Background: Local governments are considered an essential part of interpreting and integrating laws and policies at the local level. There is a growing realisation that the success of local government is vital to alleviating poverty and delivering services to communities. However, financial mismanagement as per audit reports has affected a number of local authorities and continues to be a hindrance to progress.Aim: This study was set to investigate the level of efficiency in each municipality and how financial mismanagement (unauthorised, irregular, fruitless and wasteful expenditure) influences that efficiency.Setting: The study considered all local municipalities within the Eastern Cape province of South Africa, using publicly available data on each municipality’s performance and financial management. The data available and utilised are for the financial years 2012–2015.Methods: The study used a non-parametric linear programming-based technique to compute efficiencies, with the local municipality being the decision-making unit. The implications of financial mismanagement on efficiency are determined in a second-stage regression model with the use of panel tobit regression.Results: We found that the mean efficiency ranges between 0.407 (moderate) and 0.724 (high) in general, however, with greater variation across municipalities. Fruitless and wasteful expenditure and unauthorised expenditure negatively affect the total effciency scores. Irregular expenditure has no statistical effect on efficiency, arguably because of the nature of this financial mismanagement being expenditure that may be for a good cause but not approved procedurally.Conclusion: There is room to increase efficiency in studied municipalities, especially by reducing wasteful expenditure and unauthorised expenditure. The Public Finance Management Act provides astute guidelines that will bring efficiencies in municipalities; however, a review may be necessary to be progressive. The South African Local Government Association and Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs Department must capacitate municipalities and work with the auditor general to implement audit recommendations.
{"title":"Financial mismanagement and efficiency trade-off in local municipalities: Lessons from Eastern Cape, South Africa","authors":"Syden Mishi, Nwabisa Mbaleki, Farai B. Mushonga","doi":"10.4102/jolgri.v3i0.68","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.4102/jolgri.v3i0.68","url":null,"abstract":"Background: Local governments are considered an essential part of interpreting and integrating laws and policies at the local level. There is a growing realisation that the success of local government is vital to alleviating poverty and delivering services to communities. However, financial mismanagement as per audit reports has affected a number of local authorities and continues to be a hindrance to progress.Aim: This study was set to investigate the level of efficiency in each municipality and how financial mismanagement (unauthorised, irregular, fruitless and wasteful expenditure) influences that efficiency.Setting: The study considered all local municipalities within the Eastern Cape province of South Africa, using publicly available data on each municipality’s performance and financial management. The data available and utilised are for the financial years 2012–2015.Methods: The study used a non-parametric linear programming-based technique to compute efficiencies, with the local municipality being the decision-making unit. The implications of financial mismanagement on efficiency are determined in a second-stage regression model with the use of panel tobit regression.Results: We found that the mean efficiency ranges between 0.407 (moderate) and 0.724 (high) in general, however, with greater variation across municipalities. Fruitless and wasteful expenditure and unauthorised expenditure negatively affect the total effciency scores. Irregular expenditure has no statistical effect on efficiency, arguably because of the nature of this financial mismanagement being expenditure that may be for a good cause but not approved procedurally.Conclusion: There is room to increase efficiency in studied municipalities, especially by reducing wasteful expenditure and unauthorised expenditure. The Public Finance Management Act provides astute guidelines that will bring efficiencies in municipalities; however, a review may be necessary to be progressive. The South African Local Government Association and Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs Department must capacitate municipalities and work with the auditor general to implement audit recommendations.","PeriodicalId":34771,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Local Government Research and Innovation","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-07-29","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"44222667","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Background: The Integrated Housing Development Plan developed by the eThekwini municipality is aimed at creating sustainable human settlements. It was developed to ensure that by the year 2020, all residents would have access to a housing opportunity which was to include secure tenure, basic services and support in achieving incremental housing improvement in living environments with the requisite social, economic and physical infrastructure. However, this did not materialise because there are a lot of issues that the municipality has continued to grapple with in fulfilling this mandate.Aim: This article aims at rethinking the modality of megaprojects as a vehicle for providing long-lasting benefits to housing beneficiaries in the eThekwini municipality.Method: This article is qualitative, and data were collected from members of the Cornubia community, officials from the eThekwini municipality and the KwaZulu-Natal Department of Human Settlements.Findings: The findings show the role played by megaprojects in creating a quality living environment for communities to meet government objectives. Whilst the South African government through these large-scale projects aims to provide quality accommodation together with basic services, this study also finds that this has cost implications for the poor because of other external factors such as unemployment and lack of access to resources.Conclusion: Whilst an enormous number of policies have been adopted to address the housing backlog, sustainable human settlements are still a challenge in South Africa. It should be observed that the Department of Human Settlements is chasing a moving target. The article has identified policy gaps in achieving sustainable human settlements which do not adequately address the achievement of integrated human settlements that the government is aiming at.
{"title":"Megaprojects as a vehicle for providing benefits to housing beneficiaries in the eThekwini municipality","authors":"B. Mvuyana, T. Nzimakwe","doi":"10.4102/jolgri.v3i0.64","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.4102/jolgri.v3i0.64","url":null,"abstract":"Background: The Integrated Housing Development Plan developed by the eThekwini municipality is aimed at creating sustainable human settlements. It was developed to ensure that by the year 2020, all residents would have access to a housing opportunity which was to include secure tenure, basic services and support in achieving incremental housing improvement in living environments with the requisite social, economic and physical infrastructure. However, this did not materialise because there are a lot of issues that the municipality has continued to grapple with in fulfilling this mandate.Aim: This article aims at rethinking the modality of megaprojects as a vehicle for providing long-lasting benefits to housing beneficiaries in the eThekwini municipality.Method: This article is qualitative, and data were collected from members of the Cornubia community, officials from the eThekwini municipality and the KwaZulu-Natal Department of Human Settlements.Findings: The findings show the role played by megaprojects in creating a quality living environment for communities to meet government objectives. Whilst the South African government through these large-scale projects aims to provide quality accommodation together with basic services, this study also finds that this has cost implications for the poor because of other external factors such as unemployment and lack of access to resources.Conclusion: Whilst an enormous number of policies have been adopted to address the housing backlog, sustainable human settlements are still a challenge in South Africa. It should be observed that the Department of Human Settlements is chasing a moving target. The article has identified policy gaps in achieving sustainable human settlements which do not adequately address the achievement of integrated human settlements that the government is aiming at.","PeriodicalId":34771,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Local Government Research and Innovation","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-07-22","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"41679218","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"COVID-19 and the attainment of Sustainable Development Goal 6 (clean water and sanitation) in South Africa","authors":"B. Zindi, E. Shava","doi":"10.4102/jolgri.v3i0.58","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.4102/jolgri.v3i0.58","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":34771,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Local Government Research and Innovation","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-05-31","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"49409940","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Using a participatory democracy framework, this study assesses the involvement of stakeholders in service delivery at the eDumbe Municipality. This article argues that the interests of stakeholders have been overlooked by municipal officials of eDumbe. The current local government environment is volatile, and municipalities must adapt to constant environmental changes. The principles of cooperative government are provided by the constitution (1996) to be used as a mechanism that can restore peace and relations between officials and the communities. The complexity of municipalities is also exacerbated by political will that is influential on the state power use (Mohale 2017:53).
{"title":"Stakeholders’ involvement in service delivery at eDumbe Municipality","authors":"Zweliknona Zwane, N. Matsiliza","doi":"10.4102/jolgri.v3i0.45","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.4102/jolgri.v3i0.45","url":null,"abstract":"Using a participatory democracy framework, this study assesses the involvement of stakeholders in service delivery at the eDumbe Municipality. This article argues that the interests of stakeholders have been overlooked by municipal officials of eDumbe. The current local government environment is volatile, and municipalities must adapt to constant environmental changes. The principles of cooperative government are provided by the constitution (1996) to be used as a mechanism that can restore peace and relations between officials and the communities. The complexity of municipalities is also exacerbated by political will that is influential on the state power use (Mohale 2017:53).","PeriodicalId":34771,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Local Government Research and Innovation","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-02-28","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"48627607","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Assessing the effectiveness and efficiency of the provincial MuniMEC forum inter-government relations structures in the Eastern Cape Province, South Africa","authors":"Zolani Tafeni, B. Mngomezulu","doi":"10.4102/jolgri.v3i0.42","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.4102/jolgri.v3i0.42","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":34771,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Local Government Research and Innovation","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-01-31","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"45739685","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Table of Contents Vol 2 (2021)","authors":"Editorial Office","doi":"10.4102/jolgri.v2i0.53","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.4102/jolgri.v2i0.53","url":null,"abstract":"No abstract available.","PeriodicalId":34771,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Local Government Research and Innovation","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2021-12-30","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"45559387","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Transformative networks and public participation in local government in the post-COVID era","authors":"O. Nzewi","doi":"10.4102/jolgri.v2i0.46","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.4102/jolgri.v2i0.46","url":null,"abstract":"No abstract available.","PeriodicalId":34771,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Local Government Research and Innovation","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2021-12-17","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"41480333","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Background: Public participation in municipal strategic development planning processes does not occur in a vacuum; it is juxtaposed within contextual community realities of power, politics, institutional, systemic practices, cultures and inequities in resource capacity, amongst other relational social practices.Aim: The aim of this study was to explore the nature of power dynamics in participatory governance platforms and spaces during municipal strategic development planning processes and the extent to which they impact developmental outcomes in a metropolitan municipality.Setting: A metropolitan municipality in the Eastern Cape Province, South Africa.Methods: An interpretive, constructivist, cross-sectional exploratory case study collected in-depth qualitative data from purposefully sampled participants (n = 34) using focus-group discussions. Qualitative data were processed using NVivo 8 computer software and analysed using a thematic analysis approach.Results: The results indicated mixed views on participants’ satisfaction with public participation in municipal strategic development planning processes. Participants reported inadequate knowledge, capacity and capability; resource limits; political exclusion and language barriers, which muted community voice and disempowered, marginalised and excluded some residents from meaningfully participating and articulating community voice, priorities and needs.Conclusion: Public participation in municipal strategic development planning in the metropolitan municipality is at best tokenistic, constituting mere ‘window dressing,’ co-option and ‘pretence’ of inclusion of communities/residents in public participation platforms and spaces. Whilst on the surface, public participation appears inclusive of a range of stakeholders, at best powerful andr elite interests shape strategic development planning outcomes. A local governance framework for enhancing community voice in public participation platforms and spaces is recommended.
{"title":"Public participation power dynamics in strategic development planning in a metropolitan municipality: Eastern Cape Province","authors":"M. Sibanda, L. Lues","doi":"10.4102/jolgri.v2i0.44","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.4102/jolgri.v2i0.44","url":null,"abstract":"Background: Public participation in municipal strategic development planning processes does not occur in a vacuum; it is juxtaposed within contextual community realities of power, politics, institutional, systemic practices, cultures and inequities in resource capacity, amongst other relational social practices.Aim: The aim of this study was to explore the nature of power dynamics in participatory governance platforms and spaces during municipal strategic development planning processes and the extent to which they impact developmental outcomes in a metropolitan municipality.Setting: A metropolitan municipality in the Eastern Cape Province, South Africa.Methods: An interpretive, constructivist, cross-sectional exploratory case study collected in-depth qualitative data from purposefully sampled participants (n = 34) using focus-group discussions. Qualitative data were processed using NVivo 8 computer software and analysed using a thematic analysis approach.Results: The results indicated mixed views on participants’ satisfaction with public participation in municipal strategic development planning processes. Participants reported inadequate knowledge, capacity and capability; resource limits; political exclusion and language barriers, which muted community voice and disempowered, marginalised and excluded some residents from meaningfully participating and articulating community voice, priorities and needs.Conclusion: Public participation in municipal strategic development planning in the metropolitan municipality is at best tokenistic, constituting mere ‘window dressing,’ co-option and ‘pretence’ of inclusion of communities/residents in public participation platforms and spaces. Whilst on the surface, public participation appears inclusive of a range of stakeholders, at best powerful andr elite interests shape strategic development planning outcomes. A local governance framework for enhancing community voice in public participation platforms and spaces is recommended.","PeriodicalId":34771,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Local Government Research and Innovation","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2021-12-17","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"44788686","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Background: The influx of migrants from neighbouring countries has contributed to diversity in South Africa. This has caused on-going clashes between local residents and migrants. This article explores the role of discourse towards enabling a cohesive society. There has been much focus on migrants working in South Africa over the 2020 December festive season as many faced challenges in travelling to their respective countries because of the COVID-19 pandemic. This limelight exposed the underlying discrimination towards migrants in South Africa remain regardless of the South African progressive Constitution that values and respects individuals as well as protecting them from discrimination.Aim: This article adopts threat theory and uses critical discourse analysis to highlight the existing and continued discrimination towards migrant workers. The article exposes the causes of social inequalities, which can assist the government in decision-making towards reducing the inequality gap in service delivery.Setting: Public viewer comments on the news updates on migrants’ travel that were posted on the national news websites over the 2020 festive season were analysed.Methods: Critical Discourse analysis (CDA) was employed as a method of analysis in this article.Results and conclusion: The article intends to add to the existing body of knowledge and to also inform local government towards canvasing agenda that incorporate all human rights and enable a cohesive society by considering the role of discourse as an enabler of the problems experienced in societies. The results show that discourse contributes to negative attitudes, hate speech, discrimination and stereotyping towards migrants in South Africa.
{"title":"Attitudes towards migrant workers in South Africa: A critical discourse analysis","authors":"Vongai S. Ruzungunde, Sindiso Zhou","doi":"10.4102/jolgri.v2i0.36","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.4102/jolgri.v2i0.36","url":null,"abstract":"Background: The influx of migrants from neighbouring countries has contributed to diversity in South Africa. This has caused on-going clashes between local residents and migrants. This article explores the role of discourse towards enabling a cohesive society. There has been much focus on migrants working in South Africa over the 2020 December festive season as many faced challenges in travelling to their respective countries because of the COVID-19 pandemic. This limelight exposed the underlying discrimination towards migrants in South Africa remain regardless of the South African progressive Constitution that values and respects individuals as well as protecting them from discrimination.Aim: This article adopts threat theory and uses critical discourse analysis to highlight the existing and continued discrimination towards migrant workers. The article exposes the causes of social inequalities, which can assist the government in decision-making towards reducing the inequality gap in service delivery.Setting: Public viewer comments on the news updates on migrants’ travel that were posted on the national news websites over the 2020 festive season were analysed.Methods: Critical Discourse analysis (CDA) was employed as a method of analysis in this article.Results and conclusion: The article intends to add to the existing body of knowledge and to also inform local government towards canvasing agenda that incorporate all human rights and enable a cohesive society by considering the role of discourse as an enabler of the problems experienced in societies. The results show that discourse contributes to negative attitudes, hate speech, discrimination and stereotyping towards migrants in South Africa.","PeriodicalId":34771,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Local Government Research and Innovation","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2021-12-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"46489092","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Corrigendum: Examining the implications of classical budget theories in the local government budgeting process: Union councils in Bangladesh","authors":"M. R. Talukdar","doi":"10.4102/jolgri.v2i0.41","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.4102/jolgri.v2i0.41","url":null,"abstract":"No abstract available.","PeriodicalId":34771,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Local Government Research and Innovation","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2021-12-06","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"42950845","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
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