1. 09 October 2017
“Sustaining service delivery amidst the challenging economic climate” CIGFARO 88th Annual Conference

2. Reputation promise/mission
The Auditor-General of South Africa has a constitutional mandate and, as the Supreme Audit Institution (SAI) of South Africa, exists to strengthen our country’s democracy by enabling oversight, accountability and governance in the public sector through auditing, thereby building public confidence.

3. The challenging economic climate
Post 1994, South Africa has seen a marked improvement in the living conditions of ordinary citizens but the pace at which services are being delivered has slowed
The country has not managed to reduce the triple challenges that have reached unacceptable levels with unemployment reaching a 13 year high of 27.7% in the first quarter of 2017 remaining unchanged in the second quarter
The current economic outlook is marked by increased government debt due to sluggish growth
The public sector’s balance sheet is also exposed to sizable contingent liabilities from state-owned enterprises
Consumer and investor confidence has been hampered by weakened governance and uncertainties around future economic policies as the country faces the looming presidential elections
This means that there is more pressure to do more with less and to find more innovative and sustainable methods of delivering essential services

4. Environment for impactful and sustainable service delivery
A commitment to building internal capability will allow government to come up with innovative solutions
Sharpening strategic thinking
Integrated planning and execution of some projects will ensure a much more holistic approach to service delivery
Removing silo mentality
Government can be in a better position to meet citizens’ needs and instil a sense of ownership to the people.
Citizen participation
If the country is going to undertake huge infrastructure programs we need to have the skills and capabilities within government to carry that out.
Building specialized capabilities
Municipalities are the main service delivery instruments of government and for that reason they should receive support to ensure that they can become self-reliant
Creating resilient municipalities
Governance of public institutions should be driven by accountable and transparent leadership where corruption cannot flourish
Good governance and effective management

5. The role of the audit profession
AGSA Reports
Demonstrated the governance challenges faced by most government entities
Increased irregular expenditure
Root cause
continued non-compliance with supply chain management legislation
Potential impact
Resources are diverted to less productive and less efficient activities
Regularity Audit
Performance Audit
Information Systems Audit
Investigations
Integrated audits
Impact
Regularity
Performance
3E’s
Financial & compliance

6. Concluding remarks
Auditing beyond the financials enables the organisation to determine whether the use of public funds has created value for the citizen and thereby elevating service delivery.
Where audit firms conduct audits for the public sector, there is a need to consider elevating the audit methodology to ensure that service delivery is also part of the audit scope.

7. Thank You