PRETORIA, Gauteng — The recently introduced Revised White Paper on Local Government aims to overhaul South Africa’s municipal system by addressing critical failures in service delivery and financial sustainability. Spearheaded by the national government, the 2026 policy framework seeks to reset how municipalities operate, ensuring they can effectively provide basic services like water, electricity, and road maintenance to communities.
Following the first White Paper in 1998, evidence gathered over the past 28 years indicates that the current trajectory is unsustainable. To correct these systemic issues, the revised policy focuses on two primary pillars: merit-based administration and differentiated municipal funding.
Merit-Based Hiring and Ending Cadre Deployment
Velenkosini Hlabisa, Minister of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs, emphasized that the reform begins with the people hired to run municipalities. He highlighted a strict shift toward merit-based employment for senior officials, noting that a competent city manager will naturally employ a competent CFO, directors, and ultimately, competent staff.
Hlabisa directly addressed the historical issue of cadre deployment, stating that placing individuals without experience or competencies has severely let the system down. To prevent this, the new policy introduces a rigorous four-layer approval process for employing senior managers: shortlisting, municipal council approval, provincial MEC approval, and final ministerial approval.
When it reaches the national level, the Minister will verify that job advertisements were properly complied with and that an independent service provider assessed the candidates’ competencies. Hlabisa noted that governing political parties across the country—including the DA, the IFP, and others who govern the majority of the local government space—have given their buy-in to this approach, acknowledging that proper employment yields better service delivery outcomes.
Differentiated Funding and “Fit-for-Purpose” Models
A major flaw identified in the current system is the one-size-fits-all funding model. Hlabisa pointed out that applying the same financial formula used for the City of Johannesburg to a small, deep rural municipality is unworkable. The revised policy advocates for differentiated models tailored to a municipality’s specific location and revenue base.
Sithole Mbanga, CEO of the South African Local Government Association (SALGA), echoed these sentiments following an extensive consultative process with all 257 municipalities. Mbanga explained that the current financing formula is failing, with municipalities deriving only 9.5% from the national fiscus. This insufficient allocation disables municipalities from implementing their mandates and prevents them from competitively recruiting high-value staff, often forcing them to rely on private sector consultants.
To resolve this, the White Paper introduces a “fit-for-purpose” institution model. Under this framework, responsibilities are assigned based on a municipality’s actual capacity rather than a blanket mandate. For example, if a local municipality lacks the capacity to deliver water, that responsibility will adaptively shift to the district municipality.
Climate Change and Future-Proofing
Mbanga also highlighted the necessity for adaptive municipal planning in the face of climate change. He noted that municipalities must be properly resourced and designed to handle climate impacts such as water shortages, droughts, and extreme weather.
He referenced recent climate-induced devastations in Limpopo, northern KwaZulu-Natal, and Mpumalanga as evidence of the urgent need for municipalities to be ready to respond to these environmental challenges.
Both leaders stressed that while democratic local government has achieved much over the past 26 years, fundamental questions remain. The 2026 Revised White Paper on Local Government represents a critical pivot to ensure municipalities are financially viable, professionally managed, and capable of improving the daily lives of South Africans.
