‘This cannot continue’: Ramaphosa unveils a bold reset of South Africa’s failing municipalities

Speaking at the launch of the policy document, Ramaphosa said the government must acknowledge, without qualification, that too many municipalities were failing to meet the needs and expectations of the people they are meant to serve.

Nearly three decades after the original White Paper was adopted, we are undertaking a bold reset of the local government system.

Ramaphosa said residents had a right to know what their municipality had promised, what resources it possessed and whether it was delivering on the mandates.

Participation cannot be reduced to meetings where people speak but nothing changes. Trust will not be restored by speeches. It will be restored when a reported fault is fixed promptly [and] when a resident receives an honest response to a complaint.

The document enjoined the national government to support and regulate the work of local government, ensuring that municipalities were equipped to fulfil their responsibilities effectively. The policy framework aimed to strengthen support to municipalities while enabling decisive intervention where necessary to guarantee service delivery.

To achieve that, the policy document introduced crucial changes, suggesting a review of the current one-size-fits-all approach to municipal powers and functions.

Some municipalities are well equipped to carry out particular functions, while others may lack the scale, the revenue base or the capability to do so. Where a municipality is unable to carry out a particular responsibility, that responsibility should be assigned elsewhere.

The revised White Paper outlines measures to professionalize municipal administrations, strengthen financial controls and clarify the division of responsibilities between elected officials and civil servants. The proposed measures aim to ensure that municipalities allocate sufficient resources to maintaining and upgrading their utility networks.

Going forward, revenues from the sale of electricity and water will be ring-fenced and used to maintain infrastructure before anything else.