Municipalities must become “economic enablers” to drive growth, says Hlabisa

By Johnathan Paoli

Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (COGTA) Minister Velenkosini Hlabisa has called on municipalities to become “economic enablers” capable of driving growth, cutting red tape and unlocking small business potential.

Speaking at the National Local Economic Development (LED) Summit on Wednesday in Ekurhuleni, Hlabisa argued that the future of local development fundamentally depended on municipalities moving beyond administration to actively facilitating economic activity.

ALSO READ: Tshwane CFO Gareth Mnisi suspended

“This Summit comes at a defining moment for local government and local economic development in South Africa. It is therefore fitting that my contribution today focuses on the review of the White Paper on Local Government and how this reform process is intended to reposition municipalities as developmental institutions that actively drive local economies,” Hlabisa said.

The minister identified the “core problem” as a set of interlinked problems including misalignment between municipal mandates and funding instruments and weak