The Gathering 2026: Cities Edition returns to ask whether South Africa’s cities can be fixed

Daily Maverick’s premier event, The Gathering, returns on Friday, 11 September 2026 at the Cape Town International Convention Centre (CTICC), brought to you in partnership with Ninety One. General access tickets, priced from R750 to R1,700, are on sale now.

Daily Maverick, The Gathering 2025. (Photo: David Harrison)

This year’s theme, Cities, turns Daily Maverick’s flagship Gathering towards the places where most South Africans experience government every day: their own cities. With local government elections set for 4 November 2026, The Gathering 2026 asks a single, practical question: how can South African cities be fixed? Not in theory, but in practice, one broken streetlight, one abandoned building, one contract at a time.

The day is built around a single narrative told across four chapters, moving from the state cities are in today, through safety and crime, to the economics of urban decline and recovery, and finally to leadership and what comes next. Each chapter brings together journalists, officials, researchers and civic leaders for a pointed, evidence-led conversation rather than platitudes.

Daily Maverick, The Gathering 2025. (Photo: David Harrison)

Speakers (Wave 1)

Daily Maverick has confirmed the first wave of speakers for The Gathering 2026, with further names to be announced closer to the event:

• Jillian Green, editor-in-chief, Daily Maverick;
  
• Tsakani Maluleke, Auditor-General;
  
• Songezo Zibi, chairperson, Parliament’s Standing Committee on Public Accounts (Scopa);
  
• Sean Phillips, director-general of Water and Sanitation;
  
• Ferrial Adam, executive director, WaterCAN;
  
• Andy Mothibi, National Director of Public Prosecutions (NPA);
  
• Edwin Cameron, author and judge;
  
• Rebecca Gore, author and advocate of the high court;
  
• James Delaney, contemporary artist;
  
• Helen Zille, DA Johannesburg mayoral candidate;
  
• Herman Mashaba, president, ActionSA;
  
• Bea Swanepoel, group CEO, Jozi My Jozi;
  
• Professor Edgar Pieterse, director, African Centre for Cities;
  
• Geordin Hill-Lewis, Democratic Alliance leader; and
  
• Denise van Huyssteen, CEO, Nelson Mandela Bay Business Chamber.

Partners

The Gathering 2026 is brought to you in partnership with Ninety One, with additional support from Binance, the Friedrich Naumann Foundation and Wits University. Community and delivery partners including Jozi My Jozi, Mission for Inner City Cape Town, Lift, Plantify, Politically Aweh and Home Suite Hotels are helping to bring the day’s civic focus to life.

Daily Maverick, The Gathering 2025. (Photo: David Harrison)

What awaits you

• Sharp, evidence-led debate on water, safety, crime, the economy and city leadership;
  
• Direct access to the officials, journalists, researchers and civic leaders shaping South Africa’s cities; and
  
• A programme built for the run-up to the 4 November local government elections, connecting national headlines to the streets residents actually live on.

Whether attending in person at the CTICC or joining online, The Gathering 2026 invites South Africans from all walks of life to join a community dedicated to shaping the future of the country’s cities. A virtual livestream option is also planned, with registration details to follow.

Event details

• Date: 11 September 2026
  
• Location: Cape Town International Convention Centre
  
• Time: Doors open 09:00
  
• Tickets: R750 to R1,700, with a 10% discount offered to Maverick Insiders

Buy tickets here: www.webtickets.co.za.