When the Department of Water and Sanitation finally handed in its annual report for the 2018/2019 financial year, it contained an increase in irregular expenditure of R1.4 billion and R208 million in fruitless, and wasteful expenditure on the previous year for the department and its entities.
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Section 65 of the Public Finance Management Act requires ministers to table reports annually on departments and public entities they are responsible for by 30 September.
According to the AGSA's report to Scopa, the department's audit outcomes had improved from a qualified audit opinion with findings to an unqualified audit opinion with findings, with the Water Trading Entity (WTE) remaining stagnant with a qualified audit opinion with findings.
The majority of the department's irregular expenditure was caused by not following procurement processes and expenditure incurred due to improper deviations.
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Furthermore, the department's War on Leaks project of almost R3 billion has been declared irregular expenditure as funds earmarked for another purpose were used without obtaining prior approval, while supply chain management processes were not observed.
