Paper short abstract:

This paper explores people's preferences of participation in infrastructure and housing provision in Johannesburg. It unpacks how people's support of participation varies depending on their relationship with the state, which is shaped by the infrastructural support they receive from the government.

Paper long abstract:

Public participation in local planning was a promise of the first democratic government in South Africa. Despite efforts for engaging civil society in local governance, participatory schemes fail to achieve what they were set out to accomplish.

Through a factorial survey experiment in a low-income residential area in Johannesburg, this paper explores the people's support of participation by asking them about their preferences for engaging with the local government in infrastructure and housing provision. Of key interest is what forms of participation are perceived to be 'meaningful'. Drawing on the concept of differentiated citizenship, the research furthermore unpacks how public support for participation varies depending on people's existing relationship with the state, which in the given context is largely shaped by the infrastructural support people receive(d) from the state. The survey thus includes a sample with two different groups: people living in state-subsidized housing and people living in backyard dwellings without state support.

The survey experiment allows the examination of how different attributes of participatory processes have an effect on people's support. It furthermore allows a sub-group analysis, which helps unpacking differences between the two sample groups. Overall, this research explores the people's perception of the potential of participation in local infrastructure and housing provision. It serves to deepen the understanding of the differentiated relationships urban dwellers have with the state and explores the role of urban planning practices and infrastructure (here: housing) in facilitating these relationships.