While some state entities are striving to improve their accounting practices, others are just bleeding cash
On Wednesday, I tabled in parliament the 2020/2021 Public Finance Management Act general report audit outcomes of national and provincial governments and their entities.
Overall, 115 auditees obtained clean audit outcomes compared to 109 in the previous year. Together, these auditees are responsible for 19% of the R1.9-trillion expenditure budget managed by national and provincial government. Sixty-one of these auditees have managed to retain their clean audit status since the first year of this administration, and another 31 are close to obtaining this status. These auditees deserve special attention and encouragement.
We register a similar concern in the case of the key service delivery departments within the health, education, human settlements and public works sectors, as they have the greatest effect on the lives of citizens. The improvements we have seen can be attributed to accounting officers and authorities as well as senior management being committed to ensuring that internal control processes were improved and that our recommendations were implemented. Furthermore, improvements were evident where accounting officers were adequately supported by their internal auditors and audit committees.
While submitting financial statements is the crucial first step for enabling accountability and transparency, institutions must also ensure that their financial statements are credible. Regrettably, more than half of our auditees submitted poor-quality financial statements for auditing.
The same 13 public entities received disclaimed opinions in the previous year as well. Another nine public entities that previously received disclaimed opinions failed to submit their financial statements for auditing by the legislated date. In addition, some experienced delays on their audits, mainly due to technical disputes or the late submission of information required by auditors.
United States Latest News, United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
AG says irregular expenditure rises to over R166bnAuditor-General Tsakani Maluleke says this shows proper supply chain processes are not being followed.
Read more »
Maluleke warns R166 billion in irregular expenditure could still rise
Read more »
Nelson Mandela Bay and surrounds report good rain over weekendWeather stations across the Eastern Cape reported good rain over the weekend, with more showers expected in the next few days.
Read more »
Nelson Mandela Bay and surrounds report good rain over weekendWeather stations across the Eastern Cape reported good rain over the weekend, with more showers expected in the next few days.
Read more »
Chris Hani’s killer to get another shot at freedomThe Constitutional Court has agreed to hear Janusz Walus’s parole bid
Read more »
Indonesia court rejects palm oil companies’ bid for permitsCompanies lose their court bid for plantation pernits to be reinstated
Read more »