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Lesson 6: Spatial segregation and integration in post-apartheid South African cities
Background
According to De Beer (2025), “Twenty-nine years after the end of apartheid, South African cities
continue to be deeply segregated.” This statement reflects ongoing debates about spatial justice,
inequality, and urban transformation in South Africa.
Your task
You are a geospatial analyst working for the South African Local Government Association (SALGA).
Using a selected city within South Africa as a case study, write an essay.
Introduction: Spatial justice and the post-apartheid urban form in Durban (eThekwini)
Nearly three decades after the formal end of apartheid, South African cities continue to exhibit
entrenched patterns of spatial segregation that reflect the legacies of colonialism, apartheid planning,
and unequal economic development. As De Beer (2025) observes, “twenty-nine years after the end
of apartheid, South African cities continue to be deeply segregated,” highlighting the persistence of
structural inequalities in the urban landscape. Nowhere is this more apparent than in Durban,
officially the eThekwini Metropolitan Municipality, a city shaped by its history as a colonial port, its
diverse racial composition, and the implementation of apartheid spatial planning policies such as the
Group Areas Act of 1950. These forces produced a fragmented city where race and class determined
residential location, access to services, and proximity to economic opportunities (Maharaj, 2020).
The post-apartheid government has made significant efforts to transform this geography through
housing delivery, public transport expansion, and spatial integration policies such as the Spatial
Planning and Land Use Management Act (SPLUMA) of 2013 and the National Development Plan
(NDP) 2030 (Parnell & Pieterse, 2014). Yet despite these interventions, Durban still reveals stark
socio-spatial divides between historically white suburbs with well-developed infrastructure and
historically black townships or peri-urban areas characterised by poverty, overcrowding, and
inadequate services. The challenge of spatial justice thus remains central to debates on urban
transformation in the city (Turok, 2021).
This essay examines whether De Beer’s claim of enduring segregation applies to Durban by drawing
on geospatial evidence, census data, and scholarly literature. It further analyses the historical,
socio-economic, political, and planning-related factors that have contributed to the persistence of
spatial segregation, while also highlighting signs of emerging integration in the city. In doing so, the
essay provides a critical assessment of the extent to which Durban has shifted away from apartheid’s
fragmented urban form towards a more equitable and inclusive city.
Lesson 6: Spatial segregation and integration in post-apartheid South African cities
Background
According to De Beer (2025), “Twenty-nine years after the end of apartheid, South African cities
continue to be deeply segregated.” This statement reflects ongoing debates about spatial justice,
inequality, and urban transformation in South Africa.
Your task
You are a geospatial analyst working for the South African Local Government Association (SALGA).
Using a selected city within South Africa as a case study, write an essay.
Introduction: Spatial justice and the post-apartheid urban form in Durban (eThekwini)
Nearly three decades after the formal end of apartheid, South African cities continue to exhibit
entrenched patterns of spatial segregation that reflect the legacies of colonialism, apartheid planning,
and unequal economic development. As De Beer (2025) observes, “twenty-nine years after the end
of apartheid, South African cities continue to be deeply segregated,” highlighting the persistence of
structural inequalities in the urban landscape. Nowhere is this more apparent than in Durban,
officially the eThekwini Metropolitan Municipality, a city shaped by its history as a colonial port, its
diverse racial composition, and the implementation of apartheid spatial planning policies such as the
Group Areas Act of 1950. These forces produced a fragmented city where race and class determined
residential location, access to services, and proximity to economic opportunities (Maharaj, 2020).
The post-apartheid government has made significant efforts to transform this geography through
housing delivery, public transport expansion, and spatial integration policies such as the Spatial
Planning and Land Use Management Act (SPLUMA) of 2013 and the National Development Plan
(NDP) 2030 (Parnell & Pieterse, 2014). Yet despite these interventions, Durban still reveals stark
socio-spatial divides between historically white suburbs with well-developed infrastructure and
historically black townships or peri-urban areas characterised by poverty, overcrowding, and
inadequate services. The challenge of spatial justice thus remains central to debates on urban
transformation in the city (Turok, 2021).
This essay examines whether De Beer’s claim of enduring segregation applies to Durban by drawing
on geospatial evidence, census data, and scholarly literature. It further analyses the historical,
socio-economic, political, and planning-related factors that have contributed to the persistence of
spatial segregation, while also highlighting signs of emerging integration in the city. In doing so, the
essay provides a critical assessment of the extent to which Durban has shifted away from apartheid’s
fragmented urban form towards a more equitable and inclusive city.
