From Zama zamas running riot, water cuts, blackouts, exploding streets, political instability. The list goes on. Is the City of Gold in a death spiral?

Nickolaus Bauer examines the current crisis by starting right at the beginning, with Johannesburg’s origins as a cauldron of cultures and a hustler’s haven.

He looks at how a city of migrants turned into a xenophobic hotspot, how the politics of gold, the shadow of apartheid and the evolution of the tsotsi – crime and criminality – affect life in Johannesburg today, and what can be done about these.

With chapters on redlining, the walkability of the city, corporate corruption, mayoral musical chairs and the proliferation of illegal backyard buildings, Great Johannesburg provides a comprehensive analysis of the current malaise, as it outlines possible solutions. Bauer, ultimately provides hope about how we can rescue Africa’s economic powerhouse.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Nickolaus Bauer has covered Johannesburg as a political journalist since 2008 and lived in the inner city from 2010, 8 years of which were in Hillbrow and 5 years in the Ponte Towers. He worked within the Johannesburg city administration as a Deputy Director for the Environment and Infrastructure Services Department in 2022.

'Great Johannesburg: What happened? How to save an African economic giant' is published by Tafelberg, an imprint of NB Publishers