CASE STUDY METROPOLITAN GOVERNANCE ETHEKWINI (DURBAN), SOUTH AFRICA Authors Dr. Michael Sutcliffe and Ms. Sue Bannister www.cityinsight.co.za Coordination FMDV – Global Fund for Cities Development 35, Boulevard des Invalides 75007, Paris - France www.fmdv.net Commissioned by United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat) Local Government and Decentralization Unit Urban Legislation, Land and Governance Branch P.O. Box 30030, 00100 Nairobi, GPO Kenya [email protected] www.unhabitat.org In collaboration with Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH Sector Project “Sustainable Development of Metropolitan Regions” Dag-Hammarskjöld-Weg 1-5 65760 Eschborn, Germany Tel. +49 (0) 6196 79 – 0 [email protected] www.giz.de This report was made possible thanks to the support of the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs to UN-Habitat. As at October 2015 Disclaimer The designations employed and the presentation of the material in this publication do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of the Secretariat of the United Nations concerning the legal status of any country, territory, city or area or of its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers of boundaries. Views expressed by authors in this publication do not necessarily reflect those of the United Nations Human Settlements Programme, or the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH. Excerpts may be reproduced without authorisation, on condition that the source is indicated. 2 Case Study on Metropolitan Governance eThekwini (Durban), South Africa Dr. Michael Sutcliffe and Ms. Sue Bannister This metropolitan governance case study is part of a joint effort of GIZ and UN-Habitat to develop a framework for their future cooperation with metropolitan regions and related partners. Three selected case studies – Metropolitan Bandung (Indonesia), Guadalajara Metropolitan Area (Mexico), and eThekwini (Durban, South Africa) - are complementing the global study “Unpacking Metropolitan Governance for Sustainable Development” (GIZ/ UN-Habitat, 2015). They were prepared by local consultants in collaboration with local institutions under the coordination of the Global Fund for Cities Development (FMDV). The three cases, although unique, are representative of the diverse situation of metropolitan governance in the global South and exemplify some of the core concepts of metropolitan governance developed in the international study. A comparative analysis as well as summary of each case study can be found in a separate publication. 3 Contents 1 BACKGROUND AND INTRODUCTION 6 2 LOCAL GOVERNANCE IN ETHEKWINI: THE COUNCIL SYSTEM 10 3 AN OVERVIEW OF THE ETHEKWINI METROPOLITAN AREA’S ECONOMY AND SOCIETY 14 3.1 POPULATION 14 3.2 ECONOMY 15 3.3 SOCIAL AND HEALTH DEVELOPMENT 17 4 INTERGOVERNMENTAL FINANCE, RELATIONS AND MULTI-LEVEL GOVERNANCE 18 4.1 FINANCIAL MATTERS 18 4.2 INTERGOVERNMENT RELATIONS 19 4.3 ROLE OF THE NATIONAL GOVERNMENT WITH REGARD TO METROPOLITAN AREAS IN THE COUNTRY 21 4.4 ROLE OF PROVINCIAL GOVERNMENT WITH REGARD TO A METROPOLITAN AREA IN THE REGION 22 5 ASSESSING DELIVERY 23 5.1 SPATIAL STRUCTURE 24 5.2 BUDGETING PROCESS IN ETHEKWINI 28 5.3 HOUSING 29 5.4 WATER AND SANITATION 30 5.5 SOLID WASTE 31 5.6 ELECTRICITY 31 5.7 ROADS 32 5.8 IMPROVING MUNICIPAL CAPACITY, INCLUDING WORKING WITH UNIVERSITIES 32 5.9 ENGAGEMENTS WITH COMMUNITIES AND OTHER STAKEHOLDERS 33 5.10 TRANSPARENCY 36 6 CONCLUDING COMMENTS 37 6.1 SATISFACTION WITH MUNICIPAL SERVICES 37 6.2 CHALLENGES 38 6.3 ASSESSMENT OF THE DEGREE OF COORDINATION NEEDS 38 6.4 ASSESSMENT OF WHAT TYPE OF GOVERNANCE ARRANGEMENT THAT MIGHT BE MOST APPROPRIATE 39 6.5 OPPORTUNITIES 40 7 ANNEX 41 8 SOURCES 42 4 List of tables TABLE 1 PROJECTED HIV PREVALENCE AT AGES 15-65 IN ETHEKWINI TABLE 2 OPERATING BUDGET TABLE 3 CAPITAL BUDGET TABLE 4 HOUSING DELIVERY TARGETS TABLE 5 SERVICE DELIVERY STATUS: ACHIEVEMENTS IN TO ACCESS TO WATER TABLE 6 SERVICE DELIVERY STATUS: ACHIEVEMENTS IN ACCESS TO SANITATION TABLE 7 CURRENT BACKLOG FOR WATER AND SANITATION TABLE 8 SOLID WASTE ACHIEVEMENTS SINCE 2009/10 TABLE 9 ELECTRICAL CONNECTIONS AND NEW ELECTRICITY CONNECTIONS TABLE 10 WORK ON ROADS List of figures FIGURE 1 MUNICIPAL POPULATION SIZE 2001 AND 2011 AND AREA OF MUNICIPALITY FIGURE 2 METRO AND DISTRICT MUNICIPALITIES OF THE PROVINCE OF KWAZULU NATAL FIGURE 3 ETHEKWINI METROPOLITAN MUNICIPALITY FIGURE 4 COUNTRY AND CITIES GDP IN AFRICA FIGURE 5 TOP CAUSES OF YEARS OF LIFE LOST IN ETHEKWINI 2010/11 FIGURE 6 ETHEKWINI SPATIAL REGIONS FIGURE 7 ETHEKWINI MAJOR LAND USES FIGURE 8 HIERARCHY OF SPATIAL PLANS: ETHEKWINI FIGURE 9 RESIDENTIAL DENSITIES IN ETHEKWINI FIGURE 10 LEVEL OF SATISFACTION WITH MUNICIPAL SERVICES List of abbreviations GDP Gross Domestic Product HDI Human Development Index HH Household IDP Integrated Development Plan KZN KwaZulu Natal LAP Local Area Plans LUMS Land-Use Management System SDF Spatial Development Framework SME Small and medium sized enterprises 5 1 BACKGROUND AND INTRODUCTION The past twenty years in South Africa have witnessed a remarkable transition away from apartheid to democracy. The apartheid system, designed to subjugate black South Africans and ensure that resources were devoted primarily to the wellbeing of a small fraction of the populace, has had to be transformed so that those resources serve all the people of South Africa and that more democratic systems of governance are put in place. South Africa is now a constitutional democracy with three spheres of government: national, provincial and local government. All spheres of government are elected, with elections taking place every five years. The Constitution sets out the framework for the three spheres of government, as well as the specific powers and functions allocated to each sphere, making South Africa one of the few countries in the world where local government powers are enshrined in the Constitution itself. Chapter 7 of the Constitution is devoted to the status, establishment, powers and functions of municipalities with Section 156(1) clearly defining the executive authority of municipalities, making them a distinct and relatively independent sphere of governance1. In 1994 apartheid institutions were mostly still in place and functional. Whilst national elections established an elected Parliament, the duly elected government had to work to keep all institutions functioning, under the constraints of a massive apartheid debt, whilst driving the creation of a new Constitution and new legislation for a democratic South Africa. Negotiations in the Local Government Negotiating Forum in 1992 and 1993, and the 1993 Interim Constitution, began a process for the restructuring and transformation of local government away from the apartheid local government institutions that were still in place. For the first time, local government formed a full chapter in the Interim Constitution. However, this Constitution, like all previous Constitutions (1909, 1961 and 1983) regarded local government as a tier of government subject to Provincial Government. This changed dramatically with the promulgation of the 1996 Constitution recognizing local government as a distinct sphere of government which is, in relation to the other two spheres of government, interdependent and interrelated. The period between 1992 and 1998 was marked by local negotiations, the enactment of the Local Government Transition Act, 1993, local elections in 1995 and 1996 and general restructuring processes at local level. The plethora of local government bodies such as White Local Authorities, Black Local Authorities, Coloured Management Committees and Indian Local Affairs Committees were reduced from more than 1,200 to 843. The new Constitution required that a new democratic dispensation for local government would be built with three Categories of local government. Category A municipalities were single tier authorities (single-tier political and administrative jurisdictions) and legislation required that only metropolitan areas would be Category A municipalities. The remainder of the country was divided into category C areas (District municipalities), each of which contained a number of category B (Local) municipalities. Powers and functions were then split between the districts and locals. Presently there are eight metropolitan municipalities in South Africa and the following figure indicates the population size of the eight metros plus a few other highly urbanized areas, as well as the area of each: 1South Africa’s Constitution (Section 152) outlines the following objects for local government: (a) to provide democratic and accountable government for local communities; (b) to ensure the provision of services to communities in a sustainable manner; (c) to promote social and economic development; (d) to promote a safe and healthy environment; and (e) to encourage the involvement of communities and community organizations in the matters of local government. 6 FIGURE 1 - MUNICIPAL POPULATION SIZE 2001 AND 2011 AND AREA OF MUNICIPALITY Source: Compiled by the authors from the following information: (i) Population figures: 2001 and 2011 Census, Statistics South Africa, (ii) Area: Local Government Handbook, (http://www.localgovernment.co.za) sourced February 2015. Durban (or eThekwini municipality as it became) was demarcated as a category A (Metropolitan) municipality including an area of some 2297 square kilometers (approximately 40 kms north, south and west). A number of existing apartheid local governments,