Rediscovering Economics as a Crucial component of Development in South Africa: The Case of the Inner City Property Scheme
Date
2015-11
Authors
Ajibade, Abraham
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg
Abstract
It has been twenty‐one years since the apartheid regime was dismantled – an age that is synonymous with the maturity, balance and grace shown by leaders in South Africa and those returning from abroad. The proverbial torch has been passed down to the next generation to learn from the mistakes of their predecessors and forge a new zeitgeist, one that is accepting of all. Yet, the need to forthrightly address the impacts of separate development and state-advocated forms and systems of preferential treatment remains at the forefront of public discourse. Development has many dimensions and planning interests - urban, development, economic and policy - are concerned with all of these. This report is primarily concerned with those ideals that have been supported by legislation in the form of Broad Based Black Economic Empowerment (BBBEE). Such polices were physically manifested through the mechanisms of many state departments and agencies, and this research report seeks to critically examine its manifestation in the form of one of those structures, namely the Inner City Property Scheme (ICPS). This research report utilised a mixture of evaluation and qualitative research methodologies. This allowed for the evaluation of economic empowerment policies through engagements with selected respondents. These respondents were selected based on their knowledge of the ICPS, Economic Empowerment and the Planning profession. Drawing upon these interviews and engagement with other sources, the report seeks to address the issue of planning’s limited engagement with the economic circumstances which are prevalent in each context and how the economic circumstances affect the interventions the planning profession proposes. The results of the research report found that the ways in which economic empowerment e.g. through the ICPS, was practised only served to benefit an elite grouping. These class distinctions were also seen to be congruent with the flaws of the planning profession. The reason for these could be traced to a lack of engagement with the economic aspects of development on the side of planners. The research report proposed a set of recommendations that sought to provide planners with the tools to guide the state in becoming truly developmental.
Description
Planning Honours Report 2015, Wits University
Keywords
Inner City, Inner City Property Scheme, Property Sector, Economics, Economic Empowerment, Developmental State, Perceptions, Role of Planning.
Citation
Ajibade, A (2015). Rediscovering Economics as a Crucial component of Development in South Africa: The Case of the Inner City Property Scheme, Johannesburg