Another shack fire broke out in Cape Town's townships last month, killing one woman and affecting 1,500 residents. Andrew Fleming reports on the City's response and the attitude of residents, and reviews some recent initiatives that may alleviate the problem of shack fires in the short and long terms.
Lots of 'solutions' get presented at events like the Urban and Housing Development conference in Cape Town, but can a model be sustainable if it excludes large parts of the city?
The breakdown of Cape Town's Housing Indaba shows how much such a forum is needed, but also shows how unready the city's stakeholders are for constructive collaboration.
Andrew Fleming explores the possibilities for the 'affordable' housing market in the inner city, where new financial instruments and governance models are improving access for lower-income families.
South Africa's recent local elections were a minor milestone on the road to democracy. Now it's time for the DA to show they can deliver on policy.
Eviction of poor residents has been less than expected in the run-up to the World Cup in South Africa, but the urban poor have nonetheless seen little economic benefit from the event.
The ANC has built the large resettlement site of Blikkiesdorp to relocate residents during the World Cup, but also as part of the long term strategy to solve South Africa's housing crisis.
Andrew Fleming (Twitter: @AndrewSFleming) works as the Senior Researcher at the Cape Town Partnership, a non-profit company dedicated to the…
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The Global Urbanist is an online magazine reviewing urban affairs and urban development issues in cities throughout the developed and developing world.
Its readers are drawn from the urban policy and international development sectors, and include urban planners, officers in local, national or international government agencies, civil society leaders, and researchers.
