Investigating barriers to revenue collection affecting municipal service delivery: A case study of Katima Mulilo Town Council
The lack of service delivery by local authorities in Namibia has received considerable attention in recent years including public expression of dissatisfaction with service delivery. Local authorities carry out several functions as specified in Section 3(2) of the Local Authorities Act No. 23 of 1992. The Act states that local authorities are responsible for the provision, operation and maintenance of most municipal infrastructure and services. The study sought to investigate barriers to revenue collection affecting municipal service delivery in order to present findings and recommendations for the benefit of the Katima Mulilo Town Council and other local authorities in general. The researcher used a mixed research method approach which used data collection instruments such as questionnaires and interviews. The study used simple purposive sampling select customers and KMTC employees based on their position and experience (such as; work experience for employees and heads of houses responsible for paying monthly bills for customers) related to the topic under investigation. The collected data were analysed using Statistical Package for Social Scientists (SPSS-16) to derive relevant descriptive statistics, specifically frequency tables and Excel program 2016 was also used. The results obtained from the study highlighted the key factors that were considered to be the causes of inadequate revenue collection and are not limited to poverty and unemployment, political interference, and customers’ attitude towards payment of services. The study recommends that the Namibian Government, through the Ministry of Urban and Rural Development, must regularly monitor and evaluate the implementation of programs of the local authorities in Namibia
Local authorities, Namibia, Revenue collection, Katima Mulilo Town Council, Municipal service delivery
Networked Digital Library of Theses and Dissertations