By Carol Moody Becker
July 14, 2003

Mayor Smangaliso Mkhatshwa of the city of Tshwane in Pretoria, South Africa spoke eloquently to his fellow mayors about the relationship of democracy and education to sustainable development and the mayoral role in this process. Addressing a capacity audience at the opening luncheon of the 71st Annual Meeting of the U.S. Conference of Mayors, he explained that South Africa is convinced that democracy is built and maintained first and foremost at the local government level — which also must take the lead on bringing up the nation's educational level. And the mayors are key to these attainments because local government is closest to the people.

Mkhatshwa clearly described the abyss into which South Africa could descend unless progress is made on the challenges the nation faces. "In South Africa, the challenges of poverty, disease, social inequality and economic deprivation are such that unless these are addressed, our cities will not be able to sustain themselves, and our people will be trapped in vicious and spiraling cycles of further impoverishment and degradation," he said.

A Tale of Two Cities

Using his city as an example, he said that Tshwane has great need for economic development, but the bitter legacy of the apartheid system is still apparent after 10 years of democracy. "The city of Tshwane is indeed a tale of two cities, one white and affluent for the most part and one black and impoverished for the most part," explained Mkhatshwa.

Tshwane has sprawling, leafy suburbs that include three universities as well as a number of tecknikons and industrial areas. Adjacent to this affluence are townships and informal settlements, semi-rural areas, and villages that historically were poorly served by the apartheid system.

Unemployment is 32 percent in Tshwane with poverty at 29 percent — and this translates into higher figures for black areas.

Yet, economists show the city of Tshwane as wealthy — the result of exports, particularly in the furniture, electronics, metal, and machinery sectors as well as in the automotive sector and agriculture.

Education as the Equalizer

Defining education as the equalizer in an economically divided society, Mkhatshwa said, "...we have only just begun to understand the complex process of identifying the skills needed for a post-apartheid economy ... The great digital divide between those who have been educated with the skills needed for a modern economy, and those who have not, exacerbates the present scenario as does the gap between skilled and unskilled..."

Mkhatshwa explained that until recently his municipality had concentrated on providing greater access to services largely through electrification and the provision of clean water and sanitation. Now it is concentrating on nurturing conditions in which entrepreneurship can flourish, using a developmental approach toward self-reliance — with education and skills training an integral component of this initiative.

This developmental approach toward self-reliance includes black economic empowerment (BEE), which is a part of the city of Tshwane's local economic development framework. In addition to financing, BEE includes a range of activities such as market assistance, productivity, quality assurance, and overall training. Mayor Mkhatshwa summed up the importance of BEE by saying, "The need for black economic empowerment (BEE) on a massive scale in order to end poverty is paramount if we are to succeed as a city and a country."

Follow-Up to the 2002 World Summit on Sustainable Development

The city of Tshwane believes that in order to have a sustainable economy, it must also deal with the environment in a manner that ensures sustainability. With this in mind, Tshwane was the first metropolitan area in South Africa to host a follow-up summit, at a local level, to the 2002 World Summit on Sustainable Development, held in Johannesburg.

Elaborating on the need for local action, Mkhatshwa said, "While the World Summit was a way of forging relations between countries and civil society at a global level, the need for ongoing contact between countries at ... the local level, is paramount if we are to come close to attaining the Millennium Development Goals ..."

Mkhatshwa, an ordained Roman Catholic priest, emphasized the importance of participatory democracy to this mission and also called for international cooperation to promote economic growth and development in Africa.