Education

believe my Department has disposed of the duty to report in terms of the
legislation and frameworks as set out below.
The Public Finance Management Act, 1999 (Act 1 of 1999), provides accounting
officers with flexibility and autonomy to manage government departments.
However, to ensure accountability, the accounting officer is expected to report
on the activities of a Department in an annual report. National Treasury has
developed guidelines for legislative oversight on annual reports. The PFMA, the
Treasury Guidelines for Annual Reporting, Treasury Regulations, 2001, and the
Public Service Regulations provide the framework for compiling and reporting
on annual reports. According to the NT guidelines for legislative oversight, the
PFMA 1999 gives effect to financial management reforms that place greater
implementation responsibility on managers in the public service, and makes
them more accountable for their performance. In the first instance, it is left to the
Member of the Executive (Cabinet) to resolve any management failures –
however, thereafter, the provincial legislatures are vested with the power to
oversee both the administration and the executive. Annual reports allow
Provincial Parliament to evaluate the performance of a department after the
end of the financial year.
The Department has already accounted fully to the WCPP through the tabling
of its Annual Report, which report fulfils the purpose set out in section 188(3) of
the Constitution, Section 40 of the PFMA and section 20 of the Public Audit Act
and sufficiently capacitates the WCPP to exercise its oversight functions vis-à-vis
the Department.