What should your municipality deliver? 

South Africans are fed up with municipalities failing to provide basic services. 

Understanding what basic services municipalities are responsible for can help us fight for our rights and for what local government must deliver on. Remember you have a constitutional right to many of the services provided by local government, as well as the right to accountability and transparency, wherever you live and regardless of how much you earn. It is also where money collected from rates and taxes goes. For example, do you know that the government has to provide some free electricity, water and other services to people who earn less than a certain amount? Find out more here. 

Reliable electricity

Lighting up communities with power is one of the most basic and essential government services. Municipalities buy electricity from producers (like Eskom) and then resell the power to residents and businesses. In a few areas, Eskom provides electricity directly to consumers. A big portion of the revenue municipalities earn comes from electricity sales.

Between loadshedding on Eskom’s side and municipalities owing millions of rands to Eskom, our people face massive problems when it comes to getting power. You can learn the best ways to report electricity issues in your municipality using fixlocal’s report it tool. 

Clean water

Municipalities are responsible for sourcing, treating, and distributing water to households and businesses.

Most local governments buy water from regional water utility companies like Magalies Water, Silulumanzi, Rand Water or uMngeni-uThukela Water. In some cases, utility companies are state-owned or the result of public-private partnerships. Poor infrastructure maintenance, chronic leaks, illegal connections, and financial mismanagement affect too many municipalities’ ability to supply clean, reliable water. 

Municipalities are required by national law to have a policy to provide basic free water and electricity to households who cannot afford to pay for it. You can find out more about ensuring your right to free basic services in the Activist's Guide to Making Local Government Work. If you have water outages or other issues, you can find the best contacts to report problems to your municipality on fixlocal here. 

Safe sewage disposal and sanitation

Municipalities have a responsibility to safely and hygienically dispose of sewage and treat wastewater. They are supported by the Department of Water and Sanitation on a national and provincial level. Municipalities have to maintain infrastructure such as sewage systems and wastewater treatment plants, and provide new infrastructure when communities grow in size. All too often, municipal wastewater treatment plants are poorly managed. Every day, raw sewage spills into our rivers, threatening public health and the environment. If your area faces these issyes, find the most reliable ways to report sanitation issues in your municipality with fixlocal’s report it tool.

Regular refuse removal

The waste services departments of municipalities are responsible for keeping streets clean and collecting and disposing of refuse from homes and businesses. In some larger municipalities, a state-owned company like Pikitup in Joburg is given the job of removing refuse on behalf of the municipality. 

In many informal settlements and rural areas, basic refuse removal services don’t exist. Much of the work of waste management – especially recycling – is carried out by informal reclaimers who collect, sort, and sell recyclable materials such as cardboard, plastic, paper, and metal from bins, streets, landfills, and businesses. 

If you have refuse removal issues in your area, use fixlocal’s how to report it resources to contact your municipality to take action. 

Parks, libraries and recreational areas

Public spaces and institutions like local parks and libraries are so important for social wellbeing, education, and keeping a community together. Municipalities have a responsibility to make sure that public spaces and libraries are safe, accessible, and adequately funded. fixlocal can help you find the best ways to report parks and recreation issues, click here to see how. 

Effective stormwater systems

Floods in South Africa’s coastal cities in recent years have shown how essential well-functioning stormwater systems are. In some municipalities, stormwater infrastructure is managed by the local roads department and in others, by the water department. In either case, municipalities must design, implement and maintain stormwater drainage systems that reduce the negative impacts of flooding and keep stormwater and wastewater separate. Ageing infrastructure and drains clogged with rubbish are major problems in many towns and informal settlements often lack any kind of proper drainage planning. If your area has inadequate infrastcuture, blocked stormwater drains or other issues, use fixlocal’s report it tool to help get your local government to take action. 

Well-maintained municipal roads

To hold the government to account for a pothole-ridden or poorly maintained road, it's essential to find out who is responsible for a given road. In most cases, larger roads and highways (marked as N-routes like the N1 or N11) are maintained by the national government through the state state-owned South African National Roads Agency (SANRAL). Provincial and regional routes (R-routes) are the responsibility of provincial authorities. Smaller roads and streets, including often overlooked walking areas, are the responsibility of your local or city municipality to maintain. If your area has potholes or other roads issues, fixlocal has gathered the best contacts for reporting them, find out more here. 

Dependable fire-fighting services

Local authorities must form fire brigade services that work to prevent fires and that protect people and property against fires when they do break out. To report firefighting and other safety issues, use fixlocal’s report it tool. 

Land use and town planning

Municipalities are responsible for zoning, building control, and land use planning. They approve building plans, manage development applications, and ensure land is developed in ways that align with spatial development plans. These plans are tools used by the government and municipalities in South Africa to make sure that land use helps the country develop in a way that promotes economic growth and social equity.

Environmental health services

Municipalities must contribute to public health through efforts including water quality monitoring, inspections to ensure safe food handling and efforts at environmental pollution control. Environmental health services are closely connected to many other parts of municipal service delivery, such as sanitation and regular refuse removal. When these aren’t carried out, the health of communities suffers. If there’s pollution and other environmental health issues, use fixlocal to find the best ways to report them. 

Municipal public transport

The Constitution says municipal public transport is a local government function, but in practice, only a handful of South Africa’s municipalities operate state-owned or subsidised public transport like the ReaVaya in Johannesburg and MyCiTi buses in Cape Town. Municipalities need to do more to support both the infrastructure needed for public transport and the actual provision of transport.

Often, local governments partner with utility companies, state-owned enterprises or other branches of government to deliver services. If you’re not having luck with your municipality, putting pressure on these organisations and departments can be an alternative way to fight for your community’s issues to be resolved. 

When all else fails - organise!

When your local or metro municipality is failing your community in its duty to provide basic services and you are tearing your hair out trying to get things sorted - it's time to organise your community. Find out more here. 

Acknowledgments 

Author: Maru Attwood

Material adapted from Activist's Guide to Making Local Government Work.

Thanks to Professor Tinashe Chigwata of the Dullah Omar Institute for his feedback on fixlocal’s local government series.

Image Credits: South African Tourism