he fact is that provinces, as is the case with local governments, have since 1993 become an integral part of the South African constitutional milieu. Provinces and local governments are practical examples of how ‘self-rule’ and ‘shared rule’ can be combined and harmonised in a single system of government with common objectives. The Constitution sets out the framework within which all three spheres of government must exercise their powers and, most importantly, how they must respect, care for, support and cooperate with each other. With Chapter 3 of the Constitution and the Intergovernmental Relations Act 2005, South Africa arguably has the most advanced legal arrangements of any constitution to set out the spirit of national unity, provincial and local autonomy, and the importance of intergovernmental cooperation.