Prepare for Urbanisation 'Tsunami' — Cape Town deputy mayor Eddie Andrews

Cape Town is seeing an urbanisation ‘tsunami ‘ in keeping with global trends – and there’s much more to come, according to the City’s deputy mayor Eddie Andrews. 

Fortunately, the City has entrenched plans and ambitious budgets geared for growth and expansion, Andrews said last week at a Cape Chamber South Peninsula Chapter meeting at Groot Constantia. 

“There is a tsunami coming to South Africa, and Cape Town – you better believe it is coming,” Andrews told about 70 guests at Groot Constantia’s Simon’s restaurant. 

He said Cape Town had seen unprecedented growth over the past decade, with the population now exceeding five million. Population estimates were based partly on drone surveillance of informal settlements. 

The City hoped to shape the inevitable expansion as much as possible, Andrews said.  “Can we direct or are we just along for the ride?” he asked. 

Directing the influx required commanding a complex web of personnel and infrastructure, which incorporated 307km of coastline, 24 nature reserves, and three Unesco World Heritage Sites.

The City also had 11 000km of sewer pipes, and 9 000km of water pipes.  “It’s not a question of will there be a burst pipe – it's a matter of when,”  he said. 

The City’s rapid expansion explained the current emphasis on infrastructure and public transport, with a record infrastructure budget underpinning major projects and planned upgrades.  

Devolution of key governance mandates, notably in the field of law enforcement and commuter transport, would help future-proof the City, Andrews added. 

“We can’t sit here and see the tsunami coming and not do anything about it. It requires us to fish outside our pond more often than not,” he said.