Unlocking Johannesburg
OneCity Letter #4
OneCity Letter #4
November 05, 2025
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Municipal Portals:
Bridging the Gap Between Investments, Citizens and Services
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Municipal Portals:
Bridging the Gap Between Investments, Citizens and Services
Hi there,
We’re the OneCity team — making urban and property data more accessible, understandable, and practical.
Each month, we unpack complex frameworks, zoning policies, and market trends as part of our day-to-day work. In these monthly letters, you’ll find simple explanations and valuable insights we’ve gathered along the way — all to help you work more confidently in South Africa’s development landscape.
We’re the OneCity team — making urban and property data more accessible, understandable, and practical.
Each month, we unpack complex frameworks, zoning policies, and market trends as part of our day-to-day work. In these monthly letters, you’ll find simple explanations and valuable insights we’ve gathered along the way — all to help you work more confidently in South Africa’s development landscape.
AI summary:
This email, details South Africa's digital governance evolution, highlighting the need for unified spatial data systems. It assesses data availability from municipal portals in Gauteng cities, noting strengths in cadastral and zoning data, but gaps in land use schemes and infrastructure plans. OneCity proposes solutions for standardised and open data, critical for urban development and aligning with Johannesburg's SDF 2024 updates.
This email, details South Africa's digital governance evolution, highlighting the need for unified spatial data systems. It assesses data availability from municipal portals in Gauteng cities, noting strengths in cadastral and zoning data, but gaps in land use schemes and infrastructure plans. OneCity proposes solutions for standardised and open data, critical for urban development and aligning with Johannesburg's SDF 2024 updates.
What can data tell us about these South African cities?
The current stage of technological evolution has produced multiple digital platforms - from national portals to specialised municipal systems - each designed to make governance smarter and more transparent. Yet, the growing complexity of these tools reveals a critical need for unified, centralised systems that allow users to access all relevant information without navigating multiple websites or departments. Much of the data needed for decision-making remains dispersed across local systems.
Spatial data is the foundation of planning and investment decisions. In South Africa local governments remain the primary and often exclusive providers of this essential information.
The current stage of technological evolution has produced multiple digital platforms - from national portals to specialised municipal systems - each designed to make governance smarter and more transparent. Yet, the growing complexity of these tools reveals a critical need for unified, centralised systems that allow users to access all relevant information without navigating multiple websites or departments. Much of the data needed for decision-making remains dispersed across local systems.
Spatial data is the foundation of planning and investment decisions. In South Africa local governments remain the primary and often exclusive providers of this essential information.
Property Owners
Self-built Developers
Small Developers
Large Developers
Real Estate Agents
Community / NGOs
What We Found
How well are different groups served?
Developers working with Tshwane’s online data appear to have the hardest time - much of the information they rely on remains scattered, unavailable or needs to be obtained manually.
Overall, across Gauteng, professionals working in the field can access roughly 55% of the data they need directly through municipal online platforms. Another 15–16% of their information needs are met through third-party data providers such as LexisNexis, Windeed, or Lightstone. An additional 10–15% is obtained and processed manually from various sources, including Land Use Documents, Integrated Development Plans, and GCRO Quality of Life Surveys. However, between 15% and 45% of the data required remains unavailable or difficult to access.
Developers working with Tshwane’s online data appear to have the hardest time - much of the information they rely on remains scattered, unavailable or needs to be obtained manually.
Overall, across Gauteng, professionals working in the field can access roughly 55% of the data they need directly through municipal online platforms. Another 15–16% of their information needs are met through third-party data providers such as LexisNexis, Windeed, or Lightstone. An additional 10–15% is obtained and processed manually from various sources, including Land Use Documents, Integrated Development Plans, and GCRO Quality of Life Surveys. However, between 15% and 45% of the data required remains unavailable or difficult to access.
Most Accessible and Most Lucrative Datasets
✅
Most available:
Cadastral data (with erf boundaries and basic information), zoning layers, environmental restriction overlays, and nodal classifications are widely accessible across platforms.
❌
Most lacking:
Detailed land use scheme information, such as FAR, coverage, height, and parking standards, is often incomplete (and only partially available in Johannesburg) and must still be processed manually from planning documents. Similarly, information on future infrastructure investments is generally available through Integrated Development Plans (IDPs),but needs to be processed and further verified manualy.
Other critical gaps include socio-economic (social deprovation) data, engineering infrastructure layers and data on school and clinic capacities, all of which are essential for understanding the cost, scale, and impact of new developments.
Finally, ownership and valuation data, while generally accessible through third-party providers, remain to be limited on municipal sources.
✅
Most available:
Cadastral data (with erf boundaries and basic information), zoning layers, environmental restriction overlays, and nodal classifications are widely accessible across platforms.
❌
Most lacking:
Detailed land use scheme information, such as FAR, coverage, height, and parking standards, is often incomplete (and only partially available in Johannesburg) and must still be processed manually from planning documents. Similarly, information on future infrastructure investments is generally available through Integrated Development Plans (IDPs),but needs to be processed and further verified manualy.
Other critical gaps include socio-economic (social deprovation) data, engineering infrastructure layers and data on school and clinic capacities, all of which are essential for understanding the cost, scale, and impact of new developments.
Finally, ownership and valuation data, while generally accessible through third-party providers, remain to be limited on municipal sources.
What’s Next?
None of this is to say that municipal GIS platforms are failing, in fact, they form critical foundation for transparent governance and spatial awareness. However, their fragmentation across jurisdictions and the limited scope of publicly available datasets highlight a clear opportunity for improvement.
For instance, layers representing large spatial zones, such as Nodal Classifications or Transport Corridors, are often difficult to compare or compile, as they overlap with numerous smaller plots and territories. To confirm whether a specific property falls within a restrictive or incentive zone, users typically need to check each layer individually or inquiry municipal authorities manually. At OneCity Insights, we address this challenge by connecting and verifying all available data directly to every plot, ensuring users can instantly see all relevant restrictions, opportunities, and regulatory contexts.
Another obstacle arises when working with third-party datasets, which are often missing unique identifiers such as Surveyor-General (SG) codes or plot keys. This makes it difficult to accurately match and integrate external data with municipal sources.
At OneCity, we work toward the goal of a unified, open system that consolidates all essential spatial and regulatory data in one place - compiling data from multiple sources to help users navigate the complex landscape of planning documents, zones, incentives, and constraints more effectively across the nation.
None of this is to say that municipal GIS platforms are failing, in fact, they form critical foundation for transparent governance and spatial awareness. However, their fragmentation across jurisdictions and the limited scope of publicly available datasets highlight a clear opportunity for improvement.
For instance, layers representing large spatial zones, such as Nodal Classifications or Transport Corridors, are often difficult to compare or compile, as they overlap with numerous smaller plots and territories. To confirm whether a specific property falls within a restrictive or incentive zone, users typically need to check each layer individually or inquiry municipal authorities manually. At OneCity Insights, we address this challenge by connecting and verifying all available data directly to every plot, ensuring users can instantly see all relevant restrictions, opportunities, and regulatory contexts.
Another obstacle arises when working with third-party datasets, which are often missing unique identifiers such as Surveyor-General (SG) codes or plot keys. This makes it difficult to accurately match and integrate external data with municipal sources.
At OneCity, we work toward the goal of a unified, open system that consolidates all essential spatial and regulatory data in one place - compiling data from multiple sources to help users navigate the complex landscape of planning documents, zones, incentives, and constraints more effectively across the nation.
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