Volume II - The Northern Cape Provincial Spatial Development ...

4.3 Observations from the development profiles
The following general observations can be derived from the results in the relevant tables and
figures:
(i) TOWNS
• From Figure 3.3 and table 4.3c it is evident that the majority of the Northern Cape towns
have a predominantly medium (56%) or low (30%) development potential ∗ status. Only
17 towns were classified with a High or Very High development potential. These latter
towns are the most likely engines to provide impetus to drive regional development for
job creation, service provision and general quality of life in the Northern Cape rural
environment. Strategic thinking should therefore focus on this group of settlements in
particular.
• Regarding human need indices, 37 towns registered with High and Very High needs
levels (Table 4.3b). Their deficient quality of life situation deserves focussed attention in
order to ascertain the nature and scope of the social capital investment requirements.
• Within the context of the average population size, 80% of the 115 towns register a size of
less than 6700 (Medium, Small and Very Small settlements). This reveals a very skewed
town size distribution in the Northern Cape, with an overwhelming small town landscape
– only 20% of the settlements had more than 6700 inhabitants in 2001 (Table 4.2).
• The spatial distribution of towns in this vast area developed unevenly with four distinctive
population concentrations (Figures 4.2 and Table 4.7):
(i) The North-Eastern Kimberley corridor from Ritchie to Hartswater, with a diverse
economic urban structure of administrative, mining and agriculture functions.
(ii) The North-Eastern mining area between Blackrock/Hotazel and Postmasburg, with
the potential to link up with the former concentration in a U-shape corridor,
(iii) The central Orange River agricultural corridor from Boegoeberg to Augrabies.
(iv) The Western mining area around Springbok.
These four urban concentrations accommodate 49% of the province’s towns and 74% of the
urban population. The Kimberley group of eleven towns on their own accommodate 40% of
the provincial urban population. The rest of the towns (mostly Small and Very Small) are
scattered with large distances in between (Figure 4.2). This unbalanced distribution pattern
presents a huge challenge to the ability of the urban system to deliver services.
∗ See Section 3.6 for a definition of the development classes. Negative z-scores in this context are values below
the provincial average - therefore negative in relative terms and not necessarily in absolute terms.
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