Durban, 15 January 2026 – KwaZulu‑Natal MEC for Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs, Reverend Thulasizwe Buthelezi, today convened the first day of a two‑day series of focused one‑on‑one engagements with municipalities aimed at improving audit performance and strengthening financial governance across the province. The sessions are taking place at the Mayville Cogta Offices.
These engagements form part of the department’s broader commitment to enhancing accountability, stabilising municipal financial management, and supporting municipalities to progress towards clean audit status.
Day 1 of the programme brought together municipalities identified as being close to achieving improved audit outcomes. These include:
Greater Kokstad, Ulundi, Umvoti, Msinga, Umshwathi, Okhahlamba, Ray Nkonyeni, uMngeni, iLembe, uMgungundlovu, uMhlabuyalingana and Alfred Duma Local Municipality.
In these sessions, the MEC and senior Cogta officials engaged municipal leadership on:
- Strengthening the implementation of Audit Action Plans;
- Addressing Unauthorised, Irregular, Fruitless and Wasteful (UIFW) expenditure;
- Improving consequence management;
- Enhancing cash‑flow management and financial sustainability;
- Ensuring internal controls are robust and compliant with audit requirements;
- Promoting credible, timely and compliant financial reporting.
MEC Buthelezi emphasised that the province’s progress in governance and service delivery is directly linked to the credibility of municipal financial management systems.
“Our goal as a department is to ensure that municipalities operate with transparency, accountability and stability. These engagements are designed to provide tailored support to municipalities, enabling them to strengthen internal controls, stabilise financial governance and build a foundation for clean administration,” said MEC Buthelezi.
Day 2 of the programme, scheduled for tomorrow, will focus on municipalities that require intensified support to stabilise and improve their audit performance. These include:
Nongoma, Umzinyathi, Endumeni, Inkosi Langalibalele, Impendle, uThukela, Amajuba, uMkhanyakude and uMzumbe.
Through these targeted interventions, Cogta continues to drive improvements in municipal governance, financial accountability and service delivery across KwaZulu‑Natal.
The department remains committed to supporting municipalities to achieve audit outcomes that reflect ethical leadership, sound financial management and strengthened institutional capacity.