18 June 2007
Comrade Speaker;
Deputy Speaker;
Honourable Premier;
Members of the Executive Council;
Esteemed Members of the Legislature;
Leaders of political parties;
Mayors and Councillors;
Speakers and Municipal Managers;
Chief Mahlangu and Chief Kekana;
Members of the Media;
Ladies and Gentlemen
Introduction
We have just passed the half-way mark of the present legislature and its executive. It is also just over a year since the last local government elections. As we journey through the second half of our term of office towards 2009, we recommit ourselves to work towards a local government that is:
In executing our mandate we have been guided by our constitutional mandate, the lessons of the past two terms and our insights on the challenges facing local government. The five year strategic plan has become our roadmap to keep us focused on building a developmental local government. We are mindful that the citizens of Gauteng will judge us on how we have achieved these ideals.
I therefore stand before you today to account to the House on the progress we have made in these endeavors, the challenges we have faced and to outline the Department's plans as we move forward.
Comrade Speaker;
Our journey began with the conceptualization of innovative ideas to address historical challenges facing municipalities. These challenges related to poor financial management, mounting debt, billing problems, poor revenue generation, transformation challenges, lack of capacity, dearth in technical skills, service delivery backlogs, governance and accountability challenges.
Mid-way through this current term of office we registered good progress in many areas. However, as we engaged more with local government issues, we realized that we needed to deepen our understanding of these challenges. Thus, the five year local government review (2000 - 2005) we conducted, gave us a clear picture of the progress made and the extent of municipal challenges that we have to address in this term of local government.
Government realized the need for a mainstreamed hands-on support aimed at providing additional technical and institutional support to municipalities. To give focus to this hands-on support approach, a Local Government Strategic Agenda was developed to ensure that the three spheres of government focus on a systematic and coordinated local development programme that can be monitored periodically. The Local Government Strategic Agenda identified three overarching priorities:
To achieve these priorities, we agreed that province and local government should work together guided by the following key principles:
Comrade Speaker;
Allow me to share with the House the progress made regarding the implementation of municipal support:
Municipal Support Programme
Last year we utilized R48 million of our budget towards rolling out a comprehensive municipal support plan, which resulted in a number of support initiatives. This financial year we have budgeted R24 million to further the aims of this plan. Additional resources will be made available by the provincial treasury in this regard.
A partnership was concluded with South African Institute of Chartered Accountants (SAICA) that led to the deployment of fifteen Qualified Accountants in all municipalities. Of note, has been the emphasis on strengthening internal controls, accountability protocols, building finance personnel capacity, and establishment of internal audit committees.
These accountants are assisting municipalities to implement protocols that will ensure the findings by the Auditor General are adequately addressed.
In supporting municipalities to achieve clean audit reports, I am pleased to report that there has been considerable effort to assist municipalities to make tangible progress in this regard. During the period of their (accountants) deployment emphasis has been to assist municipalities in coordinating and addressing the specific tasks related to meeting the deadlines for delivering their annual financial statements.
In 2004/05, only two municipalities - Lesedi Local Municipality and West Rand District Municipality received unqualified audit opinions. However, since our efforts to ensure that municipalities receive a clean audit reports, there has been a marked improvement in the audit opinions received by municipalities and their entities over the past two years.
Of the 14 municipalities, 13 submitted their annual financial statements in time for the 2005/06. Of those already audited, five municipalities received unqualified audit opinions, Lesedi, Midvaal, Westonaria, Metsweding and West Rand.
It is also noteworthy that the audit report of the City of Johannesburg has improved from disclaimer to qualified audit opinion. The marked improvement is an indication that municipalities are on course of achieving clean audit reports by 2009.
In an endeavour to strengthen financial management in municipalities, we are working towards ensuring that all municipalities have functional internal audit units and audit committees in line with the Section 165 and 166 of the Municipal Finance Management Act.
Our partnership with SAICA will make an important intervention in training about 200 municipal staff in a UK based certificate in Local Government.
Advisory Committee on Municipal Finances and Municipal Finance Summit
The Advisory Committee on Municipal Finances, which started its work last year, to investigate the state of municipal finances in Gauteng has tabled its municipal finance diagnosis report. The findings of the report are around asset registers, debtors' management, supply chain management, vacancy rates, link between budgets and integrated plans, financial statements, fiscal dumping, internal audit units and performance management system.
Emanating from the report, the department together with the provincial treasury will be hosting a Municipal Finance Summit in July aimed at mobilising all our partners and municipal leadership to work together to develop a programme of action for implementing short and medium term strategies. It is however, important to appreciate that solutions should be viewed holistically, since tackling only one problem in isolation cannot guarantee improvement in municipal financial condition. It is also important to note that interventions of this nature require both managerial and political leadership to succeed.
Revenue Enhancement
In enhancing municipal revenue, the department conducted a metropolitan and local municipal wide baseline study, utilizing a Municipal Analysis Model. The benefit of the model has contributed successfully in determining the real outstanding municipal debt standing at R20-billion as well as locating the exact problems affecting both the billing problems and revenue potential.
This project is being implemented by the department and Gauteng Treasury in partnership with Project Service Utilities (PSU) and First National Bank. The ultimate goal is to identify and collect outstanding debt in a phased approach from the government debtors both national and provincial. Let me point out that there is political will and commitment to collect municipal debt from government departments. Therefore, our quick win strategy is to target government debtors. The Provincial Indigent Policy has been approved by the Premier's Coordinating Forum (PCF) and we will apply its guidelines to assist in dealing with poor households in the province.
Recouping debt from the Top 100 debtors especially from business, government departments and residents who are able to pay but decide not to could net R1,6-billion into the municipalities' revenue in one year. This means that there could be a cash flow of R130-million a month into municipalities' coffers.
During the remainder of my term I will endeavour to assist municipalities with the implementation of the Municipal Property Rates Act (MPRA) that will assist in improving the revenue base of municipalities significantly. We will ensure that all municipalities approve new rates and taxes policies before the end of 07/08 municipal financial year. Some municipalities will be given support and guidance.
Comrade Speaker;
Our support to municipalities also includes the deployment of engineers. Working with the South African Institution of Civil Engineering (SAICE) and the South Africa Black Technical and Allied Careers Organisation (SABTACO), we deployed 25 senior engineers, 12 graduates and 31 students in municipalities to unblock the infrastructure bottlenecks. These engineers have assisted with revenue enhancement, conducted backlog studies and helped to accelerate the final spending of the 2005/2006 MIG funding on 250 projects and developed business plans to ensure that the 2006/2007 and 2007/2008 Capital and MIG funding is spent timeously.
Following the local government elections, we conducted 150 competency management assessments for Section 57 posts across all municipalities. All municipalities with the exception of Kungwini have appointed municipal managers and the process in underway to fill the remaining vacancy. Kungwini will conclude the process soon.
To ensure sustainability, municipalities should employ people with technical skills in order to provide skills transfer.
To ensure that municipalities have completed their institutional transformation processes, we have assisted various municipalities, including Mogale City and Kungwini with the institutional designs process and Sedibeng with the development and implementation of the Performance Management System.
While substantial progress has been made on institutional transformation of municipalities, we realised that short term interventions, although helpful, need to be replaced by a programmatic support approach based on the comprehensive understanding of the gaps and shortfalls in municipalities institutional matters. Hence, we have conducted the Institutional Diagnostic Study of all municipalities, which will lead into a programme of institutional support based on specific identified problem areas per municipality. Challenge arising from this support relates to: filling of crucial vacancies and building capacity in municipalities
Disaster Management Centre
In preparing for the 2010 FIFA World Cup and our day-to-day responsibilities to protect our citizens, I am pleased to announce that the Premier will officially open the R50-million state of the art Provincial Disaster Management Centre in August this year located in Midrand. In coordinating disaster related issues in the province, we have and continue to support municipalities to implement the Disaster Management Act and ensure that there is proper synergy and co-ordination between the provincial and municipal disaster management centres.
Community Development Workers Programme
We have so far deployed 425 Community Development Workers (CDWs) in 340 wards around Gauteng as part of the President's call to bring government closer to the people and to ensure that we improve the lives of the people for the better. Their deployment as fulltime civil servants has so far assisted in bringing government services to the citizens, helped in unblocking service delivery blockages and deepening democracy and public participation.
Comrade Speaker;
CDW have managed to bring together services from the three spheres of government through the establishment of Intergovernmental fora. These community workers are involved in initiatives which are organised and initiated by other government departments, institutions and agencies to inform and capacitate communities around different issues, including economy, development, poverty alleviation, youth and women empowerment etc. In these situations CDW's play a supporting role and mobilise communities to participate.
The CDW's have been involved in numerous community based projects and income generating projects at a community level. There are two particular projects in Joburg Ward 6 where CDW's, through their tireless efforts assisted in acquiring funding from the American Embassy for 2 community-based projects. These are:
CDW's continue to do great work in their respective wards despite the challenges they are facing.
In profiling the work of the CDWs, the department has taken an initiative to their work in the mainstream media. We will also ensure that regular and updated information about the CDW's is communicated through posters, CDW Booklets and distributed at government, public exhibitions as well as the gpg website/gauteng online.
Meeting Service Delivery Targets
In moving towards achieving the National Targets on Basic Service Delivery, 96% of all households on the indigent register in the province receive Free Basic Water of 6Kl, 100% of households on the indigent register within the municipal supply zone receive Free Basic Electricity (50KWh) and 22% of households on the indigent register within the ESKOM supply zone receive Free Basic Electricity (50KWh)
Gauteng has made great strides in reducing the water backlog from 603 000 households in 2003 to 262 000 households in 2006. Also notable is the reduction of sanitation backlog of 706 000 households in 2003 to 438 000 households in 2006. Gauteng is on course in meeting the 2008 target for basic water supply and 2010 basic sanitation systems.
The challenge is this regard is the migration of people from other provinces and countries to Gauteng which puts a serious strain on service delivery and resources.
Water Demand
A joint project between Department of Local Government, Department of Water Affairs and Forestry and Rand Water Board for the "Water Cycle Management Study" is in progress in the local municipalities and the three metros. The objective is to reduce water losses, estimate current and next five year water demand, reduce level of non payment for water, improve water supply and operation and maintenance, and assist with capacity building and training. The water loss project conducted by the Emfuleni Local Municipality has shown a R1-million rand saving per month.
Gauteng citizens must use water sparingly and make sure that leakages are attended to immediately.
Electricity Distribution
The Department is also monitoring the implementation of Regional Electricity Distributors (REDS). REDS (2, 4 and 6) through its involvement in structures established to support and monitor the implementation of REDS. We are well aware of the challenges this restructuring is bringing, but working together we shall overcome.
With regards to the signing of accession agreements, all municipalities with the exception of Kungwini and Lesedi have signed. The two municipalities will sign by the end of July 2007. Municipalities will continue to invest in the electricity infrastructure whiles the Reds are in a process of establishment.
We must all use electricity very efficient by changing bulbs to those that are energy efficient.
HIV and AIDS Programme
Comrade Speaker,
In the 2006/07 Budget Speech, I announced that the department would hold an HIV and AIDS Indaba. Subsequent to this Indaba, the HIV and AIDS strategies were developed and adopted. Key to the strategies adopted is that community based approach to combat the HIV and AIDS pandemic has proved to be effective. However, this approach should be complemented by a multi-sectoral element and the role of political leadership at local level is key to the success of this approach.
This year's R12-million HIV and AIDS grant will be used to implement a number of municipal programmes emanating from the adopted strategies. We will strengthen the capacity of municipalities' Local Aids Councils to co-ordinate and implement the multi-sectoral response to the pandemic and ensure that AIDS is mainstreamed into the IDPs of municipalities. We want to make sure that programmes aimed at supporting orphans, poor households affected by the AIDS and People Living with HIV and AIDS are included in the municipal IDPs. As a result Indigent Packages of service such as the Indigent Burial packages will cater for families affected by AIDS. As we channel funds to various institutions dealing AIDS we need to be mindful of the capacity of these institutions to manage finances prudently, manage projects efficiently, monitor and evaluate progress on regular basis. Hence, part of the HIV and AIDS grant will go towards building the capacity of NGO's and intensifying the capacity of the department manage the HIV and AIDS programme and its impact at municipal level. We will assist municipalities in developing internal HIV and AIDS workplace programmes. This will help towards reduction of infection rates, providing psycho-social support for those affected and infected in the workplace and access to support services such as counseling, Employee Assistance Programme and Voluntary Counselling and Testing.
Mainstreaming Cross Cutting Issues
Comrade Speaker,
I have already set in motion a programme to develop and empower the women Councillors throughout Gauteng. Together with key stakeholders, this will be done through the Women Councillor and Mentorship programme, aimed at providing our councillors with mentors to help them shine in the workplace.
Global City Region (GCR)
As Honourable members are aware, that last year, here in the Legislature, on the occasion led by the Premier and attended by our Mayors we launched the Global City Region Perspective. On that occasion as government we committed ourselves to work with all stakeholders to implement a detailed programme intended to realize the ideals of the GCR.
We also declared that the GCR Perspective should not be a 'paper tiger', but rather a concrete programme of government to improve the way both local government and provincial government work, collectively and individually. Responding to this imperative, the Department of Local Government, on behalf the provincial government, has over the past few months started work on developing new policies on local government matters, as our contribution towards realising the objectives of the GCR. These include:
Over the last few years, one area of concern has been, and continues to be, the efficacy of the current allocation of powers and functions between different spheres of government and within the two-tier system of local government. There is consensus that the current allocation of powers and function does not always enhance issues of efficiency, effectiveness, equity and sustainability across the three spheres of government.
We have embarked on a process of determining the feasibility of moving towards a metropolitan form of local government in Gauteng. The study will explore options of how to optimally reconfigure the system of local government in order to give the Gauteng Region a global competitive edge. This work forms an integral part of the GCR Roadmap, which as I have already outlined, is a concrete government programme to realize the objectives set out in the GCR Perspective.
In terms of the GCR implementations plan, the department has been given the responsibility to look at governance model for the perspective.
Improving oversight and accountability at local government level
The lessons drawn from the review of the performance of local government in the previous term highlighted the issue of weak accountability mechanisms at local government level. There is a sense that despite a consensus that the new legal, financial management and policy framework, which elevates the importance of the oversight function and accountability, there remains gaps and deficiencies in this area. Many of the weaknesses in improving good governance derive in part from the fact that in local government there is no separation of powers between the legislative and executive arm of local government. Municipal council serves as both a legislative and executive institution, despite the fact that we have established a strong executive system.
This state of affairs has tended to blur lines of accountability and rendered mechanisms for check and balances ineffective. Working with municipal leadership, we have agreed to establish Municipal Public Accounts Committees throughout Gauteng. To this effect, I am happy to report that all fourteen municipalities have established such committees.
The department is currently finalising plans to provide the first training and induction programme to assist the skills development of these committees. In addition, towards the end of the financial year, the department will conduct an assessment study on how these committees are working and identify challenges, in order to provide municipalities with appropriate support. Key to all this work is to define and envisage the form and shape of local government we require in future - a local government that is responsive to people's needs as outlined in the government's vision of a developmental state.
To this effect the envisaged review of the White Paper on Local Government would provide all of us with an opportunity to reflect on our experiences in local government. In this regard, I commit myself that once we are ready to commence with this review, under the leadership of Minister Mufamadi, we will ensure that we work and act in partnership with all stakeholders to share in the vision of a better local government in Gauteng and country broadly.
Local Government research and monitoring
Comrade Speaker;
I am sure you will agree with me that improving governance also means having an active and participative citizenry in the affairs of government and particularly local government. We will continue to put more effort in mechanisms that facilitates and encourage participation in local governance. These would include the CDW work, community participation in the new governance arrangements, strengthening the ward committee system, participation in IDPs, etc.
On this note, I am pleased to report that in the 2006/07 financial year, the adoption rate of draft IDP's was 100%. The IDP engagement process also helped us identify national and provincial support actions which are needed to help enhance the quality of IDPs. This process will enable us to improve our monitoring and support to municipalities.
I intend to present an effective monitoring and evaluation system to assess the performance of municipalities in order to improve service delivery and to promote accountable local government in Gauteng to the PCF. Local government performance benchmarks will be developed this year as a basis to evaluate municipal performance.
In order to do this effectively, sound statistical database and empirical basis about social dynamics within our communities are needed. In this regard, we will continue to use the Bi-annual Citizens Satisfaction Survey (CSS) to gauge the views of the citizens of Gauteng about issues of service delivery and governance.
This year we will conduct the second survey. We will work closer with municipalities and other sectors to ensure that there is ownership of both the process and outcomes. It is crucial that the findings of the survey inform our programme of action in local government, so that we are responsive to issues raised by our citizens.
We would also use the findings to assess whether there has been change in the perception of our citizens since the last survey in 2005. I also wish to commend municipalities that are conducting their annual citizen surveys. This is important in assessing their own standing in communities.
Intergovernmental Relations
To promote alignment between different spheres of government and to have optimal outputs in terms of service delivery, sound intergovernmental relations become imperative. I am please to report that all 3 district municipalities have established their district intergovernmental forums in terms of Section 24 of the IGR Act.
The challenge going forward is to pay attention to the functionality of these forums.
Traditional Leaders
With the disestablishment of cross boundary municipality, two traditional authorities have been incorporate into Gauteng. I want to give the house assurance that we are putting programmes in place to give amakhosi the support they deserve. I am pleased to report that we are in the process of developing the Gauteng Traditional and Leadership Bill and framework on Traditional leaders, in consultation with izinkosi that will regulate the management of these traditional authorities.
One important area where the Bill is really seeking to be innovative is in respect of defining the relationship between Local Government structures and Traditional Leaders and Traditional Communities in the province. This has been an area of significant tension in many provinces, and it is has not been clearly addressed in other provincial legislation dealing with Traditional Leadership and Governance. We are waiting for the Minister of Provincial and Local Government to give us guidance on the remuneration of the herdsman as per the recent government gazette and accordingly we will comply with the decision.
Conclusion
Comrade Speaker;
In conclusion, I wish to emphasize that all our efforts are geared towards making the lives of our people better. Whilst we concentrate on the future of local government, we need not lose sight of the fact that all these endeavors must improve service delivery and enhance good governance.
Thus, all this work has to culminate into an effective governance model and arrangements in Gauteng. We will count on this House, our partners and citizens to walk this journey with us as we move forward into the future. I should once again emphasize that if we are to succeed in realising our vision, we would have to improve in how we work, it cannot be business as usual.
Allow me to thank the Premier Mbhazima Shilowa for his leadership and unwavering support,
Members of the Executive Council for their support, The Portfolio Committee of Local Government under the guidance and stewardship of Ms Refiloe Letwaba for their positive engagement with us.
Let me thank the HOD Oupa Seabi for his hard work and ability to steer the department in the right direction, Senior management, the departmental staff for ensuring that local government works better, The staff in my office for going beyond the call of duty.
Lastly, my family for their unconditional love and support.
"Indeed a better Gauteng is in the making." This is evident in the survey released by the Institute of South African Race Relations indicating that the lives of people of Gauteng have improved significantly over the years. Let us not be complacent, the journey is still long, rewarding though challenging.
I thank you.