Diepsloot, Johannesburg

Diepsloot is a densely populated township in the North of Johannesburg, South Africa. Diepsloot, loosely translated as "deep ditch" from the Afrikaans, is one of Johannesburg's most densely populated townships. Established in 1994, by what was at the time known as: 'the Rand Provincial Administration'; for people who had initially been evicted from informal settlements in Honeydew, Sevenfontein, Zandspruit and Alexandra. It is made up of fully government-subsidised housing, brick houses built by landowners, partially government subsidised houses as well as shacks. (These shacks are built on any piece of land with nothing already on it. Some landowners charge rent to others to stay in a shack on their land.) There are an estimated 50 000 plus shacks alongside more than 8 000 formal housing units, such as RDP (RDP houses: a house that was built as part of a government-funded social housing project) houses, self-built houses on serviced sites, and a small number of bank-financed houses. The formal dwellings are mostly brick structures on separate stands, with access to electricity, tap water, flush or chemical toilets and refuse removal at least once a week. In less than 20 years, Diepsloot has grown into a bustling neighbourhood covering approximately 5 square kilometres with a population of more than 350,000. Statistics South Africa says Diepsloot has an employment rate of only; between 53% to 56 %. Despite its socio-economic challenges, Diepsloot is a vibrant neighbourhood with residents that are optimistic and determined to make better lives for themselves. There are a number of active community development organisations in Diepsloot including The Diepsloot Community Development Forum, Diepsloot Arts and Culture Network, WASSUP Diepsloot, Diepsloot Youth Projects etc.