The use of engineering ethics for the betterment of service delivery: The case of Ingquza hill and Elundini local municipalities

Service delivery is the core function of municipalities and the forefront of this function, are municipal engineers. Municipal engineers are not only tasked with providing services according to set standards but have to also balance this with public perception since this sector is highly publicized due to previous corrupt practices which have compromised the integrity of municipal engineering. It seeks to determine the linkage between engineering ethics and the quality of service delivery provided, thus determining whether the use of engineering ethics can be a driver for better service delivery. The research aims to establish how the application of the principles of ethics can impact services provided by the two municipalities that the study will be focusing on. The study was conducted in Ingquza Hill and Elundini Municipality as the case study environments. During the pilot study, personnel in the civil engineering discipline, identified in the organogram were interviewed. Findings established that honesty and integrity were the leading concerns for municipal engineers and political influence was a key concern that impacted decision making. The main study will be conducted using professional service providers working for the case study municipalities. The tool is aimed at easing decision making thus yielding better engineering judgment and improving service delivery.