The effects of strategic planning and oversight on electricity service delivery outcomes in South African local municipalities: a case study of Inxuba Yethemba Municipality

Abstract

Poor service delivery in South Africa is a widely researched phenomenon. Yet despite the existing knowledge production efforts, in a context of a progressive developmental municipal legislative framework, South African municipalities continue to be plagued with corruption and poor service delivery performance. This thesis aims to transcend the tendency to attribute poor service delivery to a sole cause (e.g. corruption) by explaining the effects of strategic planning and oversight on several municipal service delivery processes. Therefore, this thesis introduces the Municipal Public Resource Management (MPRM) model as a strategic management tool to explain the relationship between strategic planning, the practical implementation of municipal services, and oversight processes. Specifically, thesis triangulates legislative mandates, documents published by Inxuba Yethemba Municipality (IYM) and responses from semi-structured interviews conducted with three municipal officials and three Municipal Public Accounts Committee (MPAC) councillors to uncover descriptions and explanations of service delivery processes in IYM. Findings from this thesis confirm that poor strategic planning and weak oversight contributed to poor electricity service delivery outcomes in IYM in the 2018/19 "“ 2019/20 financial year, and this highlights the importance of implementing strategic management for improved service delivery in South African local municipalities.