Across South Africa, towns face complex challenges: unemployment, unsafe public spaces, limited economic opportunities and fractured local ecosystems. And yet in every community, there are people, ideas and pockets of potential that simply need the right conditions to grow. Pacaltsdorp in George, one of the country’s oldest mission settlements, is an example of this.
Our work in the Pacaltsdorp precinct through the Nedbank-funded Proud of My Town (PoMT) programme continues to show that sustainable community development demands far more than a set of projects. Pacaltsdorp is one of 38 communities across eight provinces where the PoMT programme demonstrates that lasting change takes root when there is a culture of collaboration, a willingness to play the long game of building trust, investment not only in projects but in the process, strengthened local capacity and the creation of environments where people can thrive.
PACALTSDORP – RICH IN HISTORY AND HERITAGE {IMAGE BY LIZELLE LÖTTER PHOTOGRAPHY}
COMMUNITY FOOD GARDEN – FOR THE COMMUNITY, BY THE COMMUNITY {IMAGE BY LIZELLE LÖTTER PHOTOGRAPHY}
Listening shapes better solutions
The journey in Pacaltsdorp began with listening. In 2023, residents participated in a DNA Mapping workshop that created the space to speak openly about the community’s strengths, challenges and aspirations.
Ranyaka’s DNA mapping sessions, facilitated by our team of urban planners and community development specialists, establish a shared starting point. We often say that paper is patient. When local stakeholders gather around tables with Koki pens ready to score their community’s pain points and opportunities, those A0 pages become a living conversation. Through these sessions, we build the relational foundation needed for partnerships. The insights from these workshops directly inform the plans we then go on to develop with communities.
A few weeks later, Pacaltsdorp representatives attended sessions at the Shaping the Future Global Conference in George, hosted by Ranyaka and the Institute for Technology and Society (ITS). Their participation brought local voices to broader development conversations and ensured a strong link between the realities at grassroots levels and global perspectives.
Later that year, we returned to Pacaltsdorp to hold a feedback session with community members. Our team presented the findings from the DNA mapping workshop and discussed emerging priorities for the work ahead. Through these sessions, we acknowledge that the information we gather belongs to the community and ensure that planning happens with residents and local stakeholders, and not for them.
FEEDBACK SESSION WITH PACALTSDORP COMMUNITY MEMBERS AND STAKEHOLDERS
Entrepreneurship as a catalyst for local change
In virtually every town we work, entrepreneurship surfaces as one of the strongest drivers of resilience. Many households rely on small businesses for income, and when one strengthens local businesses, one helps ensure that economic activity circulates close to home. Through the Building Business programme, the first major milestone for Pacaltsdorp was a three-day business training workshop attended by 30 small business owners.
Entrepreneurs received practical guidance in branding, marketing, design, financial management and the techniques required to pitch their business ideas. Twenty-six of the participants took part in the final pitching challenge, which gave them practical exposure to funders and partners, and offered a glimpse into the enterprise potential within the community.
This momentum led to the formation of the Pacaltsdorp business cooperative. As confidence grew, 17 entrepreneurs committed to contributing a small monthly amount to build shared opportunity.
PACALTSDORP BUILDING BUSINESS PROGRAMME
FROM LEFT TO RIGHT: LUWAYDA TRANTAAL (PACALTSDORP COMMUNITY BUSINESS ASSOCIATION), BARBARA DELO (COMMUNITY MEMBER), JACOBS TRANTAAL (PACALTSDORP COMMUNITY BUSINESS ASSOCIATION) AND JULIANA SIMMERS (COMMUNITY MEMBER) {IMAGE BY LIZELLE LÖTTER PHOTOGRAPHY}
BUILDING BUSINESS PROGRAMME PARTICIPANTS, PITCHING COMPETITION WINNERS AND REPRESENTATIVES FROM RANYAKA AND NEDBANK
Thriving places need thriving spaces
Place matters. As an urban planning non-profit, Ranyaka continually emphasises the importance of investing in the physical environment where communities work, live and play. Place has the power to shape our lives and so we, in turn, should be intentional about shaping the places we call home.
Ranyaka’s Fix Your Space programme focuses on exactly that: revitalising spaces to become not only more visually appealing, but also more functional and attractive to further investment. On 30 July 2025, Ranyaka, Nedbank and local volunteers joined forces for such a Fix Your Space activation at the Pacaltsdorp Community Business Association’s office. Together, the team cleaned, repainted and refreshed the building — creating an even more welcoming space for community and business activity.
Exploration of a potential Thrive Hub site has also generated interest from the community. Thrive Hubs are one of Ranyaka’s core pillars because they bring people, services and opportunity into a single, accessible place. In Pacaltsdorp, such a hub could serve as a central point for entrepreneurs and young people seeking access to skills development, networks and pathways to economic activity.
FIX YOUR SPACE PROJECT, PACALTSDORP COMMUNITY BUSINESS ASSOCIATION OFFICES – JULY 2025
AT THE FIX YOUR SPACE DAY – FROM LEFT TO RIGHT: SINOVUYO NONGOGO, ATACIA BROWN (NEDBANK), GRANT GEZWINT (NEDBANK), RUFUS DE REUCK (NEDBANK), LUWAYDA TRANTAAL (PACALTSDORP COMMUNITY BUSINESS ASSOCIATION), AMY LEVENDAL, MANDY TAYLOR (MANDY’S CREATIONS), VENA FREDERICKS AND RUKSANA MANGERA
FIX YOUR SPACE PROJECT, PACALTSDORP COMMUNITY BUSINESS ASSOCIATION OFFICES – JULY 2025
Growing skills and strengthening food systems
Food security remains a daily concern for many families, and interest in small-scale agriculture is strong in Pacaltsdorp. In late 2025, Ranyaka partnered with The Green Garden Foundation and the Pacaltsdorp Community Business Association to host a regenerative agriculture training programme. Nedbank sponsored the necessary garden equipment and Ranyaka’s agri expert, Ryan Marsden, shared practical skills in soil health, water-wise farming, erosion control and basic agri-enterprise planning.
“Our garden community learned so much, and with this knowledge, they can now help others who were not able to attend.” – Luwayda Trantaal, Pacaltsdorp Community Business Association
“The training felt like a dream come true for our 7th generation nursery programme. We are excited for the future and to grow GGF into an even stronger organisation.” – Deputy Maryanne Witbooi, Green Garden Foundation
“Turning the garden into a profitable enterprise, while providing education and training to ECDs, community members and GBV survivors, is the ultimate dream.” – Purdey September, Ranyaka Project Lead
REGENERATIVE AGRICULTURE TRAINING, NOVEMBER 2025 {IMAGE BY HOPESTERS MEDIA | MEGAN CUNNINGHAM AND DANIEL HUMAN}
TOP LEFT: RANYAKA AGRI-EXPERT, RYAN MARSDEN, PROVIDED HANDS-ON TRAINING. TOP RIGHT: LUWAYDA TRANTAAL (PACALTSDORP COMMUNITY BUSINESS ASSOCIATION) AND ANCELEEN TERBLANCE (THE GREEN GARDENS FOUNDATION). BOTTOM LEFT: MEANDEEN BOESAK, THE GREEN GARDENS FOUNDATION). BOTTOM RIGHT: ANDREW FLUKS (THE GREEN GAREN FOUNDATION), RYAN MARSDEN (RANYAKA), GRANT GEZWINT (SENIOR MARKET MANAGER, CLIENT NETWORKS, WESTERN CAPE, NEDBANK) AND PROJECT LEAD, PURDEY SEPTEMBER (RANYAKA) {IMAGES BY HOPESTERS MEDIA | MEGAN CUNNINGHAM AND DANIEL HUMAN}
A foundation for what comes next
Two years into the journey, Pacaltsdorp reflects the power of steady progress. Our work to date has focused on building networks, strengthening local skills, improving shared spaces and encouraging a culture of collaboration.
Across the country, we see time and again how thriving communities emerge at the intersection of local energy, institutional support and shared purpose. Pacaltsdorp has given us a glimpse of what becomes possible when partners commit to walking the path together, one practical step at a time. The next exciting chapters in this journey await. Thank you to every community member and local stakeholder who has been demonstrating what it means to be an active citizen. Thank you for welcoming us into your community. It is a privilege to journey with you.
