However, evidence shows that the problem runs much deeper: municipalities are often secretive. This is deeply concerning, as effective citizen participation and accountability cannot exist without transparency.

The gap between the law and practice

The Constitution places a high premium on transparency at all levels of government. The Municipal Systems Act, the Municipal Finance Management Act (MFMA), and various other pieces of legislation give effect to these constitutional principles by mandating mechanisms to ensure municipal openness. These include:

• The establishment and maintenance of official municipal websites.
• The mandatory publication of procurement and tender information online.
• The publication of registers of financial interests for councillors.

The Dullah Omar Institute has conducted several studies to establish the extent to which municipalities actually comply with these legal requirements. Our study, titled “Registers of councillors' interests: A missed opportunity to enhance accountability and transparency in local government,” examined whether municipalities were publishing councillors’ declarations of interest on their websites, as required by law. The findings were stark: many municipalities fail to make these declarations publicly available. Furthermore, the study established that some councillors fail to declare their interests to the municipal manager at all. Without this critical information, it is virtually impossible for citizens and communities to hold their local representatives accountable. Failing to disclose these interests directly violates the Code of Conduct for Councillors. While it warrants swift investigation and sanctions by the Speaker, the Council, and the MEC for local government, intervention seldom happens. Consequently, public officials are easily evading accountability.

A culture of secrecy

In 2020 and 2021, we partnered with the International Budget Partnership-South Africa to investigate the state of transparency, when it comes to municipal procurement, and established that: 

• Most municipalities have functional websites with a dedicated procurement page but some websites do not have any procurement information
• Municipalities imposes a charge to access tender specifications
• The practice of publishing the names of successful bidders consistently and regularly is not common in local government
• Most municipalities are not publishing certain information on how projects awarded to private service providers will be implemented
• The eTender portal was accessible but not functioning properly
• Capacity challenges may be inhibiting some municipalities from maintaining a working website and regularly publishing procurement information on
• In many municipalities, the commitment to transparency is not followed by action.
• Overall, municipal procurement is not transparent

Building on the 2020 and 2021 studies highlighting opaque municipal procurement, in 2023 we investigated a persistent question: “Why are municipalities not publishing procurement information on their websites and the eTender Portal?”. Section 217(1) of the Constitution outlines the five key pillars of public procurement in South Africa: fairness, equitability, transparency, competitiveness, and cost-effectiveness. Our research established that among these, transparency receives the least attention. A culture of secrecy has engulfed local government.

The secrecy is not limited to procurement. Other key governance documents - such as budgets, Integrated Development Plans (IDPs), Spatial Development Frameworks, and Performance Agreements - remain frustratingly difficult to access. Furthermore, it is rarely standard practice for municipalities to publish routine but vital documents, such as council and committee agendas and minutes. How does a system that looks so transparent on paper become so secretive in practice? And who is responsible for enforcing openness?

While provincial and national governments are constitutionally and legislatively mandated to ensure municipalities comply with transparency obligations, our research established that effective oversight is missing. In practice, higher spheres of government are quick to regulate local government but content to leave enforcement to chance. Our studies revealed that relevant provincial departments, for instance, often lack the capacity to comprehensively monitor all aspects of municipal transparency.

Ultimately, good governance cannot be guaranteed in a secretive environment. The war against corruption and administrative malpractice cannot be won as long as transparency is treated as a secondary objective.

Blueprint for reform: The Draft White Paper

The Draft White Paper correctly identifies transparency as a key point for local government reform. It seeks to reposition municipalities by making transparency the default operational setting through open data, standardised dashboards, and e-procurement systems, among other ways.

To achieve this, the Draft White Paper recommends legislative reforms to set clear minimum benchmarks. This is crucial for guiding municipal officials, as current laws are often ambiguous or contradictory regarding exactly what should be published, where, and when. Clearer national norms and standards are urgently needed.

The Draft White Paper also acknowledges a modern paradox: while information technology can enhance access, it can also act as a barrier for community members with limited connectivity. Therefore, digital tools must complement, rather than replace, human and physical access channels to ensure local governance remains inclusive.

However, digital exclusion is not the only barrier. Many municipalities actively obstruct access to information through artificial hurdles, such as:

• Forcing citizens to file formal Promotion of Access to Information Act (PAIA) applications for documents that the law already mandates should be public.
• Charging fees to access basic information, such as tender specifications.
• Conditioning access to information on mandatory registration portals.

These regressive practices undermine the spirit of open governance and must be stopped.

Moving beyond compliance

Lastly, while the Draft White Paper’s call for a revamped regulatory framework and more consistent enforcement is commendable, it may not be enough to shift entrenched institutional cultures. If we are to truly dismantle the culture of secrecy, transparency cannot remain a toothless mandate. There must be real, tangible consequences and strict accountability for political office-bearers and officials who fail to uphold it.

By Tinashe C Chigwata