City and Western Cape Government unite to drive innovation ecosystem at Intergovernmental Exchange
01 May 2026
Last week Thursday, 23 April 2026, the City of Cape Town and the Western Cape Government (WCG) joined forces at the UVU Innovation Hub in Woodstock for a high-level Intergovernmental Innovation Exchange. The event brought together approximately 60 innovation champions, policy-makers, and technical leads to deepen collaboration and build a shared, future-fit innovation ecosystem for the province.
‘This Innovation Exchange follows a period of significant accolades for the City’s innovation efforts. The City of Cape Town was recently awarded Top Innovative Municipality in South Africa at the Municipal Innovation Recognition Awards (MIRA) 2025 and was also notably the only municipality in the country to achieve Level 4 Innovation Maturity on the Municipal Innovation Maturity Index (MIMI). This rating demonstrates how the City successfully enables innovation through robust collaboration, strategic partnerships, and active community involvement,’ said the City’s Manager for Innovation and Customer Insights, Bridgette Morris.
The exchange was officially opened by Gareth Morgan, Executive Director of Future Planning and Resilience at the City of Cape Town, and Gerhard Gerber, Head of Department of Environmental Affairs and Development Planning at the Western Cape Government.
‘The intergovernmental exchange was not just about sharing ideas; it was about building relationships and trust necessary to scale what works. By aligning the City of Cape Town’s and the Western Cape Government’s policies and talent, we ensure that Cape Town and the Western Cape as a whole remains the innovation capital of Africa,’ said Gareth Morgan.
The City of Cape Town and the Western Cape Government aim to attract more venture capital by addressing restrictive exchange controls, intellectual property regulations, and risk-averse investment practices. Improving collaboration across sectors and increasing access to funding and incentives are central to boosting research and development.
‘The Western Cape is the tech, startup and venture capital as well as the innovation and design capital of Africa. We have strong technology ecosystems and centres of excellence in a range of industries, with a supportive enabling environment where the adoption of tech and innovation leads to improvement in the productivity and competitiveness of our economy. The Western Cape will be a R1-trillion inclusive economy in real terms and is growing at between 4% and 6% per annum through enabling a competitive business environment,’ said the Deputy Director for Digital Economy Unit at the Western Cape Government, Mahdi Hendricks.
During the intergovernmental exchange, both authorities showcased a range of high-impact projects that leverage technology and creative problem-solving to improve service delivery, namely:
• The City’s Drive-through Motor Vehicle License Renewals. Presented by Wilmot Abrahams (Manager: Specialised Services) and Francois Manuel (Head: Motor Vehicle Registration and Licensing), this facility streamlines administrative efficiency for residents.
• The City’s Dome Education Centre. An initiative led by Lindi Buirski (Manager: Environmental Planning & Sustainability) focusing on environmental awareness and education.
• The City’s Wayleave Management System. Kochiwe Miti (Wayleave Manager) demonstrated how the City is digitizing the coordination of infrastructure works.
• The WCG’s GIS AI Decision Support Tool. Ashley Roman (Project Incubator Manager, WCED) highlighted how Artificial Intelligence is being utilized for data-driven educational planning.
• The WCG Drone Sandbox. Mahdi Hendricks (Deputy Director, Digital Economy Unit) showcased the regulatory and testing environment for drone technology.
• The WCG Sustainable Building Material / ABET. Ronald Mukanya (Director: Sustainability) presented on innovative construction methods and skills development.
The day’s proceedings concluded with a strategic ‘homework’ assignment for all participants, aimed at translating dialogue into long-term action on how both authorities can create a joint innovation ambassador/champion programme? How does the City and the WCG identify shared innovation challenges that need collective and innovative problem-solving? As well as how to improve scaling pathways for innovations across the City and the WCG.
Images are available here.
Caption 1: City of Cape Town and the Western Cape Government (WCG) staff at the UVU Innovation Hub in Woodstock for a high-level Intergovernmental Innovation Exchange.
Caption 2: Opening address by Gareth Morgan, the City’s Executive Director of Future Planning and Resilience.
Caption 3: From left front: Jessica Bobbert(WCG); Helga Links (CCT) Dineo Mogotsi (WCG) ; Natalie Madise (CCT); Tristan Görgens (WCG). From left back: Bridgette Morris and Lisa Parkes (CCT)
Published by:
City of Cape Town, Media Office
