Date: 23/04/2007

Source: The Presidency

Title: Mbeki: South African Local Government Association (SALGA) National Conference

Address of the President of South Africa, Thabo Mbeki, at the National Conference of the South African Local Government Association (SALGA), Johannesburg

Chairperson,
The Executive Committee of SALGA,
Minister for Provincial and Local Government,
Mayors, Councillors, Leaders, and government officials from the various spheres of government,
MECs responsible for Local Government,
Members of parliament,
Representatives of non-governmental organisations and community based organisations, Ladies and gentlemen,

Thank you very much for inviting me to address this national conference of the South African Local Government Association. The last opportunity that I had to address this august body was in September 2004.

Those who were part of SALGA in 2004 will recall that at that conference, we identified seven areas of special focus. These were:

* service delivery
* ensuring that councillors respond to the needs of local communities
* the transformation of apartheid settlement patterns
* addressing capacity problems at the local government sphere
* attending to the matters of resource and financial challenges
* movement towards the devolution of service delivery to local government
* the deployment of community development workers.

I hope that in the deliberations during this conference delegates will reflect on the progress made with regard to all these matters.

However, let me say something about some of the steps we have taken to respond to these matters and to support and strengthen local government.

Over the past two and a half years since we identified the challenges that required our collective attention, a lot has happened. As you are aware, a month after our meeting of September 2004, the Minister of Provincial and Local Government launched a national initiative to support municipalities through Project Consolidate.

Through Project Consolidate we identified municipalities that needed special attention and then mobilised resources, human and otherwise, to focus on strengthening the capacity of these municipalities.

Further, during this period, The Presidency and Cabinet introduced the Municipal Presidential Izimbizo Programme. This programme was to serve as an important support mechanism, having identified problems faced by municipalities and commitments publicly made about what together we will do to address them. The Imbizo Programme therefore seeks to mobilise the different stakeholders to contribute to the solution of the challenges facing our municipalities.

To date, we have visited and interacted with communities and the leadership of municipalities in 25 Districts and 3 metropolitan municipalities across the country.

As part of Project Consolidate, experts in specific areas of need have been deployed in 85 municipalities and the feedback we have received is that the impact of this intervention has been positive.

Many of us in this room may be aware that as part of our response to the matter of resource and financial challenges faced by municipalities, the year on year financial allocation to municipalities has increased.

For instance, while the total intergovernmental transfers to local government amounted to R13,1 billion when we met in 2004, in the financial year of 2006/07, the amount was R28 billion, and in this financial year, it is R32 billion. This is expected to increase to R37 billion in the next financial year.

These budget increases are made by the national government to augment the financial resources that are required in order to enhance service delivery in our municipalities.

As a result, the most recent review of municipal budgets and expenditure performance reported in the 2006 Intergovernmental Fiscal Review indicates a number of significant accomplishments, including the increased number of households receiving electricity and clean water, as well those accessing modern sanitation.

These achievements are real and they make a material difference in the quality of people's lives. It is indeed true that our response to the focus areas we identified in 2004 has helped us to improve the quality of life of many of our people.

Again, since our last meeting in September 2004, together we have also developed a framework through to access the credibility of our Integrated Development Plans (IDPs) and continuously to ensure their alignment with the Provincial Growth and Developmental Strategies (PGDS), as well as the National Spatial Development Perspective (NSDP).

We have also deployed community development workers and I hope that whatever misunderstandings that arose initially about the roles of these workers and those of councillors have been resolved because in reality the two should work together in a complementary manner.

Chairperson,

At the same time, however, it is clear that there are many areas where our councillors are not responding as they should to the needs of our people. There are many instances where there is either no communication or sufficient engagement between our councillors and the communities they are supposed to serve.

We have to make it clear that those who decide to stand for elections as councillors that they must be aware that they have committed themselves to serve the people. It is wrong that some of our councillors meet our people only when the President visits the municipalities. It is unnecessary for the President to keep on reminding councillors, who were not forced by anyone to stand for elections, that their primary responsibility is to serve the people.

Further, one of the challenges we identified in 2004 was the need to transform the apartheid settlement patterns. Except for few cases, our municipalities have not responded positively to this challenge. We still see settlements patterns where new houses for poor black people are still built at the outskirts of our towns, usually far from places of employment.

It is unacceptable that municipalities continue allocating land that is closer to commercial centres solely to developers who build for the upper end of the housing market. We must stop this practice because by so doing, we are failing to use housing as a catalyst to integrate communities that have been divided for many years by apartheid.

Again, we also see an unacceptable practice of municipalities allocating land for housing and commercial centres without ensuring that sports grounds and parks are also built. In this regard, many children grow-up with no place to play and no facilities for them to engage in sports activities.

Chairperson,

In February 2006, Cabinet adopted the SALGA endorsed 5-Year Local Government Strategic Agenda. This Agenda was informed by the challenges we agreed to in September 2004, the experiences and lessons from Project Consolidate and the intensified interactions that has been ongoing over the past two years.

The Agenda has also been informed by the national targets that have been set for service delivery and economic growth. The Agenda clearly specify actions that must be taken by the various spheres of government and other stakeholders during the second mandate of local government, which, as we know, is from 2006 to 2011.

In addition, the Cabinet Makgotla have been extended to include SALGA representatives. This decision was taken because of our commitment to work together and ensure that local government matters continue to feature high in the work of the national government.

Similarly, SALGA is represented in the President's Co-ordinating Council (PCC), again to ensure that local government has a voice in what is planned and done by the other spheres of government.

The Department of Provincial and Local Government, together with all the provinces, recently had the opportunity to review progress that has been made one year after the adoption of this Agenda.

The department reports that in general, all provinces have adopted Programmes of Action that will ensure that the Agenda is successfully implemented. The department also reports that, however, not enough has been done by various sector departments to concretise the implementation of their undertakings in the Agenda.

Obviously, we will insist that all the undertakings made by the various departments, at the national and provincial levels, are fulfilled.

Chairperson,

I would now like to pose some questions to SALGA as a way of contributing to the work of this important organisation:

* How can we make SALGA accountable for what happens or does not happen in local government?
* How will we ensure that SALGA plays a leading role in stabilising local government?
* How will SALGA improve its ability to anticipate tensions arising from communities and what mechanisms should be used to address whatever issues facing poor communities?
* What practical role is there for SALGA in the fight against poverty and underdevelopment?
* How will we ensure that SALGA makes members that bring the sphere of local government into disrepute to account for their actions?
* How does SALGA help with the day-to-day work of municipalities and what impact do your interventions have?

I trust that you will give yourself time to try to provide answers to these questions.

I wish you well in your deliberations and eagerly look forward to receiving SALGA's Programme of Action that will take us closer to realising the goal of a better life for all our people.

Thank you.

Issued by: The Presidency
23 April 2007