quo vadis ? : local governance and development in south africa post 1994

Résumé

Quo Vadis ? Local Governance and Development in South Africa post 1994 South Africa became a democratic state in 1994. Since then, a series of policy and legislative developments have been introduced that that has been crucial in terms of restructuring and transforming local government. The post 1994 legislative and policy framework governing local government has been described as being « world class » and very « futuristic » ; however, despite the progress made in addressing basic development backlogs, notably housing, water, sanitation, electricity and roads which are the resultant effect of the apartheid legacy, there are still major challenges being experienced like inter alia, poor service delivery ; corruption ; poor financial management and lack of compliance ; lack of political and management will ; increased politicization of the municipal service ; poor skills base ; lack of monitoring and evaluation and weak intergovernmental relations. This book critiques the post 1994 local government dispensation and also proposes possible solutions to address the key issues highlighted. The notion of developmental local government has to become a reality for the majority of South Africans in terms of improving the quality of their life at the local level.