An Overview of South Africa's Metropolitan Areas - Dualistic, Dynamic and under Threat…

The article explores the threats posed to metropolitan viability and resilience in South Africa which is faced by continued spatial and economic concentration and duality - a trend also evident in a number of Central European countries. Examples are provided of trends and challenges impacting the resilience of South Africa's metropolitan regions, as identified in recent empirical studies conducted by the authors.¹ The paper argues that the agglomeration challenges facing South Africa's metropolitan regions and complications brought about by intra-metropolitan inequality are key aspects underlying the resilience of these regions. The article also suggests that there might be value in greater collaboration in research and knowledge-production and sharing in metropolitan planning, development and governance, between South African metropolitan regions and those in Central European countries.