A tentative historicalpolicy analysis is developed to generate knowledge about local government policies and political legitimacy, as well as to contribute to policy analysis methodology. Social indicators, institutions and actors are used to gain knowledge about the phenomena. What local governments do to deal with and try to solve local problems is assumed to contribute to political legitimacy. The basic question that structures the thesis is to investigate whether, and to what extent, problem-orientated and "problem-effective" local government policy can contribute to political legitimacy. Time-series analysis shows that social malaise problems (poverty and unemployment) have fluctuated over the last 120 years, increasing in some periods and/or communities and decreasing in others. In contrast, problems concerning health and the environment decreased over the same period. Social policies appear to be closely related to local problems during the first hundred years (i.e. from 1874-1970), which indicates that local government policy is problem-orientated. After 1970 the connection between problems and social policy starts to loosen up. During the 1980s local infrastructure and industrial policy begin, for the first time, to follow social malaise problems in the municipalities. Earlier, infrastructure policy grew when problems were small or decreasing. The analysis indicates that municipalities were generally more successful in coping with local problems a hundred years ago. Health policies appear to have contributed towards solving local health problems up until 1970. Social malaise policies, on the other hand, have not directly contributed to solving local problems. Indirecdy, however, the latter type of policies contributed to economic development and promoted the development of local industry during the first hundred years. After 1970, only certain aspects of social malaise policies show positive effects on local problems. Instead, these policies generally seem to have exacerbated local problems. Attempts to resolve social problems, together with social service delivery, turn out to become part of the problem. The interpretation that legitimacy can be reached through problem-orientated and problem-effective policies has some empirical support in the period prior to 1900 and today. However, under predemocratic regimes, as well as during periods when democracy was highly centralized, the support for, and trust in, legality seems to be the dominate source of political legitimacy. / digitalisering@umu

Thesis (MA)--Stellenbosch University, 2011. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The constitution of the Republic of South Africa (1996) states that local governments are responsible for the creation of a socioeconomic environment that enables citizens to make a living for themselves. It is on the grounds of this responsibility that the study is based on the relationship between street traders and the City of Cape Town within the Cape Town CBD. This relationship is investigated with the aim of assessing what the nature of the relationship is between street traders and the City of Cape Town. A survey was conducted wherein 71 street traders were interviewed and to complement the survey interviews were conducted with individuals from local government and the private sector who deal with street traders on a daily basis. The survey results indicated that there is a positive relationship between traders and the City of Cape Town, but that local government does not live up to expectation when it comes to the facilitation of informal business development. At the hand off these findings; policy interventions are put forth that would lead to the creation of a facilitative relationship between the City of Cape Town and street traders. Proposed policy interventions are focussed on the improvement of channels of communication between street traders and local government. The proposed policy framework places emphasis on the active participation of local government in the formalisation process of informal traders. The study concludes by proposing policy intervention that would promote a facilitative relationship between street traders and local government and contribute to a sustainable street trading economy in Cape Town. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Die grondwet van die Republiek van Suid Afrika (1996) daag elke plaaslike owerheid uit met die taak om ’n sosio-ekonomiese omgewing te skep wat dit vir landsburgers moontlik maak om ’n bestaan te kan maak. Dit is op grond van hierdie verantwoordelikheid dat die studie gebaseer is op die verhouding tussen straathandelaars, binne die sentrale sake kern, en Kaapstad se plaaslike owerheid. Die verhouding tussen straathandelaars en die Stad Kaapstad is ondersoek met die doel om die aard van die verhouding te omskryf. ’n Vraelys is uitgedeel aan 71 straathandelaars en om die opname te komplementeer is onderhoude gevoer met individue van beide die openbare en privaat sektor wat saam met straathandelaars werk op ’n daaglikse basis. Die resultate van die vraelys het gewys op die positiewe verhouding tussen handelaars en die Stad Kaapstad, alhoewel dit aan die lig gekom het dat plaaslike owerhede nie voldoen aan verwagtinge ten opsigte van die fasilitering van informele besigheidsontwikkeling nie. Beleidsmaatreëls wat ’n fasiliterende verhouding sou bewerkstellig; sowel as ’n beleidsraamwerk word voorgestel aan die hand van die bevindinge van die opname. Die voorstelle is grootliks gegrond op die verbetering van kommunikasie tussen die plaaslike owerhede en straathandelaars sowel as die aktiewe deelname van die plaaslike owerheid in die formaliseringsproses van informele handelaars. Deur die implementering van die voorgestelde beleidsmaatreëls is die studie van mening dat ’n fasiliterende verhouding tussen straathandelaars en plaaslike owerhede gevestig kan word met die doel om ’n bydra te maak tot ’n volhoubare straathandel-ekonomie in Kaapstad.