Auditor-General South Africa (AGSA)

The Auditor-General of South Africa (AGSA) is the supreme audit institution (SAI) of South Africa. It is the only institution that, by law, has to audit and report on how the government is spending the South African taxpayers’ money. This has been the focus of the AGSA as an institution since its inception in 1911. But when our constitution came into effect in 1996, the role and responsibilities of the organisation were expanded even more, to enable the institution to fulfil its constitutional mandate.

The AGSA is a “chapter 9” institution, this is because its mandate is outlined in chapter 9 (sections 181 & 188) of the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa. The AGSA annually produces audit reports on all government departments, public entities, municipalities and public institutions. Over and above these entity-specific reports, the audit outcomes are analysed in general reports that cover both the Public Finance Management Act (PFMA) and Municipal Finance Management Act (MFMA) cycles. In addition, reports on discretionary audits, performance audit, and other special audits are also produced.