South African Local Government Association (SALGA) and The Global Trust Project Launch Three-Year Pilot to Strengthen Municipal Trustworthiness in 18 Municipalities
The South African Local Government Association (SALGA) and The Global Trust Project (TGTP), part of the VUKA Group, have formalized a memorandum of understanding to implement the Trust Equity Framework (TEf) in up to 18 municipalities across South Africa. This initiative, which is voluntary for the municipalities involved, aims to enhance municipal trustworthiness, improve service delivery, foster better stakeholder relationships, and create more credible local conditions for investment.
Context and Rationale
The pilot program emerges amidst ongoing challenges facing local government in South Africa. According to the Auditor-General’s report for the 2023/24 fiscal year, municipalities are struggling with significant financial inefficiencies, taking an average of 123 days to collect outstanding debts. Additionally, municipalities have written off R50.96 billion in debt, while reporting water losses of R14.93 billion and electricity losses of R22.36 billion. In response, the National Treasury has prioritized local government reform and the review of the local government fiscal framework for its 2025/26 agenda.
Pilot Program Details
Under the terms of the memorandum, SALGA and TGTP will collaborate on a nationally distributed pilot over the next three years. The initiative will encompass a baseline assessment, leadership engagement, implementation support, follow-up evaluations, and the creation of a public South African Playbook on Trust-Rich Municipalities.
The TEf serves as an evidence-based framework designed to diagnose, develop, and embed trustworthiness within institutional settings. Central to the TEf is the Trust Equity Index (TEi), which establishes a diagnostic baseline by measuring trust and performance conditions. The framework then transitions into leadership development and implementation through practical pathways that focus on cues, cadences, and controls—essentially the signals leaders send, the management rhythms they establish, and the systems that ensure consistent behavior.
Objectives and Expected Outcomes
The initiative aims to operationalize trustworthiness as a measurable discipline within local government, moving beyond the notion of trust as a mere aspiration. For SALGA, this aligns with its institutional mandate, representing all 257 South African municipalities through its national and provincial structures. The 2022–2027 Strategic Plan emphasizes the importance of a “capable and reputable local government,” stating that trust is foundational to professionalizing local government; without it, capability and service delivery are compromised.
The pilot will provide participating municipalities with a structured approach to evaluate how trustworthiness is perceived across leadership, systems, stakeholder relationships, and daily municipal practices. Improvements in these areas are expected to contribute to enhanced service delivery and accountability.
Statements from Leadership
Dominic Wilhelm, Executive Director of The Global Trust Project, emphasized the pressing fiscal, governance, and service-delivery pressures faced by South African municipalities. He noted that in such an environment, trust cannot be viewed as incidental. The pilot aims to demonstrate how trustworthiness can be operationalized in a measurable manner within local government, leading to tangible outcomes.
Lerato Phasa, Portfolio Head for Municipal Finance, Fiscal Policy, and Revenue Enhancement at SALGA, stated that SALGA’s role is to bolster local government through practical support, institutional development, and reform-oriented collaboration. She highlighted that the pilot is voluntary, evidence-based, and designed to generate useful practices based on the realities municipalities encounter.
Broader Implications
This pilot is part of TGTP’s extensive body of work, which has seen elements of its framework applied in various institutional and advisory contexts across Africa, Scandinavia, the United States, and Asia. The parties involved anticipate that the pilot will yield practical insights for participating municipalities and serve as a valuable public resource for the local government sector.
The initiative is expected to generate significant learning opportunities for municipalities involved, ultimately contributing to a more trustworthy and effective local government landscape in South Africa.
Source: www.zawya.com
Media enquiries:
The Global Trust Project (TGTP)
Dominic Wilhelm
Executive Director
path@theglobaltrustproject.one
+27 (0)82 338 7025
About SALGA:
The South African Local Government Association is the autonomous association representing all 257 South African local governments, comprising a national association with one national office and nine provincial offices. SALGA provides advocacy, support, and institutional development to strengthen local government across South Africa.
www.SALGA.org.za
About The Global Trust Project:
The Global Trust Project is a South African advisory focused on helping organizations and governments operationalize trustworthiness as a strategic asset. Through its Trust Equity Framework, it works on diagnosis, leadership development, and implementation pathways designed to enhance trust and performance in institutional settings. TGTP is part of the VUKA Group portfolio.
About VUKA Group:
VUKA Group connects people and organizations across Africa’s energy, mining, mobility, green economy, and retail sectors through events, content, and strategic networking. It is a venture partner of The Global Trust Project and leads the NPO Go Green Africa.
www.WeAreVUKA.com
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Published on 2026-04-14 20:05:00 • By the Editorial Desk
