Evolution

The idea for the NGO Asiye eTafuleni (‘bring it to the table’ in Zulu), was born out of the ongoing involvement of local authority officials, academics, urbanists and activists in the Warwick Junction Project; an informal market complex at the heart of Durban, South Africa.

Apartheid Years

The context was a blighted South African inner city district that was largely neglected, in spite of being the main inner city public transport hub, due to the legacy of apartheid. On the margins, urban management and investment in the area had not been prioritized, resulting in under serviced and decaying infrastructure. Being the heart of the metropolitan inter-modal transport interchange, and the historic location for the fresh produce market, the blind eye of the authorities encouraged the opportunistic location of thousands of informal street vendors whose businesses thrived on the high pedestrian footfall. Although lively and vibrant in some ways, the lack of management, lack of decent public urban space in the area, and the sheer pressure on the area and on the municipal infrastructure caused negative fall out for the City as a whole – mainly made manifest as ‘crime and grime’.

1995 Post-Apartheid

The local authority’s urban regeneration project was initiated in 1995. Given the exclusionary impact of pre 1994 spatial planning and enforcement, the post-apartheid opportunity for the formerly marginalised (informal and largely illegal traders) to meaningfully enter the urban economy, created enormous pressure and expectations. The project was expected to engage with this context and was one of the first national cities to address this challenge at scale. The Warwick Junction project was later expanded to encompass the whole of the inner city, and was one of the inspirations for a pilot area based management programme to address regeneration and development of 5 large areas in the municipal area.

The co-founders of Asiye eTafuleni, Richard Dobson and Patrick Ndlovu, were both involved in this innovative, award winning initiative for over 10 years; Dobson eventually leading the inner city programme.  Largely because of this engagement, as well as an improved level of organising amongst the informal traders in Warwick Junction through the project; traders were better able to participate in consultation processes with city officials on equal terms.

The benefits of the improved quality of the traders’ responses due to their enhanced understanding of development processes within this new responsive context were significant, achieving a more equitable distribution of power and fairer distribution of commercial opportunities in the project area than has been achievable anywhere in South Africa, previously.

2008 Asiye eTafuleni

For Dobson and Ndlovu, their experience as local authority officials involved in ground breaking planning and successful implementation of infrastructure specifically designed for the informal economy, has reinforced a belief in thoroughly consultative and participative processes with urban informal workers. The founder members’ desire, in establishing this NGO in 2008, has been to continue this trajectory, to equip those involved in this arena with innovative know-how and consultant support, and to provide a learning hub for relevant professionals interested in urban planning and design opportunities pertaining to the informal economy – in this case, South Africa’s informal economy.