Dear Fellow South African,
The progress being made by the eThekwini metro towards stabilisation demonstrates how effective leadership, coordinated action and strong societal partnerships can support struggling municipalities to regain their footing.
Last week, I met with the Presidential eThekwini Working Group stakeholders, which include national government, provincial government, local government, business, community-based organisations and organised labour. We established the working group in 2024 in response to concerns from business and residents about the city’s decline.
At the time, the metro was beset by service delivery failures, deteriorating infrastructure and sliding business and investor confidence.
Two years later, the interventions undertaken to tackle poor service delivery and failing infrastructure are driving an effective sustained recovery in the metro.
The Durban Business Confidence Index is at its highest level since it was established. In the manufacturing sector, confidence has risen by nearly 16% quarter-on-quarter, a significant development for a city with a major port and a strong industrial base. Tourism has also rebounded strongly, with more than 1.2 million visitors to the metro during the recent festive season. In addition, key infrastructure projects are underway and we are seeing improvements in safety and security coordination across the metro.
While stabilisation is not the same as a complete turnaround and the metro still faces significant challenges, the experience of eThekwini offers a viable model for coordination and partnership that can be replicated in other metros and municipalities to enable them to recover.
The working group approach is based on the District Development Model, which we launched in 2019 to improve service delivery by fostering collaboration across all three spheres of government. The model has proven effective in addressing challenges in government, but more importantly has encouraged various stakeholders to work together. It is designed to bring together government, business, labour and civil society to accelerate turnaround strategies.
Last year, the eThekwini metro approved a Partnerships Framework as a mechanism for public-private cooperation, particularly on infrastructure and catalytic projects. For business, supporting local government turnaround has a direct economic benefit because improved service delivery strengthens the economic environment in which companies operate.
Drawing on lessons learned from the eThekwini Working Group, last year we established the Presidential Johannesburg Working Group, which is focused on governance, service delivery, infrastructure, urban renewal and safety.
While working groups can contribute to stabilising municipalities, sustained progress depends on strengthening institutional capacity across the entire local government system. Municipalities must be able to deliver on their constitutional mandates without the need for national intervention.
The review of the White Paper on Local Government currently underway will result in a far-reaching overhaul of the entire local government system. Among the reforms under consideration are a differentiated approach to municipal powers and responsibilities; improving appointment processes for senior municipal officials; and stronger cooperation between municipalities and traditional leadership institutions.
Financial stability is a major challenge for municipalities.
A number of municipalities are characterised by poor revenue management and rising municipal debt. Audit outcomes show that around two-thirds of municipalities are in financial distress. Without stronger revenue management and financial discipline, service delivery challenges will persist and backlogs will only worsen.
The revenues collected from service provision are meant to be reinvested into maintaining and upgrading infrastructure to improve service delivery. However, in far too many instances these resources are redirected to cover other costs.
To address this problem, R27.7 billion has been allocated over the next three years to encourage metros to reform their water, sanitation, solid waste and electricity services. Government is reforming the municipal infrastructure grant to address persistent underspending, misuse of funds and capacity constraints.
The progress being made in eThekwini and other municipalities is part of a broader programme of reforms that are contributing to better economic growth and improved business confidence. The reforms we are undertaking in the energy, water, telecommunications and logistics sectors are already making an impact on the efficiency and competitiveness of our economy.
The progress being made in eThekwini to rebuild capacity and restore accountability shows how municipalities can achieve a turnaround with political will and the involvement of stakeholders and residents.
When local government fails, the impact is felt by communities, businesses and households. When local government works well, villages, towns and cities become engines of opportunity and growth.
With local government elections on the horizon, this is an opportunity for all stakeholders to work together – not to campaign for the ballot box, but to renew the promise of local government to uphold the dignity and improve the life of every citizen.
SUPPLIED.
