SsnippetsSERVE AND
SsnippetsSERVE AND DELIVERMUNICIPAL LEADERS PRIORITISE SERVICE DELIVERY OVER CLEAN AUDITSA recent survey by Munsoft, a fintech and leader in municipal financialmanagement solutions, has revealed that many senior municipal officialsin South Africa are prioritising service delivery over achieving clean audits.The study, which surveyed around 95 municipalities out of South Africa’stotal 257, found that 65% of respondents ranked addressing core communityneeds as a higher priority than obtaining clean audit results.“While clean audits are crucial, they do not inherently guarantee effectiveservice delivery. Several municipalities with clean audits still face substantialchallenges in areas like infrastructure maintenance, water supply andsanitation. This highlights that financial compliance must work in tandemwith robust operational management to improve service delivery outcomeseffectively, said Nicholas Maweni, CEO of Munsoft.Overlooking financial controls in the pursuit of service delivery can leadto irregular expenditure and financial mismanagement. The Auditor-General’sreports have repeatedly highlighted instances where a strong focus onservice delivery has resulted in unauthorised and wasteful expenditure, aconsequence of insufficient financial oversight.In her recent Consolidated General Report on Local Government AuditOutcomes, Tsakani Maluleke, Auditor-General of South Africa, stressed, “Iremain convinced that service delivery improvements in local governmentwill be enabled by stable, capable, cooperative, accountable and responsivemunicipalities delivering on their mandates, and by leadership creating aculture that values excellence and continuous improvement to bring aboutpositive change in the lives of all South Africans.”Audit outcomes, as outlined by the Auditor-General, are based on amunicipality’s compliance with financial reporting standards, performanceobjectives and legislative requirements. A clean audit, therefore, indicatesnot only an unqualified financial opinion but also an absence of significantfindings on both performance reporting and legal compliance.When municipalities neglect financial management, the delivery of criticalservices and government priorities suffers. Maweni notes that while focusingon service delivery is essential, it must be supported by strong financialmanagement to ensure sustainable operations. “In the long run, sustainableservice delivery relies on a robust financial management system, whichultimately contributes to improved audit outcomes,” Maweni explained.“As municipalities navigate the complex landscape of service delivery,financial management and governance, it’s vital to strike a balance thatmeets community needs while upholding sound financial practices,” Maweniconcluded. “This survey underscores the importance of strategic partnershipsand innovative solutions to promote sustainable growth.”LIVING UNDER AN AUTHORITARIAN IRON FISTJournalist, author and anti-apartheid activist, Janet Levine, lived under anautocratic, racist national government from her childhood into her adulthood,and throughout her 30 years of anti-apartheid activism.“Living in a dictatorial police state affects every part of your life,” Levinesaid. “No-one perceived as an enemy of the state is exempt.”Levine draws on her life experiences to bring the realities of living underapartheid’s rule to life through a passionately envisaged saga, Liv’s Secrets. Asshown through the eyes of three powerful women in a South African Jewishfamily, Liv’s Secrets is a masterful blend of key historical figures, South Africanculture and captivating characters that immerses readers in the lives of afamily of immigrants who risk everything to help end apartheid.Liv’s Secrets weaves the stories of three generations of the Weisz family,one among a great wave of Jewish immigrants in the latter part of the 19thcentury. While most washed up in America, a wavelet of Lithuanian Jews, likethe Weiszes, landed on South Africa’s shores.Noteworthy historical figures, including Alan Paton and Helen Suzman,interact with Levine’s compelling characters amid the background of SouthAfrica’s racial turmoil and apartheid’s authoritarian iron fist. Not least ofthe characters is South Africa itself – landscape of astonishing beauty andabundant flora and fauna.As decades pass, readers witness the first loves, lust, betrayal, true love,despair and elation, cruelty and evil, hope and fulfilment of generations ofWeisz family members. Always in the background is the chilling reality ofworld wars and escalating racial tensions within South Africa that culminatein the Sharpeville Massacre in 1960 and its aftermath.From 1960, the saga pivots on the third generation, embodied by Liv Weisz.Five years earlier, passionate and headstrong, she heeds the call to becomepart of the resistance to the authoritarian white apartheid government. Andpays an unimaginable price with resounding consequences for many characters,as the country itself undergoes seismic, racially evoked challenges.Liv’s Secrets is also available as an audiobook powerfully narrated by jazzsinger, Jerzy Jung. Available online.PRIVATE SECTOR INVESTMENT IN ETHEKWINIIn November, the Minister of Public Works and Infrastructure, DeanMacpherson, KwaZulu-Natal MEC for Public Works and Infrastructure, MartinMeyer, and eThekwini Metropolitan Municipality Mayor, Cyril Xaba, signed ahistoric Memorandum of Understanding to collaborate on addressing publicassets in the city.During the signing ceremony, they announced a list of properties that inthe coming months will be made available through a request for proposalsto potentially attract private sector investment to refurbish and revitalisethe buildings.This signing markedan important milestonetowards generatingeconomic growth andcreating jobs in the cityby turning the countryinto a construction siteand using public assetsfor the public good.4 | Service magazine
snippetsSSERVE AND DELIVERDATA-DRIVEN LOCAL GOVERNMENT EXCELLENCEThe Minister of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (CoGTA),Velenkosini Hlabisa, has launched the National Strategic Hub, agroundbreaking initiative aimed at transforming local government throughdata-driven decision-making. This innovative platform will serve as acatalyst for improving service delivery and operational efficiency across allmunicipalities in South Africa.The National Strategic Hub offers the following key features:1. Reliable data source. Establishing a single source of truth for publicsector planning, ensuring all local government activities are informed byup-to-date and accurate information.2. Comprehensive district insights. Providing a 360-degree view of alldistrict spaces, as well as enabling a holistic understanding of the localgovernment landscape.3. Fostering co-governance. Engaging communities, private sector entitiesand other stakeholders in real-time monitoring of what is happening withintheir local government spaces, enhancing transparency and participation.4. Empowering communities and leadership. Equipping communitymembers and political leaders with the tools to make informed decisionson resource allocation, planning and service delivery.5. Private sector collaboration. Enabling private sector entities to gaininsight into district needs, fostering meaningful contributions towardlocal development.6. Standardisation and collaboration. Promoting standardised planning andfostering collaboration across various government and non-governmentalentities, aligned with the “all of government and all of society” approach.7. Lifecycle planning and performance monitoring. Supporting a cradleto-graveplanning model and ongoing monitoring of local governmentperformance for continuous improvement.This strategic hub marks a significant step in CoGTA’s efforts to ensureevery municipality works effectively by leveraging data to guide policy andoperational decisions.MINISTER NZIMANDE UNVEILS TRANSPORT SAFETY LABThe Minister of Science, Technology and Innovation, Prof Blade Nzimande,opened a state-of-the-art Transport Safety Lab at the Council for Scientificand Industrial Research (CSIR) on 24 October 2024.In a country where road safety is a serious concern for the government, thelab will serve as a hub for developing cutting-edge technologies and strategiesaimed at reducing accidents, improving safety standards and growing theeconomy. By encouraging collaboration between transport stakeholders, itaims to strengthen the transport sector and, ultimately, improve people’s lives.In his keynote address, Minister Nzimande highlighted the criticalimportance of research and innovation in addressing the challenges facedby the sector.The lab will focus on road safety, public transport and infrastructureresilience, aiming to produce actionable insights and solutions. MinisterNzimande reiterated government’s commitment to investing in research anddevelopment to build a safer and more efficient transport network. Accordingto him, the initiative aims to make three key contributions to improve thetransport sector:“First, it will decrease the number of deaths and injuries on our roads byimproving the design, maintenance and effectiveness of infrastructure suchas intersections, barriers, guardrails and safe pedestrian crossings. Second,through its research on human factors, it will help us better understand thebehaviour of South African drivers and pedestrians, informing our decisions onnecessary innovations. Third, through research that evaluates vehicle safetyfeatures, the initiative will enable us to manufactureimproved vehicles.”The minister called on all stakeholders to engagewith the lab, and to make sure that its findingstranslate into practical improvements on our roads.“This is one of the ways of ensuring that weplace science at the centre of government’s workand society, and we will be working with the otherentities of the Department of Science, Technology andInnovation to ensure that we take this approach to ourresearch priorities,” he concluded.Service magazine | 5
