Mpumalanga Premier Mandla Ndlovu is basking in the glow of a governance victory after the Auditor-General of South Africa (AGSA) awarded his office a clean audit for the 2024/2025 financial year.
The outcome, announced this week, means the Office of the Premier (OTP) met every requirement of sound financial management and compliance with legislation. For Ndlovu, it represents more than an accounting tick-box exercise. It is proof, he says, that the provincial administration is serious about accountability.
High level of commitment
“The clean audit outcome is a sign of a high level of commitment by officials in the department, led by the director-general, to perform their duties guided by legal and financial prescripts,” Ndlovu said.
“It affirms the department’s accountability for the use of public funds. This as tested by AGSA, an independent body charged with the responsibility to do quality assurance.”
Clean audits are a rare feather in the cap of government departments. They are often accused of financial mismanagement. The clean audits are considered the gold standard because they mean the financial statements free of material errors. Also that performance reporting and compliance with key laws passed muster.
For years, the OTP had only managed unqualified audit outcomes. Respectable but still falling short of the highest level of confidence. Ndlovu was quick to point out that his team’s relentless attention to audit recommendations finally closed that gap.
Audit recommendations
“The implementation of audit recommendations by the Internal Audit and Oversight Committees, mainly the audit committee, is attributable to the achievement,” he said.
“We will continue to work hard in order to sustain this achievement, to improve public trust.”
The premier has made governance a central pillar of his leadership since taking office. He stressed that credibility with the public begins with clean books. He has repeatedly urged officials across government to follow the OTP’s example. And to do so by tightening internal controls and respecting financial prescripts.