Kuala Lampur:North West The North West Provincial Treasury is ramping up efforts to tackle unauthorized, irregular, fruitless, and wasteful expenditure (UIFWE) within municipalities by implementing coordinated measures aimed at enhancing financial governance, ensuring accountability, and safeguarding public resources.
According to South African Government News Agency, the initiative involves collaboration with the Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (COGTA), the South African Local Government Association (SALGA), and provincial municipalities. This collective effort is part of ongoing assessments of municipal progress in addressing historical UIFWE balances and identifying compliance challenges, alongside practical measures to bolster financial management.
Municipalities are required to provide verifiable evidence of progress in addressing UIFWE balances and ensure lawful expenditure write-offs. Additionally, they must reinforce consequence management and demonstrate effective oversight through Municipal Public Accounts Committees (MPACs) and municipal councils. These measures coincide with national interventions regarding the withholding of municipal equitable-share transfers, as stated in Section 216(2) of the Constitution.
The initiative also aims to address financial management weaknesses and implement corrective measures before the December 2026 equitable-share tranche. Linda Nengovhela, Chief Director for Municipal Financial Management at Provincial Treasury, highlighted the need for effective financial management systems that prevent recurring UIFWE and uphold accountability.
Nengovhela pointed to the Greater Taung Local Municipality's progress in addressing irregular expenditure, emphasizing the necessity to tackle fruitless and wasteful spending. She underscored the application of Section 32 of the Municipal Finance Management Act to investigate and address unauthorized and irregular expenditures.
Moreover, Nengovhela urged MPACs to fulfill their oversight duties, scrutinize financial management, and support accountability through council processes. The engagements stressed the importance of maintaining credible records and ensuring a proper handover of outstanding matters to successors for continuous financial oversight.
Failure to comply with financial management and compliance requirements may result in further interventions, including the potential withholding of the December 2026 equitable-share tranche. Provincial Treasury noted the significance of equitable-share allocations in supporting municipalities to deliver essential services, asserting that effective financial management is crucial for compliance, accountability, and protecting service delivery.
