Through
empirical research conducted at 37 municipalities across the country,
this study finds that municipalities are frequently incapable of
meeting the demands imposed upon them by a highly complex model of
local government. This complexity, coupled with the absence of
essential conditions for success and the presence of a number of
threats which are commonly identified in decentralised systems, leads
to the failure of policy and the erosion of sound local governance.
The
aim of this book is to promote an understanding of the difficulties
that confront local government in South Africa and the causes of its
failure. It does not presume to provide the answers to the crisis;
instead, it encourages debate by posing a number of questions about
the future design for local government and suggests that a far
simpler model which imposes less complex demands needs to be
considered.
Koelble
is Professor of Business Administration in Political Science at the
Graduate School of Business, University of Cape Town. He has written
several books and many journal articles on institutions and social
democracy.
Siddle
has a PhD in Business Administration from the University of Cape
Town, and is an expert in the fields of public and corporate
governance and decentralisation. He has been admitted as an Attorney
of the High Court of South Africa, and has extensive experience in
local government law, finance and administration.
Publisher:
UCT Press
Cost:
R350
Win
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lucky Service readers can each win a copy of the book The
failure of decentralisation in South African local government:
complexity and unanticipated consequences. To
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send an email with your contact details to
megan.sell@capemedia.co.za.The closing date is Friday 28 September.
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