Hiding behind a finger: Water contamination by Msukwaligwa Local Municipality

In 2023, the quality of South Africa’s water was put in the spotlight when several cholera outbreaks and deaths were recorded. The outbreaks were initially ...

The Public Procurement Bill becomes law: What are the new changes?

On 23 July 2024, President Cyril Ramaphosa assented and signed into law the Public Procurement Act 28 of 2024 (PPA). This article forms part of a series of ...

Resistance to SPLUMA: Traditional leaders' lack of trust in municipalities

This is the final article of a series of articles which examines the five major reasons why traditional leaders rejected the implementation of the Spatial ...

Unpacking the new proposals in the “Second Municipal Structures Amendment Bill of 2025”

In January 2025, a private members bill titled the “Local Government: Second Structures Amendment Bill” was recently introduced in the National Assembly by a ...

Personal Liability for Unauthorised, Irregular, Fruitless and Wasteful Expenditure

Financial health and sustainability remain one of the foundation blocks for functioning municipalities. Without good financial management, municipalities are ...

Court rules on effect of councillor walk-out on district elections

In Electoral Commission of South Africa and Another v Speaker of the uMhlathuze Local Council and Others, the Electoral Court had to deal with what happens ...

Can traditional leaders exercise their land allocation authority to block developments in their areas of jurisdiction?

In a series of judgments, the courts have made it clear that the unlawful practice of allocating municipal land by some unscrupulous traditional leaders needs ...

The misunderstanding of SPLUMA by traditional leaders

This article is the second in a series of articles that unpack the five major reasons why traditional leaders rejected the Spatial Planning and Land Use ...

The role of special economic zones in the promotion of local economic development

Special Economic Zones (SEZs) are key tools used to attract investment, promote industrial development, and create jobs in South Africa. Zones like COEGA, Dube ...