The day kicked off with an update from the GGLN Secretariat on its work during the first and second quarters of 2018 following the previous Members Meeting which took place on 14 and 15 March 2018. This was followed by a State of Local Governance (SoLG) 2018 review session, where participants reflected on the publication itself, the production process as well as the launch event which was held the day before on 29 August 2018. During this session, members highlighted the importance of and need to use the SoLG as a platform for further work. The meeting decided that the GGLN would, at the minimum, attempt to use the SoLG as an advocacy platform – this was considered to be particularly timeous given the 10-year anniversary of the SoLG. A clear way forward was determined in this regard.
The review session was followed by a presentation of the 2016-17 municipal audit outcomes by the Auditor-General of South Africa (AGSA). The outcomes were presented by Sharonne Adams, AGSA’s Business Executive in the Western Cape who subsequently facilitated a Q&A/discussion session with members.
A significant part of the day was then allocated to a session focused on furthering the conceptualisation and development of pilot thematic learning groups based on the outcomes of the Members Meeting on 15 March 2018. At the March meeting decisions were taken by members to move forward with the development of learning groups across three thematic areas, namely:
- informal settlement upgrading,
- citizen-based monitoring, and
- activating citizens via knowledge production and sharing.
Following rigorous discussion and debate, however, themes were then somewhat revised to:
- informal settlement upgrading,
- social accountability & community-based monitoring, and
- enabling participatory local governance.
The session also saw a Secretariat presentation on the potential of WhatsApp as a learning tool, framed around the suggestion that members should try to pilot the learning groups using WhatsApp discussion forums during the remainder of 2018.
Members indicated, however, that the use of WhatsApp as a discussion platform should be at the discretion of the learning groups. It was also agreed that the learning groups be conceptualised and established using face-to-face meetings or virtual meetings as a starting point/anchor. Groups will then make decisions regarding their structural/functional aspects in relation to their purpose. The session concluded with members assigning themselves to learning groups and planning their first engagements/actions for the remainder of 2018.
The meeting closed with an indication from the GGLN Secretariat on what it aims to deliver for the remainder of 2018.
For more information on the Members Meeting and other GGLN queries, please contact the GGLN Secretariat on +27 21 683 7903 or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
The following documents can be downloaded below:
- Pdf of the Auditor-General’s presentation.
- The abridged version of the 2016-17 MFMA consolidated general report.
- Pdf of the presentation on WhatsApp as a learning tool.