Abstract: | The high‐profile media launch of the Masakhane campaign heightened awareness of issues associated with local government and service provision, However, delivery and improvement of services at local level have been slow or even non‐existent, resulting in a general feeling of despondency. Fortunately, this situation is being challenged as some towns implement their own campaigns with increasingly promising results, as this article will show by tracing developments in Alice and King William's Town. Their experiences, together with those of a number of other towns, point to some exciting possibilities in achieving the ideals of the Masakhane campaign at local level. |