Abstract:
The study presents findings that examined the nature and extent of community
participation in the Integrated Development Planning (IDP) processes as a means of
improving local governance at the Polokwane Local Municipality. The study argues for
a need to empower communities with knowledge on the available mechanism as a
way of fulfilling the dream of a culture of participation. This is to increase unified
perception about the value of community participation in improving local governance.
However, local governance accountability can be gauged by the extent to which they
practise community participation in decision-making in facing up to the challenges of
the day. This is done by putting or encouraging community participation in the
processes that would help face up to the challenges of the day, including the IDP
processes.
The study applied a mixed-methods design and a combination of thematic data
analysis and Microsoft Excel (spreadsheet) to analyse data gathered. Structured
questionnaires were distributed to respective community members in the selected
communities: two villages of Potse and Mahlohlokwe; two townships Mankweng Unit
D and Mankweng Zone 1; two suburbs - Flora Park and Ivy Park. Furthermore, faceto-
face interviews were conducted with the Polokwane municipal officials responsible
for IDP, municipal manager, IDP manager and councillors of selected communities.
Findings of the study showed that community participation in the IDP processes was
viewed as one of the ways of enabling interaction between local government and
citizens. However, citizens faced challenges in the process of community participation
and that impacted on the level of community participation. It should, therefore, be
borne in mind that to improve local governance, it is necessary to look at the extent to
which communities are engaged in the processes of improving local governance.
Participation of communities in the development planning of their communities can
thus help improve local governance. Therefore, community participation should be
widely applied in the local government field to enable good governance and
sustainable development.
