Communication between municipalities and people is key to address challenges of revenue collection and prevent service delivery protests, the South African Local Government Association (SALGA) said on Tuesday.
The SALGA held the 8th National Communicators Forum where best practices in local government communication were shared. According to SALGA, there are challenges of revenue collection and the escalating municipal debt crisis that affect every municipality and citizen across the country. There are 257 municipalities in South Africa.
Deputy President of SALGA Councillor Xola Pakati said the media landscape is rapidly evolving, fuelled by the speed of digital platforms where stories are told and retold in seconds. He said communicators are the bridge between the municipality and the people but that speed brings risks.
“False narratives and sensational stories spread like wildfire often undermining the incredible work being done by municipalities to uplift communities. There is an issue of trust. Many citizens no longer believe in the promise of local government. Municipal debt has reached unsustainable levels and community engagement, a cornerstone of democratic governance, remains inconsistent. In many areas sometimes this area of community engagement is interrupted by inter-party political dynamics,” Pakati said.
Pakati said the upcoming local government elections will present its own challengers for communicators.
“Sometimes many of the service delivery protests arise because people do not have much information on the matter. If you communicate, some service delivery issues will not arise. ”
Leading discussions, SALGA Chief of Operations, Lance Joel, spearheaded engagements on targeted interventions, strategic partnerships, and innovative solutions aimed at restoring financial sustainability within local government
There were also discussions about managing communication in disaster situations.
Rabelani Tshikalance, from SALGA said that municipalities are facing negative impact of extreme climate events, such as severe droughts and heavy rainfall, putting communities at risk. Going forward, municipalities must integrate climate change consideration into their policies and integrated development plan.
Sisa Msiwa of Amathole District Municipality says they were able to manage and mitigate Climate Change challenges through the partnership they have with local communities and the unified relationship with traditional leaders.
Speaking on recent fires and industrial pollution in Durban, Desmond D’Sa, the coordinator of the South Durban Community Environmental Alliance (SDCEA) said communication was key to avoid frustrated communities. D’Sa said previous warehouse fires and environmental disasters were poorly communicated to the community until it was too late.
“People are left frustrated with a lack of answers from call centre staff. The local municipalities must evolve. We welcome strategies to improve communication and bolster prompt alerts to the community on the ground. Before they invest in any technology they must speak to the people on the ground to get their feedback,” he said.
At a recent EThekwini Municipality Executive Committee (Exco) meeting city manager Musa Mbhele emphasised the need to improve the city’s communication with residents in terms of the water crises and power outages. Mbhele said communities grow impatient during prolonged outages.