More than 240 experts have been placed at problem municipalities to help them improve their affairs, Deputy Home Affairs Minister Malusi Gigaba said on Wednesday.
This forms part of the government’s Project Consolidate, which aims to tackle problems at municipalities using a hands-on, practical programme of engagement. One of the key tasks of the project is to accelerate service delivery.
Gigaba was briefing the media at the Union Buildings in Pretoria on the outcome of meetings of the governance and administration cluster of ministries.
”A total of 112 experts, 18 graduates and 80 students have been mobilised and deployed to the 69 Project Consolidate municipalities. Development Bank of Southern African has also deployed 30 project managers, engineers and financial experts,” he said.
Gigaba said the experts had already assisted 90% of municipalities to submit integrated development plans (IDPs). The IDPs are to help municipalities to meet service delivery targets, such as the eradication of the bucket system by the end of 2007.
The director general of the Department of Local and Provincial Government, Lindiwe Msengana Ndlela, said the experts would help municipalities to develop in three critical areas.
”They are going to help to develop capacity, to plan matters of implementation, and financial management,” she said. – Sapa