Territorial Impact and Responses to COVID-19 in South Africa: Case Studies of eThekwini Metropolitan Municipality and KwaDukuza Local Municipality

Governments played an essential role in mitigating the social, political, health and economic impact and outcomes of COVID-19. Most literature limits the role of the state at the national level by focusing on the pandemic’s impact on economic growth, unemployment, poverty and state responses. This approach neglects the role played by subnational governments in managing the pandemic. In response to this predicament, this article explores the territorial socio-economic impact of COVID-19 and the responses adopted by subnational governments through the case studies of eThekwini Metropolitan Municipality and KwaDukuza Local Municipality in South Africa. A territorial understanding of the pandemic and responses is important because of the spatial dimensions of the pandemic. Methodologically, the article utilises data from a survey conducted with informal workers in the two municipalities. The article shows the diverging impact and responses from the two municipalities, and how pre-existing socio-economic structures reinforced prevailing challenges. The article argues that a territorial understanding of the pandemic allows governments to adopt targeted interventions to enhance the effectiveness of responses to the different spatial dimensions of the pandemic.