The Western Cape's results in last financial year reconfirmed its position as South Africa's best-run administration, finance MEC Alan Winde said on Tuesday.
“But, Speaker, our vision for this province does not stop there: we have set ourselves the target of becoming the best run regional government in the world.”
Winde was making the provincial treasury 2012/13 budget vote speech in Cape Town.
“One of the most critical factors upon which our success will be judged is our ability to eradicate corruption. We have already made significant progress toward this goal.”
In 2010/11, for the second consecutive year, every department of the Western Cape government achieved an unqualified audit from the Auditor-General.
The province also spent more of its total budget than any other province in South Africa, just over 99 percent, he said.
In the coming year the provincial treasury has been allocated R154.286 million, a 7.95 percent increase on last year's budget.
Administration would receive 21.54 percent of the budget, or R33.243 million, to give strategic direction and quality financial support to Winde and the Treasury team as a whole.
Sustainable resource management would receive 44.21 percent, or R68.204 million, to ensure that the province's budget and its financial assets were professionally managed, and to ensure that budgets across the board were utilised effectively and efficiently.
Assets and liabilities management would receive 19.86 percent, or R30.639 million, to ensure accounting systems, physical assets and supply chain management systems were effectively managed.
Financial governance would receive 14.39 percent, or R22.22 million, to develop and drive financial practices that supported the province's goal of reaching level three financial maturity by 2015.
“Above and beyond these programmes, is a set of new and innovative priority areas that will form the basis of the work of this department in the coming year,” Winde said.
These priorities were budget management, public finance, supporting and interlinked financial systems, fiscal policy, immovable asset management, moveable asset management, business information and data management, and accounting.
He said the success of the above initiatives were highly dependent on the province's ability to build fit-for-purpose financial managers at provincial and local level.
“To grow new talent, we have invested in a programme that invites learners from across the province to draft high level essays that deal with the pertinent issues of our economy.”
Up to 12 winners each year would receive full bursaries to study finance at a tertiary institution of their choice. The programme would be run in conjunction with Nedbank.
“Through this department's determination, we are fast tracking the revitalisation of the Western Cape public service. We remain steadfast in our pursuit of becoming the best-run regional government in the world,” Winde said. - Sapa