This engagement by the South African Local Government Association (Salga) comes a month after the association informed members of the Provincial Legislature of their concerns with these municipalities during the National Council of Provinces (NCOP) sitting in September. Salga Provincial Executive Officer, Zanoqolo Futwa, told members that the state of municipalities in the province is appalling and urgent interventions are needed. He said the escalating municipal debts, the level of high vacancies, and irregular and wasteful expenditure across municipalities in the province greatly affects the provision of service delivery. In a statement, Salga says the two-day is a meeting of stakeholders in local government which reflects on topical and strategic issues affecting and impacting on the constitutional mandate of municipalities.

Salga further says the outcomes of the deliberations will be used to inform and shape the formulation of the Annual Programme Action Plan for the subsequent financial year. OFM News previously reported that Finance MEC, Gadija Brown, during her departmental report on these municipalities confirmed before the House that the majority of municipalities are not in a sound financial position and that she has put up a team in her department that specifically looks at the AG reports and measures on how best they can intervene at distressed municipalities. She told the House that concerns raised by Salga and all other stakeholders are of high importance and vowed to provide financial and non-financial support to municipalities. Adding to the concerns raised by Salga, was the Auditor-General who highlighted that they have a growing concern over municipalities' insolvency in the province and across the country at large.

OFM News