The search for a better life prompted South Africans to flock to urban centres - and there are now more people living in metropolitan areas than rural ones. And the trend is expected to continue.
“In the latest assessment of the numbers, about 60% of our people in South Africa, a 50 million population, already live in the urban areas. And the national development plan suggests that by 2030 or so, 70% I think, roughly, will be living in the urban areas,” Cooperative Governance Minister Lechesa Tsenoli explained.
But urbanisation has its pitfalls, exacerbating socio-economic challenges.
These include the increasing demand for housing sparked by an increase of informal settlements in urban areas.
Alarming levels of youth unemployment and infrastructure backlogs are also causes for concern.
The problems can be aggravated by a lack of foresight.
“All those challenges are challenges that we have to address, those social issues, crime, the influx, disease and many other things that as a result of not properly planning,” Nomusa Dube, kwaZulu-Natal MEC for Cooperative Governance said.
Such problems are not unique to South Africa. Other parts of Africa, as well as Asia and South America, have experienced similar problems.
- enca
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