Head of Department
Executives Members of the Management of the Department
Members of Media
Good morning members of the media and the entire people of North West. We have called this media briefing just after the adoption of the 2023/24 Provincial Budget by the North West Provincial Legislature which is largely a reflection of the departmental programme of actions as reflected in Annual Performance Plans of different departments.
The Provincial Treasury recognise and understand an important role played by media in informing the communities of our Province and considers you as a valuable stakeholder that ensures that citizens learn how government policies will affect them. In turn government gains feedback on its policies and programmes through various media platforms. Since the dawn of democracy, one of the fundamental roles that the media continues to play in our democratic system is to critically scrutinises governmental programmes and ensures that the government is held accountable by the public.
Therefore, the Provincial Treasury wishes to share with your goodselves the reflections on the departmental key initiatives, achievements and challenges of the past financial year as well as to inform the media of our plans for the 2023/24 Financial year.
It is the Provincial Treasury’s considered view that this platform provides the department with an opportunity to engage on the content of the speech that was tabled on 01 June 2023 as well as also to give clarity on other departmental issues. The mandate of this department is to manage the provincial fiscal resources effectively; facilitate the effective and efficient management of assets and financial systems; and promote accountability in financial activities and compliance with financial norms and standards. Municipal Support Programme Members of the media, as we are aware of the financial management challenges in our municipalities, the Provincial Treasury working with Co-operative Governance and Traditional Affairs including SALGA has put various measures in place to address these challenges. A team of Provincial Executive Representatives (PERs) have been appointed to address Naledi, Tswaing, Madibeng, Ramotshere Moiloa, Ditsobotla and Kgetlengrivier Local Municipalities as well as the Dr Ruth Segomotsi Mompati District Municipality with the sole objective of implementing both the rescue and financial recovery plans. The PER’s are working with Municipal Financial Recovery Services (MFRS) teams in the implementation of interim rescue plans and development of the financial recovery plans. The PER’s have been appointed for period of three (03) years. The department will continue to provide critical support to all municipalities in areas of financial management and this would include strengthening the capacity in municipalities in the areas of governance and financial management. Thirty days notice payment call centre With regard to our 30-day payment rule initiative, department has concluded the organization structure of organogram that will be used to address queries related to the late payment of service providers within the prescribed time. The current economic conditions is not assisting as well and the late payment of small companies impact negatively on their survival. Whilst the process of operationalization of the above-mentioned structure is still in motion, the department will continue to monitor the performance of departments on the 30 days payments through quarterly reports that are processed through the Executive Council.
We will continue to roll-out the 30 days payment outreach programmes across the province and Dr Ruth Segomotsi Mompti District have been identified as the host for our next roadshow. Infrastructure oversight, Budget and Expenditure Monitoring The Province continues to be faced with slow delivery of infrastructure which is key to economic development, job creation and retention of businesses in the province. As a result, Provincial Treasury’s mandate includes monitoring the delivery of infrastructure projects. Consistent with important departemental objective and responsibility, department will continue to monitor the implementation of infrastructure projects and the use of drone technology will be useful for accurate reporting with the view of activing corrective measures in time as part of the our early warning systems. With regard to the budget and expenditure monitoring, the department will have regular engagements with departments, and entities to ensure that spending is actioned as per Annual Performance Plans. Clean Audit Project The Office of the Provincial Accountant General provides technical financial management support to all departments and public entities through training and capacity building. The Province has registered some improvement in the audit outcomes since the inception of the clean audit project due to the reduction in audit findings in targeted departments. This initiative is meant to ensure that more departments improves their audit outcomes. Members of the media, as indicated in my budget speech yesterday, as the Province and department, we acknowledge that we still need to do more with the limited budget at our disposal and we remain hopeful that the Provincial efforts will eventually yield positive results. We remain encouraged that you will continue to communicate crtitical service delivery initiatives to our communities. I thank you.
STATEMENT BY MEC MOTLALEPULA ROSHO DURING A MEDIA BRIEFING POST THE
TABLING OF THE 2023/24 DEPARTMENTAL BUDGET SPEECH ON 02 JUNE 2023 AT
SEASONS CONFERENCE CENTER, DIHATSHWANE