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Ramaphosa urges municipalities to create the climate required to grow local economies

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President Cyril Ramaphosa has urged municipalities to create the climate required to grow their local economies. Ramaphosa was addressing the 6th National South African Local Government Association (SALGA) Conference taking place in Cape Town.

The President lamented the current state of the local government sector which has seen just five percent of municipalities deemed financially stable, with 64 entities considered dysfunctional and 31 currently under administration.

“When your town is filthy with plastics and paper all over the time with sewage running all over the town water leakages, potholes, no one will come to your town to invest. And what does that lead to? It means that you have less revenue. Even those who want to build houses, they will say no. I don’t want to live in a filthy city, a city that does not work where councillors are getting killed,” says Ramaphosa.

SALGA is holding its national conference:

According to the Auditor General’s 2019 and 2020 municipal audit outcomes, out of the 257 municipalities across the country, only 27 received clean audits.

89 were unqualified, 66 were qualified, six were adverse, there were 12 disclaimers, while audits in 57 municipalities were not completed.

Resident all over the country are constantly protesting, demanding better services that range from water provision, housing, electricity and other infrastructure.

Scores of councillors have been killed since last year’s elections in a bloody contest for positions.

It is these and other issues that the two-day conference is expected to address.

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