Reflecting on Green Infrastructure and Spatial Planning in Africa: The Complexities, Perceptions, and Way Forward

Spatial planning decision-making is progressively acknowledging that nature-based solutions are substantially beneficial to urban communities and their host cities. This paper is a meta-study of the current state of spatial planning practice in South Africa, with special focus on nature-based solutions and green infrastructure planning. The complexities and perceptions relating to green infrastructure planning in South Africa is presented, based on the findings of nine independent studies conducted between 2014 and 2018. The collective interpretation of these findings are thematically reported on in terms of (i) the concept of Green Infrastructure as perceived from a local perspective, ii2) the functionality of green infrastructure in local (urban and rural) context, (iii) the benefits (and value) of green infrastructure in local context which probe to be contradicting international accepted theory, and (iv) long term planning strategies and opportunities relating to green infrastructure provision in South Africa and Africa. The paper emphasizes the importance of context-based planning based on the unique considerations illustrated in the (South) African case studies which amongst others disproved the green compensation hypothesis and disproved the green proximity principle. As a result, the paper calls on long-term strategies to align green infrastructure as part of mainstream spatial planning approaches, along with value capturing approaches to sensitize decision-makers to prioritize green infrastructure within broader land-use planning approaches.