Gauteng
The Gauteng Province is found in the heart of South Africa’s
Highveld region, and is landlocked by the neighbouring provinces of Limpopo,
Mpumalanga, Free State, and the North West.
Three main urban centres, which make up the province, are:
While Gauteng is the smallest province of South Africa, it is also the most highly urbanised and densely populated. The province houses 22% of South Africa’s population on only 1.4% of the country’s land area.
Gauteng was founded during the gold rush of the 1880’s, giving rise to the name, meaning ‘city of gold’ in Sotho. After gold was discovered on the Witwatersrand in 1886, Gauteng became the biggest gold producing city in the world. Since then, Gauteng has grown into the highly populated financial hub of South Africa.
Today Gauteng is a popular destination to live in as it provides plenty of employment opportunities through its economic sectors of financial and business services, logistics and communications, and mining. Joburg and Pretoria are the most popular areas for employment.
The area of Gauteng extends from Pretoria in the north to Vereeniging in the south; the province is considered to be a cosmopolitan destination due to its multicultural mix of people.
Gauteng offers easy access for residents to attractions in neighbouring provinces such as The Vaal River, which runs between Gauteng and the Free State province.
Public transportation is easily accessible and has been made even easier with the addition of the Gautrain. Residents, tourists and business people alike can choose to use the Gautrain from any of the convenient stations in Rosebank, Johannesburg CBD, Marlboro, Sandton, Rhodesfield or from the OR Tambo International Airport Station.
