Laws and policies are approved by Parliament which is made up
of the National Assembly and the National Council of Provinces (NCOP).
The National Assembly is made up of members of Parliament, elected
every five years.
The NCOP was set up to ensure that provincial and local
government are directly represented in Parliament. It is made up of
representatives of provincial legislatures and local government. Each
province has a set number of permanent and rotating representatives.
The NCOP has to debate and vote on any law or policy that affects
provincial or local government.
The President is elected by Parliament and appoints a Cabinet
of Ministers. They act as the executive committee of government and each
Minister is the political head of a government department.
Each government department is responsible for implementing the
laws and policies decided on by Parliament or the Cabinet. Government
departments are headed by a Director General and employ Directors
(managers) and public servants (staff) to do the work of government.
Every department prepares a budget for its work. The budgets
are put into one national budget by the Treasury (Department of
Finance), which has to be approved by Parliament. The Treasury has to
balance the income and expenditure of government in the budget and will
rarely give departments everything they ask for.
The Presidency coordinates the work of government and provides
direction and strategic support to ministers and departments. The
Presidency monitors and evaluates overall progress towards achieving
government goals.
The Department of Public Service and Administration (DPSA)
sets the policies and framework for the Public Service at national and
provincial level. This role may be extended to local government in the
future.
Some departments only exist at national level because they
deal with issues that concern the whole country. Examples are Defence,
Foreign Affairs, Water and Forestry, Science and Technology, Trade and
Industry, Mineral and Energy, Public Enterprises, Home Affairs and
Public Service and Administration. Other departments have national and
provincial departments because they deal with direct provincial service
delivery. Examples are Education, Housing, Health and Social
Development.
Provincial or local government may not do anything that is
against the laws or policies set down by national government. Provincial
government gets most of its money from the national government through
Treasury. Local government also gets grants and some loans through the
Treasury.
The Department of Provincial and Local Government (which
resides at the national level) is responsible for national co-ordination
of provinces and municipalities. In every province, the provincial
Departments of Local Government monitors and supports municipalities
