THE South African Local Government Association (Salga) has commended the progress made so far in building strong and viable municipalities, but remains concerned about service delivery challenges faces by some municipalities.

At a recent conference, which discussed problems faced by Gauteng municipalities, Salga chairperson Amos Masondo acknowledged that municipalities are still faced by some challenges.

Masondo, who is also the executive mayor of Johannesburg, said the gathering hoped to build relations which were aimed at enhancing service delivery.

"It is our mandate to support municipalities in institutional transformation, corporate governance, and financial management and to make sure that other vital issues are adhered to as cited in our five-year Local Government Strategic Agenda," Masondo said.

Masondo said the meeting also focused on legal and regulatory compliance, checking if the municipalities were effectively implementing government policies and legislative measures in place.

As the 16 Days of Activism for No Violence Against Women and Children is underway, he said the association was also joining hands with communities in forming partnership with the South African National AIDS Council in fighting the spread of HIV and AIDS.

Local Government MEC Qedani Mahlangu said: "We have always [been] concerned with the delivery of municipal services and its impact on our ability to effectively respond to the mandate of improved service delivery."

Salga is currently engaged in a series of road shows with the aim of finding solutions to the problems of overcrowding and service delivery faced by municipalities countrywide.

Through its concerted efforts to improve service delivery, the Development Bank of Southern Africa (DBSA), through its Vulindlela Academy, has trained over 1 500 officials from municipalities countrywide.

The DBSA said that the skills shortage in local government were so dire that a few years ago government contemplated employing foreigners to fill in vacant posts and assist struggling municipal managers and professional staff.

Source: buanews.gov.za