Gauteng - WikiHQ

Gauteng ( , ; Sotho-Tswana for 'place of gold'; or ) is one of the nine provinces of South Africa.

Situated on the Highveld, Gauteng is the smallest province by land area in South Africa. Although Gauteng accounts for only 1.5% of the country's land area, it is the most populous province in South Africa, with more than a quarter (26%) of the national population; the provincial population was approximately 16.1 million, according to mid-year 2022 estimates. Highly urbanised, the province's capital is also the country's largest city, Johannesburg. Gauteng is the wealthiest province in South Africa and is considered the financial hub of South Africa; the financial activity is mostly concentrated in Johannesburg. It also contains South Africa's administrative capital, Pretoria, and other large areas such as Midrand, Vanderbijlpark, Ekurhuleni and the affluent Sandton. The largest township, Soweto, is also found in this province. Politically, it is the most closely contested province between the nationalist African National Congress and the liberal Democratic Alliance in South Africa.

Etymology

The name Gauteng is derived from Sotho-Tswana , meaning 'gold'. In Sesotho, Setswana and Sepedi the name was used for Johannesburg and surrounding areas long before it was adopted in 1994 as the official name of the province.

History

[[File:Sesotho-Gaudeng.PNG|280px|thumb|A snippet of text showing the Sesotho word "Gaudeng" (modern Gauteng) in Jacottet's A practical method to learn Sesuto: with exercises and a short vocabulary, published in 1906|left]]

Gauteng was formed from part of the old Transvaal province after South Africa's first multiracial elections on 27 April 1994. It was initially called Pretoria–Witwatersrand–Vereeniging (PWV) and was renamed "Gauteng" on the 28th of June 1995, the same day two other provinces were renamed. The term "PWV" describing the region existed long before the establishment of a province by that name, with the "V" sometimes standing for "Vaal Triangle" rather than Vereeniging.

At the Sterkfontein caves, some of the oldest fossils of hominids have been discovered, such as Mrs. Ples and Little Foot.

The city of Pretoria, established in 1855 as the capital of the South African Republic, witnessed rapid growth until the discovery of gold in the Witswatersrand area in 1886, which led to the founding of Johannesburg. Premier David Makhura of the ANC was re-elected as premier on 22 May 2019, at the first meeting of the legislature after the general election. Makhura resigned from the position on 6 October 2022 and Panyaza Lesufi of the ANC was elected to replace him. In the 2024 South African general election, held on 29 May, the ANC received 34% of the vote, while the DA received 28%.

Climate

The climate is mostly influenced by altitude. Even though the province is at a subtropical latitude, the climate is comparatively cooler, especially in Johannesburg, at above sea level (Pretoria is at ). Most precipitation occurs as brief afternoon thunderstorms; however, relative humidity never becomes uncomfortable. Winters are crisp and dry with frost occurring often in the southern areas. Snow is rare, but it has occurred on some occasions in the Johannesburg metropolitan area.

Cities and towns

Alberton
Atteridgeville
Benoni
Boksburg
Bronkhorstspruit
Brakpan
Carletonville
Centurion
Cullinan
Edenvale
Ga-Rankuwa
Germiston
Hammanskraal
Heidelberg
Henley on Klip
Johannesburg
Kempton Park
Krugersdorp
Mabopane
Mamelodi
Magaliesburg
Meyerton
Midrand
Nigel
Parkhurst
Pretoria
Randburg
Randfontein
Roodepoort
Rosebank
Sandton
Soshanguve
Soweto
Springs
Tembisa
Vanderbijlpark
Vereeniging

Administrative divisions

thumb|right|Gauteng municipalities

The Gauteng Province (as of May 2011) is divided into three metropolitan municipalities and two district municipalities. The district municipalities are in turn divided into six local municipalities:

District municipalities

Sedibeng District
Emfuleni
Lesedi
Midvaal
West Rand District
Merafong City
Mogale City
Rand West City

Metropolitan municipalities

Tshwane Metropolitan Municipality (Pretoria)
Johannesburg Metropolitan Municipality
Ekurhuleni Metropolitan Municipality

The former Metsweding district consisting of Nokeng Tsa Taemane and Kungwini in the North of the province was incorporated into Tshwane in 2011.

As of 2022, there are 5,318,665 households in Gauteng. The population density is 831/km<sup>2</sup>. The density of households is 155.86/km<sup>2</sup>.

About 22.1% of all households are made up of individuals. The average household size fell slightly between the 2011 census and 2022 census, from 3.1 to 2.8 persons.

The province's age distribution was 23.6% under the age of 15, 19.6% from 15 to 24, 37.9% from 25 to 44, 15.0% from 45 to 64, and 4.0% who are 65 years of age or older. The median age is 27 years. For every 100 females there are 101.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there are 102.3 males.

Languages

According to the 2022 census, in Gauteng, the most spoken languages at home were:

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|No income || style="background:Silver;"| || colspan=13|2.0%

|R 12 – R 4 800 ($2 – $721) || style="background:Silver;" colspan="2"| ||colspan=13|6.4%

|R 4 812 – R 9 600 ($723 – $1,443) || style="background:Silver;" colspan="5"| || colspan=13|13.0%

|R 9 612 – R 19 200 ($1,445 – $2,886) || style="background:Silver;" colspan="9.6"| || colspan=5|24.0%

|R 19 212 – R 38 400 ($2,888 – $5,772) || style="background:Silver;" colspan="8"| || colspan=11|20.4%

|R 38 412 – R 76 800 ($5,774 – $11,543) || style="background:Silver;" colspan="6.3"| || colspan=9|15.8%

|R 76 812 – R 153 600 ($11,545 – $23,087) || style="background:Silver;" colspan="4.2"| || colspan=9|10.4%

|R 153 612 – R 307 200 ($23,089 – $46,174) || style="background:Silver;" colspan="2"| || colspan=12|5.0%

|R 307 212 – R 614 400 ($46,176 – $92,348) || style="background:Silver;"| || colspan=12|1.8%

|R 614 412 or more ($92,350+) || colspan=13|1.1%

{| class="wikitable" style="font-size: 97%; text-align: right"

|+Ethnic group 2021 population

! Ethnic group

! Population

! %

|align=left|Black African ||12 648 380||80%

|align=left|White ||2 212 454 ||14%

|align=left|Coloured ||474 311,64|| 3%

|align=left|Asian ||474 311,64||3%

|align=left|Total ||15 810 388||100.00%

Life expectancy

Gauteng is the province with the second highest life expectancy in the country in 2019 with females having a life expectancy of 69 years and males having a life expectancy of 64 years. the urban conurbation of Gauteng, referred to as the Gauteng City Region, contains the major urban populations of Johannesburg (7,860,781 ), Pretoria (1,763,336), Vereeniging (377,922), Evaton (605,504) and Soshanguve (728,063), coming to an urban population of over 11 million. Thomas Brinkhoff lists a "Consolidated Urban Area" in Gauteng as having a population of 13.1 million . The future governmental plans for the region indicate the gradual urbanisation and consolidation towards the creation of a megalopolis that connects these metros. The GCRO is a collaboration between the Universities of Johannesburg and Witwatersrand, the city of Johannesburg, Gauteng Provincial Government, and SALGA-Gauteng. The GCRO's purpose is to collect information and create a database on the Gauteng City Region to provide to government, lawmakers and civil society an informed understanding of the fastest urbanizing region in Southern Africa. the largest stock exchange in Africa. Some of the largest companies in Africa and abroad are based in Gauteng, or have offices and branches there, such as Vodacom, MTN, Neotel, Microsoft South Africa and the largest Porsche Centre in the world.

Although Gauteng is the smallest of South Africa's nine provinces—it covers a mere 1.5% of the country's total land area, Gauteng generates about 10% of the total GDP of sub-Saharan Africa and about 7% of total African GDP. Gauteng has the highest GDP and GDP per capita of all South Africa's provinces. Gauteng is also the province with the most taxpayers and the highest average taxable income per taxpayer according to the South African Revenue Service.

Transport

thumb|[[Sandton Gautrain Station in August 2010]]

alt=Ekurhuleni_Aerotropolis|thumb|250x250px|O.R. Tambo International Airport. The biggest airport in Africa

SANRAL, a parastatal, is responsible for the maintenance, development and management of all national road networks in South Africa. SANRAL is responsible for instituting the Gauteng Freeway Improvement Project, which was met with a lot of opposition due to the tolling of Gauteng motorists. Many important national routes run through Gauteng such as the N1, N3, N4, N12, N14 and the N17. Johannesburg is quite dependent on freeways for transport in and around the city. The R21, R24, R59, M1 and M2 all run through Johannesburg while the R80 connects Pretoria Central to Soshanguve.

The Gauteng Freeway Improvement Project led to a large decrease in traffic congestion when construction finished 2011–2012. Cape Town, for the first time in decades, is now the most congested city in South Africa.

PUTCO, the largest commuter bus operator in South Africa, services the Gauteng area extensively. The bus rapid transit system Rea Vaya also serves to transport people from Johannesburg's southern neighbourhoods into and around the CBD. In an interview, Parks Tau stated that by 2040, Johannesburg will be dominated by pedestrians and public transport as opposed to the use of private transport or informal transport, such as minibus taxis.

Gautrain and Metrorail both service the province's public transport sector where trains are concerned and Gautrain offers a bus service that transports commuters to and from various train stations and predetermined bus stops. Metrorail trains are considered one of the most cost-effective methods of transportation in and around Gauteng.

The O. R. Tambo International Airport, Rand Airport, Lanseria International Airport, Wonderboom Airport and Grand Central Airport are located in Gauteng.

There is a large informal transport sector in Gauteng, consisting of thousands of minibus taxis, which many of the urban and rural population makes use of. However, it is noted that taxis are often unsafe as their drivers ignore the rules of the road and the vehicles are often not roadworthy. In 2007, this initiative was handed over to the Gauteng Department of Finance.

In 2017/2018, the Gauteng Provincial government spent R42.4 billion on education which accounted for 38% the province's total expenditure.

Conservation

Although Gauteng province is dominated by the urban areas of Johannesburg and Pretoria, it has several nature reserves. Gauteng is home to the Cradle of Humankind UNESCO World Heritage Site which includes the Sterkfontein caves and the Wonder Cave Kromdraai. Johannesburg is home to the largest human-made urban forest in the world.

Botanical gardens

Walter Sisulu National Botanical Garden
Johannesburg Botanical Garden
Pretoria National Botanical Garden

Nature reserves

Rietvlei Nature Reserve
Suikerbosrand Nature Reserve
Groenkloof Nature Reserve
Dinokeng Game Reserve

Private and municipal reserves

Kromdraai Conservancy
Krugersdorp Nature Reserve
Rietvlei Nature Reserve
Wonderboom Nature Reserve

Provincial reserves

thumb|right|The Maropeng visitors centre at the [[Cradle of Humankind]]

There are 5 provincial reserves managed by the Gauteng Department of Agriculture, Conservation, Environment and Land Affairs:

Abe Bailey Nature Reserve
Alice Glockner Nature Reserve
Marievale Bird Sanctuary
Roodeplaat Nature Reserve
Suikerbosrand Nature Reserve

Sport

thumb|[[Loftus Versfeld Stadium, one of Gauteng's various stadia and venue for the 2010 FIFA World Cup|249x249px]]

thumb|[[FNB Stadium South Africa and Africa's largest stadium]]

thumb|[[Wanderers Stadium South Africas largest Cricket stadium]]

thumb|[[Kyalami Grand Prix Circuit]]

thumb|252x252px|[[Gold Reef City amusement park]]

Gauteng's favourable weather conditions throughout the year make it an ideal hub for sports and other outdoor activities.

The province is home to many stadiums and sporting grounds, notably Soccer City, Ellis Park Stadium, Odi Stadium, Loftus Versfeld Stadium, Lucas Moripe Stadium, Giant Stadium, Orlando Stadium, Johannesburg Stadium, the Wanderers Stadium and SuperSport Park.

Several teams from Gauteng play in the country's top-level soccer league, the Premiership, including Mamelodi Sundowns, SuperSport United, Kaizer Chiefs and Orlando Pirates. The national squad Bafana Bafana frequently play at Soccer City in Johannesburg. During the 2010 FIFA World Cup, the first world cup held by an African nation, Gauteng's stadia hosted many games. The first FIFA world cup match on African soil took place at Soccer City on 11 June 2010. Along with Soccer City, Loftus Versfeld Stadium and Ellis Park Stadium hosted matches in Gauteng.

Rugby, or more accurately rugby union, is a popular sport in South Africa, and in Gauteng in particular. Two rugby teams from Gauteng participate in the United Rugby Championship: the Pretoria-based Bulls, and the Johannesburg-based Lions. Three Gauteng-based teams play in the country's domestic competition, the Currie Cup: the Blue Bulls from Pretoria, the Golden Lions from Johannesburg and the Falcons from the East Rand. In 1995, South Africa hosted the 1995 Rugby World Cup and proceeded to win the tournament at Ellis Park Stadium on 24 June 1995. The events surrounding the world cup formed the basis of the story for the movie Invictus.

Many South African universities take part in the Varsity Rugby league. Of these, the Gauteng universities include the University of Pretoria, the University of Johannesburg and the University of the Witwatersrand.

Cricket is also widely popular among all cultural groups. The Highveld Lions represent both Gauteng and North West in the country's three domestic competitions—the first-class CSA 4-Day Domestic Series, the List A one-day CSA One-Day Cup and the Twenty20 CSA T20 Challenge.

Many marathons take place in Gauteng, such as the Soweto Marathon, Gauteng Marathon, the Arwyp Medical Centre 15 km Nite Race and the Trisport Joburg City Triathlon.

Golf, horse racing and swimming are also popular. The Vaal River facilitates water sports in the forms of jet skiing, water skiing and motor boating. as is the Johannesburg Zoo and the Pretoria Zoo. Botanical gardens in the province include the Pretoria and Walter Sisulu national botanical gardens maintained by the South African National Botanical Institute as well as the Johannesburg and Manie van der Schijff botanical gardens.

The Ticketpro Dome and the Gallagher Convention Centre, which are both popular events and expos venues, are also located within Gauteng. The province also has a Formula One racetrack, the Kyalami Circuit. The most recent F1 race at the venue was in 1993.

References

External links

Gauteng Provincial Government
Gauteng Tourism Authority
Mashatile elected to lead Gauteng