Plans have been put in place to develop a new and smart city for South Africa, this is according to the minister of Public Works and Infrastructure Patricia de Lille.
The minister who was participating in a parliament seating this week indicated that the plans for a new city would be a very significant moment in the country since the first democratic elections in 1994. However, the project is still in the early planning stages, and several studies still need to be completed, IOL reports.
According to De Lille, her department has already set up a project team and reference group, which will develop the terms of reference for the project but will further set up a stakeholder, communications and research unit that will look at best international practices.
De Lille added that this project is separate from the Lanseria “smart city” one which President Cyril Ramaphosa spoke about in 2020 where he mentioned that the first new city is now a “reality in the making” and it would be home to between 350 000 to 500 000 people within the next decade.
Meanwhile, the processes are set to be completed by April 2022, where a final report will then be presented to the cabinet and to members of the inter-ministerial committee, Business Tech reported.
De Lille along with her Deputy min Noxolo Kiviet also visited the Maitland Metro building site on Thursday, September 9. The Maitland Metro is being privately developed and rejuvenated by Bluebuk Projects into a thriving mixed-income, mixed-use precinct predominantly through the development of inclusionary and integrated housing opportunities.
This morning, the head of #InfrastructureSA, Dr @Kgosientsho_R joined @DepartmentPWI Min. @PatriciaDeLille and Deputy Min. Noxolo Kiviet, on a site visit of the Maitland Metro, a precinct in the western portion of Maitland, Cape Town.#RoadToSidssa2021 pic.twitter.com/fBPAuB6yDi
— Infrastructure South Africa (@infraSA_) September 9, 2021
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