City governance

Abstract

The chapter assesses the progress made since the restructuring of city government in 2000/01. The 1996 Constitution established local government as an autonomous and equal sphere in its own right, rather than a third tier of government, in recognition of its crucial role in improving people's everyday lives and promoting inclusive growth and development. In the major cities, sizeable, relatively powerful, single-tier metropolitan authorities were created with boundaries that are probably among the largest in the world. The restructuring facilitated the integration of communities divided by apartheid laws and planning, a more equitable distribution of municipal resources, and economies of scale for financial viability and sustained service delivery. By creating large municipalities, the risk was that local responsiveness and accountability might suffer. Drawing heavily on popular perceptions, the chapter assesses whether the quality of city governance has improved.