ICASA beefs up capacity

By Damaria Senne, ITWeb senior journalist

Johannesburg, 19 Nov 2007

The Independent Communications Authority of SA (ICASA) has beefed up its overall capacity since the auditor general (AG) found an accounting error in its 2006/7 financial statements.

ICASA`s 2006/7annual report shows the regulator faced numerous challenges in the past year, including an under-resourced finance department and a lack of permanent executive management leadership.

The regulator also gained new duties, which included the implementation of the Electronic Communications Act and the integration of the postal regulator into ICASA`s structure, says ICASA chairman Paris Mashile in his review. Both these moves resulted in the structural change of the organisation, he says.

Financial errors

The AG states in the regulator`s annual report that lack of capacity in the finance division resulted in material errors in the financial statements ICASA submitted for the 2006/7 financial year.

The errors amounted to R69 million, with R10.7 million related to a decrease in revenue, R1.4 million to an increase in expenditure, and R26.8 million to property and plant equipment. Adjustments also included an increase of R30.1 million in deferred grants.

The AG says ICASA`s non-compliance with the policies and procedures governing the financial management of a government institution, as well as poor monitoring and supervisory controls, contributed to the errors.

Former acting CEO Stan Mamaregane, who is the accounting officer of record for the period, says in his report to Parliament that progress has been made to improve ICASA`s financial management.

Financial policies have also been developed to enable this process, he says. Mamaregane notes that ICASA received an unqualified report from the AG.

He adds that corrective measures were also put in place to address the shortcomings that were highlighted by the AG in the 2005/6 financial year.

Acting out

The annual report shows five out of ICASA`s eight executive managers resigned within the year, forcing the regulator to appoint acting executives.

In one case, a single individual - Mamaregane - occupied the posts of acting CEO, GM of telecommunications and GM of legal. Mamaregane took over the acting CEO post from BG Jooste, who served from July to September 2006.

An ICASA official notes that the regulator has addressed some of the human resource capacity issues highlighted in the annual report. In August, the regulator appointed former Cell C head of regulatory affairs Karabo Motlana as CEO.

ICASA has also appointed general managers for most of the divisions, he says. Mamaregane continues to head the legal department, Sipho Tsotetsi is GM of licensing, Dumisa Ngwenya heads the engineering and technology division, and Phosa Mashangoane the consumer affairs division.

Reneilwe Langa, who joined ICASA through the integration of the postal regulator into ICASA, is serving as acting GM of markets and competition. The regulator is also in the process of appointing a number of senior managers.

ICASA says it held a strategic planning session last week and that information on how it is strengthening itself further will be communicated in due course.