Municipal communications policy in the spotlight

The communications manager of the Musina Local Municipality, Mr Wilson Dzebu said the municipality is committed to two-way communication, building relationships with its stakeholders and to form partnerships with the public and private sector.

He was addressing communicators from municipalities, ward committee members and representatives of community stakeholders during the development of the municipality’s communication policy at Musina on Tuesday.

Dzebu said the purpose of the policy is to provide clear principles and guidelines for communication in the municipality. “We have an effective communication strategy that has been adopted by the municipal council, but we felt that we should develop the communication policy to complement the strategy.” He added that the draft communication policy had already been distributed among councillors and municipal employees who have already submitted their input. “With the availability of a communication policy, the different roles and responsibilities within the municipality's communication are made clear, what is communicated, and by whom. This policy will ensure that communication takes place in a coordinated and uniform way.”

He said that the communication policy seeks to ensure that the Musina Local Municipality acknowledges the importance of communications as a strategic management function and as an integral part of its daily functioning. “It demonstrates that the municipality is committed to a transparent and effective relationship with its stakeholders and will do so by a process of consultation and information dissemination. The municipality acknowledges that it has a responsibility to inform its stakeholders of identified issues, challenges, progress made, and results achieved in addressing its mandate.”

“This must be done in an accurate, timeous, relevant and understandable manner to ensure that it reports its achievements and challenges about its mandate. The municipality must also ensure that it is visible, accessible and answerable to the public it serves.”

Dzebu said the inputs made by the participants will be consolidated before the policy is adopted by Council to become a working document.

The communications manager of Vhembe District Municipality, Mr Matodzi Ralushai said it is the responsibility of the district to support local municipalities. “The draft communication policy presented here today is brilliantly crafted and well researched. We are very pleased by the commitment of the Musina Municipality communications unit and we will continue to give them full support. We hope other municipalities will learn from them that team work breeds success.”

News - Date: 02 December 2017

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