AG Tsakani Maluleke Urges Municipalities to Improve Amid Decline in Clean Audits

On Tuesday, Maluleke briefed the Portfolio Committee on Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs, presenting the consolidated general report on local government audit outcomes for 2022/23.

Auditor General (AG) Tsakani Maluleke has reaffirmed her office's commitment to supporting municipalities in their efforts to improve, following a notable decline in clean audits reported in the 2022/23 local government audit outcomes.

On Tuesday, Maluleke briefed the Portfolio Committee on Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs, presenting the consolidated general report on local government audit outcomes for 2022/23.

The audit results, including those finalized after March 31, 2024, are as follows:

34 clean audits

110 unqualified with findings

90 qualified with findings

6 adverse findings

14 disclaimed with findings

3 outstanding audits

A media statement released after the briefing revealed that only 34 out of South Africa’s 257 Metropolitan, District, and Local Municipalities achieved clean audit outcomes.

"While 45 municipalities have improved their audit outcomes since 2020-21, 36 have regressed," Maluleke reported, emphasizing that clean audits indicate strong financial management and well-functioning control environments, which are crucial for improving municipal performance and service delivery.

Maluleke expressed concern over the direct impact of poor financial stability and controls on communities, highlighting that wasted resources reduce funding for essential services, increase the burden on taxpayers, and weaken municipal accountability.

"These ongoing failures in critical municipal operations are not receiving the necessary attention from elected leadership," Maluleke stated, urging municipal leaders, councils, and mayors to take decisive action to foster ethical behavior, good governance, and accountability.

Despite the overall regression, there were some areas of improvement. The timely submission of financial statements by municipalities improved significantly, with 94% of municipalities submitting on time in 2022/23, up from 81% in 2020/21. Additionally, fewer municipalities received disclaimed audit opinions, with 18 municipalities moving out of this category during the administrative term.

Maluleke commended the support provided by provincial governments in helping municipalities improve and called for sustained efforts in the upcoming administration. She also invited municipalities to take advantage of the assistance offered by her office, emphasizing the continued partnership and support through audits and initiatives to guide all stakeholders.

"We remain committed to partnering with and supporting the local government accountability ecosystem through our audits, the use of our expanded powers as granted by the Public Audit Act amendments, and the many initiatives that we have implemented to assist and guide all role players," Maluleke concluded.