Local government in south africa is inundated with a variety of challenges including the. Local government is the third level of government deliberately created to bring. The africa survey is a comprehensive collection of close on 2,000 economic, social and political indicators drawn from more than 80 sources for all african countries. Contents acknowledgements v acronyms vi introduction 1 chapter 1. Members of society have sustainable and reliable access to basic services. Thinking differently about local economic development and.
The study forms the south africa component of the login africa research project local e governance in africa, a study conducted in nine african countries. Local government, local governance and sustainable. Local municipalities join their provincial association. Agenda 2063 is the blueprint and master plan for transforming africa into the global powerhouse of the future. The focus of the cplg in thailand has been about bringing power down to the people. Pdf developmental local government in south africa. Good governance africa promoting better governance in. Democracy and governance in africa democratization in. Two countries, ethiopia and south africa, have chosen a federal, or quasifederal system. Metropolitan municipalities defined as category a govern the major city regions. Constructing local school governance organization and overview chapter 1 the context of educational governance policy in south africa apartheid educational structures the nineties. South african local government association salga is a listed public entity, established in terms of section 21 of the companies act, 1973 act 61 of 1973, and recognised by the minister of cooperative governance and traditional affairs, in terms of the organised local government act, 1997 act 52 of 1997. Local government was established in 1909 when the four former colonies became provinces. This book presents case studies of public participation in democratic governance in south africa.
Today, around 23 of sdcs country programmes include a support to local governance andor decentralisation. It examines the voluntary activities by which members of the public share in the processes of governance through democratic institutions. Educational decentralization and school governance in. Public participation in democratic governance in south africa. The role of political parties at the local government level. In this booklet we try to capture, in brief and simple terms, the structure of the government of south africa, that is, its three spheres and other important bodies such as parastatals, statutory commissions, public entities, and research institutions. Since the first truly democratic election in 2000, south africa has made significant progress toward strengthening local democracies. Local governance service delivery issues during apartheid and postapartheid south africa 7 the first key concept is governance, defined as the process of making decision and the process by which those decisions are implemented in institutions united nations. The machinery of government structure and functions of.
State of local government in south africa south african government. It is the strategic framework for delivering on africas goal for inclusive and sustainable development and is a concrete manifestation of the panafrican drive for unity, selfdetermination, freedom, progress and collective prosperity pursued under pan. Local government is enshrined within the constitution, which. These constitutional and legislative frameworks include the constitution of the republic of south africa, 1996 rsa, act 108 of 1996 and the local government. Contents acknowledgments ix 1 political development in south africa 1 2 patterns of local governance. Pdf local governance and public participation in southern africa. The studies further deals with a critique of cooperative governance and intergovernmental relations in the eastern cape and discuss the perspective on service delivery. Traditional leadership and its future role in local governance. Citizens participation and local governance in south east asia were involved in the peoples alliance for democracy that led some of the protests against prime minister thaksin of the thai rak thai party in september 2006. This means that the local government has the right to establish and operate in the activ ities and functions that are recognized by law.
The publication carefully explains the legal dispensation for local governments and addresses key issues in local government administration. Key anticorruption activities in south africa, 19971999 5 table 1. Africas colonial legacy 23 3 the colonial origins of local control in south africa 43 4 authoritarian institutions and governance. Local government, local governance and sustainable development. Africas continuing reliance on foreign aid has increased the opportunities for bilateral and multilateral aid agencies to influence policy making in the region. The south african geographical names council is a statutory body that deals specifically with changing names of places in south africa, including municipalities. Introduction the existence of local government has always been defended on the basis that it is a crucial aspect of the process of democratization and intensification of mass participation in the decisionmaking process. The concept of a municipal council and the authority of the municipal council are recognised in the constitution of 1996 and in national legislation.
A brief history of local government in south africa. The whole of south africa is divided into local municipalities. Each was governed by a whiteelected provincial council with limited legislative powers. Pdf this chapter surveys the state of public participation and local governance in southern africa, more specifically in the countries of angola. With a multidisciplinary outlook, the journal will stimulate service delivery and performance challenges being faced in government.
Local government and poverty in south africa background research series municipal services project 2 1. Before 1994, south africa had over 2 000 municipalities but today, with a population of approximately 52million people, south africa has 278 municipalities with an average of 172 000 people per municipality. Each case study outlines a number of opportunities for, and constraints to, public participation in democratic processes. We also look at the various elements that contribute. Local governance service delivery issues during apartheid. The limits of democratic governance in south africa. Updated annually, with trend analysis and capacity for tailored research, it is an indispensable resource for analysts, investors and business people alike. Citizens participation and local governance in south east. Local government, local governance and sustainable development getting the parameters right introduction since 1994, south africa has experienced a steep learning curve with regard to institutional design in general, and local government in particular. An overview of decentralization and local governance in eastern and southern africa. Apartheid municipalities played a critical role in enforcing segregation and dispossessing and impoverishing the black masses. The administrator of each province was appointed by the central government and presided over an executive committee representing the majority party. They must also be exposed and be prepared to face the challenges of leadership in developing society. Assessing the quality of local government in south africa barak d.
The challenges of leadership and governance in africa. Concept paper on decentralisation and local governance 2 1. In commenting on decentralization, local governance and recentralization in africa wunsch, 2001, this article concurs with the general thesis of wunsch that the actual implementation. In order to critically evaluate the notion of cooperative governance and. Introduction sdc has been implementing projects in support to decentralisation and local governance for about 15 years. Matching policies on rural development and local governance in south africa. State structures at the base 89 6 the urban local state in the apartheid era 127. Although it shares some of the same features as its partners, in terms of socioeconomic diversity and regional influence in particular, it is distinguished by the size of its economy and population which are significantly smaller than those of the other. Departing from the fact that climate change poses localized effects, this article critically considers from a legal perspective the role of local authorities in the south african governments response to climate change. Paper on local government and the municipal systems act contain provisions that enjoin local government to promote the fundamental rights to environment. The international framework is not intended to replace national and sectoral governance codes. Pdf this paper provides a brief introduction to the recent history of, as well as the legal and policy framework for, local government in south. An overview of decentralization and local governance in.
Anticorruption monitoring and enforcement agencies in south africa 15 table 2. South africas medium term strategic framework 2014 to 2019 identifies the following suboutcomes to ensure a responsive, accountable, effective and efficient developmental local government system. Nigeria, which used to be the only federal state in africa, has adopted a new constitution that maintains the federal framework and gives more powers to its subnational governments. Notes and references edit with the exception of the prince edward islands, although they are for certain legal purposes deemed to fall within the city of cape town. The constitutional and legislative frameworks that underpin governance in municipalities are identified and explained. The south african local government association salga is the official representative of local government. The aim of good governance in the public sector international framework is to encourage better service delivery and improved accountability by establishing a benchmark for good governance in the public sector. District municipalities, category c, are for wider areas outside the cities, like counties in the us and uk.
Africa shows an impressive institutional creativity. Principles of south african local government law is a comprehensive resource on local government law in south africa. Strategies for enhancing good governance in south african. There are 278 municipalities in south africa, comprising eight metropolitan, 44 district and 226 local. This debate does not an earlier and shorter version of rlis paper appears in constitutiun and law lv. Standards are not the same in respect of certain elements of good government. South africas constitutional system is characterised by its integrated and cooperative nature, in contrast to the competitive federal system which exists in countries such as canada and the united states. Shortcomings of accountability in south african local governance. Constitutional, legislative, regulatory and policy prescripts. South africa is the newest member of brics having joined the partnership in 2010, a year after the founding summit. The major donors have been meeting frequently in order to discuss development and debt problems and to devise aid strategies for african governments.
The country is removing divisions set by apartheid and utilizing the newly organized local governments to move. Pdf matching policies on rural development and local. The british come to the cape 65 5 from colonialism to apartheid. Each municipality has a council where decisions are made and municipal officials and staff who implement the work of the. The white paper on local government 9 march 1998 the white paper is dedicated to the memory of tshepiso mashinini 19661998, chairperson of the white paper working committee, and all the other women and men who contributed to the building of a democratic system of local government in south africa. In 1994, the african national congress anc won south africas first democratic election and made redressing the poverty and inequities the apartheid regime. When the transition to democracy took place, south africa inherited a dysfunctional local govern. All our work is based on exploring and advancing the key governance principles of democracy, accountability and transparency, and combining these. The legislation in south africa provides quite comprehensive a framework for local selfgovernment. Local government in south africa administers cities and smaller regions.
344 457 114 1275 771 720 235 1411 754 719 317 734 701 439 1361 1300 534 1085 833 18 1395 1464 1404 84 1215 319 1055 1448 122 285 399 1502 50 762 323 141 670 247 508 950 1211 403