Deputy Finance Minister Mandisi Mpahlwa says the Municipal Finance Management Bill will overhaul the budgeting and financial management system at municipal level, in the country.

The National Council of Provinces passed the Bill yesterday.

“We aim to move away from the one-year line item budgeting approach,” the deputy minister said.

He said budget reforms such as the Medium Term Expenditure Framework and budgeting by programmes had not been implemented in municipalities, except in a handful of pilot sites.

“The Bill before this House will introduce these reforms to municipalities over the next few years,” Mpahlwa said. He added that the Bill dealt with a strengthened oversight role by councilors over the municipal executive and officials regarding budget implementation and performance reporting requirements.

This he said was an important requirement for improved performance and accountability.

The Bill also obliges municipalities to disclose the remuneration packages of the Mayor, municipal managers, councilors and senior officials. It would also promote public-private partnerships by allowing municipalities to enter into long-term contracts, which would be subject to regular reviews.

Deputy minister Mpahlwa said the Municipal Finance Management Bill allowed for more consultation and communication with communities, ratepayers and lending institutions. He said training workshops would be held with municipalities and internship programmes would be set to assist with implementation of the Bill. –BuaNews.