4. Electronic Theses and Dissertations (ETDs) - Faculties submissions
Permanent URI for this communityhttps://hdl.handle.net/10539/37773
Browse
2 results
Search Results
Item The nexus between the World Governance Indicators’ scores on corruption and the financial performance of SOEs in South Africa(University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, 2022) Mdluli, Mthokozisi XolaniSouth Africa, according to Crompton et al. (2017), is dealing with a triple threat of poverty, inequality, and unemployment. As a result, the government is faced with the task of meeting all of these urgent demands while being hampered by a tight budget and weak economic growth. Procurement is a critical component of the government's service delivery system, and it has been utilised as a policy tool to achieve the government's socioeconomic goals (Badenhorst-Weiss, 2012). Government spending is required to be thoroughly thought out on this basis before any public funds are spent. As a result, government expenditure should be monitored and evaluated as part of the architecture of all government-led projects (Crompton et al., 2017). SOEs (State-owned entities), also known as public entities, are tasked with specific responsibilities by the country's constitution in order to assist the state in fulfilling its mandate (Ovens, 2013). In line with international trends, South Africa has implemented corporatisation, or the transfer of state assets or agencies into state-owned corporations, in a number of areas to encourage more effective and efficient service delivery. Increased public procurement is the result of this. Public procurement involves a large amount of money, which has attracted corruption because of the scale at which it is carried out (Crompton et al., 2017). According to the South African Department of Commerce and Industries, government purchasing power contributed between 15% and 25% of GDP in 2016 (Makube, 2016). Makube (2016) estimates that, between 2013 and 2016, public infrastructure investment in healthcare facilities, schools, water, sanitation, housing, and electrification totalled R827 billion. As a result, the SOEs have been subjected to outside intervention, as well 2 as possible wrongdoing and corruption. According to recent media reports, the country has unacceptably high levels of corruption (Mantzaris, 2016). Understanding how this corruption affects the workings of SOEs is important if the country wants to attempt to start addressing this scourge. Therefore, this study seeks to investigate the relationship that exists between a known measure of governance in a country, namely the World Governance Indicators and the financial performance of SOEs in South AfricaItem Relative Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) Information Quality: An exploratory analysis of South African state-owned enterprises disclosures(University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, 2023) Hosiosky, Kayla; Myeza, Lindani; Marques, GaryOrientation/context: Following the introduction of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), there arose significant public anticipation for businesses to conform, in their operations, to these objectives and report on their progress toward alignment. State-owned enterprises (SOEs) in South Africa are created to be sustainable in the short, medium, and long term to advance the social, environmental, and economic needs of the public. It is therefore important to recognise that these entities can be valuable resources to be used in the achievement of the SDGs for South Africa. Against this backdrop, this study underscores the importance for SOEs to adopt sustainable practices and seamlessly incorporate SDG information into their corporate reporting cycle. Purpose – The purpose of this study is to evaluate the quality of SDG information disclosed in the integrated or annual reports of South African SOEs listed under Schedule 2 and 3B of the Public Finance Management Act (PFMA). This research also focuses on identifying those SDGs to which SOEs contribute the most with respect to corporate reporting quality. Design/methodology/approach – This study examined the integrated/annual reports of SOEs listed in Schedule 2 and 3B of the PFMA for the 2022 year-end. A detailed content analysis was employed, utilising a constructed quality measure that amalgamates various indicators from sustainability reporting literature, to gauge the quality of SDG disclosures. The emphasis placed on SDG information, the inclusion of qualitative, quantitative, and monetary disclosures, and the substance (boilerplate or committed) of disclosures are considered. The balance and comparability of disclosures as well as the ease with which SDG information can be interpreted based on the use of infographics are also included as quality indicators. These indicators are evaluated at the overall report level as well as within the scope of each of the 17 SDGs. Findings – The results show that the SDG information disclosed by the SOEs is mainly symbolic, including boilerplate, unbalanced, inaccessible and mainly qualitative information without really showing any information regarding the progress of corporate sustainability performance. Consequently, there is doubt about the degree to which the integrated or annual reports can be readily understood and effectively utilised to assess the SOEs’ overall performance concerning their contribution to the SDGs. Originality/value – Limited research has been conducted on public sector sustainability or SDG reporting in South Africa. The study contributes to the growing body of SDG reporting research in the public sector, by revealing new insights that could provide guidance to policymakers and those charged with governance on how to improve sustainability and SDG reporting. Furthermore, the results reveal the quality of SOEs’ SDG disclosures, which can be incorporated in stakeholders’ decision-making processes, facilitating more ii useful decisions to be taken. The proposed quality measure offers a valuable resource for scholars and professionals who wish to assess and analyse specific elements of report quality