Today, the Minister for Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs, Honourable Des van Rooyen delivered a keynote address at the Commonwealth Local Government Forum – Southern Africa Regional conference on 28 June 2016. This conference convened under the theme, “Igniting Sustainable and People Centered Socio-Economic Development in sub-Saharan Africa” is taking place at the Emperors’s Palace on 28 to 29 June 2016.
“This gathering will allow different countries to draw on the influential network of the Commonwealth which is well-placed to assist in influencing policy development and lead on democracy and good governance at local level”, said Minister van Rooyen.
Minister van Rooyen also reflected on the on the interesting times in our country as we stand on the eve of the 4th democratic local government elections scheduled to take on 03 August 2016.
Local government is the sphere of government closest to the people, hence in South Africa we speak about the developmental local government. The notion of the development local government is important to ensure a system that is committed to working with communities to find sustainable ways to meet their social, economic and material needs and improve the quality of their lives.
The Minister emphasised the importance of dialogue with target groups within communities who have been marginalised and having to access to services. According to Minister van Rooyen, municipalities face enormous challenges in promoting human rights and meeting human developmental needs, addressing service delivery backlogs and problems caused by lack of resources and planning for a sustainable future.
“This conference should reflect on the new global development Agenda that is crystallised into Sustainable Development Goals, (SDGs). He says that the 70th Session of the United Nations Generally Assembly of September 2015 reached an important milestone when it concluded the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) agenda and adopted a new global development agenda encapsulated in the outcome document entitled “Transforming our world: the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development”, said Minister van Rooyen.
The speakers at the conference we united in message that there can be little doubt that poverty and underdevelopment remains the most pervasive challenges confronting us on the African continent, no less so in the region.
The conference acknowledged that over the last decade, the stages and evolution of Local economic development (LED) and our understanding and application thereof, has come a long way. While the context of Southern Africa differs from the industrialised context of the North, LED is increasingly being identified as the strategic enabler for national economic and development objectives.
It is within this context that Minister van Rooyen also emphasised that the LED, can serve as an important catalytic instrument to create the necessary broad partnerships and conditions for economic development that can generate better and high quality service delivery, decent jobs, participation and empowerment of communities, women, youth and vulnerable groups.
“Local and regional governments must play a crucial catalytic role as initiators and drivers of effective LED initiatives and Local government in South Africa is alive to this understanding and is premised on the belief that it has to play a developmental role,” said Minister van Rooyen.
Minister van Rooyen gave examples of both the National Development Plan (NDP) and the Integrated Urban Development Framework (IUDF) as key interventions that might ensure to achieve the strategic enabler, which is LED. The NDP argues that the effectiveness of local governance is key to unlocking other priorities such as local economic development.
On the other hand, the IUDF, already integrates thoughts on the role the local economies will play in the reversal of Apartheid spatial planning and economic access for the previously marginalised and speaks to the role of cities and the interface with rural areas.
Minister van Rooyen again emphasised that it is important to note that Africa has the highest urbanisation rate in the world and he urged the conference to also look at this area so as to provide clarity. The Minister urged delegates to ensure that indeed, local government works towards igniting sustainable and people centred Socio-Economic Development in sub-Saharan Africa.
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