Paul Vos | Regional Managing Director | Southern Africa | Chartered Institute for Procurement & Supply (CIPS) | mail me |
Weak accountability, limited skills, and slow consequence management continue to undermine procurement reform. Despite years of regulatory efforts, irregular expenditure and procurement failures persist. These issues have eroded governance and public trust in South Africa.
Much of the problem stems from reforms that focused on compliance rather than behaviour change. Procurement remains one of the country’s most persistent governance risks. Incentives, accountability and professional capability have not kept pace with legislative reform. Public trust in the state’s procurement policies has been severely eroded by repeated scandals.
Infamous procurement failures
The Digital Vibes saga is among the most notorious examples. A media company run by associates of then-Health Minister Zweli Mkhize was irregularly awarded a R150 million communications contract from the Department of Health during the pandemic.
Another shocking case occurred at Tembisa Hospital in Ekurhuleni. The Special Investigating Unit (SIU) uncovered three coordinated syndicates responsible for looting over R2 billion meant for healthcare. These funds were intended to provide vital services to the most vulnerable.
Some estimates suggest public procurement fraud has already cost South Africa R700 billion. These failures have compounded the challenge of restoring public trust in the state’s institutions.
Structural challenges and behaviour change
Legislation such as the Public Procurement Act may look impressive on paper. However, without real-world execution and consequences, behaviour does not change.
Many officials operate in environments where ignoring controls carries little personal risk. Ethical, value-driven procurement is not consistently rewarded. Fragmented processes, weak institutional capability, inconsistent leadership oversight and a lack of incentive continue to expose public institutions to waste, corruption and inefficiency.
It can be emphasised that the public trust deficit is driven by negative media coverage, citizens’ experiences of failing infrastructure, municipal collapse and audit findings that show little improvement year-on-year. When people see the same findings repeated, the same tenders questioned and the same services failing, trust erodes. Procurement begins to appear as serving insiders rather than citizens.
Reform maturity and accountability
It can be cautioned that genuine reform maturity cannot be measured by compliance alone. Instead, it requires institutional transformation that ensures procurement systems function effectively regardless of who occupies leadership positions.
True reform maturity occurs when procurement decisions are transparent, outcomes are measurable, and accountability is enforced consistently. City managers and senior leadership must be fully accountable. Procurement information must be accessible to civil society, and systems must be integrated, digital and professionally managed.
While the Municipal Finance Management Act (MFMA) was designed to strengthen controls, it can sometimes shield senior officials and slow accountability. The need for a better balance between legal protection and public transparency is stressed.
One of the most damaging weaknesses in the current system is ineffective consequence management. Investigations are slow, enforcement is inconsistent and political interference often blocks decisive action. When consequences arrive years later – if they arrive at all – they have little deterrent effect. This creates an environment where non-compliance feels low-risk.
For consequence management to succeed, CIPS believes enforcement must be swift, visible and proactive. Mechanisms should intervene during procurement processes rather than only after irregular expenditure occurs. Restoring public trust depends on this approach.
Professional capability and digital controls
Preventing corruption and irregular expenditure requires urgent investment in professional capability and digital controls. Too often, untrained or seconded staff occupy procurement roles without the expertise needed to manage complex markets and contracts.
Procurement is a profession, not an administrative afterthought. Deep technical skills, ethical training and continuous professional development are essential.
Digital procurement systems, data analytics, supplier vetting and contract management technology are closing manual loopholes. They also enable early detection of red flags, which contributes to restoring public trust.
A path to restoring public trust
Despite ongoing challenges, I express cautious optimism. Procurement can become a foundation for restoring public trust. CIPS is working with public sector institutions historically plagued by procurement failures, supporting professionalisation and ethical standards.
Over the next two years, success will be measured by a real decline in irregular expenditure, consistent consequence management, wider adoption of digital systems and accelerated professionalisation across all government levels.
If we stay on this trajectory, procurement can shift from being a governance liability to a cornerstone of public value and renewed trust.
