Parliament, Friday 11 May 2018 – Delegates attending the Local Government Week have recommended that the rising municipal debt was becoming a major stumbling block to municipal viability. Currently, municipalities are owed more than R138 billion by government departments, businesses and households.
Following the three-day Local Government Week programme, the recommendation was that measures must be put in place to address this challenge, to ensure the viability of municipalities. The general view was that the culture of non-payment must be eradicated to ensure viability of municipalities, especially non-payment by households that are able to pay. Enforcement of a National Treasury directive instructing provincial and national departments to pay their debt was highlighted as critical to addressing the debt crisis.
Another recommendation was that the legislative sector must look into amending the Tax Administration Act to allow deductions of municipal debts before refunds are made by the South African Revenue Service. Delegates also emphasised the need to establish district debt collection agencies to aid municipalities in collecting debt.
Provinces must put in place early detection systems to enable monitoring and timely intervention through section 139 and 154 of the Constitution in municipalities requiring assistance. Interventions should be used as a last resort after facilitated assistance and remedial measures have been exhausted. The South African Local Government Association (SALGA), Provincial Cooperative Governance departments and National and Provincial Treasuries should also strengthen their support to municipalities to improve municipalities’ financial viability. Delegates also recommended the development of an Accountability and Consequences Framework. This should be linked to invoking section 139 and should be applicable to municipal councils in the event of failing to exercise Constitutionally assigned executive powers and to other state institutions for failing to provide support in terms of section 154.
The National Council of Provinces was called upon to consider reviewing its Rules of Procedure concerning interventions to enable it to assess and measure the impact of interventions in terms of desired outcomes by the end of the 2018/19 financial year .
The delegates agreed on the need to establish guidelines for implementing the write-off of municipal debt, as a means of protecting the indigent. These guidelines will also avoid the temptation of blanket write-off of debt, which would exacerbate the culture of non-payment.
Regarding land use, it was recommended that the Department of Rural Development and Land Reform, higher education institutions and the South African Council for Planners establish a collaborative relationship to build capacity within municipalities to acquire, manage and govern land use. The general challenge identified was that planning for land use in municipalities was hindered by lack of skilled town planners, especially in rural municipalities.
The role of Traditional Leaders in implementing the Spatial Planning and Land Use Management Act (SPLUMA) must be strengthened, as they are a critical stakeholder. SPLUMA was passed to present a new framework to govern planning permissions and approvals, to set parameters for new developments and to provide for different lawful land uses in South Africa. This engagement with Traditional Leaders would bring to life the prescripts of the Intergovernmental Relations Framework.
The urgent drafting and implementation of a water and sanitation master plan was also identified. The master plan, which must include establishing an independent regulator must be expedited. SALGA, working in collaboration with municipalities, must influence the functions and scope of work of the regulator. Identification and massive rollout of innovations in the water and sanitation sector was also necessary. Stakeholders such as the Water Research Commission and higher education institutions must be approached to share innovations aimed at dealing with the sanitation challenge in municipalities.
Regarding support to municipalities, it was recommended that a common national Municipal Support and Intervention Framework be developed and be implemented across the country in municipalities requiring assistance. The finalisation of the Monitoring and Intervention Bill is also important to provide guidance in this regard.
The Local Government Week proposed a range of recommendations considered essential to speed up delivery of services in the local government sphere for the benefit of all South Africans.
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