South Africa has launched a new smart city in the eastern province of KwaZulu-Natal, which it says will create over 23,000 new jobs and tap the latest technology to offer residents a quality modern life.
Dubbed Westown, the new city is expected to cost R15 billion ($805 million) and to be completed over the next 15 years. Construction of the first phase started recently, with officials stating that it will be a “live, work and play” ecosystem housing residential properties, retail outlets, healthcare facilities, recreational amenities and more.
During the launch, senior project manager Themba Masimula revealed that the city was first conceptualized 15 years ago “to change the development trajectory of the West.”
“The main concern is to ensure that, with this development, we bring about jobs, we bring about shopping and dining in one area,” he told one local outlet.
Being a smart city, Westown will incorporate the latest technology into its operations, Masimula added. This includes managing utilities and instantly reporting any faults, water and waste management, traffic control, and law enforcement.
Local authorities believe that the new smart city will attract massive investment, projecting that it will generate R21 million ($1.1 million) in annual revenue initially but that the figure would hit R500 million ($26 million) once the city’s construction is complete.
South Africa has embarked on similar projects in the past, but many have been abandoned halfway. One of the earlier projects was Lanseria Smart City, which the ruling government under President Cyril Ramaphosa was heavily pushing five years ago. Set to house at least 500,000 South Africans, it was to be built around the Lanseria International Airport. In 2024, the government broke ground on the first construction—a $17 million water treatment project—but it seems to have stalled, according to local reports.
Smart cities have become popular globally with the rising adoption of emerging technologies that improve the quality of life. Big data, machine learning, the Internet of Things (IoT), artificial intelligence (AI), smart meters and urban mobility solutions have all been used to varying success.
Blockchain is also becoming a foundational technology in smart cities to protect data and enhance transparency. In India, Davanagere Smart City leverages blockchain to handle public grievances, a use case that earned it the “Best Use of Blockchain” award a week ago.
Watch Tech of Tomorrow: Diving into the impact of tech in shaping the future
title=”YouTube video player” frameborder=”0″ allow=”accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share” referrerpolicy=”strict-origin-when-cross-origin” allowfullscreen=””>
