The North West Provincial Treasury has intensified efforts to accelerate the settlement of outstanding debt owed to municipalities by departments and public entities through District-Based Government Debt working sessions. This is consistent with the commitment made by the Provincial Government, through Provincial Treasury that all undisputed outstanding debt owed to municipalities by departments and public entities must be paid to the municipalities.
The Provincial Treasury, led by MEC Mosenogi is working tirelessly to ensure that debt owed to municipalities are settled immediately and this commitment has been communicated to the Ministry of Finance in view of their pending withholding of the Provincial Equitable Share by National Treasury in line with Section 216 of the Constitution.
To complement these efforts, the Provincial Treasury undertook District-Based Government Debt working sessions which commenced in the Dr Ruth Segomotsi Mompati District from 05th August 2026 and 06th August in Dr Kenneth Kaunda, brought together municipalities, provincial departments and public entities to reconcile outstanding municipal debt, resolve billing disputes and agree on structured payment arrangements.
The initiative implements resolutions of the Provincial Government Debt Forum convened by the Provincial Treasury on 6th July 2026, which mandated district-based engagements to accelerate the implementation of debt recovery measures and strengthen collaboration between all spheres of government.
The working sessions focus on validating outstanding municipal rates, taxes, service accounts and property rental debt, while improving coordination between municipalities and government institutions to ensure timely settlement of verified accounts. Technical working groups are also working to address historic debt, property ownership disputes and billing discrepancies that continue to delay payments.
Kagiso Moiloa, Deputy Director at Municipal Financial Management Proramme, urged provincial departments, public entities and other organs of state to prioritise the immediate settlement of all undisputed municipal debt.
“Municipalities depend on the timely payment of monies owed to them to maintain sound cash flow, sustain their operations and fulfil their constitutional mandate of delivering reliable basic services to communities. The prompt settlement of undisputed debt is therefore critical to strengthening municipal financial sustainability and service delivery,” he said.
Moiloa explained that these interventions are critical as they will assist with the facilitation of payments towards outstanding municipal debt, strengthened collaboration between government institutions and municipalities, and the establishment of structured mechanisms to improve debt reconciliation and financial reporting.
“In the previous months, the North West Provincial Government has made measurable progress towards addressing outstanding municipal debt owed by provincial departments and public entities. According to the June 2026 municipal debt reconciliation, the total amount owed by provincial departments to municipalities has been reduced to R893.1 million from the R1.010 billion reported in March 2026 Section 71 reports. This represents a decrease of approximately R116.9 million or 11.6 per cent, suggesting that reconciliation processes have significantly improved the accuracy of the debt position”, explained Moiloa.
Provincial Treasury will continue to monitor the implementation of agreed payment plans and progress in reducing outstanding government debt as part of ongoing efforts to strengthen municipal revenue collection, improve cash flow and safeguard the financial sustainability of municipalities.
The district working sessions will be rolled out across all four district municipalities to ensure consistent implementation of the Provincial Government Debt Forum resolutions and reinforce accountability in the settlement of government debt. During this week, the Provincial Treasury would be concluding with Ngaka Modiri Molema sessions scheduled for 11th August 2026 in Mafikeng and Bojanala scheduled for 13th August 2026 in Rustenburg.
This process would culminate in a comprehensive response to National Treasury will confirm payment arrangements including submission of portfolio of evidence in respect of payments made by departments towards settlement of government debt. The Provincial Treasury in on course to ensure that all matters relating to outstanding government debts are concluded by end of September 2026.
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Issued by North West Provincial Treasury. For more information contact: Media Liaison Officer Lesedi Makhubela 062 103 2798 and Head of Communication Ms. Kesalopa Gill on 0795486352.