Gauteng Finance MEC Nkululeko Dunga briefed the media regarding a decline in municipal audit outcomes across the province.
The briefing follows the release of the Auditor-General's Consolidated Report on Municipal Audit Outcomes. The findings suggest a systemic failure in how local governments manage public funds, which directly impacts the delivery of essential services to residents.
Dunga said to reporters at the Makause Informal settlement in Primrose, Germiston, that the location of the briefing underscored the gap between provincial financial administration and the living conditions of citizens in informal settlements.
According to the report, municipal audit outcomes have worsened for the 2024/25 financial year [1]. The Auditor-General's data indicates that financial management within these municipalities has deteriorated, leading to a higher risk of mismanagement and waste.
Dunga said the province is addressing the concerns raised by the Auditor-General. He said that the worsening outcomes are a result of poor financial management at the municipal level.
The Gauteng provincial government is now tasked with implementing corrective measures to stabilize municipal budgets. This process involves stricter oversight of how municipalities allocate and spend their yearly budgets to ensure compliance with national standards.
Local officials are expected to provide detailed recovery plans to address the specific failures identified in the consolidated report. The goal is to reverse the downward trend seen in the 2024/25 cycle [1] and restore fiscal discipline to the region's local government entities.
“Municipal audit outcomes have worsened for the 2024/25 financial year.”
The deterioration of audit outcomes in Gauteng indicates a growing crisis in local governance. When municipalities fail financial audits, it often signals that funds intended for infrastructure and social services are being mismanaged or lost to inefficiency. The government's focus on 'financial management' suggests that the issue is not necessarily a lack of funds, but a failure of internal controls and accountability mechanisms.
