Johannesburg - Johannesburg was the most productive metro, and George
the most productive municipality in the country, according to the
results of a municipal productivity index (MPI) released by the company
Municipal IQ on Wednesday.
However, the provinces the two fall in also had the most service delivery protests in the last year, researchers found.
"It
is interesting that the top-rated provinces on the MPI, the Western
Cape and Gauteng, are also the most protest afflicted," according to a
statement accompanying the results.
"Given that these provinces
are home to some of South Africa's largest metropolitan municipalities,
where more than half (53%) of this year's protests have taken place, the
data suggests that many protests are probably fuelled by disappointed
work-seekers, given that unemployment levels in protest wards are
significantly above the national as well as the metro averages."
They noted that many of the protests took place in informal settlements, where poverty was a pressing issue.
They
also found the recession played a part in the results, due to
diminished spending by municipalities and shrinking revenue bases.
Western
Cape municipalities outperformed those of other provinces, followed by
Gauteng, with the Eastern Cape and KwaZulu-Natal coming in at eight and
ninth place.
Rural and former "homeland" provinces had poor
revenue streams and a dearth of capacity, but had also been better
insulated from the recession than the higher-spending areas.
Topping the list of least productive municipalities was Nyandeni in the Eastern Cape, followed by Maphumulo in KwaZulu-Natal.
"It
is interesting that the top-rated provinces on the MPI, the Western
Cape and Gauteng, are also the most protest afflicted," read a statement
accompanying the results.
"Given that these provinces are home
to some of South Africa's largest metropolitan municipalities, where
more than half (53%) of this year's protests have taken place, the data
suggests that many protests are probably fuelled by disappointed
work-seekers, given that unemployment levels in protest wards are
significantly above the national as well as the metro averages."
They noted that many of the protests took place in informal settlements, where poverty was a pressing issue.
They
also found the recession played a part in the results, due to
diminished spending by municipalities and shrinking revenue bases.
Western
Cape municipalities outperformed those of other provinces, followed by
Gauteng, with the Eastern Cape and KwaZulu-Natal coming in at eighth and
ninth place.
Rural and former "homeland" provinces had poor
revenue streams and a dearth of capacity, but had also been better
insulated from the recession than the higher-spending areas.
Topping the list of least productive municipalities was Nyandeni in the Eastern Cape, followed by Maphumulo in KwaZulu-Natal.