Why children are important to us

The South African Cities Network (SACN) was established in 2002 as a network of South African cities and partners that encourages the exchange of information, experience and best practice on urban development and city management. Working through research, knowledge sharing, peer learning and innovation, the SACN is at the forefront of efforts to achieve the urban futures vision outlined in the Integrated Urban Development Framework [IUDF] and the National Development Plan [NDP].

The SACN’s interest in children as urban citizens is couched in its Inclusive Cities Programme and stems from a long-term engagement with ‘youth and city space’ in support of Lever 7 of the IUDF on ‘empowered and active communities’. At the centre of SACN’s approach is the recognition of the need for differentiated tools to support various stages of youth. There is also the critical element of advancing and safeguarding children’s right to the city; through an applied vulnerability lens which prioritises the inclusion of vulnerable groups like women, children and persons with disability, in urban development. SACN’s focus has been on the role and contribution of local government (cities) to wellbeing through their custodianship of the planning, spatial and economic realms.

In 2022 SACN issued a paper series looking at spatial inequalities related to public transport and decent work, early childhood development and ‘othered’ bodies; as part of a search for opportunities for cities to build neighbourhood wellbeing, resilience and inclusion. The paper titled ‘Co-creating Public Spaces for Children to Ease Spatial Inequality’ identifies quality ECD services as a key site of action: co-creating public spaces for children is addressing spatial inequality. The paper and other follow up work on the topic found that much of the issue is that ECD centres face a very disabling regulatory environment around registration and formalisation. The solution lies in a more pragmatic approach to planning regulations, zoning, building standards, etc. SACN later convened of city IDP managers to explore how IDPs could be used to support ECD registration and development.

The SACN has subsequently been part of other communities seeding good practice on child-centred planning, such as the Mimosa Alleyway multistakeholder collective, which is preceded by the development of the Practice Note on Children and Spatial Planning.