The most significant thing the ANC has done in Durban (eThekwini Municipality) is likely the advancement of large-scale integrated housing and urban development projects, particularly the Cornubia Integrated Human Settlements Project.
Why Cornubia stands out
- It is a major mixed-use, mixed-income development on ~1,300 hectares north of Durban (a public-private partnership between eThekwini Municipality and Tongaat Hulett).
- It aims to deliver tens of thousands of housing opportunities (plans for ~25,000+ units, including subsidized housing for lower-income families), along with commercial, industrial, retail, and open spaces.
- This aligns with the ANC’s post-1994 national priorities of housing delivery, spatial integration (breaking apartheid-era segregation), and economic development. Phases have been built, with ongoing progress on homes for flood victims and others.
Broader context for ANC governance in Durban since 1994 (when they took national and later strong local control):
- Housing: eThekwini built around 200,000 fully subsidized houses between 1994–2019, plus incremental upgrading of informal settlements (servicing many more families with water, sanitation, roads, etc.). This addressed a massive backlog from apartheid.
- Economic infrastructure: Support for Dube TradePort (an aerotropolis linked to King Shaka International Airport), which has boosted logistics, exports, jobs, and investment.
- Other efforts: Infrastructure expansion, climate resilience initiatives, and catalytic projects for economic growth.
Important caveats
Durban under ANC-led eThekwini has faced serious challenges in recent years, including infrastructure decay (e.g., sewage spills affecting beaches and tourism), service delivery protests, corruption allegations, and declining support in polls. Many residents and critics argue that while early post-apartheid gains in housing and basic services were notable, maintenance and governance quality have deteriorated.
Historically, the ANC also held its landmark 48th National Conference in Durban in 1991, a key step toward democracy, but that’s more symbolic/national than a local governance achievement.
In short, housing and integrated development like Cornubia represent the ANC’s most tangible, large-scale local legacy in Durban — though outcomes have been mixed amid ongoing urban pressures. Views on this are highly polarized depending on political perspective.
