Taxpayers kiss billions goodbye
As the government continues to bemoan “serious cash crunches,” national departments recorded nearly R8 billion in unauthorised, irregular, fruitless and wasteful expenditure in the 2023/24 financial year alone.
Over half of this came from the Department of Defence.
This is according to information provided by Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana in a written parliamentary response to MK Party MP Nhlanhla Gcwabaza.
Godongwana said that in the 2023/24, national departments recorded:
- R4,928,500,000 in unauthorised expenditure;
- R2,852,248,000 in irregular expenditure; and
- R160,520,000 in fruitless and wasteful expenditure.
Very broadly, unauthorised expenditure refers to spending that exceeds the approved budget or is used for unapproved purposes.
Irregular expenditure occurs when public funds are spent without following procurement regulations, policies, or legal requirements.
Fruitless and wasteful expenditure is spending that was made in vain and could have been avoided with proper financial management.
Godongwana said that government is committed to addressing financial mismanagement, stating that “accounting officers and authorities are empowered to take disciplinary action against officials responsible for unauthorized, irregular, and wasteful expenditure.”
The Public Finance Management Act (PFMA) mandates that disciplinary steps be taken against those who permit such expenditures, with details of actions taken recorded in annual reports.
“Information related to disciplinary action instituted by accounting officers and accounting authorities can be found in the annual reports of those institutions,” said Godongwana.
Additionally, National Treasury Instruction 4 of 2022/2023 outlines strict compliance and reporting requirements, including mandatory investigations and determination tests.
The minister added that “unauthorised expenditure must be approved in accordance with section 34 of the PFMA, while irregular expenditure may be considered for condonation.”
Biggest culprits
Looking at some of the biggest culprits of unauthorised expenditure, five national departments contribute over 99% of the total.
These include:
- Department of Defence: R3,373,700,000 (largest contributor, 68.5% of total unauthorised expenditure)
- Department of Correctional Services: R614,300,000
- Department of International Relations and Co-operation: R435,600,000
- Department of Justice and Constitutional Development: R291,800,000
- Statistics South Africa: R128,300,000
Looking at irregular expenditure, five departments account for over 87% of the total:
- Department of Defence: R977,500,000 (largest contributor, 34% of total irregular expenditure)
- Department of Home Affairs: R578,000,000
- Department of Police: R275,300,000
- Department of Basic Education: R210,700,000
- Department of International Relations and Co-operation: R207,500,000
Of the fruitless and wasteful expenditure, the biggest culprits were:
- Department of Basic Education: R41,400,000 (largest contributor, 25.8% of total fruitless expenditure)
- Department of Defence: R50,900,000
- Department of Public Works and Infrastructure: R56,800,000
- Department of Home Affairs: R890,000
- Department of Cooperative Governance: R110,000
Overall, the Department of Defence is the biggest financial mismanager across all three categories, with R4.4 billion unauthorised, irregular, and fruitless expenditures.
Other departments, including Basic Education, Home Affairs, and International Relations, also exhibit patterns of high financial mismanagement across multiple categories.
In contrast, some departments, such as Higher Education and Science & Innovation, have reported zero waste.
While Fruitless & Wasteful Expenditure is considerably lower than irregular and unauthorised expenditures, it still amounts to a substantial R160.5 million, highlighting ongoing inefficiencies in public spending.
A full breakdown of the recorded financial mismangement of national departments in the 2023/24 financial year can be found below:
| Name of the department | Amount of Unauthorised expenditure R | Amount of Irregular expenditure R | Amount of Fruitless and wasteful expenditure R |
|---|---|---|---|
| Civilian Secretariat for the Police Service | – | 10,000 | – |
| Department of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development | – | – | 3,000 |
| Department of Basic Education | – | 210,700,000 | 41,400,000 |
| Department of Communications and Digital Technologies | – | 20,000 | 5,000 |
| Department of Cooperative Governance | 84,800,000 | 74,800,000 | 110,000 |
| Department of Correctional Services | 614,300,000 | 9,000,000 | 130,000 |
| Department of Defence | 3,373,700,000 | 977,500,000 | 50,900,000 |
| Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment | – | 109,600,000 | 270,000 |
| Department of Health | – | – | 4,000 |
| Department on Higher Education and Training | – | – | – |
| Department of Home Affairs | – | 578,000,000 | 890,000 |
| Department of Human Settlements | – | 86,000 | – |
| Department of International Relations and Co-operation | 435,600,000 | 207,500,000 | 1,400,000 |
| Department of Justice and Constitutional Development | 291,800,000 | 4,100,000 | 150,000 |
| Department of Employment and Labour | – | 171,500,000 | 980,000 |
| Department of Military Veterans | – | 12,100,000 | 360,000 |
| Department of Mineral Resources and Energy | – | – | 3,000,000 |
| Department of Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation | – | 7,500,000 | 2,000 |
| Department of Police | – | 275,300,000 | 1,800,000 |
| Department of Public Enterprises | – | 7,800,000 | 2,000 |
| Department of Public Service and Administration | – | – | 2,000 |
| Department of Public Works and Infrastructure | – | 4,600,000 | 56,800,000 |
| Department of Science and Innovation | – | – | – |
| Department of Small Business Development | – | 9,000 | – |
| Department of Social Development | – | 5,800,000 | 160,000 |
| Department of Sports, Arts and Culture | – | 2,500,000 | – |
| Department of Tourism | – | 80,000 | 4,000 |
| National Department of Trade, Industry and Competition | – | – | – |
| Department of Traditional Affairs | – | 1,100,000 | – |
| Department of Transport | – | – | 1,900,000 |
| Department of Water and Sanitation | – | – | 1,000 |
| Department of Women, Youth and Persons with Disabilities | – | – | 4,000 |
| Government Communications and Information System | – | 80,000 | – |
| Independent Police Investigative Directorate | – | 22,000 | 4,000 |
| National School of Government | – | – | – |
| National Treasury | – | 10,800,000 | – |
| Office of the Chief Justice | – | 40,700,000 | 6,000 |
| Public Service Commission | – | 41,000 | – |
| Statistics South Africa | 128,300,000 | 136,800,000 | 230,000 |
| The Presidency | – | 4,200,000 | 3,000 |
| Total | 4,928,500,000 | 2,852,248,000 | 160,520,000 |
Loading ...
