Recipes for Partnering

Case study

Recipes for Partnering:

Ingredients and methods for food system change in South Africa

Key Actors

Economic Development Partnership (EDP), Centre for Cities, Southern Africa Food Lab

Partnering and collaboration are essential elements for food system change, particularly in South Africa where the mandate for food is scattered across government departments, and the food system is largely driven by market forces rather than nutritional needs. There are also many competing approaches to addressing food security, which include providing food aid as a safety net to the poor, increasing food production, prioritising rural development, strengthening consumer agency and government regulation, and improving nutrition and diet.

There are many ways to partner, yet as with any recipe, a partnering process starts with the basics and can be adapted and improved over time. This guide reflects the outcomes of a Recipes for Partnering workshop – held under Food Dialogues 2022 – which brought together government and civil society representatives working to improve food security in the Western Cape. The four case studies included here highlight key elements for success, which we hope provide inspiration for future collaboration. 

The publication was produced in partnership with the Western Cape Economic Development Partnership (EDP), African Centre for Cities, Southern Africa Food Lab, and the South African Food and Farming Trust.



Innovative Local Government Procurement:

Case study

Innovative Local Government Procurement:

Integrating Recycling SMMEs

Report by Local South for the Economic Development Partnership (EDP)

Like many global cities, South Africa’s cities grapple with high volumes of waste and shrinking landfill sites. Small-scale waste recycling centers and informal waste pickers offer a powerful solution: by sorting waste efficiently and economically, they ease the pressure on the city’s waste system while creating local employment.

However, these smaller entities face many challenges when it comes to integrating into the formal recycling economy. Chief among these is navigating government procurement processes, which favor larger companies that can steer through the complex tender processes and meet the stringent requirements.

This means that contractors are slowly displacing local entities already operating in many neighborhoods, while the smaller players are prevented from bringing their real value to the metro areas and citizens alike.

There is hope however. Though four unique case studies developed from field research and interviews with experts, practitioners, city officials in Drakenstein Municipality, eThekwini, Cape Town, and Worcester, the consultancy Local South on behalf of the EDP has identified three innovative ways of successful, safe and legal procurement with small entities.

These case studies provide other African cities with potential models as they pioneer their own approaches toward bringing small businesses into the circular economy. They will be of interest to local, national, and international practitioners, given the huge lack of global research in this area.

Download the full PDF publication.



Going to Waste

Case study

Going to waste

A stuck partnership at a waste reclaiming centre

Key Actors

Multiple municipal departments, non-profits, waste reclaimers

Isaac is stumped. He looks out the window of his municipal office at the passing traffic, hoping for inspiration to emerge from the exhaust fumes of people still on their way to work. He has done everything he can think of to get his colleagues on board with the idea, but they are refusing to budge. The metro-owned waste reclaimer centre downtown has been operating way below full capacity, something that has worried him for many months now. The waste reclaiming centre is not only an integral part of efforts to have a cleaner inner city, but also a key way for the large number of informal waste reclaimers to improve their income, be safer, and have a more dignified work environment. The municipality really can’t afford to miss out on the opportunities provided by this centre, but has been struggling to mobilise resources to operate and manage it at full capacity. The metro has been using its procedures to register a small number of users, but the vast majority of waste reclaimers in the area don’t have access.

When a local non-profit with unique relationships and expert capacity to support approached Isaac and offered to assist in running the facility, he was overjoyed. He could not have thought of a better solution to the problem and finally saw an end to his sleepless nights. He’s still trying to process the response from his colleagues.

“They don’t understand our operating procedures.”
“It will cause more administrative headaches than it’s worth.”
“They will open it up to everyone, we need to make sure only permitted users have access.”
“Why would the non-profit want to do such a thing? Can we really trust them?”

How can Isaac find a way through this that will allow the partnership to move forward, be acceptable to key metro departments and the non-profit, and still benefit the reclaimers?