This troubling situation has been consistently highlighted by the Auditor-General’s annual audit reports and the Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (COGTA)’s  in the State of Local Government Report. The current review of  White Paper on Local Government should be understood against this background.  

Indeed, much of the ongoing discourse regarding local government in South Africa has focused on reviewing the White Paper on Local Government, with various platforms being established to facilitate this process. While the revisions and updates to  the White Paper are essential, this article calls on stakeholders not to overlook the broader legislative context that influences the daily operations of municipalities. It must be stated, albeit obviously, that reviewing the White Paper on its own will not change the current challenges faced by municipalities, as many of the positions expressed in the 1998 White Paper have, over the years, been crystallised in legislation. Thus, legislation, too, needs reform —a process currently being undertaken by the South African Law Reform Commission. Amending the existing legal framework on local government presents considerable complexity, given that various sectoral departments have introduced regulations over time to govern local government. Consequently, efforts to implement changes to sectoral laws in accordance with the revised White Paper on Local Government are expected to encounter substantive opposition without effective cooperation and coordination between and across spheres of government.

Accordingly, it is imperative to implement and advocate for a whole-of-government approach that engages all relevant government departments in regulating local government, with enhanced interdepartmental cooperation and coordination serving as critical factors. This necessitates that the ongoing review of the White Paper should not be conducted exclusively by COGTA. The active participation and support of other government departments are essential for several reasons.

Firstly, COGTA lacks both the mandate and capacity to direct sectoral departments to amend their respective legislation, making sectoral collaboration indispensable.

Secondly, and of even greater significance, COGTA is not solely responsible for the excessive regulation of municipalities. Rather, this issue reflects a broader systemic challenge that involves multiple departments. This is not a new issue; the phenomenon of overregulation was previously covered in the Bulletin and more recently explored in a doctoral study. In particular, municipalities are required to comply with numerous laws and regulations, which can accumulate to an unmanageable extent. Each piece of legislation brings its own set of requirements, deadlines, and penalties for non-compliance, making it increasingly difficult for municipal staff to manage their tasks efficiently. For instance, laws concerning municipal finance, service delivery, and environmental management all intersect, creating scenarios where a single project may inadvertently breach multiple regulations. This cumulative burden not only strains resources but also stifles innovation and responsiveness — qualities that local governments must embody to meet the diverse needs of their communities.

In other words, despite the good intentions behind local government laws, many municipalities remain under intense pressure from an overly complex and burdensome legal and regulatory framework. Compounding these challenges is the presence of duplicative and contradictory rules. Municipalities often find themselves adhering to regulations that appear to overlap, leading to unnecessary bureaucratic hurdles. For example, various departments may require the same information in slightly different formats or for differing purposes, creating inefficiencies that can slow down critical service delivery.

Moreover, when regulatory prerogatives conflict, it places municipal officials in challenging positions. They may be unsure which rule takes precedence, leading to a culture of risk aversion where officials might prioritise compliance over proactive service delivery. This hesitance can have dire consequences, particularly in times of crisis when swift and decisive action is necessary. The fact that municipalities are often mandated to submit similar data to multiple departments, which can be administratively burdensome and detract from the core mission of service delivery, has compounded the problem. Instead of channelling resources into improving service delivery, municipal staff must dedicate significant time to reporting and compliance tasks. This expectation is particularly concerning when considering the finite resources of many municipalities. Whereas municipalities may have the capacity to manage these demands, many smaller or rural municipalities struggle to keep up. The focus tends to shift from addressing local needs to fulfilling regulatory obligations, thereby undermining the very purpose of local governance.

An urgent call for legislative reform

The overregulation issue outlined above is a systemic challenge that spans several departments and cannot be addressed by COGTA alone. Effective resolution of this matter will require collaborative efforts between COGTA, National Treasury and SALGA, amongst other stakeholders. While the White Paper Review Discussion Document (2025: 19-25) addresses various challenges encountered by municipalities, it does not acknowledge the issue of overregulation or outline measures taken to address it. Currently, the White Paper review process appears to operate independently from the Law Reform initiative led by the South African Law Reform Commission. However, there is potential for these parallel processes to be consolidated, as many of the foundational principles presented in the White Paper have already been integrated into the suite of legislation that is currently under review.

As guiding principles, it is proposed that the White Paper should make it an express tenet for government departments to periodically streamline and simplify the regulatory framework by eliminating redundant rules and consolidating reporting requirements, which could help municipalities operate more effectively. A streamlined approach enables officials to focus on meaningful governance rather than navigating a complex web of legalities. For example, a critical outcome of the regulatory reform process should be to find ways to centralise data collection across departments, which could alleviate some of the administrative pressure on municipalities.

There should also be an explicit acknowledgement in the White Paper that local government legislation ought to avoid a one-size-fits-all approach. A further guiding principle should be that legislative measures addressing municipal challenges are pursued only after all alternative solutions have been carefully assessed. To strengthen the credibility of regulatory initiatives, departments are encouraged to refrain from mandating rules and procedures without prior consultation. It is essential that municipal leaders and practitioners participate actively in legislative reform discussions, as their expertise can help identify operational obstacles and contribute to the development of more effective and efficient regulatory interventions. 

Conclusion

The focus on the White Paper on Local Government is critical; however, it is equally essential to scrutinise the overall legislative framework impacting municipalities. This is important considering that the claims of overregulation, made years ago by Steytler, have been validated by recent research, underscoring the need for urgent reform. To this end, there is a need for the current law reform project examining the burden imposed on municipalities by legislation to be revived and consolidated in the White Paper review initiative. Combining the two processes would enable sectoral departments to review their legislative instruments against the White Paper, ensuring they do not work at cross-purposes with each other.

As of 2019, since the Law Commission released its Issue Paper, there has been little progress made on the inquiry. The review of the White Paper on Local Government, while essential, is only one piece of the broader puzzle confronting South Africa’s municipalities. Without a concerted, whole-of-government approach that brings together all relevant departments, efforts to reform and strengthen local government will be hampered by persistent legislative complexity and interdepartmental fragmentation. It is clear that coordination and cooperation must be prioritised, not only to streamline regulations but also to ensure that municipalities can focus on their core mission: delivering vital services to their communities. Only through collaborative legislative reform and effective interdepartmental engagement can South Africa hope to restore the functionality and responsiveness of its local government system, allowing it to truly serve its people as originally envisioned.

By Curtly Stevens