This article highlights the benefits of the Community-based Planning Approach as follows: - Provides assistance to municipalities to give effect to the requirements of the Municipal Systems Act; - taking the meaning of participation beyond consultation to effective community empowerment, encouraging ownership of local development, the releasing of local community energy for action, thereby overcoming dependency; - The use of relatively small amounts of process funds by local government to harness local energy and resources; - Obtaining a sophisticated understanding of the assets, vulnerabilities, preferred outcomes and livelihood strategies of different groups within the community, including the most vulnerable;