ABSTRACT
In two recent reviews on the “state of the art” of research work concerning South African economic geography, it was argued that the strength and prominence of LED research represented one of the most distinguishing features of local research (Rogerson, 2000a, 2002a). Within the post-apartheid period a host of different case studies have been conducted concerning the evolving policy and practice of local economic development as applied in the major metropolitan areas, secondary cities and small towns of South Africa (see, for example, Binns and Nel, 2002a, 2002b; Bloch, 2000; Bond, 2002; Maharaj and Ramballi, 1998; Mosiane, 2002; Nel, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2001a, 2001b; Nel and Binns, 2002a, 2002b; Rogerson, 1996, 1997, 1999a, 1999b, 2000b, 2002b, 2003; Walker, 2000). Given this impressive volume of contemporary LED writings, it is apparent that LED research represents one of the leading scholarly growth poles in both contemporary economic geography and South African urban studies (Rogerson, 2002a). The continued momentum of LED research, in part, has been fuelled by several innovations introduced by South African municipalities, especially concerning a recent shift toward the implementation of pro-poor interventions concerning LED. This trend makes the experience of South African municipalities of considerable interest as a potential source of learning or “best practice,” particularly for other countries in the developing South (Clark, 2002; Rogerson, 2003).
