Integrative Summary: Municipalities are the third level of government and are responsible for delivery of basic services to citizens. They carry the developmental mandate of government and are often the first point of interaction between government and citizens. Being at the front line of service delivery, the issue of fiscal stability of municipalities and their ability to deliver sustainable services is of grave importance (Carter & Ajam 2003). Unfortunately in a South African context most municipalities are not fiscally sustainable (Roos & Stander 2005). In a study of 142 South African municipalities, it was found that poor collection of outstanding debt and irregular or wasteful expenditure were the biggest causes of fiscal stress (Roos & Stander 2005). In fact, in 2004 the difficulties appear to have reached crisis level (Lubbe & Roussouw 2005). The fiscal situation within municipalities was so bad that the South African Local Government Authority (SALGA) implemented a unit specifically to assist municipalities that were at “crisis point” (Roos & Stander, 2005 p. 165). This research report focuses on the evaluation of Igoli 2002 which was a response to fiscal crisis within the City of Johannesburg metropolitan municipality when in 1997 the City of Johannesburg was declared insolvent. The research evaluated the long term sustainability of the Igoli 2002 programme to determine its success in addressing the issues of fiscal stress and crisis facing the municipality. The research also attempted to assess the applicability of international indicators of fiscal stress and crisis to the City of Johannesburg. The research evaluated the Igoli 2002 programme via a financial condition analysis, against international indicators of fiscal stress and crisis and against a logic framework detailing the goals of the programme. The research found that ultimately, the Igoli 2002 intervention implemented by the City of Johannesburg was successful in improving the fiscal position and sustainability of the City. In addition, indicators from predictive models of fiscal stress and crisis were found to be relevant to the City of Johannesburg.

The research took the form of a qualitative interpretative case study focusing on the study sample of 9 municipal officials responsible for monitoring the payment of government debt as the consumer type. Data was collected through face to face interviews by means of completing the questionnaire based on the responses from the respondent. The study examined the underlying and related causes of non-payment of government debt. The study revealed that municipalities in the Eastern Cape lack support from the other spheres of government in ensuring timeous payments of outstanding debt. Growth in debtors indicated the failure by the municipalities to implement proper debt management processes and the lack of political will to collect debts. The study recommended that municipalities need to waive interest on disputed debt and the debt in that regard be reported on the suspense account to avoid over estimation or debt that might not be recovered in the long run.

The aim of the study is to critically examine the leadership and accountability of ward councillors in South African municipalities: A case of Buffalo City Municipality. The theory of communicative action by Jürgen Habermas was used to interpret the manner in which ward councillors are expected to interact with the members of the community when performing their leadership and accountability roles. The study adopted a case study design that assisted in establishing what is required from ward councillors with regard to their leadership and accountability roles in local governance. Qualitative and quantitative data collection instruments were used to collect data. The focus group interviews with ward committee members (n=100) from twenty-five (25) wards identified themes that relate to leadership and accountability constructs. The identified themes were verified in the quantitative phase in which questionnaires were administered to fifty (50) ward councillors. The qualitative data was analysed thematically using NVivo and quantitative data was analysed using MS Excel. Generally, the views of the ward councillors regarding their leadership and accountability were positive. However, their leadership and accountability were largely dependent on their individualised communication skills and emotional intelligence. Hence the study established that unless ward councillors are equipped with skills and knowledge in communication and emotional intelligence respectively, their leadership and accountability roles will not be able to contribute effectively to local governance. Subsequently, the study made a set of recommendations in this regard.

There is an on-going debate in South Africa whether municipalities are an effective vehicle for deepening participatory democracy or not. Due to serious backlogs on services, the role of municipalities has largely been reduced to service delivery, to the detriment and total neglect of fundamental functions of local government. These are (Act 200, 1996):(a) To provide democratic and accountable government for local communities;(b) To ensure the provision of services to communities in a sustainable manner;(c) To promote social and economic development;(d) To promote a safe and healthy environment; and (e) To encourage the involvement of communities and community organisations in the matters of local government. On the other hand Haveri, Stenvall & Majoinen (2011) argue that if the municipalities are a government sphere closest to the people, they are therefore best placed to, and should, lead and support the deepening of participatory democracy, what they call self-government. As the debate rages on, there are indications that most of thechallenges that face the municipalities are related to the distance that has been developing between municipal institutions and the citizens.

This research project is about the “Factors Affecting the impact of Black Economic Empowerment strategies in enhancing previously disadvantaged beneficiaries in Mnquma Local Municipality.” The purpose is to examine the challenges faced by previously disadvantaged beneficiaries so as to emerge with new innovative BEE mechanisms that can be implemented to improve the situation faced by beneficiaries for the better. To achieve this objective, it was necessary to study the iterature of “Black Economic Empowerment” which is part of the Local Economic Development initiatives. In order to attain the main objective of the study and also to address the research problem face to face interviews were conducted with previously disadvantaged beneficiaries, Local Economic Development officials and councillors from five different wards of Mnquma Local Municipality. The literature review and the interviews helped one to come up with the recommendations to be adopted in order to remedy the situation of the beneficiaries. These recommendations will, hopefully, be of assistance to Mnquma Local Municipality. Findings of this study indicate that challenges faced by previously disadvantaged beneficiaries include: fronting, lack of finance, skills shortage like technical, management, budgeting and saving skills, absence of training workshops, and lack of support on SMMEs development as well as poor implementation of BEE policy by Local Economic Development Unit. The aforesaid challenges have negative effects on the implementation of BEE strategies which adversely affect the beneficiaries. Here are some of the recommendations made in this regard: support and assistance for previously disadvantaged beneficiaries like financial assistance, Khula financial schemes, bank loans, training and workshops, establishment of agricultural projects as well as assistance on coordination of co-operatives initiatives. Other recommendations provide possible solutions to these problems: corruption, nepotism and cadreship deployment. In order to act against these transgressions the following suggestions have been made in the study: containment of fronting, development of heritage and historical sites for tourists’ purposes, recommendation on BEE management strategies and also recommendation on business registration and licensing. The study concludes that if the Mnquma Local Municipality can execute all the proposed recommendations, all the factors raised as the stumbling block towards the success and beneficiary of the previously disadvantaged beneficiaries would be resolved.

Local government in South Africa has undergone radical changes since the first democratic local government elections were held in 1995 and 1996. It is generally known that local government in South Africa was based on racial fragmentation. The new South Africa therefore has to go beyond purely representative democracy to address the inequalities of the apartheid era. The Constitution of the Republic of South Africa Act, 1996 (Act 108 of 1996), envisages a complete transformation of the local government system. Subsequently, a policy framework has been developed to give effect to a new vision of local government. The White Paper on Local Government was passed in March 1998. It spells out the framework and programme in terms of which the existing local government system will be radically transformed. This culminated in the birth of the concept of developmental local government. Developmental local government establishes the basis of a system of local government which is centrally concerned with working with local citizens and ward communities in particular to find sustainable ways to meet their needs and improve the quality of their lives. Developmental local government encourages public participation at the local level. One of the most powerful instruments by which the communities and groups become involved in local government affairs is through the ward committee structures and ward planning forums. The Municipal Systems Act, 2000 (Act 32 of 2000), makes provision for community participation. Ward committees are established in terms of section 17 (1) of the Municipal Structures Act, 1998 (Act 117 of 1998). Ward committees play an important role in creating a democratic culture of local participation and accountability. They are the main mechanisms available to municipalities and communities to enhance public participation in ix the local sphere of government. Their major obstacle is that their powers are limited to advising the communities and the relevant council. The White Paper on Local Government provides for three approaches which can assist municipalities to be more developmental, namely integrated development planning and budgeting, performance management and working together with local citizens. Ward committees provide a link between the council and these processes. The new system of local government also provides for the consideration of gender issues at the ward committee level. The local government policy framework requires that at least fifty percent of representation on ward committees should be women. The involvement of youth is also greatly encouraged. The system also provides for and clarifies the role/relationship with traditional leaders at the ward committee level. The local government legislative framework accepts and acknowledges the existence of traditional leaders. Their involvement in ward community activities and functions is well documented. Lastly, the capacity building of ward committees is posing a major challenge. In order for ward committee members to perform their functions effectively training must be provided. The respective local councils should be responsible for providing the necessary training to ward committees through the office of the speaker under which they fall. In the national sphere efforts are made to ensure that training for ward committees is provided.

The Republic of South Africa became a democratic country in 1994 after the historic democratic elections. This year also marks the year when South Africa’s first democratic parliament was convened. The Constitution of the Republic of South Africa Act (no. 108 of 1996) was enacted in 1996. This Constitution provides for the creation of the three spheres of government, namely, the national level, which deals with matters of national importance, the provincial level, which deals with matters of provincial importance, and the local level which deals with matters of local importance. Section 152(1) (e) of the above-mentioned Constitution stipulates that the object of local government, amongst others, is to ensure the involvement of communities and community organizations in the matters of local governance. Section 73 of the Municipal Structures Act (no.117 of 1998) also requires municipalities to establish ward committees in a manner that seeks to enhance participatory democracy at the local level. Municipalities are established in terms of Section 12 of the Municipal Structures Act (no. 117 of 1998), wherein Members of Executive Councils (MEC’s) may, by notice in the Provincial Gazette, establish a municipality in each municipal area which the Demarcation Board demarcates in the province in terms of the Municipal Demarcation Act (no. 27 of 1998). Sections 7 and 8 of the Municipal Structures Act (no. 117 of 1998) further stipulate the categories of municipalities as A, B and C. Category A is a metropolitan municipality with wards and ward committees. B is a local municipality characterized by the existence of wards and ward committees to enhance public participation. C is a district municipality, whose responsibility is to support local municipalities within its area of jurisdiction so that they are self sufficient and can manage their own affairs. This study focuses on the Kouga Local Municipality, which is a Category B Municipality as promulgated by the then MEC for Housing, Local Government and Traditional Affairs, Honourable MEC S. Kwelita in the Provincial Gazette (Gazette No. 1537) dated 23 May 2006. The scenario above indicates that in the Kouga Local Municipality, ward committees are supposed to play a critical role in public participation. The study seeks to assess their role and to establish whether or not the ward committee system is effective in this regard. It is common knowledge that, whilst various pieces of legislation are clear in terms of what the role of ward committees should be, the question remains whether there is any adherence in municipalities to ensure that they fulfill their role in public participation, and hence the study.

Local government is a complex sphere of government that was established on the principles of deepening democracy and advancing developmental local government. This is premised on the fact that local government is highly legislated; furthermore it is the sphere that is the closest to the people. Local government has endured a lot of criticism ranging from lack of leadership, inexperienced and unqualified managers, lack of service delivery and the poor quality of the services provided. The critical question being asked in this research study is whether the current calibre of leadership is achieving the principles of local government. Councillors, by virtue of their establishment, were meant to be the voice of communities. Councillors have a supervisory role to play in the council, but the skills, capacities and experience of councillors are often lacking. The media reports daily on problems and crises called “challenges” facing municipalities. Government has acknowledged that there are challenges in local government. This raises the issue of cadre deployment, whether it assists government in achieving its developmental objectives. Cadre deployment is a strategy of the ruling party which was meant to bring the previously disadvantaged groups to a position of power. This was meant to try to balance the imbalances of the past. This research study argues that the high volume of dissatisfaction by communities may be aggravated by the non-effectiveness of the political bearers in the municipal councils. This study identifies a number of contributing factors to the challenge at hand, such as the deployment of people to council structures; requirement in terms of academic qualification; and lack of leadership. Furthermore, this study investigates what could be the problem with the cadre deployment strategy of the ruling party; asking whether the problem is with the strategy itself or with its implementation. This research study therefore seeks to evaluate the impact the political leaders have on local government, focusing on service delivery. The study will first outline the state of local government in South Africa; compare the design of SA local government to international and African countries as well as looking at the key variables that result in the lack of service delivery. The issue of woman empowerment will also be discussed, evaluating the role that the country up to local government has played in ensuring that the 50/50 representation is achieved. The conclusion from this research is that a framework for the selection of council candidates should be developed. The framework will outline the basic skills and qualification requirements. The recommendations include improvements in the processes of interacting with communities; enforcing the code of conduct; developing ways that the municipality can educate communities on government operations; improved community participation and increased accountability. The impact of the lack of leadership in councillors undermines the democratic principles of developmental local government.

Though it can be argued that the new democratic government has made tremendous strides in its first decades of democracy, continuing poverty and inequality tends to undermine the gains. Faced by this development dilemma, the government has adopted various development endeavours in an attempt to address issues of social and economic development. The topic of Local Economic Development has received considerable attention from both government and scholars in recent years. At the heart of the concept of LED are enshrined the goals of creating employment and promoting the economic growth and development of a locality or local area. It is in this context that the main objective of the study was to investigate the implementation of Local Economic Development as a cross-cutting dimension in the Integrated Development Plan of the Inkwanca Municipality of in the Eastern Cape Province. The construction of a bridge in the town of Sterkstroom was used as a case study to assess the ability of the municipality to plan and implement a LED project in a coordinated and integrated manner. The study used the combination of both methods of data collection, namely the qualitative and quantitative methods. The tool used to collect data was an interview schedule which consisted of open and closed ended questions. Findings by this study revealed that LED planning and implementation within the municipality does not receive the priority it so deserves and therefore it can not be regarded as the panacea for the development challenges confronted by the community in the municipality. Since LED has failed to create sustainable jobs and grow the local economy, questions can be raised about the efficiency of the municipality in its implementation of LED as a cross–cutting dimension. There appears to have been little cooperation with the LED Unit on the implementation of the Sokoyi Bridge construction project. Neither was there a concerted effort on the part of the municipality to use the project to build skills among the workers that they could use in future initiatives. The study revealed that the line function departments within the municipality could not plan their activities and programmes in a coordinated and integrated manner. Planning is characterised by ‘silo-functioning’. Furthermore, intergovernmental coordination amongst the various spheres of government has been and remains a challenge. Intergovernmental coordination and collaboration needed to be strengthened. The Integrated Development Plan of the municipality which is supposed to be a strategic coordination and integration tool has failed to achieve its objective and as such planning happens in an ad hoc and fragmented fashion. A plan-led system is needed to bring focus and allow long term public interest to guide the development of places. The National Development Plan state that “it will take time to create this capability, drawing on fuller understanding of the limitations of current arrangements and incorporating the lessons of good international practise.” (NDP, 2011: 263). Having a policy in place does not guarantee that there will be developmental or pro-poor outcomes. This study indicated that there are real capacity constraints in local government to plan in an integrated and coordinated manner. The Inkwanca Municipality did not use the developmental opportunities presented by the bridge construction project to its fullest extent. A lack of coordination limited the ability of the municipality to move beyond short-term job creation through a more integrated programme that could have had a broader positive impact on the residents of the Inkwanca municipality.

The purpose of the research was to investigate factors that obstruct successful completion of projects in the Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality (Electricity and Energy Directorate). The literature review was done to understand the concept of project success; the study concluded that project success is the completion of project within time, within budget, within specifications while ensuring the satisfaction of all the stakeholders. Five factors that could obstruct project success were considered in this research, which are: Project managers, Scarcity of human resources, Organisational culture, Organisational structure and the Business strategy. A quantitative approach was used in the study to establish the relationship of these variables to project success and to establish the correlation between the variables.The research revealed that organisational culture has a stronger relationship to project success. Scarcity of human resources, organisational structure and business strategy do not have a significant relationship to project success, however organisational structure and business strategy have a strong correlation to organisational culture which in turn influences the project success.