This chapter examines how New Public Management (NPM) came to and is understood in South Africa. It considers whether ideas like Competition, and eventually, Performance Management, as tools of NPM in South Africa, have assisted or hampered service delivery in a decentralised local government structure. The chapter explains the rise and eventual adoption of the NPM in the South African public sector and civil service relates to adopted financial management and finances problems of the National Party. NPM came to prominence during the leadership reigns of British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher and US President Ronald Reagan. After the 1994 democratic elections, the South African Government promulgated a number of pieces of legislation to deepen decentralisation at the local government level. The Public Finance Management Act (PFMA) of 1999 and Municipal Finance Management Act of 2003 revolutionised financial management in South Africa. The PFMA introduced budgetary reforms, a three-year budgeting programme, and a performance-based approach.