CIGFARO - Responsible & Accountable

The Chartered Institute of Government Finance, Audit and Risk Officers (CIGFARO) is recognised by the South African Qualifications Authority (SAQA) as a professional body furthering the interests and best practices regarding financial management in the public sector. CIGFARO seeks to further the interests of the public sector in the financial, internal audit, and related monitoring and management professions by advising institutions, commissions and other bodies and persons. They advise within the national and provincial government spheres, as well as at related institutions and other recognised national associations, on matters affecting the public sector and the financial viability and sustainability.

Like steering a ship in troubled waters, you as President of CIGFARO has had to spearhead the organisation during these most challenging times of the national pandemic. How has this tested you as a leader and at the same time unlocked the capacity for innovative thinking to ensure that the organisation adapts to the new normal?

The institute pre-COVID-19 was financially and organisationally strong and we have seen unexpected numbers of members and nonmembers attending our conferences, workshops, and training programs. COVID-19, and especially the full lockdown of the economy, has had a direct impact on the financial sustainability of the Institute. The biggest emotional impact for me was to inform staff with long service, some more than 20 years, that we have to lay them off to remain financially sustainable. This was done to ensure the ship stays afloat. The next step was to look into revenue raising strategies for the Institute which brought us to several projects that we have started running of which the “LG Revenue Management Improvement Programme” is the most successful at the moment.

We have also identified an ambiguous project which entails the updating of the CIGFARO Municipal Handbook with a view of using the handbook as the sole practical document assisting Municipalities in their day-to-day operations.

Introducing social media platforms to our members has been an exciting journey from which I believe we are all learning. We cannot ignore artificial intelligence and are continuously striving to optimise content relevant to our audience. This helps us to understand our customers and respond to their requirements. The last key innovation was to introduce virtual conferencing and webinars to create sustainable revenue for the Institute, this is still in its infant shoes, and it is foreseen that this will develop in years to come.

How do you measure the Institute’s success?

The success of professional institutions and associations is mainly reflected behind the scenes. We measure our success by how well our members are doing; our main role is to further the interest of the public sector in the financial and related professions by advising institutions, commissions and other bodies and persons.

Are there any strategies CIGFARO has in place to promote accountability and good governance?

The Institute would like to ensure that CIGFARO members are recognised nationally as adhering to a strict ethical code of conduct and work standard. Through this national recognition, we would like our members to be held fully accountable, to showcase excellent work ethic and mentor our future government finance officials. The institute also has a disciplinary committee and procedure against which we will hold members accountable.

What needs to be done in the broader sense to guarantee municipalities and other government departments are financially sustainable?

Local government is in the unique position of being able to raise its own funds. This privilege is not afforded, to the same extent, to provincial and national government levels– where the main income streams come from taxation and the raising of funds falls within the domain of a small number of departments.

In order to ensure sustainability, local government needs to look at the level of services required, the economic constraints and revenue potential for their particular area. This will determine the administrative systems and processes to be implemented, thereby ensuring correct and accurate billing and recovery.

We also stand for the professionalisation of the sector whereby we believe that municipalities will perform better if all employees in the financial divisions are registered with a professional body.