Third Annual Property Conference

Registration for the third annual Property Conference, scheduled to take place from 21 to 22 May 2026, is now officially open.

The conference will bring together property sector experts, municipal and provincial government decision-makers, developers, investors, academic and financial institutions, legal and regulatory specialists, built environment professionals, and members of the media.

Building on the success of the first two conferences, this year’s theme, “From Access to Assets: Scaling Bankable Development on Public Land”, places a sharpened emphasis on implementation, delivery, and scale.

The conference forms part of the Municipality’s broader programme of land-led economic development and investment promotion linked to the Proactive Land Release Strategy.

The central objective is to demonstrate how released municipal land is converted into bankable, income-generating property developments at scale, and how metropolitan municipalities can act as facilitators of capital formation, investor confidence, and inclusive economic growth.

Thapelo Mmusinyane, Director of the City’s Property Management and Valuations Directorate explained: “The primary objectives of the 2026 Property Conference are to demonstrate how municipal land is converted into financeable assets through appropriate lease structuring, governance certainty, and market validation. The event will also showcase projects that have progressed beyond award into financial close, construction, and operation; and identify the factors that enabled bankability.”

He added: “It will also focus on positioning eThekwini Municipality as a market-maker, facilitating investment rather than merely disposing of property, and enabling scale through bundling of sites, repeatable development templates, and sector-specific land release models.”

The conference is expected to deepen engagement with banks and institutional investors, focusing on underwriting requirements, risk allocation, and financial structuring, while also providing forward visibility of land release opportunities and development pipelines.

A major highlight of the event will be closed-door deal rooms aimed at identifying and discussing real-time development and investment opportunities.

Stakeholders in the property development, investment, infrastructure, and built environment sectors are encouraged to register and participate in the conference to explore collaboration opportunities, gain insights into emerging development trends, and engage directly with key industry and government decision-makers.

This year’s Property Conference represents a deliberate transition from policy dialogue to market execution.

It reflects a Municipality that has moved beyond experimentation and is now focused on scalable delivery and measurable economic outcomes.

By integrating land, governance, capital, and execution within a single platform, the conference will reinforce eThekwini’s role as a leader in inclusive, financeable urban development and establish a replicable benchmark for metropolitan municipalities across South Africa.