Cyril Ramaphosa Launches White Paper After Admitting Local Government Is Broken, SA Not Impressed

President Cyril Ramaphosa on Thursday launched the Revised White Paper on Local Government at the Birchwood Hotel in Ekurhuleni, offering what his office described as a comprehensive overhaul of a system he openly conceded is broken.

Speaking at the event on 22 October, Ramaphosa did not mince words about the scale of the problem.

We must therefore acknowledge, without qualification, that too many of our municipalities are failing to meet the needs and expectations of the people they are meant to serve.

The government cannot “build its way out of failure,” President Cyril Ramaphosa says, noting that for too long, municipalities have focused on constructing new infrastructure while neglecting the assets on which communities depend.

Ramaphosa said too many communities had grown accustomed to unreliable services, deteriorating infrastructure and unresponsive municipal administrations.

Nearly three decades after the original White Paper was adopted, we are undertaking a bold reset of the local government system. Local government is the sphere of government closest to the people.

The White Paper also moves away from a one-size-fits-all governance structure. Instead, responsibilities will be calibrated to what each municipality can realistically handle, with functions reassigned to other authorities where local capacity falls short.

The policy document introduces crucial changes, suggesting a review of the current one-size-fits-all approach to municipal powers and functions, and proposes ring-fencing revenue from the sale of water and electricity to ensure municipalities prioritise infrastructure maintenance.