Cape Town airport name change on hold… for now
Cape Town International Airport
Image: David Ritchie/IOL
The proposal to rename Cape Town International Airport after the Khoi woman Krotoa is stuck on the runway, with officials saying the application cannot proceed until proper public consultation is completed.
The update was provided in response to a question raised in the Western Cape Provincial Parliament by Patriotic Alliance MPL Bazil Petrus.
Petrus wanted to know what was happening with the application.
He also asked what safeguards are in place to make sure the rules are applied fairly.
Western Cape cultural affairs and sport MEC Ricardo Mackenzie responded to Petrus, saying the application has not yet met all the legal requirements.
Mackenzie said the Krotoa Foundation formally submitted its application on July 2 2025, though the foundation has been calling for the renaming for the past four years.
Krotoa, also known as Eva van Meerhof, was a Khoi woman who lived in the 17th century and served as an interpreter between indigenous Khoi communities and Dutch settlers during the early colonial period at the Cape.
She first worked as a servant in Jan van Riebeeck’s household.
It is reported that she excelled in the Dutch setting and eventually became Van Riebeeck’s translator, which later made her instrumental in working out terms for ending the first Dutch-Khoi war in the Cape.
The renaming proposal was placed before the Western Cape Provincial Geographical Names Committee at its meeting in August.
At that meeting, the committee noted that an important part of the application was still outstanding.
"The committee considered the application and noted that the section of the application relating to public consultation remains outstanding," he said.
Under the SA Geographical Names Council Act of 1998 and the handbook that governs geographical name changes, applicants must show clear proof of a comprehensive and inclusive public participation process, Mackenzie explained.
He said it was a legal requirement, particularly when the proposed change involves major infrastructure such as an international airport.
Mackenzie said the Western Cape Provincial Geographical Names Committee continues to apply the legislative framework "impartially and consistently" to all applications.
"To ensure that the application is processed fairly and transparently, the Western Cape Provincial Geographical Names Committee continues to apply the legislative framework impartially and consistently," he said.
"The applicant was invited to attend a meeting of the committee on August 18, during which the applicant was guided through the application requirements.
"The committee further assisted the applicant in understanding the nature, scope, and importance of conducting public consultation, including the type of evidence required to complete the submission."
The Krotoa Foundation previously said: “Krotoa is an important name.
"We feel very disappointed in the lack of action from government.
"We understand that as the first indigenous generation we are not in charge, and the government will make things difficult for us.
"But we can’t stop and we will continue until justice is done… irrespective of how things will turn out for us."
IOL News