NATIONAL CERTIFICATE:MUNICIPAL INTERGRATED DEVELOPMENT PLANNING

Getting a qualification is not enough, on its own, to prepare you to traverse the rapidly changing world of work, where industry 4.0 and 5.0 are rendering many professions obsolete. We will work with you throughout your studies to help you develop six critical attributes to navigate the new world order, along with the skills and knowledge you need to excel in any environment.

PURPOSE

The purpose of the qualification is to enable qualifying learners to apply strategic level development and governance competencies to ensure integrated and sustainable development and governance processes, outcomes, structures, strategies, planning; implementation management, monitoring and evaluation at a municipal level.

Learners will develop competencies to manage strategic planning and development processes, and the associated local governance and consultation processes. Individual learners will benefit through enhancing their personal competencies, knowledge and skills so as to be able to complete tasks required in their employment contracts and by legislation, relating to the:

• Designing and implementation of municipal integrated development plans
• Identification of key development priorities and agendas, within resource constraints and informed by a local, district-wide, provincial and national strategic analysis and policy context.
• Development of proposals and strategic solutions beyond administrative boundaries and local resource/capacity constraints.
• Identification of realistic and sustainable projects and development paths for cities and districts, within existing intergovernmental framework.
• Implementation of integrated development plans and facilitation of democratic and accountable local governance.
• Provision of inputs from municipal integrated development planning process into the planning processes and plans of other role players and spheres.
• Through increasing the integrated development planning capacity of government office bearers and employees the notion of developmental local government, intergovernmental co-operation and the objectives of the developmental state can be achieved.

Rationale:

The qualification is aimed at municipal managers, integrated development planning (IDP) managers and specialists in local government, executive mayors, as well as integrated development planning and city/district development specialists in Planning Implementation and Management Support (PIMS) Centres, provincial and national government.

The typical learner will be an employee in local or provincial government, wishing to gain the competence to fulfill the requirements of his/her current job obligations or a municipal employee or even councilor wishing to gain a qualification so as to advance his/her career opportunities. In addition persons seeking future employment in the local government sector may choose to complete the qualification.

Persons employed in municipal, provincial and national sector departments, non-profit organisations and non-governmental organization as well as private sector agencies which interface with local government integrated development planning would benefit from the qualification.

Qualifying learners may operate at the level of executive mayor, executive councilors, councilors, municipal manager; IDP manager or specialist, PIMS manager or senior planner, city/district development department managers; strategic managers and provincial IDP coordinators.

Office bearers and employees at local government level are responsible for managing the provision of services to the community. The Constitution of the RSA (Act 108 of 1996) section 27 (1) states that all South Africans have the right to access health care services; sufficient food and water and social security. Section 27(2) requires the state to take reasonable measures within its available resources to provide these basic human rights. The state is also responsible for providing education for the community and managing all of the country’s resources. The constitution therefore allows the community to demand that services are met and that government office bearers and managers have the skills to take reasonable measures in providing services.

Based on the parameters created by the Constitution and key to concept of the Developmental State is the concept of decentralised development planning, coupled with the policy imperative of coordination and integration between the three spheres of government. Both these ideas were in line with the South African Constitution, which (1) enshrined the notions of cooperative governance, and government as one entity consisting of three interdependent spheres and (2) endowed local government with a novel and specific developmental role.
In accordance with this new intergovernmental development-planning ethos local government would be the main/frontline planning arm of government, provinces would support and monitor this activity, and national government would create the framework of norms and standards in which these developmental actions would take place. Collectively, and with each sphere fulfilling its specific mandate, the actions of the three spheres would dovetail into a joint governmental effort aimed at achieving its developmental objectives.

In contrast to the traditional sector-specific land use, transport and infrastructure master planning of the past, a different approach to planning was proposed. Called integrated development planning and culminating in an Integrated Development Plan (IDP) , this new style of planning, which had semblances of similar tendencies in the international planning arena, was meant to (1) be holistic, span and integrate all sectors though a focus on cross-cutting issues) assist in reintegrating the fragmented landscapes and communities left in the wake of apartheid, and (3) ensure that projects and programmes contained in the plans were included in the budgets of the municipalities and/or provincial and national sector departments . In essence this new approach entailed a deft exercise in balancing (1) equity and efficiency, (2) strategic planning and speedy delivery and extensive public participation, and (3) local, indigenous and technical knowledge traditions.
Along with the rise of ‘good governance’ and ‘urban management’ in South Africa as elsewhere, IDPs, linked to performance management systems, would also provide the frameworks, or rather the business plans, in terms of which municipalities were to be managed. In the spirit of cooperative governance these IDPs are also meant to play a key role in ensuring greater intergovernmental cooperation, integration and alignment, as not only were they conceptualised as the inventories of local needs and lists of desired projects and programmes, but also as the tools by which intergovernmental relations could be strengthened by providing arenas for representatives from the different spheres to come together and debate issues of shared concern.

The IDP was first called to life in the Local Government Transition Act Second Amendment Act, 1996, which required all municipalities in the country to prepare such plans (Republic of South Africa, 1996a). In terms of this Act IDPs were meant to ensure ‘ the integrated development and management of the area of jurisdiction of the municipality concerned in terms of its powers and duties’ and had to be compiled having regard to a set of equity, sustainability and efficiency-principles set out in the Development Facilitation Act (see Republic of South Africa, 1995).

The IDPs are also intended to reflect, capture or contain any other sectoral municipal planning requirement or plan in terms of sectoral legislation. These include, in terms of the Water Services Act, 1997 Water Services Development Plans, Integrated Transport Plans in terms of the National Land Transport Act, 2000 and a set of requirements regarding plans for housing provision in terms of the Housing Act, 1997.

The learning outcomes contained in this qualification are based on the competencies required to contribute to integrated development planning in a municipal context. The learning outcomes are combined in 4 broad areas of competence:

• Integrated and sustainable development and governance.
• Design an integrated development planning process.
• Strategic and integrated development planning.
• Municipal implementation management, monitoring and evaluation.

The qualification aims to provide opportunities for applied competencies in these areas and provides a basis for further qualifications in town and regional planning, development planning and public sector management qualifications at higher levels on the NQF.

Learners will build on their existing competencies in city or regional planning, development planning or public sector management and will learn how to manage an integrated development planning process within the many challenges facing local government and intergovernmental alignment. They will learn how to apply strategic skills in relation to sustainable development of human settlements, districts and cities, developmental governance, strategic planning, process and resource management, process facilitation, monitoring and evaluation, and reporting competencies in a public sector setting. These competencies will assist the learner in their role in public sector strategising and development management and will also provide competencies which are transferable to the private sector.

The exit level learning outcomes highlight many of the integrated and intergovernmental development planning skills required within the public sector. Such skills and knowledge are geared towards enabling public officials in all spheres of government to operate effectively and successfully in a demanding environment. Therefore, exit level outcomes and related assessment criteria are outlined for the areas of competence, which mark out integrated development planning as key and highly influential in the developmental state and public service delivery.

The Certificate in Integrated Development Planning: Level 6 should produce knowledgeable, multi-skilled workers who are able to contribute to improved productivity and efficiency within the public sector. It should provide the means for current workers to receive recognition of prior learning, to upgrade their skills and achieve a nationally recognised qualification. It should also assist new entrants to the public sector. It will ensure that the quality of education and training in the public sector is enhanced and of a world-class standard.

LEARNING ASSUMED TO BE IN PLACE AND RECOGNITION OF PRIOR LEARNING

All learners accessing this qualification must be in possession of a Further Education and Training Certificate or equivalent qualification.

Recognition of prior learning:

The structure of this Unit Standard based Qualification makes the Recognition of Prior Learning possible. Learner and Assessor will jointly decide on methods to determine prior learning and competence in the knowledge, skills, values and attitudes implicit in the Qualification and the associated Unit Standards. Recognition of Prior Learning will be done by means of an Integrated Assessment as mentioned in the previous paragraph.

This Recognition of Prior Learning may allow for:

• Accelerated access to further learning at this or higher levels on the NQF
• Gaining of credits towards a Unit Standard in this Qualification
• Obtaining this Qualification in whole or in part.
• All recognition of Prior Learning is subject to quality assurance by the relevant ETQA or an ETQA that has a Memorandum of Understanding with the relevant ETQA.

Access to the qualification:

Access to this Qualification is open to all learners in possession of an FETC or equivalent qualification.

It is preferable, however, for the learner to first have completed a qualification in town and regional planning, development planning or public sector management and administration at least at NQF Level 4, before accessing this Qualification so that the learner has a broad understanding of the basic principles of city and regional development, development planning and/or public management and governance before proceeding with the more specialised learning in the National Certificate: Municipal Integrated Development Planning, Level 5.

On achieving this qualification, the learner will:

1. Design and implement an integrated development planning process.
2. Conduct strategic and integrated development planning.
3. Implement and monitor sustainable municipal integrated development planning programmes and processes.
4. Evaluate efficacy of Integrated Development Planning programmes and processes.
5.  Facilitate events/meetings/actions for development