Co-production to reframe state practices in informal settlements: Lessons from Malawi Kamp and Klipheuwel in Cape Town, South Africa

ABSTRACT

Mass urbanisation in cities of the global South, is causing cities to evolve, with informal settlements being central to this evolution. While local government is the official point of interaction for urban informal settlement dwellers, those interactions are often characterised by a lack of meaningful participation. Engaging with the co-production literature and two case studies of informal settlements in Cape Town, South Africa, this paper examines how they shed light on the shifting and constantly evolving roles and practices of local government and community actors within a co-production engagement. Based on the findings from these cases, the paper argues that co-production as a practice of collaboration between the local state and citizens can allow for the forging of new relationships, built on trust, sharing of resources and a more equal distribution of power where communities can shape the outcomes of service delivery projects to respond to their needs and demands.

KEYWORDS:

• Cape Town
• informal settlements
• co-production
• invented
• invited
• spaces participatory governance

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Notes

1 Expanded Public Works Programme (EPWP) is a National South African government initiative that provides temporary work to the unemployed, targeting the youth (18–35 years), disabled and women, and helps to provide income and reduce poverty.

2 The five-year Integrated Development Plan (IDP) and budget are linked to a political term of an elected council / local government and a key characteristic would be the participation of communities in putting forward local needs and thereafter setting and reviewing potential projects and budgets.

Additional information

Funding

This work was part of the Knowledge Transfer Programme, funded through Mistra Urban Futures at Chalmers University of Technology, which was funded by Mistra (the Swedish Foundation for Strategic Environmental Research) and Sida (the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency).