Improving service delivery at local government by enhancing capacity

Abstract

This paper intends to critique the service delivery at local government, identify strategies to improve and exacerbate sound financial status. The current weaknesses in local government interventions regarding poor service delivery and mismanagement of funds could be overcome through capacity building and Entrepreneurship approaches. Such tactics could lead to the formulation of areas of research, and training needs in local government to develop or capacitate Administrators and political office bearers. Training should be identified and provided as a tool to improve service delivery and decision making and not as an exit strategy when the term of office expires. Through literature review, the importance of skills audits prior appointment of managers and leadership in the local government level, capacity building, transparency, and active participation of stakeholders is analysed. People have spoken through ballot papers at the voting station thus deserve quality service delivery. Furthermore, communities are still speaking through memorandums and protests over lack of service delivery. Though weak management capacity, tension in the political administrative-interface, lack of proper skills and capacity, high turnover, and poor organisational design are still observed as public service constraints. State owned enterprises (SOEs) such as Eskom are negatively affected by the inability of local government to plan, monitor, manage and source funds appropriately. Skills development programme interventions should be designed to focus on the needs of the local government outputs. The paper further accentuates the need for a research that will monitor and evaluate the management of section 57 Administrators and Political office bearers' underperforming at the local government sphere.