Swartland Municipality: Stability-Driven Success Leading in Financial Excellence and Digital Innovation

Presented by Business Engineering

Guests from Swartland Local Municipality
Joggie Scholtz - Municipal Manager
Alwyn Zaayman - Senior Manager: Development Management
Olivia Fransman - Senior Manager: Strategic Services

Host
Dan Claassen, Managing Director, Future Cities Africa

Episode Summary

We discuss the municipality's tie for first place in the 2025 Ratings Afrika Municipal Financial Sustainability Index and SAPOA awards.

Scholtz highlights the role of political and administrative stability, skilled staffing, a robust performance management system, and strong financial ratios (e.g., 6.83 current ratio, 96.71% collection rate, 11 months cash coverage) in achieving top rankings.

Zaayman explains the paperless SmartLand portal and Collaborator platform (developed with Business Engineering), which streamline land use and building plan approvals to boost ease of doing business and economic development, while addressing challenges like digital access and cybersecurity.

Fransman details the pioneering "IDP in Your Pocket" - South Africa's first online, hyperlink-rich Integrated Development Plan accessible via smartphone for greater community and investor engagement.

In closing, Scholtz distills lessons from their digitisation journey (including recovery from a 2020 ransomware attack): keep processes simple, measure accountability, digitise for transparency, lead by example, and apply consistent rules to drive economic growth.

The conversation showcases how a small municipality excels through innovation, resilience, and good governance.