National government was committed to supporting all struggling municipalities to become functional and efficient, President Jacob Zuma said on Thursday, opening the 2014 Presidential Local Government Summit (PLGS), in Midrand.

Also speaking at the PLGS, Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (CoGTA) Minister Pravin Gordhan noted that a recent assessment by his department had shown that, while about a third of South Africa’s municipalities were performing well and another third had the potential to do well, the other third were struggling.

Zuma asserted that, should these struggling municipalities not improve despite support, government would have “no alternative but to use all constitutional powers and legislative opportunities in the quest to ensure that our communities are served better”.

The President noted that the first PLGS had been convened in 2009, in Cape Town, adding that, in recognising the importance of local government, as the government sphere closest to the people, the Presidency felt the need to convene another summit following the 2011 local government elections.

“We have come together because we all agree that the basic services and [the] needs of our people must be met. The fifth administration will, thus, work hard to achieve radical and meaningful change in the performance of local government,” he said.

He stressed that the PLGS had to lead to a focused action plan to strengthen local government by getting the basics right.

Zuma stated that, while the release of the 2011 census had confirmed that progress had already been made in the provision of services to many communities, the Presidency’s Twenty Year Review had highlighted that challenges remained.

“We have to do better to promote good governance and the functioning of municipalities and also in the delivery of services. We should do better in improving services such as water infrastructure, solid waste management [and] the provision of electricity,” Zuma said.

He added that other services, such as refuse removal, the cleaning of streets and the provision of parks and recreational facilities also remained critically important.

Meanwhile, the President said the 2014 PLGS’s deliberations would take place against the background of the National Development Plan (NDP).

He noted that the NDP had identified a number of areas for targeted action in improving governance and administration, such as achieving a clearer separation between the roles of the political principals and the administrative heads of municipalities and improving or reinforcing the accountability and oversight capabilities of local government.

He further said there had to be better audit reports for each local authority each year.

There should also be no compromise in ensuring that officials within municipalities possessed the necessary minimum skills. “This is a key solution to the problems facing local government,” he said.

Gordhan added that government would take a “harsh view” on this in coming months, stating that managers in municipalities would soon start receiving letters identifying employees who were improperly employed or who did not have the necessary skills.

He said the respective managers would then be expected to deal with these persons.

Meanwhile, speaking on how more efficient municipalities could be created, Gauteng Premier David Makhura highlighted the importance of strengthening and building institutions of cooperative governance.

This view was echoed by South African Local Government Association chairperson Thabo Manyoni, who said municipalities’ integrated development plans (IDPs) should become a strategic base document to facilitate cooperation between the three spheres of government.

Cape Town mayor Patricia de Lille added that, to enhance intergovernmental relations, municipalities had to have a real input into the equitable share formula, stating that the financial years of local, provincial and national government also had to be aligned to eliminate challenges relating to the allocation of grant funding.

She further believed there had to be a formal consultation process involving all three spheres of government when new infrastructure was planned and that the funding model for local government had to be reviewed, specifically with regard to energy and electricity sales.

Responding to comments on the need for greater intergovernmental cooperation, Human Settlements Deputy Minister Zou Kota-Fredericks noted that the department was currently working on an Act aimed at addressing issues of integration.

Meanwhile, Zuma stated that a well-functioning local government sector was of the utmost importance to create an enabling environment for the business sector to flourish and be sustainable and for promoting job creation.

The President cited the Business Adopt-a-Municipality programme as being a helpful initiative towards promoting a closer working relationship between government, State-owned entities and the private sector in supporting vulnerable municipalities.

“We encourage more businesses to identify municipalities to support. This will help business to contribute to enhancing service delivery in the local government sphere and improve performance in general for the benefit of the cities and towns,” he said.

Business Unity South Africa president Jabu Mabuza noted that the business community believed it could make a contribution in the local government space.

However, he stated that one area in which there could be more progress was how the municipalities’ IDPs were used to stimulate economic development as opposed to frustrating investors.

GOOD EXAMPLES
Zuma also emphasised that, notwithstanding the identified shortcomings, there were many examples of excellence in local government that South Africa could leverage on.

“There are municipalities that are functioning effectively,” he said.

Gordhan stated that characteristics of a good municipality, which had been identified through CoGTA research, included political and administrative stability, regular and effective council meetings, and spending that was aligned with the municipality’s IDP and capital expenditure plans.

Further, about 7% of an effective municipality’s budget would be allocated to maintenance, Gordhan pointed out.

“We don’t maintain infrastructure as we should, which means that we are, in effect, cutting the lifespan of that infrastructure,” he stated.

An effective municipality would also receive a clean audit, have clear policies and frameworks and the community it served would be satisfied.

Meanwhile, also speaking at the summit, Deputy Finance Minister Mcebisi Jonas said the contraction of the local economy, as a result of global and local factors, had also led to a decline in available resources for the implementation of infrastructure projects in local municipalities.

He added that this situation was not expected to improve in the near future and, therefore, an increased focus had to be placed on efficiency.

“If we do not increase our efficiency, we will reach a situation where we will have to increase our borrowings,” he said, adding that every project had to be undertaken with this in mind.