New Department of e-Government shows promise
The Department of e-Government, launched just over a year ago, is already making a significant impact on improving service delivery in Gauteng. Headed by Boy Ngobeni, the Department has performed satisfactorily in the past financial year and it appears to be on track with the implementation of the e-tender system, according to the 2015/2016 annual report. A reduction on sales of goods and services (tender documents) by R172 000 amply demonstrates this.
In the year under review, the e-Government Department was allocated R1 178 803 000 and the actual expenditure was R1 156 053 000, which is R22 750 000 (1.2%) lower than the final appropriation.
According to the annual report from the Department, this performance is due to under-spending by the administration programme, which has spent 89.7% of its allocations.
The report further shows that this under-spending was mainly due to the refurbishment of Fox Street, the conversion of a canteen into office space and the SAP functional upgrade, all of which were initiated but not completed by the end of the 2015/16 financial year.
The Department generates revenue from parking fees, the commission on garnishee orders, gym fees, and sales of tender documents and debtors’ receipts.
It has recorded low revenue collection under sales of goods and services other than capital assets of R172 000. This is mainly due to a technological shift towards electronic availing of tender documents as per its strategic objectives. It must be noted that revenue from sales of goods and services other than capital assets will continue dropping due to the promoted usage of e-Government services.
The auditor-general (AG) indicated that the financial statement of Gauteng Department of e-Government presents fairly in all material respects and its financial performance and cash flows for the year ended in accordance with the Modified Cash Standards and the requirements of the Public Finance Management Act.
The e-Government Department is overseeing the rollout of the Gauteng Broadband Network (GBN), which will connect all government buildings and various public service access points, including Thusong Centres, urban renewal zones and targeted economic zones.
The 2015/16 annual report shows that there are areas that the Department still needs to improve in concerning rolling out the GBN. These include among others, adherence to 30-day payment of creditors, submission and review of all frameworks, transparent oversight, and forging a relationship with municipalities with regards to rollout of services once the GBN connectivity in all Thusong centres and economic hubs has taken place.
The Department also has a selfservice Invoicing System, an online platform that allows service providers to submit their invoices directly to Gauteng Provincial Treasury, a major innovation in the provincial government’s ongoing efforts to meet its 30-day payment deadline.