Local municipalities shine at KZN awards
KING Cetshwayo District (KCDM), the City of uMhlathuze and uMfolozi municipalities were honoured for exceptional governance in various categories at the provincial municipal excellence awards last week.
The KZN Co-operative Governance and Traditional Affairs (Cogta) Municipal Service Excellence Awards were held at Pietermaritzburg City Hall on Tuesday night.
The awards aim to motivate municipalities to enhance their performance, productivity and innovation in service provision, as well as promote best practices.
Municipalities contested 17 categories, which focused on various municipal programmes, including financial management, sustainable electricity projects, Expanded Public Works Programmes (EPWP), cleanliness township, functional waste management, clean audit, and disaster response.
KCDM was awarded gold for Clean Audit Opinion for 2021/22 and silver for the Best Performing DM on EPWP.
uMfolozi Municipality was awarded the Best Sustained Financial Management Municipal Excellence Award, while the
City of uMhlathuze walked away with the Clean Audit
Opinion for 2021/22, Best Spatial Development Framework, and
All Allocation and Expenditure on
Repairs and Maintenance Budget in 2022/23.
Delivering her keynote address, Cogta MEC Bongi Sithole-Moloi said their adjudication committee looked into various aspects of municipal governance, while recognising that municipalities may not excel in all areas.
She said mayors should demonstrate courage and commit to achieving excellence in at least five key areas, saying that by prioritising improvement in these areas, other units within the municipality are likely to follow suit.
“I must say that while acknowledging that, we are aware that not all municipalities have consistently met performance expectations, but we have witnessed notable improvements in many of them," said Sithole-Moloi.
"Therefore, it is imperative to honour those municipalities that have demonstrated
excellence, not only to commend their efforts, but also to serve as a source of inspiration for others.”
Speaking on the sideline, uMfolozi Mayor Xolani Bhengu said the award was a symbol of hard work, which is something they prioritise at all times.
“We’re grateful to the uMfolozi staff
members for always ensuring the public purse is used meaningfully to benefit our communities,” said Bhengu.
Meanwhile, acknowledging their awards, City of uMhlathuze Mayor Xolani Ngwezi thanked Cogta for recognising municipalities' efforts to improve the lives of citizens.