Economic Transitions in South Africa’s Secondary Cities: Governing Mine Closures

Abstract

Many South African secondary cities depend on a single economic sector, often mining or manufacturing. This makes them vulnerable to economic change and national decision-making. We describe change in three secondary cities—Emalahleni, Matjhabeng and Newcastle—all at different phases of economic transition due to imminent mine closure. We investigate the way local governance and planning are dealing with the change. We draw on concepts from institutional economics and evolutionary governance theory, material from strategic planning documents, and approximately 50 key informant interviews. We show how difficult it is to steer economic planning during economic transitions, and we demonstrate how both economic change and governance are path-dependent. Path dependency in South Africa’s mining towns has several causes: the colonial influence, which emphasised extraction and neglected beneficiation; the dominance of a single sector; the long-term problems created by mining; and the lack of the skills needed to bring about economic change. The local governments’ continuing reliance on the New Public Management paradigm, which focuses on steering as opposed to building networks, compounds the problem, along with poor governance, inadequate local capacity and inappropriate intergovernmental relations. Of the three towns, only Newcastle has shown signs of taking a new path.

Mine closure, social disruption, and crime in South Africa

“…The guidelines say little about the likely effects of mining closure or crime as a specific consequence. Although many municipal plans focus on economic diversification, Marais et al (2021) are sceptical about the ability of South Africa's smaller cities to find an alternative economic path beyond mining. Van der Watt and Marais (2021) are also concerned about whether local municipalities can manage mine decline by dovetailing local strategic plans with Social and Labour Plans.…”

The regional implications of just transition in the world's most coal-dependent economy: The case of Mpumalanga, South Africa

“…Failure to anticipate and plan for closure has, unfortunately been a hallmark of recent years in the country (Binns and Nel, 2003). Looking forward to inevitable coal mine closure in Mpumalanga, the situation of failing to plan, will be aggravated by the fact that coal mining communities often have negative perceptions of renewable energy because of perceived threats to their traditional local economy and identity (Marais et al, 2021).…”

“…Achieving the current COP targets will probably lead to a 75% loss of jobs in the coal industry. As a result, JT arguments, as discussed above, become all the more critical in the South African context meshing with debates about climate change, racial, gender and economic justice and associated concerns about environmental degradation and the costs of rehabilitation (Marais et al, 2021). JT in Africa requires "an intersection of sustainability transitions, socio-political regimes and the development state, a JT would consist of a dual commitment to human wellbeing (concerning income, education and health) and sustainability (concerning decarbonisation, resource efficiency and ecosystem) restoration" (Swilling et al, 2016, p. 650).…”

Following the supply chain of “illegal” gold from South Africa

“…The company is then obliged to start a rehabilitation process. A key challenge in South Africa, however, is the implementation of the laws (Marais et al 2021). One problem is that many mining sites were already abandoned before the end of Apartheid, so that it is almost impossible to trace their owners.…”