The worst-run municipalities in South Africa

 ·10 Oct 2024

Forty-one (41) of the country’s 257 municipalities (~16%) are currently under administration, up from the 32 reported at the beginning of 2024.

This was outlined by Minister of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (CoGTA) Velenkosini Hlabisa in response to recent question posed to him in Parliament by ANC’s Annah Gela.

The responsibilities of municipalities include effectively organising and executing their administration, budgeting, and planning to prioritise the community’s fundamental needs and support social and economic development.

They are also responsible for providing essential public services, including water, electricity, waste disposal, public health, and transportation.

However, when a municipality does not fulfil these obligations, the provincial and/or national executive is able to intervene under section 139 of the Constitution to ensure fulfilment of that obligation.

Section 139 (1), (4) and (5) allows the provincial executive to intervene in a municipality if:

  • A municipality cannot or does not fulfil an obligation in terms of the Constitution or legislation to approve a budget or any revenue-raising measures necessary to give effect to the budget.
  • A municipality, because of a crisis in its financial affairs, is in serious or persistent material breach of its obligations to provide basic services or to meet its financial commitments or admits that it is unable to meet its obligations or financial commitments.

Many of these municipalities are repeat offenders.

Municipalities under administration

According to the information given by the CoGTA minister, the municipalities currently under administration include:

Key:

  • MM – Metropolitan Municipality;
  • LM – Local Municipality;
  • DM – District Municipality.

Eastern Cape (EC)

MunicipalityNatureSinceTimes Under Administration
Enoch Mgijima LMS139(7) (National intervention)April 20222
Amathole DMS139(5)(a)January 20211
Makana LMS139(5)January 20193
OR Tambo DMS139(5)(a) & (c)December 20211
Walter Sisulu LMS139(5)(a)February 20222
Chris Hani DMS139(5)December 20231

Free State (FS)

MunicipalityNatureSinceTimes Under Admin
Mangaung MMS139(7) (National intervention)April 20222
Mafube LMS139(5)(a) & (c)June 20222
Tokologo LMS139(5)(a) & (c)June 20221
Kopanong LMS139(1)(b) with S63 of WSASeptember 20231

Gauteng (GP)

MunicipalityNatureSinceTimes Under Admin
Emfuleni LMS139(5)(a)June 20181
West Rand DMS139(5)February 20191
Merafong LMS139(5)(a)September 20222

KwaZulu-Natal (KZN)

MunicipalityNatureSinceTimes Under Admin
Umzinyathi DMS139(1)(b)October 20163
Mpofana LMS139(1)(b)December 20173
Inkosi Langalibalele LMS139(1)(b)December 20171
Mtubatuba LMS139(1)(b)March 20194
Msunduzi LMS139(1)(a)April 20193
uThukela DMS139(1)(b)August 20182
Umkhanyakude DMS139(1)(b)January 20215
Umzumbe LMS139(1)(b)April 20241
uMhlathuze LMS139(1)(a)April 20241
Zululand DMS139(1)(b)May 20241

Limpopo (LP)

MunicipalityNatureSinceTimes Under Admin
Thabazimbi LMS139(1)(c)September 20242

Mpumalanga (MP)

MunicipalityNatureSinceTimes Under Admin
Emalahleni LMS139(5)October 20183
Govan Mbeki LMS139(5)October 20181
Msukaligwa LMS139(5)October 20181
Thaba Chweu LMS139(5)(a)October 20183
Lekwa LMS139(7) (National intervention)April 20213

Northern Cape (NC)

MunicipalityNatureSinceTimes Under Admin
Phokwane LMS139(5)July 20203
Renosterberg LMS139(5)August 20201

North West (NW)

MunicipalityNatureSinceTimes Under Admin
Madibeng LMS139(5)(a) & (c)January 20226
Tswaing LMS139(5)(a) & (c)January 20226
Dr Ruth Segomotsi Mompati DMS139(5)(a) & (c)January 20223
Kgetleng Rivier LMS139(5)(a) & (c)January 20221
Ramotshere LMS139(5)(a) & (c)January 20223
Naledi LMS139(5)(a) & (c)January 20223
Ditsobotla LMS139(5)(c)April 20238
Matlosana LMS139(5)(a) & (c)August 20243

Western Cape (WC)

MunicipalityNatureSinceTimes Under Admin
Beaufort West LMS139(5)(a)August 20212
Kannaland LMS139(5)(a)December 20232

Dysfunctional municipalities

According to CoGTA’s State of Local Government report presented to parliament’s portfolio committee at the end of 2023, only 11.67% of the country’s municipalities are defined as being ‘stable’.

Just over a quarter are defined as being ‘dysfunctional’, which exacerbates their risks of being placed under administration.

Source: CoGTA State of Local Government Report, presented on 15 November 2023.

In its recent presentation to Parliament’s Portfolio Committee on CoGTA, the South African Local Government Association (Salga) said that the “local government is inadequately equipped to fulfil its developmental agenda.”

They further expressed concerns about the declining level of service delivery, instability, weakening capacity of municipalities, and the debt owed to municipalities that impinge on their performance. 

According to Salga, there are four root causes for the “digression and decline” of the trajectory of the developmental impact of many local governments, being:

  • Poor political leadership capacity and weak administrative management;
  • Inefficient and non-integrated LG delivery mechanisms, systems and processes to enable service delivery;
  • Ineffective utilisation of financial resources (poor financial administration)  & inability to collect revenue, and insufficient fiscus allocation;
  • Degenerating infrastructure and non-existent or poor services provided to local communities.

Interventions by Departments

The government may intervene in distressed municipalities through various measures, including financial assistance, administrative support, or even placing them under administration to restore functionality and service delivery – which has been the case for the 41 abovementioned municipalities.

At the start of his term as minister, Hlabisa announced that his department is not scared to dissolve dysfunctional municipalities and call for re-elections, citing issues like corruption, political instability, and poor service delivery as reasons for this focus.

He stressed that waiting idly by until 2026 for new leadership is not an option.

He called for “bold and radical action” against underperforming municipalities, stating that ineffective leadership serves no purpose and the government will intervene under Section 139 of the Constitution to support these municipalities.

Hlabisa emphasised that CoGTA will concentrate on “the pillars of sustainability” to assist distressed municipalities.

Broadly, these are to do with:

  • Strengthening governance and institutional capacity;
  • Improving financial viability;
  • Accelerating service delivery and economic development.

More on government’s proposed interventions can be found here.


Read: What South Africa needs to learn from countries like India

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