Cyril Ramaphosa launches White Paper after admitting local government is broken; SA not impressed

South Africa’s local-government reform programme has reached an important stage, but analysts have questioned whether the proposed changes will address municipalities’ structural weaknesses or simply create additional administrative requirements.

The revised White Paper on Local Government, which was officially launched this week, proposes reforms to the way municipalities are structured, financed, managed and held accountable. It identifies overlapping mandates, unsustainable finances, corruption and weak administrative capacity among the main challenges facing local government. The original White Paper was introduced in 1998.

President Cyril Ramaphosa, speaking at the launch event on Thursday, said the government must acknowledge, without qualification, that too many of SA’s municipalities are failing to meet the needs and expectations of the people they are meant to serve.

“This cannot continue. It is for this reason that we are launching the Revised White Paper on Local Government,” he said noting that when financial conditions. Government intends to move towards a more differentiated municipal system, including reforms to institutional arrangements, powers and functions, financial sustainability, professional administration and intergovernmental co-ordination.

Gildenhuys said Cabinet had endorsed a time-bound Transition Management Body and a co-ordinated implementation programme involving the. Ramaphosa said the revised White Paper lays the foundation for far-reaching legislative, institutional and financial reform of the entire local government system.