From the scrappy metal shacks packed tightly on the banks of the thin Jukskei river, the sparkly skyline of Johannesburg's richest neighbourhood less than two miles away was another world.

Bags of refuse for sale to recycling companies lined a muddy path to a vegetable garden tended by residents of the informal settlement at the foot of the high-rises of Sandton, South Africa's economic hub.

A light powered by a makeshift electrical connection shone at the doorway of the rusted shack where Bryan lived with his wife and nine-year-old son.

"Here in Sandton, there are a lot of people and companies that have money," said the 34-year-old security guard, who would only give his first name for fear of losing his job.

But, "we don't have access", he said with a shrug, a cigarette in his hand.

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