The best performing municipality in Mpumalanga

Nkangala District Municipality in Mpumalanga has achieved a clean audit for the past six years, making it the best-performing government in the province.

This is according to the Auditor-General of South Africa’s (AGSA) assessment of the financial reporting of the country’s 257 municipalities for the 2023/24 financial year.

Only 25 of the municipalities that received a clean audit had also done so in the previous three years. The Ehlanzeni District Municipality also made it onto the list, with a streak of five years.

Nkangala District Municipality is located in the west of the province and is the smallest of only three districts, covering an area of roughly 16,750 square kilometres – 22% of the province.

However, it is described as the economic hub of Mpumalanga, given that it is rich in minerals and natural resources.

Mining contributes the most significant portion to the district’s economy, at 41.2%, followed by manufacturing, community services, and trade.

The Maputo Corridor has been identified as a significant contributor to economic growth and tourism development, further boosting the district’s economy.

It comprises six local municipalities: eMalahleni, Thembisile Hani, Dr JS Moroka, Steve Tshwete, Victor Khanye, and Emakhazeni.

Local municipalities are responsible for delivering direct services to communities, while district municipalities tend to handle cross-municipal functions such as infrastructure provision.

None of these local municipalities received a clean audit from the AGSA. eMalahleni and Thembisile Hani received unqualified opinions with findings, while the rest received qualified outcomes.

Major towns in the district include Delmas, Dullstroom, Emgwenya, Hendrina, Kriel, and Middelburg.

According to the municipality, 1.4 million people reside within its jurisdiction, with 68% of the population falling between the ages of 15 and 64.

As for the political composition of the council, the African National Congress holds the majority of the 58 seats, with 32. It also occupies the positions of executive mayor and deputy mayor.

The Economic Freedom Fighters have ten seats, followed by the Democratic Alliance with eight, and the Freedom Front Plus and the Indigenous People’s Organisation each have two.

Several smaller parties, such as the Middelburg and Hendrina Residents’ Front, hold the remaining seats.

The municipality received R11.78 billion in revenue for the financial year. The majority of this was generated independently, at R7.67 billion. However, it did receive R1.55 billion in grants.

It received R2.56 billion in equitable share revenue, which is a portion of national tax revenue distributed among local governments.

Newsday reached out to the Nkangala District Municipality for comment on its performance but did not receive a response by publication.

Audit outcomes

There are five types of audit outcomes issued by the AGSA. The best result is a clean audit, which means that no misstatements were found in an entity’s financial reporting.

This is followed by a financially unqualified outcome, which contains no material misstatements; however, issues have been raised regarding the entity’s reporting. Ninety-nine municipalities received this type of audit outcome.

If a municipality receives a qualified audit outcome, it means the AG has determined that its financial reporting contains material misstatements in specific amounts. This was found to be true for 90 municipalities.

An adverse audit outcome means that material misstatements have been identified which are not confined to specific amounts, as was the case for six municipalities.

The final outcome is a disclaimer of audit opinion, meaning that the entity provided insufficient documentation to make an audit decision. Eleven municipalities received disclaimed audit opinions.

Ehlanzeni District Municipality

Given that fewer than 10% of municipalities have achieved a clean audit for four or more consecutive years, the Ehlanzeni District Municipality deserves a mention.

The local government is the northernmost of the three districts and makes up just over a third of the province’s geographical area.

It comprises four local municipalities: Bushbuckridge, the City of Mbombela, Nkomazi, and Thaba Chweu, which have been placed under provincial administration.

Mbombela is home to the Mpumalanga Provincial Government, making it the most concentrated economic hub in the province.

As of 2022, the population stood at 2.2 million people, with 560,370 households. Only 36.4% of these have flush toilets, 35.2% have piped water, while 96.7% have electricity for lighting.