President Ramaphosa to address SAHRC Conference on Local Governance

President Cyril Ramaphosa will on Thursday, 1 September 2022, address a national conference focused on local government accountability, service delivery and human rights.

The two-day event at the Capital On The Park Hotel in Sandton on 31 August and 1 September is co-convened by the South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC) and the Commission for the Promotion and Protection of the Rights of Cultural, Religious and Linguistic Communities (CRL Rights Commission).

President Ramaphosa will deliver the keynote address on Thursday.

The South African Human Rights Commission has, as part of its mandate, identified a range of systemic challenges at the local sphere of governance, that hinders the attainment and enjoyment of human rights.

Local government is responsible for services that are necessary for the realisation of basic rights as outlined in the constitutional Bill of Rights.

The conference will see critical voices and role-players deliberate on local government challenges with the aim of enhancing human rights-based service delivery.

These discussions will enable the Commission to:

• Collaboratively deliberate on the key systemic challenges facing local government;

• Interrogate the roles and responsibilities of the other spheres of government, and government entities, in supporting the local sphere of government;

• Explore the role of various actors in holding the local sphere of government accountable;

• Deliberate on possible solutions to address and tackle the deteriorating state of service delivery within the local sphere of government;

• Consider methods for effective monitoring of service delivery, ensuring accountability, engagement, non-discrimination, and transparency in service delivery;

• Consider strategies for policy shifts towards a pro-poor, developmental local government sphere; and

• Strengthen old and establish new partnerships across sectors.

Source: Government of South Africa