82 603 15.64 77 112 946 28 042 000 0 922 268 050

31 Nongoma 132 046 24.38 376 497 076 40 293 877 0 1 498 817 944

32 Nqutu 124 001 16.46 37 026 065 43 860 316 6 797 947 951 507 417

33 Ntambanana 56 763 8.93 25 755 993 17 328 939 2 128 000 139 779 851

34 Okhahlamba 118 681 18.54 34 289 590 38 261 742 0 453 236 376

35 Richmond 32 045 15.92 47 434 747 36 472 393 3 813 000 276 304 739

36 St Lucia 2 981 6.77 23 497 462 0 0 0

37 The Big 5 False Bay 30 293 17.48 31 788 462 12 096 600 530 000 100 543 402

38 Ubuhlebezwe 89 432 21.43 66 850 081 26 843 210 64 876 000 865 173 129

39 Ulundi 124 422 24.48 300 294 582 86 248 244 15 867 000 2 584 404 499

40 Umdoni 34 024 26.11 27 624 199 73 222 539 45 550 000 407 543 560

41 Umhlabuyalingana 34 024 17.18 68 884 059 26 956 484 8 007 600 392 364 495

42 uMhlathuze 178 557 26.55 149 634 363 997 842 800 309 996 800 2 371 822 137

43 uMlalazi 113 167 22.52 149 634 363 116 154 505 22 162 404 1 749 223 685

44 uMngeni 26 101 28.40 40 193 296 191 691 239 38 282 000 461 275 383

45 uMshwathi 55 779 21.13 48 415 271 25 250 000 8 904 000 476 045 144

46 Umtshezi 43 912 19.99 43 674 391 110 153 883 28 690 000 1 323 589 967

47 UMuziwabantu 59 526 15.38 31 166 126 40 347 200 11 900 000 282 107 738

48 Umvoti 41 007 24.18 36 516 449 69 394 019 53 098 988 1 077 456 121

49 Umzimkhulu 87 876 21.29 99 167 956 64 692 881 17 151 000 614 931 109

of 194

50 Umzumbe 140 766 23.12 92 330 683 25 849 253 40 662 354 458 549 223

51 UPhongolo 98 488 19.86 326 740 913 49 931 079 4 485 852 423 304 484

52 Vulamehlo 24 595 5.87 25 678 919 11 462 866 14 728 333 225 609 585

Total 5 119 055 1 037 4 581 655 370 19 407 486 690 4 888 812 246 65 196 265 399

Urban 1 701 501 117 908 311 16 562 310 231 4 173 793 344 30 338 172 318

Rural 3 417 554 920 3 673 345 2 845 176 459 715 018 902 34 858 093 082

*Source : KZN Provincial Treasury: KZN Public Demand vs Supply

12 CONCLUSION

The Situational Overview presents a brief picture of the various sectors of KwaZulu-Natal’s

social and economic life – the strengths and the constraints . The information is presented as

a base upon which to build responses to the challenges and opportunities in the Province

and will be updated as more information becomes available.

kwazulu-natal situational overview - KZN Planning Commission

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