The South African Local Government Association (Salga) is urging government departments, businesses and households to meet their obligations by paying for municipal services, including rates and taxes, as it expressed concerns about rising municipal debt owing to arrears. 

Salga Gauteng chairperson Jongizizwe Dlabathi explained that weak revenue collection systems, high consumer debt, ineffective credit control and inadequate enforcement mechanisms contributed significantly to deteriorating municipal cash flows.

Dlabathi advised that consistent payment was central to restoring municipal financial stability and safeguarding service delivery.

The association said it had repeatedly advocated stronger intergovernmental coordination, clear consequence management and collaborative interventions to address debt owed by State entities to municipalities.  

“...ensuring the long-term sustainability of municipalities requires coordinated policy responses, improved funding frameworks, and shared accountability across the intergovernmental system,” he said.

Municipalities deliver nearly half of all public services but receive a disproportionately small share of funding relative to their service delivery responsibilities, Dlabathi explained. 

“This long-standing imbalance undermines municipalities’ ability to sustainably finance basic services, address infrastructure backlogs, and meet constitutional obligations,” he noted. 

Salga repeated its calls for a comprehensive overhaul of the local government funding model for “adequate, predictable, and equitable” funding for all municipalities. 

MUNICIPAL UNDERSPENDING

Dlabathi said while progress was being made on municipal underspending, there were serious concerns over continued underspending on municipal capital budgets, with expenditure regularly falling below the accepted benchmark of 95%. 

This underperformance hindered infrastructure delivery and directly affected the provision of basic services to communities, he noted.

The association urged municipalities to strengthen supply chain planning, conclude procurement processes earlier in the financial year and improve contract management. 

Dlabathi stated that preventing project delays, cost overruns, and the rolling over of funds was essential to improving service delivery.

Salga said it agreed with Gauteng Finance and Economic Development MEC Lebogang Maile that transparent reporting on municipal financial performance was fundamental to strengthening accountability, promoting good governance and ensuring communities understood how public funds were managed.