A Visit to Mamelodi, South Africa with Dr. Mark Napier

Mamelodi is a township located about 20 km from Pretoria, one of South Africa’s capital cities. It was developed in the early 1950s with 16 homes for black people who were removed from their homes during apartheid homes and now has a population of over 1milion. My tour guide was Dr. Mark Napier of Urban LandMark. The housing structures varied by material type and structural stability. Dr. Napier informed me that despite appearances, people continue to save money on their own to improve their homes. They often purchase small materials or scavenged materials to incrementally build at whatever capacity that they are able to afford.

Observations

Mix of housing types partially based on district/area: Combination of RDP, self-build brick, shack

Cement shop