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University of the Western Cape

Volume 20, Issue 4, November/December 2025

Can municipal councils fund councillor education and training?

Municipal councillors play a key role in governance. They are responsible for oversight, ensuring accountability, and holding the municipal administration to account.

Externalising services in distressed municipalities – a new solution to a persistent problem? Part 1

In some municipalities, basic service delivery is collapsing. These municipalities struggle with a combination of political instability, governance challenges, consumer debt, debt to bulk service providers, aging infrastructure etc.

Externalising services in distressed municipalities – a new solution to a persistent problem? Part 2

This article is the second in a two-part series about externalising municipal services in response to municipal distress.

High Court finds NERSA's approval of municipal electricity tariffs unconstitutional

South African citizens have faced steadily rising electricity tariffs over recent years, with further increases anticipated in the near future. This trend has placed significant financial pressure on households and businesses alike.

Pharmaceutical waste: A hidden threat in municipal waste management

Everyone has the constitutional right to an environment that is not harmful to their health or well-being. Yet pharmaceutical waste poses a unique and often overlooked threat to this right.

Righting wrongs: Western Cape Province seeks to formalise the assignment of the library services function to municipalities

Headline: At the recent 5th African School on Decentralisation held by the Dullah Omar Institute, the Executive Mayor of the City of Cape Town, Geordin Hill-Lewis, bemoaned the challenge of unfunded or underfunded mandates on municipalities.

The Auditor-General’s new teeth in action: R4.6 million certificate of debt issued to a municipal manager

South Africa reached important turning point for public financial accountability when the Auditor-General (AG) issued their first certificate of debt against the municipal manager of the Ngaka Modiri Molema District Municipality, on 14 November 2025.

The significance of the 2025 G20 South Africa Summit on local governance

The G20 Summit hosted by South Africa in Johannesburg on 22-23 November 2025 marked a pivotal moment for global dialogue under the theme “Solidarity, Equality, Sustainability”.

Unpacking the new proposals in the “Second Municipal Structures Amendment Bill of 2025”

In January 2025, a private members bill titled the “Local Government: Second Structures Amendment Bill” was recently introduced in the National Assembly by a member of parliament, George Michalakis (Democratic Alliance).