First Published in my LinkedIn Account on 15 November 2018. I have gone through the Audit Reports tabled before the Parliament of Zimbabwe by the Office of the Auditor-General (OAG).  An effective public sector audit activity strengthens governance by materially increasing citizens’ ability to hold their government accountable. Auditors perform an especially important function in those aspects of governance that are crucial in the public sector for promoting credibility, equity, and appropriate behavior of government officials. Because government’s success is measured primarily by its ability to deliver services successfully and carry out programs in an equitable and appropriate manner, government audit activities should have the authority and the competency to evaluate financial and program integrity, effectiveness, and efficiency. Moreover, auditors must also protect the core values of the government, as it serves all citizens ( http://agendasonline.greatersudbury.ca/index.cfm...

First published in my LinkedIn Account on Nov 08, 2018. In July 2017, the Office of the Auditor General tabled before parliament the audit reports of 244 financial statements from 78 public entities, with some having as much as four financial statements being audited in one year. With 218 auditors employed in the OAG (http://www.auditorgeneral.gov.zw/index.php/about-us/staff), this means that each auditor had an average of only one audit client for the entire year. International standards would probably have a maximum of three months for one audit. This translates to an expected minimum of four audits per auditor per year. However, we know that 106 financial statements were being audited from 89 entities by the end of 2016. Assuming these had been completed too, the total number of financial statements reported would have been 350. This translates to 1.6 reports per auditor per year, and that still falls below the expected output per auditor annually. During 2016, two entities...

I first published this article in my LinkedIn Account on the 1st of January 2019. 2018 has come and gone and the rhetoric question is - are we better off now than when 2018 started? In the sphere of local governance, 2018 was a difficult year, as most local authorities reviewed by TMR® cited financial challenges owing to reduced income and increasing operational expenditure. A good number had statutory debts. Some local authorities, particularly RDCs, failed to pay full salaries to staff. Externally, the Office of the Auditor General issued several damning reports, casting a shadow on institutions that were expected to shine, more so after the promulgation of the Public Entities Corporate Governance Act of 2018. Even as local authorities continued to work together as organisations, as witnessed by the formation of their umbrella body ZILGA in July 2018, accountability to stakeholders remained elusive as service delivery was compromised, partly because of councils’ failure to live ...

I am excited that the 2018 OAG Report on Local Authorities has finally been published. I've been waiting for it! And judging from Tweets and other write ups on various social media platforms, I wasn't the only one. As soon as I am through with going through the reports, I will then give my independent analysis and comments thereon. For today, I just want to comment briefly on  what I came across that depicts the excitement and speed with which we have rushed to talk about the long awaited report. First up, a Chronicle report on the Bulawayo City Council report. The heading in a nice,big bold font spoke of a $434,450 car loan. Half a million. The report itself spoke of $34,450. Whilst this was an obvious typo, from which none of us are immune, it speaks to the quality of editing, to which all of us should be immune. The same Chronicle report also cited the Kusile RDC as contravening a section of the Urban Councils Act. Why not? RDC's are governed by the Rural District ...