NCOP wants local govt prioritised

By Thebe Mabanga

The National Council of Provinces wants local government prioritised over the medium term of the budgeting process, starting with a review of how much the sphere receives from the national fiscus.

Sanny Ndlovu, the chairperson of the Select Committee in the NCOP, addressed a media briefing by the finance cluster on Thursday.

Ndhlovu pointed out that Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana went out of his way to address the debate around allocation received by local government.

Godongwana announced that municipalities would receive R 552,7 billion over the next three years.

“This debate has been continuing for some time now and it was raised sharply during the Presidential Local Government Summit in September 2022, where they officially resolved on the need for a review of the 1998 White Paper on Local Government.” said Ndhlovu.

Godongwana said some role players, such as the South African Local Government Association (Salga), would