The Municipal Planning and Performance Management Regulations

The main provisions of the Municipal Planning and Performance Management Regulations in so far as they relate to integrated development planning are set out below:

• The IDP must include the municipality’s institutional framework, investment initiatives in the municipality, development initiatives in the municipality, all known projects plans and programmes to be implemented in the municipality by any organ of state and the Municipality’s key performance indicators. The IDP must also contain a financial plan and must reflect the municipality’s spatial development framework (SDF) (Section 2);

• The municipality’s IDP must inform its annual budget which must in turn be based on the development priorities and objectives set by the municipal council for its elected term of office, including its local economic development and institutional transformation needs (Section 6).

The main provisions of the Municipal Planning and Performance Management Regulations in so far as they relate to Performance Management are set out below:

• The municipality must set key performance indicators, including input, indicators, output indicators and outcome indicators, in respect of all development priorities and objectives in the IDP. Key performance indicators must be measurable, relevant, objective and precise. These key performance indicators must inform the development of indicators for the entire Municipality’s administrative units and employees, as well as every municipal entity and service provider with whom the municipality has entered into a service delivery agreement (Section 9);

• Section 10 sets out the General Key Performance Indicators referred to under Section 43 of the Municipal Systems Act. These include:

a) The percentage of households with access to basic level of water, sanitation, electricity and solid waste removal;

b) the percentage of households earning less than R 1 100 per month with access to free basic services; (Note: The Council of Bergrivier Municipality determined the monthly income to be R 4 000 per month as indigent as to qualify for free basic services).

c) the percentage of a municipality’s capital budget spent on capital projects identified for a particular financial year in terms of the municipality’s integrated development plan;

d) the number of jobs created through the municipality’s local economic development initiatives, including capital projects;

e) the number of people from employment equity target groups employed in the three highest levels of management in compliance with the municipality’s approved employment equity plan;

f) the percentage of a municipality’s budget spent on implementing its workplace skills plan; and

g) Financial viability as expressed by the following ratios:

(i) A = B−C/D

'A' represents debt coverage.

'B' represents total operating revenue received.

'C' represents operating grants.

'D' represents debt service payments (i.e., interest + redemption)

due within the financial year:

(ii) A = B/C

'A' represents outstanding service debtors to revenue.

'B' represents total outstanding service debtors.

'C' represents annual revenue received for services.

(iii) A = B+C/D

'A' represents cost coverage.

'B' represents all available cash at a particular time.

'C' represents investments.

'D' represents monthly fixed operating expenditure.

• The Municipality must review its key performance indicators on an annual basis during the annual performance review process as well as when it amends its integrated development plan in terms of section 34 of the Systems Act (Section 11).

• Section 15 sets out the way community participation must take place in respect of integrated development planning and performance management and states that:

“(1) (a) In the absence of an appropriate municipal wide structure for community participation, a municipality must establish a forum that will enhance community participation in–

(i) the drafting and implementation of the municipality’s integrated development plan: and

(ii) the monitoring, measurement and review of the municipality’s performance in relation to the key performance indicators and performance targets set by the municipality.

(b) Before establishing a forum in terms of paragraph (a), a municipality must, through appropriate mechanisms, invite the local community to identify persons to serve on the forum, including representatives from ward committees, if any.

(c) A forum established in terms of paragraph (a) must be representative of the composition of the local community of the municipality concerned.

(2) A municipality must–

(a) convene regular meetings of the forum referred to in sub regulation (1) to–

(i) discuss the process to be followed in drafting the integrated development plan;

(ii) consult on the content of the integrated development plan;

(iii) monitor the implementation of the integrated development plan;

(iv) discuss the development, implementation and review of the municipality’s performance management system; and

(v) monitor the municipality’s performance in relation to the key performance indicators and performance targets set by the municipality: and

(b) allow members of the forum at least 14 days before any meeting of the forum to consult their respective constituencies on the matters that will be discussed at such a meeting.

(3) A municipality must afford the local community at least 21 days to comment on the final draft of its integrated development plan before the plan is submitted to the council for adoption”.