Integrated Development Plans (IDPs)

Call for comments opened 01 April 2022 Share this page:

Submissions are now closed (since 30 April 2022)

Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs

Municipalities have published their draft Integrated Development Plans (IDPs) and are inviting the public to comment

View the draft IDPs and details on how to comment here

 

What are Integrated Development Plans (IDPs)?

An IDP encompasses all of a municipality's goals and objectives for economic and social development in the short, medium and long-term. IDPs are meant to outline strategies to manage municipal finances for the purpose of facilitating everything from basic service provision to infrastructural development, improved spatial planning and even disaster management.

Every municipality in South Africa is required to produce an IDP. This plan should stipulate how resources are going to be allocated, and what the elected officials envision for the future of the municipality and its people. This plan is ‘integrated’ because it requires coordination between local government, various stakeholders and the public in order to achieve the best results. The IDP also ensures that city departments are working collaboratively on the same goals, and that the best strategies are in place to allow for public participation and speedy service delivery.

IDPs place particular focus on developing rural areas and informal settlements where residents face adversity and poor service delivery as a result of lacking infrastructure and apartheid legacies that affect spatial planning. The plans laid out in the IDP should aim to elevate the quality of life for all residents of the municipality, both rich and poor, while still taking account of the conditions and available limited resources. It is a tool for bridging the gap between the current reality and the vision of satisfying the needs of the whole community in an equitable and sustainable manner.The IDP will inform the council’s annual budget.

IDPs generally take about 6 to 9 months to develop. Once the IDP has been developed, it has to be approved by the municipal council. IDPs are reviewed every year, and when local government elections happen, the new municipal council can decide whether they will adopt the existing IDP, expand on it, or develop an entirely new plan. A municipality must be able to adjust its IDP taking into account changing needs and priorities. IDPs are valid for 5 year periods, and they are enforced and overseen by mayors, executive committees, and municipal managers.