Minister Zweli Mkhize hosts COGTA MINMEC meeting
The 3rd Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs meeting of the Minister and MECs took place today, 27 September 2018 at COGTA headquarters in Pretoria and many critical issues facing the local government and traditional spheres were discussed.
The MINMEC was also attended by the leadership of the National House of Traditional Leaders and the South African Local Government Association (SALGA).
The meeting took place against the recent announcement by the President of the Republic of a stimulus package to boost the economy. The MINMEC discussions were aimed at ensuring that COGTA contributes to this national imperative by fixing municipalities and also ensuring that developments in the local sphere enable government to boost economic growth and job creation.
Municipal Recovery Program
MINMEC noted and supported COGTA’s Municipal Recovery Programme (Back-to-Basics) to address the following:
- Compulsory utilisation of database on employees dismissed for Misconduct, fraud, corruption and blacklisting;
- Implementation of Forensic Reports findings, consequence management and accountability by municipal council’s;
- Strengthen the collaboration with law enforcement agencies such as the Hawks, SIU, SARS regarding investigations and prosecutions of transgressors;
- Address political infighting, instability and political killings through working with law enforcement agencies and mandating structures;
- Improved municipal financial management.
The MINMEC also noted and supported the Coordinated Service Delivery approach in the 57 identified pilot municipalities (8 Metros, 43 Locals and 6 Districts) which aims to reach the greatest number of households still requiring basic services, accelerating support to municipalities and prioritizing informal settlements These interventions are being implemented through COGTA’s implementing agent the Municipal Infrastructure Support Agent (MISA).
The MINMEC welcomed the dispatching of over 80 engineers and town planners appointed by MISA who are providing technical support to dysfunctional municipalities. This will enable municipalities to deal with maintenance challenges such as sewer spillages as well as enhance their ability to spend their Municipal Infrastructure Grants which has been a problem before.
The MINMEC agreed to prioritise action in some municipalities and these include the following;
- Eastern Cape: Buffalo City Metro (Duncan Village, informal settlements, sewer, water service, poor condition of roads) and Makana Local Municipality (general infrastructure collapse, National Arts Festival risk)
- Free State: Matjabeng Local Municipality (informal settlements, mining distress, water service)
- Gauteng: City of Joburg Metro (Back-yard dwellers, informal settlements, inner city, sanitation, roads, spatial transformation and consolidation, Emfuleni Municipality focusing on the contamination of the Vaal River)
- KwaZulu-Natal-Msunduzi local municipality (informal settlements, electricity and roads)
- Limpopo: Thabazimbi local municipality (Mining distress, informal settlements, bulk sewer, spatial transformation and consolidation)
- Mpumalanga: Govan Mbeki local Municipality (Sewer spillage, housing, roads, spatial consolidation)
- Northern Cape: Sol Plaatjie (informal settlements, water service, electricity, roads)
- North West: Madibeng local municipality (sewer and dam, informal settlements, mining distress, water services, roads, spatial transformation and consolidation)
- Western Cape: George local municipality (informal settlements, sewer, electricity, spatial transformation and consolidation)
Areas of intervention:
|
Area of intervention |
Short Term |
Medium Term |
Long Term |
|
Water |
Repair leaks |
Improve water quality |
Secure sustainable water supply |
|
Backfilling of trenches |
|
|
|
|
Sanitation |
Eradicate overflowing systems |
Improve operations of waste water treatment plants |
Finalise waste water treatment capacity |
|
Backfilling of trenches |
|
|
|
|
Roads |
Repair of potholes |
Upgrade standard of roads (dirt to gravel) |
Reconstruction of roads |
|
Storm water |
Cleaning of storm water systems |
Upgrading of storm water systems |
Provision of storm water systems |
|
Electricity |
Repair of street/high mast lights |
Provision of electricity |
Secure sustainable electricity provision |
|
Environmental Management |
Cleaning of streets and parks |
Identify and implement most appropriate solid waste management solutions |
Finalise the provision and operation of landfill sites |
|
Grass cutting on sidewalks and development of maintenance schedules |
Ongoing and according to approved schedules |
Ongoing and according to approved schedules. |
MINMEC welcomed the partnership between COGTA and business. COGTA is partnering with business through Business Leadership South Africa (BLSA) to embark on a joint programme to address service delivery failures that have a negative impact on business. A draft memorandum of agreement to enable structured cooperation has been developed and is being discussed.
It was also agreed to implement a coordinated response to the spatial legacy which enhances integration across the planning frameworks and across all spheres of government, in line with our Integrated Urban Development Framework (IUDF).
The IUDF approach is premised on the following principles:
- Sustained and collaborative integrated planning and implementation across spheres (joint planning and implementation)
- Strong political and technical leadership across the spheres of government
- Strong partnerships with within government, the private sector and civil society
- Inter-regional and provincial collaboration
- Spatial targeting and resource allocation
- A predictable but dynamic system
- Co-creation
- Accountability
- Clean governance
Killing of councilors
The Minister of Police, Mr Bheki Cele sent the National Commissioner Gen Khehla Sitole and senior managers to brief the COGTA MINMEC on steps that are being taken to deal with the security challenges affecting councillors and assured the meeting that everything possible is done to deal with the scourge.
The police are working with the National Prosecuting Authority to ensure that cases are closed as soon as possible. In total, 52 councillors have been killed and the bulk of those are in KwaZulu-Natal with 34 having been killed. Seven have been killed in Gauteng, three in the Western Cape, four in the Eastern Cape and one in the Northern Cape.
Coordination with other departments and entities
MINMEC was briefed on the meeting between Ministers of COGTA and Mineral Resources that took place on 26 September to discuss the challenges and opportunities facing the local government, institution of traditional leadership and the Mining sector.
Ministers Mkhize and Minister Gwede Mantashe agreed to establish a structured collaboration and coordination of the programmes of their departments and formed technical teams of both departments which have been tasked within the next three months to develop a Framework that will identify joint priority areas and develop practical actions to inform the areas of collaboration.
The teams will also identify targeted municipalities and traditional communities, where the structured coordination and collaboration programme will be implemented.
The framework for collaboration and joint actions will consider and address the following content areas:
- Alignment of the Integrated Development Plans of municipalities and the Social Labour Plans (SLPs) of mining houses;
- Management of infrastructure delivery and investment to reflect an integrated approach that considers resources from the mines and government;
- Develop an empowerment formula that expresses mines commitment partnering with government to change living conditions of communities residing around the mines;
- Strengthen monitoring and oversight over the regulatory regime over the mines and municipalities;
- Strengthen the measures for building trust between municipalities, mines and communities;
- Explore options for establishment of Community Trust for development in Traditional Communities and pool funding of mining investments;
- Build leadership capacity of municipalities to engage mines on integrated development programmes that directly benefits communities;
- Align SLP’s resources and investment to long term infrastructure and local economic development plans of municipalities;
- Address instability between Traditional communities and mines through development of relevant skill development programmes that target and empower the youth; and
- Sustainable resolutions of disputes within royal families and traditional communities;
The MINMEC also discussed critical matters pertaining to support to traditional leaders such as tools of trade, agrarian revolution in which traditional communities are to be supported to promote food security and also issues relating to land controlled by traditional leaders.
The MINMEC committed to working further harder to ensuring that the sector meets the national objectives of improving the living conditions of the people and also of improving the climate for economic growth and development in municipalities.
For more information contact:
Musa Zondi
Tel: 012 334 0763
Cell: 072 800 6449
