Government is examining refinement of the intergovernmental fiscal system to improve national and provincial support to local government, says Acting Public Service and Administration Minister, Mr Thulas Nxesi.

The Acting Minister was speaking recently at an event to confer certificates to 19 employees of the City of Johannesburg who are mostly councillors who successfully completed the Local Government Leadership Development Programme (LGLDP) course.

The employees were trained by the National School of Government (NSG), who are mandated to provide Education, Training, and Development in the three spheres of government, state-owned entities, and organs of state.

The NSG Strategic Plan 2019-2024 asserted that resources will provide Education, Training, and Development across all spheres of government.

Minister Nxesi said the NSG must focus on specific needs of the local government sector and work collaboratively internally, externally to focus on the training and development needs of municipalities.

“Government recognises that the local sphere should be strengthened if it is to discharge its developmental mandate. As a result, it is examining refinement of the intergovernmental fiscal system to improve national and provincial support to local government.

“Implementing the Local Government Leadership Development Programme in the City of Johannesburg exemplify that the NSG can access the local government,” he said.

“I wish to highlight that the spatial integration, human settlement, and local government is one of the six priorities of the current administration of the democratic South Africa, stipulated in the Medium-Term Strategic Framework (MTSF) 2020-2024.

“Therefore, government adopted a District Development Model (DDM) that is premised on division of municipal areas into workable geographic districts that can be directly served by all relevant institutions. The DDM allows for appropriate intergovernmental approach and cooperative governance,” he said.

According to the Acting Minister, the strategic interests on local government confirm the need for the NSG to target municipalities with relevant training and development programmes.

“Over the years, the NSG has provided training to municipalities, but the penetration has not been satisfactory in terms of reach and quantity of sessions. The LGLDP was piloted with the City of Johannesburg in 2019.

“This resulted in the enrolment of 30 councillors into the programme. Out of 30 enrolled councillors, a total of 19 councillors successfully completed the qualification and will be awarded certificate today,” he said.

The highlight of the LGLDP

The LGLDP was designed to enable leaders to provide effective governance and, to structure governance arrangements so that they are politically stable, well-administered, financially sustainable, and enable service delivery at local government.

This programme is aligned to a qualification accredited by the Local Government Sector Education and Training Authority (LGSETA), namely, Further Education and Training Certificate: Leadership Development (SAQA ID 50081), NQF 4 with 160 credits.

The LGLDP covers the following core thematic areas:

  • Municipal Government Legislation and Policy Framework.
  • Cooperative Government and Intergovernmental Relations.
  • Leadership, Governance and Ethics in Municipalities.
  • Political Oversight and Communicative Functions; and
  • Systems and Processes in Municipality.

Minister Nxesi said the NSG must ensure that the programmes/courses are pertinent for local government in a sense of being informed by the Auditor-General’s findings as well as policy positions such as Integrated Development Plans (IDPs) and a District Model.