Gauteng is the leading province in service-delivery protests‚ according to research‚ accounting for more than 33% of protests recorded.
The province is followed by Eastern Cape‚ KwaZulu-Natal and North West. All four provinces account for three-quarters of the protests recorded in 2017.
“Gauteng has been the most prominent site for service-delivery protests this year‚ accounting for more than one out of every three protests‚” said Karen Heese‚ an economist at Municipal IQ‚ a local government data and intelligence organisation that collects data on service-delivery protests staged against municipalities.
According to Municipal IQ‚ 2014 holds the record for the highest number of protests‚ followed by 2012. The year 2017 has so far produced the third-highest number of protests‚ accounting for 11% of service-delivery protests since 2004.
“Violent protest activity remains a concern for many South African communities‚ given its adverse impact on schooling‚ work opportunities and community safety.
“It is of further concern that policing of protests appears to add another layer of violence – further destabilising the already vulnerable relationship between communities and authority figures‚” Heese said.
