The effects of bureaucracy on the delivery of services within the city of Johannesburg

Abstract

Since the advent of democracy in 1994, government programmes have improved the quality of lives and living standards of the poorest South Africans, the majority of whom were previously disadvantaged by apartheid segregation policies. On face value, racism and prejudice seem to have declined. Thus society seems to be slowly integrating as equals. However, the legacies of apartheid, combined with poor budgetary and financial management skills, a massive backlog in basic services and infrastructure, regional inequalities in the provision thereof, and sometimes tense social relationships, continue to limit opportunities for social and economic development. Additionally, despite progress made, many people remain vulnerable with poverty, unemployment, and health issues remaining a factor that continues to promote dependency on government The ability of government, municipalities in particular, to deliver such services and meet the expectations of the communities remains a contested notion. Capacity, a lack of suitable skills, bureaucracy and outsourcing of government functions to consultants has been widely blamed for what has been viewed as “shabby service delivery” by municipalities. These they believe are as a result of poor leadership skills, lack of vision and an inability to deliver while outsourcing its functions to unqualified, less experienced contractors who do not have the government’s development goals as their aim. The primary purpose of this research therefore is to determine the effects of internal bureaucracy on the provision of services within the City of Johannesburg. The research will further investigate how that impacts negatively on the City’s quest to provide quality services to its residence. These are leadership role, citizen engagement and governance. With reference to the ongoing public protests in various parts of the City, this ii research will in addition explore and attempt to understand how the City intends to address public violence linked to service delivery demands, and the impact that current internal institutional arrangements, leadership challenges and management systems have on realising the vision to achieve a world class African City that is well governed, resilient, sustainable and liveable for all. Recommendations informed by participant’s views and management theories will be also be made.