Capacity building for effective municipal environmental management in South Africa

Abstract

This paper describes how sustainable urban management and development is a critical issue for the 21st century that needs to be addressed by strong, decentralized local governments. The pervasive weakness of local governments and the lack of capacity of municipal institutions are major impediments to sustainable development and they require capacity building initiatives at various levels. This paper discusses a municipal environmental management capacity building program in the Mpumalanga province of South Africa. It provides details of the municipalities, the municipal environmental management function, officials and councilors that participated, as well as environmental management initiatives in participant municipalities. Norms for quality education that was adhered to during the program are also discussed. Programs like these can go a long way towards improving the environmental management capacity in local authorities, enabling them to address relevant issues effectively. The success of sustainable development initiatives depend on the way municipal management, their partners and other spheres of government, act coherently and with common purpose in addressing specific local challenges.