Social innovation (SI) remains a latent area in the South African local government (LG) sphere despite its growing use in public sector service delivery globally, specifically its use to potentially enhance citizen participation in the governance of LG service delivery. To help resolve the situation, this study used a case study approach to examine the extent to which citizen participation underpins SI during the governance of LG service delivery. The findings illustrate that open governance systems would not automatically result in sustainable, quality, and quantity service delivery, as this depends heavily on who participates in devising solutions as well as on the delivery and governance of services.

Academe has argued that democracy cannot be effective on its own, but is reliant on the government and citizens to sustain it. For the South African democracy to be sustained, the roles of the government and the citizens need to be integrated to ensure accountability, transparency, effectiveness and good quality provision of public services to the citizens. The aim of this study is to establish what students view as the role of the government, and of citizens, in strengthening South African democracy. To this effect, information was collected by means of a survey targeting students enrolled for modules in Public Administration and Management at a South African university. It emerged that the respondents deemed it important to educate themselves about democracy as well as the monitoring of politicians' behaviour. The findings further indicated that the respondents considered issues such as education, health, public order and safety, and job creation to a lesser extent, to be key roles of government. The article concludes by contemplating the importance of educating citizens in strengthening the South African democracy with special reference to the South African Medium Term Strategic Framework, and its 12 outcomes. Points for practitioners: This article evaluates current South African democracy with reference to the different roles of both government and citizens, respectively. The study revealed the perceptions of students enrolled for modules in Public Administration and Management at a South African university regarding the role of government and citizens in the creation of a sustainable democracy. Furthermore, background information is given on the South African growth path towards democracy and equality.

In this article, the aim is to question the relevance of well-known public leadership styles to the 21st century. The aim is buoyed by the notion that traditional leadership styles, even more so conventional ways of leading, will no longer ensure success, as 21st-century risks have had a considerable impact on the role and disposition of the public leader. The article draws on a qualitative review of academic papers and articles, documentary materials, surveys, and reports. An analysis of this material is used to gain a broad understanding of how public leadership styles are transforming under the impetus of the 21st century. The discussion is based on the challenges that public leaders are likely to face over the next decade, the pacesetters for public leaders to transform in the 21st century, and recommendations guiding public leadership styles for the 21st century.

Purpose: Social innovation (SI) remains a latent area in the South African local government (LG) sphere despite its growing use in public-sector service delivery globally. This paper aims to investigate the use of SI in the service delivery of LG through a comparison between the City of Ghent (CoG) (Belgium) and the Mangaung Metropolitan Municipality (MMM) (South Africa). Design/methodology/approach: Through a comparative case study approach, qualitative research methods were used to both collect and analyze the data. Data collection instruments included document analysis (naturally occurring data), semi-structured interviews (generated data) and focus group discussions (generated data). Findings: Although LG is obliged to collaborate with citizens, various factors influence citizens’ ability to make contributions, even when platforms are created. Collaborative initiatives aid in the realization of collective development visions and enhance citizen participation in a more responsive and inclusive approach to service delivery. Collaborations would require citizens and LG officials to be empowered by finding new ways of working together, as well as developing skills. Practical implications: Citizens’ participation when SI is used to enhance service delivery should be meticulously planned. Co-producing services require a conducive internal organizational context that advances citizen participation in the governance and decision-making of service delivery, which is likewise optimal for enhancing the use of SI during the respective co-production service delivery stages. Achieving a conducive internal organizational context is influenced by the role of LG officials and politicians in understanding the value proposition of participation in service delivery to citizens. This value proposition is crucial to building and establishing a trust relationship between citizens, LG officials and politicians. Finally, consensus concerning the concept of SI and its use and implementation is important to ensure its consistent use and application by a municipality, and thus calls for further in-depth investigation. Originality/value: SI is a nascent area for which the discourse is still under development, and it is a concept that is often the subject of debate in literature. This paper is justified by the fact that the use of SI in the South African LG sphere lags behind the growing use thereof in public-sector service delivery by LGs globally. In addition, the study presents novel insights regarding similarities and differences in the use of SI through a comparison between two LGs, namely, the MMM and the CoG.

Service delivery and ethical conduct in the public service: the missing links