No efficient procedures for collection of government debt

The government failed to put into place efficient procedures for the collection of its debt, enforcement procedures for the settlement of fines or correct documentation for the settlement of debt, according to the annual Auditor General's Report on the Public Accounts 2003.

The report states that arrears of revenue totalled over Lm360.8 million on December 31, 2003. It declares that one-third of this sum is considered "not collectible".

The National Audit Office, which is independent of the government, reviews the public accounting system yearly, pointing out shortcomings and "weaknesses".

Other salient points mentioned in the report are the outstanding travel expenses and the internal controls in the ambit of local councils.

With regard to the former, the Auditor General said that over a span of 11 years, the number of outstanding travel advances is considered "substantial and preoccupying". The total outstanding travel advances for the 1993-2003 period numbers 559, carrying a face value of Lm261,647.

In the case of local councils, the Auditor General said that during the year under review, "the compliance aspect and internal controls within the ambit of local councils continued to deteriorate". There was an increase in the number of defaulting councils and qualified audit reports.

The report also identified weaknesses in recovery efforts by the Social Security Department, resulting in overpayments amounting to Lm2.7 million.

The NAO report also speaks of students' maintenance grants swipe cards, known as smart cards. It states that no audit trail is in place in respect of items purchased with these cards and therefore there is insufficient proof that funds are being used for their intended purpose.

The report states that an effective comparison of actual expenditure against that budgeted was hindered in certain cases as expenses were not charged to their respective account or sub-item number.

With regard to transport, there was inadequate record keeping and monthly certification of general use cars' logbooks, resulting in poor control over the issue of fuel and use of government-owned vehicles.

The NAO also said there had been "unofficial use and lack of proper authorisation for the use of government-owned vehicles after office hours".

Compliance with the provisions of inventory regulations were still weak, hindering asset valuation necessary for the introduction of accrual-based accounting. In one government department lack of control over cash and bank balances resulted from a large number of missing receipt books The Auditor General said the reconciliation of bank account balances was also not carried out in a number of instances.

The Auditor General also presented a report entitled Risk Management In Government Departments - An Audit Approach, for the House of Representatives, aimed at furthering awareness regarding the need for government departments and institutions to have risk management systems in place and thus help public service managers better understand their role in this regard.