Auditor-General's report indicates problems at local government as only 34 of 247 municipalities receive clean audits
Cape Town is the only metro to receive a clean audit.
Auditor-General Tsakani Maluleke appeared before the Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs Committee in Parliament on 27 August 2024. Picture: Lindsay Dentlinger/EWN
Stephen Grootes speaks to Miyelani Holeni, expert in revenue, governance, and local government.
Listen to the interview in the audio below.
Auditor-General Tsakani Maluleke painted a bleak picture of the financial health of the country's municipalities, when she presented the 2022/23 audit outcomes to Parliament on Tuesday.
Of the 257 municipalities, only 34 obtained clean audits, down from 38 the year before.
The City of Cape Town is also the only metro to receive a clean audit, doing so for the second consecutive year.
110 municipalities received unqualified audits.
According to EWN, this audit outcome is the first full year under the administration elected in the 2021 local government elections.
Speaking to Stephen Grootes on The Money Show, Miyelani Holeni, a revenue, governance and local government expert says this confirms there are plenty of problem at local government level.
"It's an indictment on metros. They have all the resources, they have industries, they are well functioning, generally. The economies around them, but they're not able to use that muscle to be able to scale themselves up to a position where they can attract the best skills."
- Miyelani Holeni, revenue, governance and local government expert
"What then for the small municipalities, if the big ones are faltering?"
- Miyelani Holeni, a revenue, governance and local government expert
"Where there is stability of leadership within municipalities that have received clean audits, we see those municipalities tend to perform better."
- Miyelani Holeni, a revenue, governance and local government expert
Scroll to the top to listen to the full interview.