Online Reporter
THERE are severe challenges in financial reporting, governance issues and the keeping of accounts in many local councils in Zimbabwe with the urban authorities generally being far worse run than rural districts, according to the Auditor-General, Mrs Vimbai Chikwenhere.
Her report for last year dealt with 96 sets of annual financial reports from 81 local authorities, with several submitting accounts for more than one year as they try and catch up and get closer to meeting deadlines, although some are still way behind, with Harare City Council only managing to submit reports for 2022 and 2023.
Local authorities cover city councils, municipalities without city status, town councils, local boards and the rural district councils.
A clean and unqualified audit opinion, meaning that their accounts were in good order, told the full story and financial rules were followed, was given for just eight councils, all eight being rural district councils. But these eight need to be highlighted as they prove it is possible.
They were Chaminuka, Chegutu, Goromonzi, Makoni, Marondera, Sanyati, Tsholotsho and Zvimba Rural District Councils, all for their 2024 accounts except Makoni which went fully up to date and met all deadlines in submitting 2025 accounts for which it won the accolade after getting a qualified opinion for the 2024 accounts also reported on.
We congratulate the eight and we hope Parliament, through its Public Accounts Committee who will delve into the report, will do the same. Someone has to set a good example, and Makoni Rural District Council seems to have the accounting crown by submitting clean accounts on time.
Fifty one sets of accounts received qualified opinions, meaning that while the accounts were not that badly kept and it was possible to work out how the councils received and spent money and handled governance issues, procurement and service delivery, accounting rules were not always followed and questions arose.
Thirty sets of accounts received adverse reports, meaning the accounts did not present an accurate or full picture, indeed had misstatements, had gaps and generally were very substandard.
Governance and service delivery were bad. Five sets of accounts were so appalling that the Auditor General could not give an opinion and no one would be able to figure out what was going on.
Rural district councils generally had better administration. Besides the eight clean sets of accounts, there were 40 sets of qualified accounts, meaning 72 percent of rural district councils managed at least to present accounts without misstatements that made sense, even if there were queries and governance or other issues.
Fifteen of these councils had the adverse reports and four had the totally shot accounts that prevented an opinion. Proportionately these were smaller in number than the urban authorities.
At the other end of the scale were the seven cities. While Bulawayo, Masvingo, Mutare and Victoria Falls managed to make the qualified grouping, Harare and Kwekwe had adverse reports with misstatements and gaps, including employment payments, while Gweru’s accounts were in the rock bottom group where the Auditor-General disclaimed making an opinion.
Generally speaking, and considering that these are the largest and richest councils able to hire the most qualified and experienced accounting staff, they should be the leaders in high-end management and having adequate systems in place.
But instead are below rural district councils that manage to comply with rules.
Municipalities without city status were marginally better. Four of the five managed qualified accounts and just one, Kariba, had an adverse report. But the next level down, the town councils, were really bad with two qualified sets of accounts and eight adverse reports.
Local boards were no better with two qualified sets and three adverse reports.
Governance issues in local authorities, reports Mrs Chikwenhere, are growing alarmingly and tending to dominate, while in total service delivery is getting a lot worse.
Cleaning up is being seen with revenue collection, asset management and procurement getting better in recent years, but still causing a lot of trouble.
Local government is supposed to be close to the people and to deal with a lot of the routine services that people expect.
Urban councils, especially, are rather bad at this on average although improvements would be welcome in some rural areas.
What is disturbing is the welter of qualifications and findings of misstatements and lack of adherence to simple rules.
