The Department of Co-operative Governance and Traditional Affairs’ (COGTA) determination to achieve a clean audit for the seventh (7th) time has yielded positive results. The Auditor-General (A-G), an independent auditing institution for the public sector has given COGTA a clean audit for the 2019-20 financial year.
MEC for COGTA in Mpumalanga, Mr Mandla Msibi says the achievement signifies the high level of commitment by the Department to comply with legal prescripts provided for in the management of public funds. “This achievement is an expression of our commitment to comply with the Public Finance Management Act (PFMA), Treasury Regulations and legal prescripts in the management of public funds,” he explained.
Effective internal controls, according to Mr Msibi, are a recipe for a clean audit outcome. He says COGTA pays attention to this aspect in the beginning of every financial year as a building block for the clean audit achievement. “The clean audit achievement is an outcome of sound financial and performance management, effective risk management and audit committees, effective internal audit, IT Governance and the implementation of sound decisions. Through this seventh clean audit, our Department has positioned itself as a public institution with a reputation for the proper spending of the public purse,” he explained.
Mr Msibi credited the management and officials of the Department for the achievement, dedicated it to the late Chief Financial Officer, Mr Sibusiso Matsebula, who passed away in July 2020. “Without your contribution this achievement could not be possible. Our next challenge is to sustain this achievement as a legacy that Mr Matsebula has built over the years. By treating every day as an audit day, we will be able to keep this legacy alive,” Mr Msibi reckoned.
Ends.
Issued by:
The Department of Co-operative Governance and Traditional Affairs
Contact Person: Mr George Mthethwa – 013 766 6572 / 083 302 2774
E-mail: gpmthethwa@mpg.gov.za