By Luvuyo Mjekula
The national Co-operative Governance and Traditional Affairs department is in the process of implementing a phased support programme to rescue the Makana Municipality from the financial and governance quagmire it has landed itself in.
The first phase will entail an assessment and diagnosis of the challenges and failings of the institution, followed by planning on how to tackle the problems, and thereby ease the burden on residents.
In the second phase, the focus will be on capacity development and policy reform, the third phase will pay attention to pilot projects and full-scale implementation and support.
The fourth phase will see the team of seven experts deployed by Cogta to the municipality ramp up monitoring and evaluation and ensure there is continuous improvement.
Grocott’s Mail reported last week that a team of experts in project management, municipal finance, budgeting, supply chain management and auditing, among other disciplines, were expected to arrive in Makhanda last Friday to start working under the Section 154 intervention.
Municipal spokesperson Anele Mjekula confirmed this week that the experts had arrived. “They have been introduced to management, and some have already started working,” he said.
The technical team is reportedly led by Paul Serote and has a wide range of expertise and experience ranging from leadership and management, financial and risk management, engineering and management, engineering master planning, roads and stormwater management, to training and change management, organisational development and project management.
The team also has extensive knowledge in engineering and service delivery improvement, electrical and civil engineering, human resources and administration.
The primary objectives of the integrated municipal support programme include strengthening governance structures and accountability mechanisms; improving the efficiency and quality of service delivery and building institutional and human resource capacity.
“The programme will encourage stakeholder engagement and collaboration; ensure financial sustainability and effective resource management; accommodate complexity and humble government perspectives; prioritise technical support interventions based on municipal needs and readiness.”
According to Cogta, “a well-structured municipal support programme is essential to improve governance, service delivery and institutional effectiveness”.
The Makana council approved the intervention last week and undertook to give the necessary support to the team, including access to all relevant documents. This support will augment the intervention and support that is currently provided by the Municipal Infrastructure Support Agency (MISA).
Service delivery under strain in Makana
As reported by Grocott’s Mail and various other media, Makana has been in dire governance and financial trouble for a long time. In its report that forms part of the support programme, Cogta confirms these shortcomings.
The department states that the municipality suffers from poor roads and storm water infrastructure, ageing infrastructure issues, leakages, overflows and spillages, limited capacity of the existing water services infrastructure, vandalism and water distribution losses at 19 to 20 percent over recent years.
“The municipality is grappling with severe water and electricity losses. Makana reported water losses of up to 22 percent and electricity losses consistently above norms. Financial governance is an area of serious concern.”
The report further confirms that Makana remains under a section 139 (5) intervention involving various measures, including the implementation of a Financial Recovery Plan to address the municipality’s financial and institutional challenges.
Cogta reports that the municipality has received consecutive disclaimed audit opinions over the years, indicating serious financial management and governance issues. Most recently, the institution received a disclaimer audit opinion for the 2023/2024 financial year, “continuing a troubling pattern”.
The report pointed to several key issues highlighted by the provincial executive team in terms of the municipality’s financial health.
These included:
- an unfunded budget
- low revenue collection
- supply chain management policy not reviewed
- contract management not in place
- high employee-related costs exceeding norms
- lack of funding to implement O&M
- delay in payment of invoices of service providers and contractors
“The non-payment of service providers by the municipality is affecting service delivery to the community as the service providers do not want to assist the municipality anymore, resulting in greater costs as suppliers outside Makana must be approached to assist.”
Cogta says high wasteful, fruitless and irregular expenditure is costing the municipality millions. In terms of service delivery, the department highlighted the following problems:
- aging infrastructure issues – leakages, overflows and spillages
- limited capacity of existing water services infrastructure to meet existing, future demand
- lack of possible alternative water sources to meet future demand
- lack of innovative and advanced sanitation technologies
- poor condition of solid waste infrastructure, roads, stormwater and electrical network
- vandalism of infrastructure
- water distribution losses from 90 to 22% over recent years
- electricity losses consistently above norms – 29%, 17%, 20% over three years
- poor road and stormwater infrastructure
- poor audit outcomes
- lack of consequence management
“Where institutional arrangement is concerned, there is lack of capacity especially in the technical services department.” Currently, an acting director runs the technical department.
Cogta raised alarm about the municipality’s consecutive disclaimer audit opinions, including the 2023/2024 disclaimer as well as six consecutive ones despite support from the provincial treasury and co-operative governance department. “Poor audit outcomes indicate ongoing failures in financial management and accountability, lack of implementation of PAAP by management, lack of consequence management in municipality under section 139 (5) intervention and implementing a financial recovery plan.”
The department stated that the successful implementation of the municipal support programme requires active participation from national and provincial government bodies through Cogta, local private sector entities and investors, community organisations and civil society, international development partners, political advisors, technical experts and other professionals.
