By Candace Freeman

PUBLIC Service Minister Geraldine Fraser-Moleketi has cautioned government sectors against assigning duties to local government without proper consultation.

Speaking at the National Assembly in Cape Town yesterday, Ms Fraser-Moleketi said local government stood at the forefront of delivery.

However, "increasingly functions have been shifted or assigned to local government, at times without the necessary resources and capacity".

As local government was a critical player in the government supply chain, she said: "We must guard against provincial and national departments assigning responsibilities without proper coordination and consultation," she said.

Minister Fraser-Moleketi said provinces had developed Provincial Growth and Development Strategies and municipalities were required by law to have Integrated Development Plans.

"We must ensure that as the needs of delivery change in nature and location, we have leaders to manage and lead the processes of service delivery.

"We are thus exploring ways for senior managers in the public service to be deployed to different areas of the public service, for instance from national or provincial government to local government," explained the minister.

She added that the different conditions of service between the public service-provincial and national government - and local government - presented a huge challenge.

"Public service conditions of service are uniform, regardless of location or department while local government conditions of service are - in theory at least- based on affordability and vary from structure to structure.

"We need to assess how best to harmonise conditions of service in local government and the public service. We are currently undertaking studies to establish the cost of a single public service," she said.

She added that the current lack of standardisation in local government conditions of service was allowing the sector to increase spending way beyond the inflation rate.

"While our initial focus is on facilitating mobility between spheres, it is the integration of the pubic service that is our broader aim."

She said by integrating the public service and local government under the same legislative framework, government would strengthen coordination between the spheres of government, eliminate fragmentation and make seamless service delivery a reality.
Source: BuaNews