ANC admits municipalities still face major service delivery failures despite turnaround efforts
Updated Aug. 12, 2026, 4:14 p.m. | By Faith Modise The African National Congress (ANC) said South Africa's municipalities have made progress under…
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Updated Aug. 12, 2026, 4:14 p.m. | By Faith Modise
The African National Congress (ANC) said South Africa's municipalities have made progress under government interventions, but acknowledges that serious challenges around basic services, infrastructure and municipal capacity remain.
The admission came from ANC National Executive Committee member Stella Ndabeni during the party's Manifesto Review Media Briefings on Wednesday, which give updates on the implementation of the ANC's 2021 Local Government Elections Manifesto ahead of the 2026 local government elections.
The ANC has said its manifesto review process is intended to assess the implementation of its previous commitments before the party finalises its priorities for the next local government term.
While the ANC highlighted improvements in several municipalities, Ndabeni acknowledged that local government continues to face significant challenges.
These include ageing infrastructure, water losses, service interruptions, wastewater failures, inconsistent refuse collection, the growth of informal settlements and the country's continuing housing backlog.
“A municipality may produce compliant statements yet still fail to maintain roads or collect refuse or entrench spatial inequalities. Financial governance, service performance and transformation must therefore be considered together.”
FROM CLEAN AUDITS TO RELIABLE SERVICES
She said the ANC wants municipalities to focus more than simply achieving clean audits.
“The real objective is an ethical municipality that plans honestly, spends lawfully, maintains its assets, collects revenue fairly and delivers services reliably,” she said.
She also acknowledged the need to reduce municipalities' reliance on consultants by strengthening internal finance units, records management and the accountability of municipal managers and councils.
Speaking on behalf of the party, Ndabeni added that municipal staff regulations are intended to strengthen recruitment, appointments, performance management and discipline, including preventing officials dismissed for misconduct from simply moving to another municipality.
The ANC reiterated that the lessons from its manifesto review would feed into its preparations for the next local government term.
The party is also pointing to a proposed 2026 White Paper on Local Government, which Ndabeni said is due for approval and publication in September.
She said the policy proposals aim to address systemic challenges affecting local government, including governance, institutional capacity, finances, service delivery and spatial transformation.
The party said its interventions have helped some municipalities improve, while acknowledging that many residents continue to experience unreliable basic services and infrastructure failures.
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