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Navigating through the Legislative Requirements of the Capital Expenditure Frameworks (CEFs)

19 March 2024
Navigating through the Legislative Requirements of the Capital Expenditure Frameworks

Why do we need a CEF? The CEF concept is rooted in legislation, particularly the Spatial Planning and Land Use Management Act (SPLUMA) of 2013, section (21)(n). This framework aligns with the constitutional mandate for municipalities to prioritise basic needs, promote social and economic development, and structure their administration, budgeting, and planning processes accordingly.

Novus³’s expertise in CEF is informed by the evolution of aligning municipal spatial planning, infrastructure planning and financial planning – starting with the South African Constitution’s emphasis on aligning planning and budgeting processes. Local municipal planning is a complex and highly regulated process in South Africa with multiple pieces of legislation prescribing and governing this space.

When one studies the legislative cornerstones for local government planning in South Africa, it becomes clear that a Capital Expenditure Framework is a vital component to the larger strategic planning mechanisms in a municipality. The following is of importance:

  • The Constitution of South Africa demands planning and budgeting processes in local government (Constitution of South Africa, Act 108 of 1996);
  • The Constitution of South Africa demands local government be developmental and resource-efficient (Constitution of South Africa, Act 108 of 1996);
  • An IDP is deemed as the principal, single, inclusive and strategic planning instrument of a municipality and it should comprise a financial plan as well as an SDF (Municipal Systems Act, 32 of 2000);
  • The municipal budgeting process cannot stand alone from the IDP process (Municipal Finance Management Act, 56 of 2003), and;
  • The SDF must contain a CEF that is spatially referenced (Spatial Planning and Land Use Management Act, 16 of 2013).

The legislative framework for local government planning in South Africa underscores the indispensable role of a Capital Expenditure Framework. It serves as a pivotal component, facilitating comprehensive and strategic spatial, infrastructure and financial planning,

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Capital investment prioritisation

Novus3’s innovative and celebrated approach to prioritsation, stems from significant multi-disciplinary experience that was gained in-situ at local government level, firmly rooted in an understanding of the built environment. Through the use of the CP3 system, our clients have the ability to appraise large and complex capital demand requirements within minutes, resulting in defendable, evidence based budgets. The results are often challenged and stress tested by politicians during political debates – the process therefore repeatedly have been proven to be beyond reproach and consistently reliable.

IDP Process Plan and change management

Novus3 provides advisory services to our clients, supporting them in setting up the correct structures and mechanisms internally which becomes the basis for sustainable and collaborative planning and implementation. The IDP process plan has a number of inter-related complexities that plays out on a cyclic basis year-on-year. Pre-empting and reacting to upcoming requirements in the IDP process pro-actively, renders the process into a constructive and demonstratable outcomes-based process.

Public sector budget and fiscal impact simulation

The financial management of public sector funding at local government level, even on a small scale, often rivals the complexity encountered at huge, listed, multi-national companies in the private sector.. Local governments have to operate and make smart financial decisions within a complex and exceedingly stressful environment. Compliance with legislation, policy frameworks and accepted accounting practices have to be maintained. Simulating these complexities allows our financial executives to ask “What if?” questions and reliably peer into the future with a long-term understanding of the implications of decisions that are taken in the present.

Spatial Development Frameworks

Novus3’s specialised knowledge and access to bespoke and purpose-made spatial and other analytic tools, provided the company with the opportunity to develop unparalleled experience in the development of Capital Expenditure Frameworks (CEFs) by bringing a practical angle to the formulation of implementation plans. A realistic roadmap is provided on how to realise the objectives developed in the Spatial Development Frameworks of the municipalities where we were involved. In return for the development and submission of these CEFs, these municipalities were awarded with significant additional funding from central government.

Built Environment Performance Plans

As part of the National Treasury City Support Program, Novus3 was regarded as specialist advisors on the built environment value chain – a process embedded in Built Environment Performance Plans (BEPPs). BEPPs were intended to form the bedrock of municipal capital planning and management for larger cities (metros). Novus3’s specialist knowledge played a big role from an advisory and capacity building perspective during the development of a number of BEPPs that were developed for a number of metros.

Infrastructure Capital Investment Plans

Infrastructure investment has to find a balance between addressing historical backlogs and inequalities, maintaining satisfactory prevailing functionality and level of service and strategically investing in unlocking future opportunities and growth whilst acknowledging a plethora regulatory constraints, policies and rules. In the process, certain strategic outcomes are sought which may manifest spatially strategically or environmentally. Our infrastructure capital investment plans provide the strategic guideline and provide the recommendations to find this balance.

Capital Expenditure Frameworks

Novus3 has developed multiple capital expenditure frameworks (CEFs) for multiple municipal clients and are regarded as the sector leaders in this area. These CEFs are financial roadmaps providing clear direction on financial constraints, the most important capital and investment priorities, an understanding of the unique local fundamentals and a sustainable response to these multiplicity of challenges.

Project preparation processes

The efficient planning and execution of projects from the moment of idea conception until the last brick has been laid has been the subject of study from as early as the reign of the Roman Empire. The governance process within the public sector has to play an important role in the journey of project preparation. The under-expenditure of allocated funding regrettably is often the only element in the built-environment that consistently re-occurs. All too often, funding is allocated to projects that simply are not ready to proceed to the next step. Novus3’s CP3 system is used to aid clients in the progressive steps involved in the project preparation journey.