Vanderbijlpark

Vanderbijlpark (pronounced fʌndɪɹbeɪlpɑːɹk) is an industrial city next to the Vaal River in southern Gauteng, South Africa. It is home to Vanderbijlpark Steel (previously part of ISCOR (Iron and Steel Corporation), now part of the global company Mittal). With neighbouring towns Vereeniging and Sasolburg it forms the Vaal Triangle, a major industrial region of South Africa. Located in the district municipality of Sedibeng and the local municipality of Emfuleni.

The black townships Boipatong, Bophelong, Sebokeng and Sharpeville are close to the city.

VECOR, the largest comprehensive heavy engineering works in the Southern HemisphereFact|date=October 2007, is also located in Vanderbijlpark.

Vanderbijlpark is also home to Cape Gate (Pty) Ltd, a major market share holder in the wire industry.

History

It all started when Dr HJ van der Bijl, a brilliant young scientist working in the United States at the time, was called back to South Africa in 1920 by the then Prime Minister Jan Smuts to advise the government on planning South Africa's industrial developmentFact|date=October 2007. Van der Bijl oversaw the Iron and Steel Corporation's first plant at Pretoria, but with the increased demand after World War II, 100 km² was bought to build a large steel works and model town. The steel works began operating in 1947 and the town was proclaimed in 1949. The town attained municipal status in 1952 when Governor General Dr EG Jansen opened ISCOR's second steel works.

uburbs

Vanderbijlpark has been designed in a circular design, which differs from the tradional grid design of towns. The town is divided into four distinct residential blocks, namely:
* CE (Central East)
* CW (Central West)
* SE (South East)
* SW (South West)

[http://wikimapia.org/10153999/Vanderbijlpark-CBD Vanderbijlpark CBD on Wikimapia]

The different suburbs are then named as follows:
* CE1
* CE2
* CE3
* CE4

* CW1
* CW2
* CW3
* CW4

* SE1
* SE2
* SE3
* SE4
* SE6
* SE7
* SE8

* SW1
* SW2
* SW5

The other suburbs of Vanderbijlpark are:
* Boipatong
* Bophelong
* Bonnane
* Flora Gardens

There are also a number of areas with small holdings in Vanderbijlpark:
* Theoville
* Lamont Park

Education

There are over 60 primary and secondary schools within the Vaal Triangle area. Of these, 16 primary and 8 secondary schools are located in Vanderbijlpark.

Tertiary Education

The "Vaal Triangle Campus" of the North-West University is located in Vanderbijlpark. This campus is situated on the banks of the Vaal River and has student numbers exceeding 3000.

Demographics

According to the 2001 Census, Vanderbijlpark occupies an area of 233 km². The population is 80,201, which can be broken down as follows: 70.2% White, 28.7% Black, 0.8% Coloured and 0.4% Asian. The population density is 344 persons per km² (888 persons per mi²). [http://mapserver.statssa.gov.za/GeographyWebsite/AdvancedReporting/stats_index.html]

External links

* [http://www.sedibeng.gov.za Sedibeng District Municipality]
* [http://www.emfuleni.gov.za Emfuleni Local Municipality]
* [http://www.iscor.com/ Mittal Steel South Africa]
* [http://www.mittalsteel.com/ Mittal Steel]
* [http://www.vaaltriangleinfo.co.za Vaal Triangle Info]
* [http://www.nwu.ac.za/ North-West University]
* [http://www.saferplaces.org/gauteng/Vanderbijlpark.html More information on Vanderbijlpark]