The aim of the study is to investigate effective strategies and processes for public participation in the IDP process in the Buffalo City Metropolitan Municipality. A qualitative study was undertaken and literature review on public participation in terms of the Integrated Development Planning was conducted. Relevant secondary data was sourced and structured interviews were conducted with three (3) ward councillors in the Buffalo City Metropolitan Municipal. Focus group interviews were also conducted with ward committee members from three (3) wards in the Buffalo City Metropolitan Municipality. The findings of this research indicate that ward councilors have limited information on administrative processes. This could lead to ward councillors not be able to provide feedback on various service delivery issues and the progress of the municipal projects. Also ward councillors may not be able to influence public participation if they do not understand their role in administrative processes such as monitoring implementation of council decisions and policies. Ward councillors have no influence on the Integrated Development Planning especially the cost and budget estimates for municipal projects which are intended to benefit the members of the community. On the basis of the key findings, recommendations were made that ward committees should be empowered to deal with the complex developments in the Integrated Development Planning process and ward councillors should play a leading role in the Integrated Development Planning process.

The thrust of the study is to investigate the Local Government Turnaround Strategy as introduced by Cabinet in the year 2009. In this treatise a critical evaluation of the Local Government Turnaround Strategy that was passed by cabinet as a panacea that seeks to address the challenges that are being faced by municipalities today will be embarked upon. A case study of the Ngqushwa Local Municipality in the Amathole District Municipal area will be undertaken with the view to understand whether the Local Government Turnaround Strategy will indeed assist ailing local municipalities like Ngqushwa. As can be seen in our country, apartheid has left many problems both in the social, economic and political realms of our society. When local government was first established it was for the perpetuation of separate development as enshrined in the policy of apartheid. Apartheid was not the beginning of geographic, institutional and social separation at the local level. Segregation was already a policy by the time apartheid was introduced in 1948. However, the Group Areas Act, the key piece of legislation, instituted strict residential segregation and compulsory removal of black people to own group areas. Through spatial separation, influx control, and a policy of own management for own areas, apartheid aimed to limit the extent to which affluent white municipalities would bear the financial burden of servicing disadvantaged black areas. These separate developments led to the collapse of the former Black Local Authorities. When the democratic government took over the same challenges reared their heads again. Many intervention programmes were introduced to assist ailing municipalities to be viable. The study thus has tried to indicate how the Turnaround has assisted municipalities like the Ngqushwa Local Municipality.

This study deals with water service delivery for improved quality of life in the Mbizana Local Municipality. The study sets out to determine how the inner workings of water service delivery work in the Mbizana Local Municipality, situated in the Eastern Cape, and how this should function in terms of South African legislation. The objectives of the study are to understand the current state of water service delivery in the Mbizana Local Municipality, finding out information about South African legislation regarding the ideal state of water service delivery, and recommending development programmes to improve water service delivery. This study is about understanding trends in the body of scientific knowledge or literature, and studying (as objects) the ideas and writings of other scholars. No empirical study was conducted. The research methodology for this study is descriptive, with data sourced from available literature. The findings in this study indicate that backlogs for water service delivery remain high in the Mbizana Local Municipality. Regrettably, the situation has worsened since 2004; backlogs have shifted from 45 percent to 94 percent of households with no access to tap water. A number of normative criteria to deal with the research problem were extracted from available literature, from which conclusions were drawn and recommendations made.

South Africa has been experiencing a continuous bout of service delivery protests since the late 1990s. Protests are a public manifestation of conflict and therefore this study uses the term conflict and protest interchangeably. The cost of the damage which results from these protests is immense. It is critical that solutions to this protest ensure that the underlying factors leading to the protest are addressed, in order to reduce the probability of its reoccurrence. This study seeks to investigate whether or not service delivery conflict could be prevented through improved implementation of government services in all spheres. The provision of basic service delivery is critical for the livelihood of any community and even more so for previously disadvantaged communities. It is important to verify if the lack of, or poor, service delivery can lead communities to revolt against each other or the governing authority. The challenge with any conflict situation is that when it erupts into destruction, only the visible symptoms are addressed, because addressing the underlying factors is a long-term process which requires a holistic understanding of the conflict. Previously disadvantaged communities are experiencing a backlog of service delivery, the exploitation of their plight by different agencies and mismanagement by public servants, which further delays service delivery. The Ezakheni community has been one of those communities who were previously disadvantaged and expected different levels of government to meet their service delivery needs, from land ownership to the building of houses. This community expected that the process of improving their livelihood would be fast-tracked instead it was delayed by community conflict. The conflict started as a revolution against agencies that were against the community’s process of acquiring land, but ended up as community members fought each other and government departments in order to survive. The Ezakheni community conflicts date back to 1998 and subsided during late 2005. Any conflict after that was latent, although there were still killings, but they were sporadic and sometimes not linked to the conflict but categorised as criminal behaviour. The present study takes the reader through the process of evaluating whether or not there is a logical relationship between Ezakheni community conflict and service delivery. Chapter One gives an overview of the study and the processes that were followed during this study. Chapter Two opens up theoretical debates that influence the epistemology of this study. Chapter Three gives the reader a detailed overview of the profile of the case study. Chapter Four describes the methodology that has been utilised in the study. Chapter Five presents the data and interprets it. Chapter Six concludes the study.

Service delivery is the provision of basic services to the community by Local Government (LG). The Water Services Act 108 of 1997 states that everyone should have rights to access water and sanitation. It further states that the level of service it provides its consumers, however, is dependent on a number of factors as per clause 11 (2) (a) which articulates that every water services authority has a duty to all consumers or potential consumers in its area of jurisdiction to progressively ensure sufficient, affordable, economical and sustainable access to water services. Craythorne (2006:170) argued that a municipality may, in accordance with a policy framework it has adopted, establish a part of the municipal area as an internal municipal service district to facilitate the provision of a municipal service in that area. Owing to the vastness of the district, many rural communities and the grant dependency of the municipality, the Amathole District Municipality (ADM) is challenged in providing safe potable water to all and is providing different levels of this service to different communities, based on available water resources, cost of supply and the ability to recover costs. In this regard the ADM provides a ―Basic level of service‖ to its rural communities in line with the Department of Water Affairs (DWA) National Guidelines of 25 litres per person per day. This study undertook to probe the determinants of effective basic service delivery at Amathole District Municipality. Water provision function is still a challenge to District Municipalities (DMs) due to various impediments confronted by the DMs when rendering basic services. From the literature study and information gathered from the respondents in this research it became evident that basic service delivery is a key to the development of local communities. In this regard it is pertinent that the District Municipality in question devises means that will mitigate the identified challenges in order to provide services to expectant communities. Self administered questionnaires were used as a method of collecting data from the respondents. In this study a qualitative method was used to analyse the data collected from the respondents. Based on the information gathered from the respondents the researcher made findings and formulated recommendations.

In 1994, democracy in South Africa brought about a developmental local government characterized by democratic and accountable governance. Municipalities are supposed to encourage the involvement of communities and community organizations in the matters of local government. Municipalities are obliged to establish ward committees and ensure that they succeed in facilitating public participation. However, critiques contend that ward committees have not been able to live up to expectations. The institution is said to be faced by countless challenges that inhibit its functioning. This study has, therefore, been undertaken with the purpose of analyzing the factors that affect the performance of ward committees in the Buffalo City Municipality. The research found that ward committees in the municipality were properly constituted, functional and handle serious issues for the benefit of communities. Communities are not very interested in ward committee meetings and do not solicit assistance from them. Based on the results of this study, the following are the factors which compromise and limit the ability of ward committees to facilitate public participation: lack of remuneration, low levels of education and skills, unavailability of information on municipal issues and activities; and a lack of municipal support. Following the research, it is recommended that municipalities put in stringent measures to detect and curb corrupt practices in ward committees. On annual basis they should provide a meaningful budget allocation for the remuneration and provision of facilities and equipment necessary for ward committees to effect public participation. Municipalities should involve ward committees in decision-making

The study examines challenges that exist in local government in relation to cooperation or working together between traditional leaders and elected councillors. This challenge can be seen mainly in municipalities that include rural areas. The country constantly faces protests by people expressing dissatisfaction with service delivery. This is a cause of concern and raises several questions. Councillors and traditional leaders point fingers at each other. More often than not, councillors as elected leaders exclude traditional leaders in matters of governance. Traditional leaders on the other hand see councillors as people encroaching into their territory. South Africa is characterised by rural areas that operate under Kings and Chiefs who are natural leaders and enjoy authority over the people, their subjects. Historically, traditional leadership was exercised in rural areas. Tribal authorities used to play a role in defining the lives of the people. Their role was very clear. They presided over the majority of cases in their jurisdiction. With changing times, especially during the apartheid era, communities started to mistrust the traditional leaders. There was a stigma attached to traditional leaders; they were seen as puppets of the government. They were used to perpetuate the apartheid government laws and this created a wedge between them and the community at large. When the new dispensation was ushered in, in 1994, hatred and non-acceptance was at a high level. The election and introduction of councillors to some extent undermined the legitimacy of the rule of traditional leaders. They were not recognised, Councillors do not create space for traditional leaders; there is no consultation and therefore no cooperation between councillors and traditional leaders. Some members of traditional leadership became uncomfortable with this situation and started to forge relations with the African National Congress in exile. In 1987, they formed the Congress of Traditional Leaders (CONTRALESA).

E-governance is a comprehensive and well-thought out notion as it brings forth a change in the way governments communicate to citizens and to each other. Since the RSA government relies on regular consultations with the citizens in order to improve service delivery, e-governance approaches inspires citizens to be active agent of local democracy by means of providing information and participation on issues that matters the most to the society. The effectiveness of e-governance takes into account four systemic intentions which are as follows: Increased government accountability; Increased government transparency; Increased government efficiency and; Increased citizen’s trust In order for the RSA government, more particularly at the local level, to ensure quality of life to the citizens, the modernisation of government services and operations is very important. E-governance can now be considered as a source or tool for sharing ideas and initiatives that deliver a mutual enrichment. In other words, the citizens are the determining factor and actors for the rules and the role of the local bureaucrats as well as for the corresponding ICT tools persist to be developed. This treatise undertakes a strategic view and an evaluation of e- governance in local municipalities as the means of improving and transforming the delivery of services and access to information for citizens. Consequently this paper affords an exploratory analysis between e-governance and the six core elements of technology (i.e. e-strategy, e-skills development, e-services, IT governance and ICT infrastructure and e-leadership) believed to contribute positively in the effectiveness of e-governance. Finally, recommendations are made as a result of analysing the literature study and empirical study to ensure the implementation of the key initiatives of e-governance that can add value to the Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality (NMBM).

My motivation to conduct this study was triggered by my exposure to the challenges which form the basis of this study. Being employed in the same environment as the respondents, it became natural for me to resolve to investigate the challenges facing these Health Professionals with the purpose of not only establishing what the challenges are but simultaneously propose remedial solutions to mitigate their impact. This study is both qualitative as well as quantitative to make sure that both the numerical as well as the social issues which impact these professionals‘ work were captured in the study. The assumptions from which the study moved were largely confirmed by the respondents. The recommendations which the researcher proposes to mitigate the challenges are informed by her own experience as well as the responses which were elicited from the respondents. While the study does contribute in a way to the body of knowledge, it is cautioned in the concluding chapter that recommendations made must be considered with this caution in mind as the study was limited to a specific environment – the OR Tambo District Health Municipality.

Thesis (Ph.D.(Public Administration)) -- University of Limpopo, 2022 / South Africa is a country experiencing water scarcity, and the provision of water as well as sanitation is a basic need and a right that must be provided to the populace by the municipalities. The water must either be subsidised by the government through the Municipal Infrastructure Grant or financed through the municipality ’s resources. The Capricorn District Municipality is composed of the Polokwane, Molemole, Lepelle Nkumpi, and Blouberg local Municipalities. Amongst all these municipalities, there is high rural domination and the inability to provide water daily in most jurisdictional areas. In achieving the objectives and addressing factors that impact negatively on sustainable supply of water and effective sanitation within Capricorn District Municipality the study adopted, the theory of rising expectations, the philosophy of servant leadership, the public choice theory, the district’s development plan, the rational model of reasoning and the participatory research paradigm because the study addresses the societal issues that affect mostly marginalised groups. The study used a mixed method research methodology that is dominated by the qualitative method. Quantitative method is used to justify availability of water and sanitation to the Capricorn District’s civilians while the qualitative method was used to investigate the cause and effect of the non-provision of sustainable water as well as sanitation. The study established that there are some hindrances that were found in the focus area (Capricorn District Municipality) because of; illicit activities, poor infrastructural maintenance, and the need to establish an enabling environment by the politicians as well as the officials with no interference in the running of the administrative affairs