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Abstract - Monitoring and Evaluation Processes Critical to Service Provision in South Africa’s Rural-Based Municipalities
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Abstract: South African municipalities are at the coalface of service provision, with communities relying on municipal performance for life-impacting services. The impact of effective service delivery or the lack thereof is particularly significant for the poor who generally lack safety nets to cushion themselves against the inadequacies of poorly resourced, mainly rural, municipalities. Although municipalities are distinct entities, they rely on other levels of government for important resources. Further, municipalities draw on the support of other non-government actors to provide public services. In such a scenario, where variously positioned actors contribute to the attainment of the public good, the role of monitoring and evaluation (M & E) is critical as it ensures compliance by each of the role-players in the effective delivery of basic services to communities. What are the complexities of service delivery and the processes through which M & E takes place in rural municipalities? How are the beneficiaries of municipal services included in M & E, and what might be the critical contributors to a functional and all-inclusive M & E process in rural-based municipalities? This conceptual paper, posited in complex systems theory, draws on relevant literature to answer these questions. The conclusion drawn is that while current M & E process are, mainly, monitored through statutory structures; non-statutory structures formed out of ad hoc self-organising models can provide useful forums for monitoring municipal service provision for sustainable livelihoods. Keywords: Rural municipalities, partnerships in service provision, monitoring and evaluation, community participation. |
Abstract - An Empirical Evaluation of the Link between Women Participation in Village Savings and Loans Association (VSLA) and Poverty Reduction in Ethiopia
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Abstract: Women's participation is a fundamental prerequisite for gender equality and genuine democracy. It facilitates women's direct engagement in decision-making and is a means of ensuring better accountability to women. This paper assesses the impact of women participation in Village Savings and Loans Association (VSLA) on poverty reduction in Hawassa city, Ethiopia. Using a mixed research methodology, and applying propensity score matching, the study found that women participation in VSLA has a significant positive impact in increasing average monthly household income of participant woman. Besides, women participation in VSLA has a significant positive association with improvements in household diet, health, children’s education, and women’s involvement in household decisions. The study recommends a reinforcement of government and nongovernmental organizations in providing regular and need based capacity building trainings for VSLA participants followed by a concerted effort to link VSLA participants with formal microfinance institutions. Keywords: Capacity building, decision-making, Ethiopia, loans, participation, poverty, village savings and women. |
Editorial: Policy Monitoring and Evaluation Practices in Developing Countries
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Abstract - Local Government Reform in South Africa: The Quest for Review and Repositioning of Municipal Administration
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Abstract: The endemic municipal governance problems experienced since the dawn of the democratic dispensation manifested through the constant dysfunctional state of municipalities, poor financial performance and poor political leadership clearly necessitate that the national government should revisit and review the constitutional powers granted to the sphere of local government and contemplate introducing a pragmatic model of running municipal affairs. This paper argues that there is a need to review and reposition the model of local government in order to ensure that municipalities appropriately fulfil their constitutional obligations. The existing research pointed to the relevance of the application and utilisation of the different categories of municipalities, thereby enabling the effective delivery of services to communities. Therefore, the review will amongst others, entail the critical examination of the interventions spearheaded by the national government namely, the Project Consolidate; Municipal Turnaround Strategy/Municipal Infrastructure Support Agent; Operation Clean Audits-2014 and the recently launched Back-to-Basics approach. Based on literature and document reviews this article concludes that the abovementioned interventions have not yielded the desired results yet, if the current performance of municipalities such as Madibeng, Maquasi-Hills, Lekwa-Teemane, Randfontein, Thaba Chweu, Bushbuckridge and Mtubatuba is anything to go by. The outcomes point to the urgent need for a review of the current model of local government that is utilised within a developing society, which is mired with many developmental challenges. This is relevant because South Africa aims at becoming a capable and developmental state as encapsulated in the NDP (National Development Plan) 2030 and for it to achieve such, municipalities are a critical enabler since they operate at the grassroots level. Keywords: Municipal governance, municipal councils, effective administration, performance of municipalities, professionalised local government. |
Abstract - The Influence of Legislation and Regulation on Strategy in Public Entities
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Abstract: In terms of prescriptions contained in the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, 1996, citizens are entitled to, inter alia, the provision of services in a sustainable manner. Citizens are also entitled to the promotion of social and economic development to meet their basic needs. Government designs systems and processes to meet those needs in response to policy goals and objectives as defined in legislation and regulation in the context of the principal-agent approach. Similarly, strategy is needed to devise techniques and plans to meet needs, goals and aspirations of government in the most efficient manner. It is premised on leadership, goal orientation and satisfying a multitude of factors in the process. At face value it would seem that the enactment of certain legislation and regulations appear to render the need for strategy obsolete, especially since there is a proliferation of national, provincial and local policies and strategies that only need implementation. This article reviews the influence of legislation and regulations on strategy in public entities, focusing on a development corporation in the Eastern Cape as a case study. For purposes of data collection a mixed-methods research methodology approach was followed. The article concludes with a proposed normative model to enhance strategy in public entities. Keywords: Strategy comprises of the analysis, development, implementation and monitoring of goals and objectives. |