The Mpumalanga Provincial Government welcomes the improvement recorded in the Province’s 2025/26 audit outcomes, while acknowledging that significant work remains to strengthen financial management, compliance, accountability and service delivery.
The Auditor-General of South Africa’s provincial audit outcomes show that, as at 31 August 2026, eight auditees achieved unqualified audit opinions with no findings (clean audits), a significant improvement compared to 2024/25 financial year. A further four received unqualified opinions with findings, while six received qualified opinions with findings. Four audits remained outstanding at the cut-off date.
The Provincial Government particularly welcomes the improvement by the Department of Economic Development and Tourism, Mpumalanga Economic Growth Agency and Nkomazi SEZ, which achieved clean audit outcomes during the current audit cycle. The report attributes these improvements, among other interventions, to strengthened consequence management, improved leadership capacity, targeted interventions and timely implementation of audit recommendations.
The improvements demonstrate that deliberate political and administrative interventions are beginning to produce results. The Premier, Mr Mandla Ndlovu incorporated improvement of audit outcomes into MECs' performance agreements; Provincial Treasury strengthened pre-audit reviews of annual financial statements; MECs' increased their monitoring of audit action plans; and audit action plans became a standing matter for executive monitoring.
The Auditor-General further notes that the leadership’s positive response to the audit process, including the adoption of recommendations by the Premier and MECs and strengthened oversight of their implementation, contributed to the overall improvement in provincial audit outcomes.
However, the Provincial Government is equally concerned about areas of poor performance.
Non-compliance with laws and regulations remains high, particularly in supply chain management. The report records R835 million in irregular expenditure and indicates that only three auditees assessed in this area had good financial health. Furthermore, while irregular expenditure decreased from R10,18 billion to R9,59 billion, and unauthorised expenditure declined from R1,04 billion to R980 million, fruitless and wasteful expenditure increased from R264,87 million to R352,51 million. Of particular concern is that R7,01 billion, representing 64% of UIFW expenditure, had not yet been dealt with.
These figures demand decisive action.
The Provincial Government will therefore intensify consequence management and ensure that Accounting Officers investigate outstanding unauthorised, irregular, fruitless and wasteful expenditure and take appropriate action where wrongdoing or negligence is established.
There will be no room for complacency. Departments that have remained stagnant for several years must demonstrate measurable improvement. Audit outcomes cannot be treated merely as an annual compliance exercise; they must become an indicator of whether public institutions are properly governed and whether public resources are translating into services for communities.
There is a concern about persistent weaknesses in infrastructure project management. The Auditor-General identifies poor planning, inadequate budgeting, late payments and weaknesses in contract management as factors contributing to delays in infrastructure delivery.
The Province will consequently strengthen the utilisation and capacity of the Project Management Unit in the Office of the Premier, alongside improved implementation of the District Development Model, to strengthen project planning, execution, monitoring and coordination.
The Provincial Government further notes the positive impact of filling critical vacancies. The Auditor-General reports that improved capacity in finance units contributed to nine auditees submitting credible financial statements for audit, while 12 auditees submitted credible performance reports, compared with six in the previous year.
Going forward, Premier Ndlovu will continue holding Members of the Executive Council and Heads of Department accountable through performance monitoring and engagements. Accounting Officers will be expected to institutionalise preventative controls, strengthen financial discipline, comply with supply chain management legislation and ensure that audit action plans address the root causes of findings rather than merely responding to symptoms.
The Auditor-General’s call to action is clear: accountability must be embedded, preventative controls strengthened, financial health prioritised, compliance with laws—particularly SCM—improved, and political and administrative leadership must work collectively to break the cycle of recurring weaknesses.
The Provincial Government appreciates the work of the Auditor-General South Africa, Provincial Treasury, Audit Committees, Internal Audit structures and all officials who contributed to the recorded improvements.
The Province remains committed to moving progressively towards a public-sector culture that “does good”, with the ultimate objective of achieving sustainable clean administration across government.
Our message to every department and public entity is unequivocal: clean governance must become the norm, accountability must have consequences, and every rand entrusted to government must ultimately improve the lives of the people of Mpumalanga.