Johannesburg Municipality Region A: Ivory Park
The Johannesburg Municipality is a metropolitan municipality, it executes all local functions and in the
city of Johannesburg. Ivory Park is a densely populated township founded in the early 90s. I chose Ivory
Park for my case study because it is often identified as an informal settlement, yet it is a township with
vibrant residents from different cultures, with a sense of togetherness. Ivory Park has come a long way
in terms of service provision since it was founded in the early 1990sand still has a long way to go to
improve service provision. This residential area is home to a police station, two libraries, five clinics, a
shopping complex, and two community.
Johannesburg is a capital city of the Gauteng province, located in the highlands of South Africa known as
the Highveld. It is situated south of the Witwatersrand, and the terrain falls of the north and south.
Located at 26 ⁰12′ 16″ S latitude and 28⁰ 2′ 44″ E longitude, the municipality of Johannesburg stretches
from the Midrand in the north to Orange Farm in the south, covering a total area of 1645 square
kilometers. Ivory Park is a municipal area serviced by the Johannesburg municipality and falls under
Region A (formerly Region 2), the residential area is located at 25⁰ 59′ 56″ S latitude and 28⁰ 11′ 46″ E
longitude in the east of Johannesburg.
IVORY PARK SKETCH MAP
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, The availability and accessibility of service facilities is very essential in order to improve urban and rural
development and growth. These service facilities have functions that support different activities in the
communities, hence the adequate provision of service facilities is necessary to ensure the improvement
of the quality of lives of residents in the community.
The ivory Park residential area follows a nucleated pattern, this allows easy access of service facilities.
The service facilities in Ivory Park are surrounded by houses and are located near the main roads to
allow residents to have access with little or no hassle. The Ivory Park Police and Fire Station; community
hall and Library are midway Ivory Park’s extensions 6,7,8,9,10,12 and 13. Most of the time, residents
walk in order to access these facilities instead of driving or using public transport. Ebomini Primary
School is located in extension 13, which is a walking distance from extensions 8,9,10 and 12, providing
service to learners around these areas, Mikateka Primary School is in extension 8 and caters for learners
in extensions 6,7,8,9,10. Ivory Park Secondary School is located in extension 15 (not always referred to
as an extension, but site 15), along the Riverside Road which connects Kaalfontein and Ebony Park
residential areas to Ivory Park. It services learners from extensions 8, 9,10,12,13 and Umqhele
Secondary School services learners from extensions 6, 7, 8 and 12. This however does not mean that
learners are limited to attend schools in or near their area, learners from as far as Ebony Park can
sometimes be admitted in any of the schools provided space is available. Previously, learners could
choose which school they wanted to attend, however the Department of Education introduced a new
policy in 2016. When pupils apply on the department’s online website, they are allocated space in
schools that are near their homes for easy access.
The Kopanong Shopping Centre is located in Ivory Park extension 15, it hosts 3 grocery and clothing
stores, a cosmetic store, the Ivory Park pharmacy, a bottle store, a dentist and general practitioner, a
fast food outlet, various ATM machines for different banks, an electronics and cellular store, the Ivory
Park taxi rank and a shoe store. It is located near the Kopanong Sports Ground, this makes it accessible
to all the residents in Ivory Park, and also has public transport that is readily available.
The Mpumelelo Municipal Clinic in Ivory Park provides services to residents in extension 11, 13, and 15
while the Bophelong clinic serves residents in Ext 6, 7, 8 and 12. However, in 2014-2015 the Mpumelelo
Municipal clinic underwent an upgrade and residents had to make use of the Bophelong Clinic, this
resulted in long queues and residents would be sent home without being attended to. In general, the
service facilities in Ivory Park are easily accessible, though service may sometimes be slow due to high
demand, these services are centered around in the residential areas.
In Ivory Park, the streets are characterized by dust when it is windy and mud when it rains and residents
are often forced to stay indoors when it rains because of the mud. Main roads are tarred, however due
to heavy rains most have potholes. The potholes damage cars and have led to accidents at night. In
2014, the Ivory Park Gravel Roads Improvement Project was founded, aimed at improving the road
infrastructure, however to date, most of the streets are still gravel and only main roads were upgraded.
The provision of water has improved in recent years, almost every household in Ivory Park has access to
clean and running tap water distributed by Johannesburg Water, and flushing toilets connected to
sewerage systems. Residents in Themba Khoza and Baghdad informal settlements in Ivory Park use basic
sanitation units and public taps. No single household in these settlements has access to its own toilet
facility and tap, they have to share the facilities with the entire population and this causes the blockage
of the toilets, causing foul smells and making it unbearable to use the toilet units provided.
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