Building capability to make it easier to do business in the Province! The launch of a Blueprint to reduce red tape in Municipalities.

Job creation, labour productivity, balancing energy and materials consumption, technological innovation, increasing exports of goods and services, and actions for attracting investment all fall within the ambit of government. The governance environment is such an important element, of a growing and thriving economy.

For our economy to address external factors, partnerships with local government are of utmost importance, in the pursuit of creating an enabling environment that encourages the private sector to grow. SALGA issued a report on the state of the Ease of Doing Business (EoDB) in Municipalities, whereby a lack of capacity to reduce red tape and make it easier to do business was identified. The Red Tape Reduction Unit spearheaded 15 awareness interventions during the 2022-2023 financial year, in order to understand the challenges around red tape reduction experienced by Municipalities, and how the Unit can respond to this need.

Our biggest role right now is to support Municipalities with innovative capabilities to reduce red tape, says Aeysha Augustus – Deputy Director within the Red Tape Reduction Unit leading the advocacy, awareness and the development of a Blueprint to reduce red tape in Municipalities.  The vision is to also develop the Blueprint into training modules to be delivered by the Provincial Training Institute, says Aeysha.

The Blueprint provides a practical approach to reducing red tape, based on the foundations of how the Unit is currently addressing it. It also makes use of case studies, and good practices, that will serve as a knowledge sharing mechanism

The Blueprint is based on the foundations of the Unit, being Regulatory Reform, Business Process Improvements, Communications, with some narrative related to the principles of Change Management and EoDB Culture. Michelle Ellis, the Director of the Red Tape Reduction Unit says ‘’ this is a big step for the Unit, as our vision is to continue supporting Municipalities with EoDB capabilities, especially in a time of austerity – and budget cuts.”

We’ve also addressed each booklet differently for Councillors, Municipal Managers, Managers and frontline workers, so that each role player in the Municipality understands their role, in advocating, and being a part of the change to make it easier to do business.

The Blueprint has also been identified as an intervention linked to the Growth for Jobs Strategy, to help build capability within municipalities. These innovative capabilities and awareness of red tape reduction measures serve as a direct contribution to the creation of an enabling environment for economic growth on a local level.  

The Red Tape Reduction Unit will be launching the Blueprint to reduce red tape in the Cape Agulhas Municipality during March 2024.