On 27 September 2024 ACCORD, in collaboration with the Dullah Omar Institute at the University of the Western Cape, hosted a seminar titled “Coalition Governance in Western Cape Municipalities: A South African Blueprint?” in Cape Town, South Africa. The discussion highlighted how the Western Cape province serves as a microcosm for coalitions across South Africa, particularly given its history of hung councils since the first democratic local government elections post-apartheid.
While metropolitan municipalities often dominate the media narrative due to unstable coalitions and recurrent leadership changes, it is essential to recognise the successful coalitions in smaller local municipalities within the Western Cape. These well-functioning coalitions counter the perception that all coalitions are chaotic. The seminar also addressed the paradigm shift in coalition dynamics since the formation of the Government of National Unity, noting recent shifts in alliances among parties like the Democratic Alliance (DA) and the Freedom Front Plus (FF+). As South Africa’s electoral landscape evolves from one-party dominance to a multi-party system, it’s increasingly clear that coalitions are a vital aspect of the country’s electoral democracy. Understanding and promoting the stability of coalitions in local governance will be crucial for the future of South Africa’s political landscape.
In his address, Prof Jaap de Visser, the National Research Chair in Multilevel Government, Law and Development, as well as a Professor of Law at the University of the Western Cape’s Faculty of Law, highlighted that we are now in the era of coalitions in South Africa. He noted that some of his colleagues often criticised him for being too theoretical regarding coalitions. He pointed out that the outcome of the 2024 National and Provincial elections, in South Africa, which resulted in a hung parliament, reflects the reality that coalitions are now a significant aspect of our political landscape, rather than a theoretical concept.
The Executive Mayor of Saldanha Bay Local Municipality, Councillor André Truter presented on the topic “The Coalition Recipe: For Governance in Saldanha Bay Municipality”. The Executive Mayor gave an account of how the Saldanha Bay municipality has been able to run a stable coalition municipality. He indicated that to run a stable coalition government, there is a need to have a coalition agreement in place with clear processes and protocols. There has to be a commitment from all coalition partners and a well-defined coalition objective that prioritises the needs of its constituency. He further added that there is a need for a Conflict Resolution Mechanism (CRM), to deal with disputes and conflicts which arise within the coalition.
Various stakeholders were present, including the South African Local Government Association (SALGA) represented by the Chief of Operations, Mr Lance Joel who presented on the state of coalitions in the Western Cape; and Mr Ashley Losch, Director of Intergovernmental Coordination at the Departments of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (CoGTA) who presented on the District Development Model (DDM). The presence of practitioners from local government representing various municipalities such as George and Breede Valley Municipality and personnel from academia and civil society further enriched the discussion.
The seminar forms part of ACCORD’s project titled, ‘Contributing Towards Sustainable Coalitions at Local Government Level in South Africa’, funded by the Embassy of Ireland in South Africa. The project consists of research and capacity-building components to contribute knowledge and conflict resolution skills towards more sustainable coalitions in the country. Furthermore, the seminar aligns with ACCORD’s strategic objectives, strengthening the role of multi-dimensional stakeholders to deal with complex conflicts, and contributing to evidence-based analysis, policy support and knowledge to respond to complex conflicts.
