scholarly journals A proposed citizen participation–public trust model in the context of service delivery protests in South African local government

2021 ◽  
Vol 2 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pumlani Msenge ◽  
Ogochukwu I. Nzewi
Keyword(s):  
Local Government ◽  
Service Delivery ◽  
Procedural Justice ◽  
South African ◽  
Citizen Participation ◽  
Public Trust ◽  
Trust Model ◽  
Empirical Literature ◽  
Public Administrators ◽  
Community Trust

The South African local government context has been marred by persistent citizen protests that continue to jeopardise public administrators’ quest for effective service rendering. Such protests have been attributed to the disregard of citizen participation in local government and unresponsive service rendering, amongst other factors. Meaningful citizen participation is seen as a precondition for the establishment of trust between communities and public administrators. This article, delving into the empirical literature, presents a citizen participation and public trust model aimed at minimising service delivery protests in South Africa. It argues that whilst lack of community trust has been lauded as one of the factors that have brewed citizen protests over the years, there is evidence to show that between the core values of procedural justice and public trust, citizen perception of power to influence may be vital to minimise proclivity to protest. The article finds that in addition to the interactional and informational justice components of procedural justice, meaningful citizen participation can be measured as a combination of these justice areas with mechanisms that highlight citizens’ positive perceptions of their power to influence decisions. As recommendations, the article argues that indeed lack of community involvement in municipal processes has the potential to break down trust and explode into service delivery protests. However, the article concludes that ensuring meaningful participation in local government decision-making processes, as defined in this article, is a precondition for building community trust and limiting the outbreak of service delivery protests in the local government context.

Exploring the Uncharted Territory of Devolution in Zimbabwe

2019 ◽  
Vol 49 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jephias Mapuva ◽  
George P Miti
Keyword(s):  
Local Government ◽  
Service Delivery ◽  
Citizen Participation ◽  
Local Governance ◽  
Public Affairs ◽  
Participatory Governance ◽  
Enabling Environment ◽  
Efficiency And Effectiveness ◽  
Local Levels

Devolution, which was incorporated into the Constitution of Zimbabwe through section 264, is a new phenomenon in Zimbabwe. This incorporation came about because of the need for participatory governance and the devolution of power away from the centre. Over the years, local governance has been informed by a plethora of pieces of legislation that do not provide an enabling environment for citizen participation, giving Zimbabwe’s local government a chequered history that excludes citizens from participating in public affairs that affect their lives. An analysis of section 264 of the Constitution revealed that devolution has the propensity to enhance transparency, efficiency and effectiveness as well as the fulfilment of central government’s responsibilities at provincial and local levels. This article argues that the belated implementation of the devolution of power has delayed improved service delivery, effectiveness, efficiency and accountability within local governance. This article further seeks to explain how the implementation of section 264 of the Constitution can bring about good local governance.

Evolving local government in post conflict South Africa: Where to?

2018 ◽  
Vol 33 (7) ◽  
pp. 710-725 ◽  
Author(s):  
PS Reddy
Keyword(s):  
Local Government ◽  
Service Delivery ◽  
South African ◽  
Good Governance ◽  
Local Governance ◽  
African State ◽  
Main Role ◽  
Post Conflict ◽  
Role Players ◽  
Basic Functions

Protracted negotiations between the main role-players steered in the new South African state on 27 April 1994 and final Constitution, 1996 , which constitutionalised local government. A cursory analysis points to some municipalities which are pockets of excellence; however, local government generally is in ‘distress’. Local communities are rapidly losing confidence in the system as the majority of municipalities are unable to discharge even basic functions. Local government has been characterised by violent service delivery protests; abuse of political power and increasing corruption; financial challenges; poor infrastructure planning/maintenance/investment; political strife and factionalism and staff turbulence. Despite governmental interventions to improve local governance, there are still major constraints hampering good governance, namely political posturing and factionalism; corruption; lawlessness and poor service delivery, symptomatic of virtually all post conflict states. Good local governance is an integral part of post conflict reconstruction and development and is key to building a new local government dispensation.

Social innovation and service delivery in Belgium and South Africa

2019 ◽  
Vol 13 (2) ◽  
pp. 143-158 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maréve Inge Biljohn ◽  
Liezel Lues
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Service Delivery ◽  
South African ◽  
Citizen Participation ◽  
Organizational Context ◽  
Social Innovation ◽  
Value Proposition ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Public Sector Service ◽  
Sector Service

Purpose Social innovation (SI) remains a latent area in the South African local government (LG) sphere despite its growing use in public-sector service delivery globally. This paper aims to investigate the use of SI in the service delivery of LG through a comparison between the City of Ghent (CoG) (Belgium) and the Mangaung Metropolitan Municipality (MMM) (South Africa). Design/methodology/approach Through a comparative case study approach, qualitative research methods were used to both collect and analyze the data. Data collection instruments included document analysis (naturally occurring data), semi-structured interviews (generated data) and focus group discussions (generated data). Findings Although LG is obliged to collaborate with citizens, various factors influence citizens’ ability to make contributions, even when platforms are created. Collaborative initiatives aid in the realization of collective development visions and enhance citizen participation in a more responsive and inclusive approach to service delivery. Collaborations would require citizens and LG officials to be empowered by finding new ways of working together, as well as developing skills. Practical implications Citizens’ participation when SI is used to enhance service delivery should be meticulously planned. Co-producing services require a conducive internal organizational context that advances citizen participation in the governance and decision-making of service delivery, which is likewise optimal for enhancing the use of SI during the respective co-production service delivery stages. Achieving a conducive internal organizational context is influenced by the role of LG officials and politicians in understanding the value proposition of participation in service delivery to citizens. This value proposition is crucial to building and establishing a trust relationship between citizens, LG officials and politicians. Finally, consensus concerning the concept of SI and its use and implementation is important to ensure its consistent use and application by a municipality, and thus calls for further in-depth investigation. Originality/value SI is a nascent area for which the discourse is still under development, and it is a concept that is often the subject of debate in literature. This paper is justified by the fact that the use of SI in the South African LG sphere lags behind the growing use thereof in public-sector service delivery by LGs globally. In addition, the study presents novel insights regarding similarities and differences in the use of SI through a comparison between two LGs, namely, the MMM and the CoG.

scholarly journals Successful Earthquake Mitigation in Qinglong County during the Great Tangshan Earthquake: Lessons for Hurricane Katrina in the United States

2016 ◽  
Vol 4 (1/2) ◽  
pp. 9
Author(s):  
Jeanne-Marie Col
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Local Government ◽  
Information Sharing ◽  
Hurricane Katrina ◽  
Citizen Participation ◽  
The United States ◽  
Public Administrators ◽  
Tangshan Earthquake ◽  
Earthquake Mitigation ◽  
Government Initiative

More than 246,000 people were killed in the 1976 Tangshan Earthquake. In Qinglong County, despite the collapse of 180,000 buildings, no deaths were attributable to the earthquake and its aftershocks. The case of Qinglong County illustrates excellent coordination among public administrators, scientists and citizens and features pro-active policies, local government initiative, thorough implementation, delegation, information sharing, and citizen participation. These lessons are applied to the response to Hurricane Katrina in the United States in 2005.

scholarly journals Efficiency measurement of basic service delivery at South African district and local municipalities

2009 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Brian Dollery ◽  
Gert Van der Westhuizen
Keyword(s):  
Local Government ◽  
Service Delivery ◽  
South African ◽  
Productive Efficiency ◽  
Data Envelopment ◽  
Social Dimensions ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Local Municipalities ◽  
Basic Services ◽  
Using Data

South Africa has experienced immense changes in the post- apartheid era and coordinated local public policy has sought to expand and improve the level of basic services provided to previously disadvantaged people. Local government has played a pivotal role in this process and has been subjected to intense reform in an effort to enhance its effective- ness and broaden its range of activities. While a number of scholars have examined the administrative, political and social dimensions of the local government reform program, little attention has focused on the economic efficiency of service delivery. This paper seeks to remedy this neglect by evaluating the productive efficiency with which municipal councils have delivered electricity, domestic waste removal, sanitation and water in line with their new responsibilities using Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) techniques applied to cross-sectional data covering the period 2006/2007 for 231 local municipalities and 46 district municipalities.

scholarly journals Citizen participation and needs as an input tool for local government quality management

2017 ◽  
Vol 7 (2) ◽  
pp. 56-66 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nirmala Dorasamy
Keyword(s):  
Quality Management ◽  
Local Government ◽  
Service Delivery ◽  
Citizen Participation ◽  
Management System ◽  
Quality Management System ◽  
Recent Attempt ◽  
Management Framework ◽  
Input Stage ◽  
Government Quality

Citizen participation, which is at the interface between the public and government, directly impacts accountability and the governance process. The purpose of this paper is to focus on the relevance of citizen participation as source of input for local government in it’s quality management system. Quality management for local government, with reference to ISO 18091:2104, is a recent attempt to construct a quality management system specifically targeting the requirements of local government. Using a qualitative approach, the paper examines ISO 18091: 2014 and it’s contribution to strengthening local governance. Further, the importance of citizen participation at the input stage in the ISO quality management framework is reviewed. This is supported by literature pertaining to the requirements that are necessary to promote the value of citizen input, in ensuring the continued success of local government in achieving the desired results, with respect to fulfilling citizen needs.The paper highlights that citizen participation provides the most significant feedback on needs and challenges facing service delivery at the input stage. Such an avenue for citizen participation in a quality management system is relevant for local government to explore, if it is committed to continuous improvement in service delivery. The author considers citizen participation as necessary, if local government is to respond appropriately to their needs. However, citizen participation has to be managed as a process within the quality management framework, if it is produce the desired and reliable results. The paper proposes that such a process has to consider several quality management indicators from the perspective of citizen capacity, local government capacity and overall capacity to manage the process of citizen participation. Overall, insight is provided on how these elements can enhance local government quality management.

scholarly journals Evaluation of strategic management in assisting South African municipalities improve service delivery

2015 ◽  
Vol 4 (2) ◽  
pp. 113-123
Author(s):  
Sandiso Ngcobo ◽  
M.G. Mdani
Keyword(s):  
Local Government ◽  
Service Delivery ◽  
Strategic Management ◽  
South African ◽  
Poor Performance ◽  
Management Plan ◽  
Auditor General ◽  
Audit Reports ◽  
Improve Service Delivery

The reports tabled by the Auditor General on yearly basis reflect poor performance on a number of areas in respect of service delivery in South African municipalities. As a possible solution, the Department of Local Government and Traditional Affairs (DLGTAs) has introduced a strategic management plan that should be implemented by municipalities to assist them improve their performance. Hence, the aim of this paper is to evaluate the perceptions of municipal managers and councillors on the role of the strategic management in assisting them improve service delivery. The findings show that the assistance provided by the EC DLGTAs is not without weaknesses. It is then recommended that the areas of improvement should be addressed in an effort to improve audit reports.

scholarly journals The impact of corruption on service delivery: a topical matter in the South African Municipalities

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (01) ◽  
Author(s):  
Mabeba SJ ◽  
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Local Government ◽  
Service Delivery ◽  
South African ◽  
Negative Impact ◽  
Secondary Data ◽  
The South ◽  
Basic Services ◽  
The Republic ◽  
The Impact

One of the topical challenges facing South African municipalities recently is corruption. From time-to-time citizens learn about and witness the corrupt practices of public officials in the Local Government sphere. Arguably, the phenomenon of corruption has both direct and indirect impact on service delivery with specific focus to municipalities. Section 152(1) of the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa (1996) states that the Local Government sphere has the mandate to ensure the provision of services to communities in a sustainable manner. Subsequently, some of the communities across the country still wish to have access to basic services namely: water, electricity, community halls and proper tar roads to name a few. As a result, at times it seems impossible for municipalities to smoothly render such services due to corrupt practices emanating in the South African Local Government sphere. This article aimed to explore the impact of corruption on service delivery in the South African municipalities. The article fully relied on secondary data as it collects information from newspapers, books, journal articles, conference proceedings, officials report and academic dissertations. In pursuit of all this, Afrocentricity: a theory of social change has been placed in context with a view that the needs of the society should be placed at the center of the local government sphere. To be specific, these needs are but not limited to water and electricity. Looking at the findings of the study, indeed literature can confirm that corruptions have negative impact on the ability of the municipalities in South Africa to provide basic services. Because the interests of the public are competing with those of the municipal officials. Therefore, at the end of the day service delivery is compromised due unlawful practices.

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