OMBUD COUNCIL ANNUAL REPORT 2024/25

PART B: PERFORMANCE INFORMATION

4.2 OUTCOMES, OUTPUTS, OUTPUT

the FSCA through a MoA are performed or contracted by the Ombud Council itself, making the organisation operationally independent. OUTCOME 2: SUSTAINABLE FUNDING ENSURED The targeted output of operationalising the levy collection processes as per the Levies Acts was achieved, and the Ombud Council received all levies due by the end of the financial year. As provided for in the FSR Act and the Levies Acts, levies payable to the Ombud Council are collected on its behalf from financial institutions by the FSCA, and transferred to the Ombud Council. These levy collection and transfer arrangements between the entities have been agreed and operationalised, with a formal memorandum of understanding between the parties in place. In addition, the Ombud Council complied with FSR Act and Levies Act requirements to publish and consult on its proposed budget, expenditure estimates and levy proposals for the 2025/26 financial year. The implementation of the levy collection process also enabled the Ombud Council to cease reliance on contingency funding through fiscal transfers that had been provided in prior years. The contingency funding amount of R8 million received from the National Treasury in 2023/24 was not required as levies received were sufficient to fund the entity’s operations and was transferred back to the National Treasury in the 2024/25 financial year. The targeted output for achievement of this outcome is a clean external audit outcome for the 2024/25 financial year, and for the clean audit outcome for the 2023/24 financial year to be confirmed. The clean audit outcome for the prior year was indeed confirmed as indicated in the Ombud Council’s published Annual Report for 2023/24. The external audit for 2024/25 has been completed and has also resulted in a clean audit. The Board had approved the Ombud Council’s own financial management and SCM policies in February 2024, which were effective from the start of the 2024/25 financial year. This was timed to coincide with the cessation of the MoA with the FSCA, in terms of which the FSCA had performed financial and supply chain management on the Council’s behalf (using its own policies and processes) up to 31 March 2024. The year under review is accordingly the first financial year in which the Ombud Council has managed its finances in accordance with its own policies and processes, and hence the first time that these processes are subjected to external audit scrutiny. OUTCOME 3: FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT SYSTEM AND CONTROLS EXIST

INDICATORS, TARGETS AND ACTUAL ACHIEVEMENTS

4.2.1 PROGRESS ON ACHIEVEMENT OF OUTCOMES The Ombud Council’s progress against achievement of each of the targeted outcomes set out in paragraph 4.1, and the intended outputs related to those outcomes, is summarised as follows. For ease of reference, the same numbering is used for the outcomes as that used in the Table in paragraph 4.2.2: OUTCOME 1: ADEQUATE CAPACITY AND CAPABILITY IN PLACE TO PERFORM STATUTORY FUNCTIONS Outputs for this outcome targeted the filling of vacant positions; achievement of employment equity targets; and appointment of service providers to perform operations previously performed on the Ombud Council’s behalf by the FSCA. All remaining staff vacancies, being the positions for Head of Regulation and Oversight, Procurement Officer, Communications Officer, and Business Support Officer (Administrative Officer) were filled in the 2024/25 financial year. Although some appointments were made later in the year than planned, the full-year recruitment target has been met, and the Council’s organogram is fully capacitated as per the approved structure. Employment equity targets were substantively achieved, with minor percentage variances being unavoidable due to the Ombud Council’s small staff complement. From a gender perspective, the target for 51% female representation was exceeded, with 63% female representation by year end, resulting in 37% male representation against a target of 49%. Technical over representation of White employees (12% against a target of 8%) is due to the Chief Ombud, as the only White employee, making up 12% of the headcount. The Chief Ombud is appointed by the Minister of Finance, and the appointment is thus not within the Council’s control. The small staff complement also makes the targeted 2% representation for people with disability very difficult to achieve, noting that the target of 2% would comprise less than one employee. It should be noted that the specific employment equity targets in the APP were inserted at the request of the National Treasury. Going forward, the Ombud Council’s Employment Equity Plan sets targets more appropriately aligned to our staff complement. The target in relation to appointment of service providers was achieved. More broadly, and as discussed in more detail in Part B of this report, the Ombud Council has also achieved the two-year target in the Strategic Plan of ensuring that all support functions previously provided by

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OMBUD COUNCIL ANNUAL REPORT 2024/25