Building Smart Cities Booklet Web

pillars: economy, people, governance, mobility, living, and the environment. However, cities often define their own priorities, adding areas such as healthcare, public safety, and security to their

smart city agendas. Each city, driven by its unique challenges and opportunities, crafts its own vision of what it means to be “smart”.

6.4 Gauteng Smart City Definition

For Gauteng, a smart city is: “A sustainable city that integrates infrastructure, appropriate technology, people, and the economy to enhance quality of life, promote inclusive growth, and drive environmental sustainability through efficient services and data driven solutions.” In the context of this document The Gauteng City Region (GCR) is a dynamic,

interconnected cluster of cities, towns, and urban nodes that together form the economic engine of South Africa. At its core is Gauteng Province, the country’s smallest yet most densely populated province, home to key urban centres that drive national and regional economic growth.

Gauteng City Region Functional Economic Area

Tshwane

Ekurhuleni

Rustenburg

Mogale City

Witbank Middelburg Secunda

Johannesburg

Emfuleni

Potchefstroom

Klerksdorp

Sasolburg

The province includes Johannesburg, once the world’s leading gold mining hub and now South Africa’s financial powerhouse, and Tshwane, the country’s administrative capital. Surrounding these cities are major commercial, industrial, and mining hubs, such as Germiston, Springs, Alberton, Boksburg, Benoni, Vereeniging, Vanderbijlpark, Krugersdorp,

Randfontein, and Westonaria. These areas collectively contribute to Gauteng’s position as the country’s economic epicentre. Beyond Gauteng’s provincial borders, the greater urban region extends into several economically significant towns. To the northwest, Rustenburg has

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