Chapter 11 - Sedibeng District Municipality

• to promote co-operative governance and the principles of intergovernmental
relations on budgetary matters;
• to promote better co-ordination betw een policy, planning, budget preparation
and execution processes;
• to promote predictability and certainty in respect of all allocations to provincial
governments and municipalities in order that such governments and
municipalities may plan their budgets over a multi-year period;
• to promote transparency and equity in all allocations, including in respect of
the criteria for their division;
• to promote accountability for the use of public resources by ensuring that all
transfers are reflected on the budgets of benefiting provincial governments
and municipalities; and
• to ensure that legal proceedings between organs of state in the three spheres
of government are avoided as far as is possible.
The SDM also receives funding indirectly through the subsidy of both bus and rail.
DoT is how ever in the process of revising its subsidy policy to reflect the ideals of the
NLTTA. National Treasure is expected to reduce the subsidy bill due to improved
efficiencies w ithin the public transport system. Other redistributive principles relating
to diverting land transport funding from urban to rural areas could further influence
affordability of public transport services w ithin Sedibeng.Through the provisions and
principles of the NLTTA, the DoT supports the devolution of fund raising pow ers to
low er levels of government. This devolution w ould provide local authorities w ith the
means to promote public transport and to internalize the externalities provided by the
private car. Local authorities must how ever demonstrate the capabilities to effectively
use these new ly devolved powers and funding mechanisms.
16.3 Current Funding Dispensation
The enormity of the scale of pressure placed on infrastructure funding in the country
is almost intractable. To respond adequately to the challenges of infrastructure
backlogs there w as a comprehensive overhaul of the funding regime in the country,
culminating in the establishment of a fund called the Municipal Infrastructure Grant
(MIG). MIG is in essence a consolidated grant mechanis m; it is a merger of the
follow ing infrastructure grant programmes:
• Consolidated Municipal Infrastructure Programme (managed by Department of
Provincial and Local Government (DPLG));
• Local Economic Development Fund (managed by DPLG);
• Water Service Capital Grant (managed by DWAF);
• Community Based Public Works Programme (managed by Public Works);
• Building for Sports & Recreation Programme (Sport and recreation SA-to be
phased in later);
• Urban Transport Grant (managed by NDoT); and
• National Electrification Programme (managed by ESKOM).
MIG is aimed at providing all South Africans with at least a basic level of service by
the year 2013; it will have an overall target of removing the backlog w ith regard to
access to basic municipal services over a 10-year period.
MIG allocations to municipalities w ill not necessarily be automatic, for their part,
municipalities are expected to establish a Project Management Unit (PMU) to be
SDM DITP, 2008 to 2013 213 31 Aug 2010