Cape town: Auditor General (AG) Tsakani Maluleke has noted that while there are some green shoots, municipalities have made limited progress in improving audit outcomes. The AG spoke on the 2024-2025 financial year audit outcomes for municipalities while tabling the general report for that year in Parliament.
According to South African Government News Agency, over the past four years, mayors and councils of the 6th administration have made limited progress to strengthen governance and improve service delivery. Residents and businesses continue to experience unreliable service delivery, environmental hazards, and deteriorating infrastructure. Maluleke noted that they further oversaw municipalities with deteriorating financial health.
The outcomes indicate that only 39 municipalities, which account for 15%, achieved clean audits. Meanwhile, 38 municipalities, representing 24% of the total local government expenditure budget, have regressed since the 2020-21 financial year. The audit outcomes and performance of the eight metros continue to decline, affecting the daily lives of millions of people.
Some positive developments include a substantial reduction in the number of municipalities with repeat disclaimed audit opinions, which are the lowest reported in years. There is a significant increase in unqualified audit opinions to 61% in 2024-25, a level last reached in the 2015-16 financial year. Additionally, there is a marked improvement in the timely submission of financial statements, which is at 98%, the highest level in recorded history.
Maluleke expressed encouragement that municipalities, as well as national and provincial governments, are providing administrative functions while effective oversight by parliament and provincial legislatures is also showing improvement. She emphasized the importance of collaboration in driving timely submissions of financial statements and eradicating disclaimed audit opinions.
The AG acknowledged the efforts to improve governance, stating that these commendable efforts need to be doubled and replicated across accountability ecosystem role players. She implored municipalities to meet legislative obligations, commit to open governance, and pursue a more collaborative approach to administration.
Recommendations include professionalizing and capacitating local government, instilling a culture of ethics and accountability, and building capable institutions through coordinated intergovernmental support. With the Local Government Elections set to be held in November this year, Maluleke recommended a high-quality induction process for new council members, maintaining stability in administrations, and minimizing disruptions from changes in accounting officers and senior management.
Maluleke called on civil society, business, and citizens to continue playing their part in the local government accountability ecosystem. She affirmed her commitment to working with and supporting local government through audits, using insights from these audits to illuminate challenges and advocate for action. The AG concluded by emphasizing the use of expanded powers to step in where the accountability ecosystem fails.