Note to Editors: Please note Tim Brauteseth, MPL sound bite in English
The DA is alarmed by the findings of the KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) 2024/25 Unaudited Close-Out Report, which reveals a pattern of unauthorised expenditure disguised as accruals, unrecovered staff debt and budgetary misalignment – all of which threaten our province’s financial health and service delivery.
The report was presented earlier today to the provincial Finance portfolio committee in the KZN legislature. The DA notes with concern the R7.767billion in deferred expenditure, a figure that dwarfs previous years and reflects a dangerous trend of using accruals to conceal overspending. Of this, R3.197billion is more than 30 days overdue, violating Treasury regulations and undermining audit outcomes.
KZN provincial government departments such as Education and Health, which are central to public service delivery, are now forced to use 2025/26 budgets to settle 2024/25 debts. This is a direct consequence of poor planning and financial mismanagement.
The report further reveals R4.6billion in unpaid invoices captured on BAS but not backed by actual payments. This includes R2.2billion from Education and R1.3billion from Health, indicating a systemic failure to align expenditure with available cash. These unpaid obligations will erode KZN’s 2025/26 budget and cripple service delivery.
The DA is also concerned about the under-collection of staff debt, particularly within KZN’s Department of Education (DoE), which fell short by R21.238 million. These debts – often arising from salary overpayments and breached bursary contracts – are difficult to recover due to poor tracking and weak enforcement mechanisms. This reflects a lack of internal controls and accountability that must be urgently addressed.
Despite these challenges, the DA commends KZN’s Treasury for its forward-thinking initiatives aimed at improving transparency and efficiency. These include;
• The rollout of financial dashboards which have enhanced visibility into departmental spending and enabled better decision-making
• The implementation of e-procurement systems as a welcome step toward reducing corruption, improving compliance, and streamlining procurement processes and;
• Treasury’s technical guidance on Modified Cash Standards and its engagement with National Treasury to secure roll-overs and clarify accounting treatments show a commitment to reform.
These initiatives reflect a Treasury that is trying to steer our province toward fiscal discipline however, they must be matched by stronger enforcement, real-time oversight and consequences for non-compliance.
The DA calls for;
• A SCOPA intervention into accruals and unpaid invoices across all departments, staff debt recovery and disciplinary against accounting officers who fail to comply with Treasury regulations and;
• Mandatory reporting of accruals and payables in the new monthly financial dashboards along with full implementation and monitoring of e-procurement across all departments.
KZN deserves a government that is transparent, accountable and capable of managing public funds responsibly. As a member of the Government of Provincial Unity (GPU), the DA will continue to fight for clean governance and ensure that every rand spent serves the people of our province.