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14 November 2006

CAPE TOWN - Parliament has today announced the appointment of Terence Nombembe as the new Auditor-General with effect from 1 December 2006.

Nombembe replaces Shauket Fakie whose retires at the end of November this year. Before his appointment Nombembe was the Deputy Auditor-General for over five years. His term of office will be seven years.

Nombembe is the first African to hold the position of Auditor-General in South Africa in the history of the organisation's 95 years. Born in Qumbu in the Eastern Cape, Nombembe graduated with a Bachelor of Commerce from the University of Transkei in 1982. He started his career as a trainee accountant with KPMG in Umtata in 1983. In 1986 he completed his BCompt (Honours) at the University of South Africa. He left KPMG in 1987 and joined Unilever in Durban as an internal auditor and later as an accountant in the Lipton Tea and Soup factory in Pietermaritzburg.

He qualified as a Chartered Accountant in 1990. He then joined BP Southern Africa (BPSA) in Cape Town in 1991 as senior internal auditor. While with BP, Nombembe joined BP Botswana in Gaborone as finance manager in 1994. He returned to BPSA in Cape Town as market research manager in 1996. In 1997, he helped establish and was a partner-in-charge of auditing firm Gobodo Incorporated in Cape Town where he initiated the establishment of Gobodo Corporate Governance Services, an internal audit division which operates nationally with regional offices in Cape Town and Pretoria.

Says Nombembe: "I am humbled by the confidence President Mbeki and the national Parliament have shown in me to lead this important institution in our democracy. With the backing of my team, I am up to the challenge. I am equally excited about my new role and the contribution my office will continue to make to strengthen our country's democracy. We know there will be challenges but we have already set a solid foundation. My predecessor Shauket Fakie was instrumental in helping set up that foundation – credibility, independence and transparency. Our task is to protect these gains and take the organisation to even greater heights.

"We operate in a constantly transforming and developing country. To be relevant in such a changing environment, my office is continuously redefining itself to meet challenges presented by change. For example, to make a meaningful impact we had to first acknowledge that public sector auditing is more challenging and different from private sector auditing. Public sector audits go beyond merely expressing an opinion on the financial statements. When we audit the public sector, we also comment on the effectiveness of key management processes and give feedback on compliance with laws and regulations. This qualitative approach enables public sector managers to better understand the financial impact of the identified problems and assists in helping them to prioritise the corrective actions. This is how we add value and help improve public sector financial management and our contribution to service delivery."

Nombembe says his office will continue to help unearth and groom young chartered accountants and financial managers who will, in turn, use their acquired skills to help boost and continue upgrading the public sector financial management systems.

"South Africa is a rich mine of young, bright and talented youths. It is our task to help unearth and polish this latent talent. Through our trainee accountant scheme we have started that search, and we are going to all corners of the country looking for future auditors and auditor-generals who will take over from us and continue helping our country manage its public resources effectively."

Says outgoing Auditor-General, Shauket Fakie: "With a leader like Terence at the helm, I know and am confident the Auditor-General is in capable and safe hands. During the time we have closely worked together, he struck me as a visionary who is prepared to motivate and work closely with his team to achieve our common vision of delivering efficient service to our stakeholders. I am confident he will protect the gains we have made in transforming the office – maintaining the independence of the office through integrity, transparency and accountability; help consolidate the development plans we have put in place; and add his distinctive leadership touch when directing the dedicated team of professionals behind the office's continued success."

Nombembe is married to Nokwanda and has three children, Mphiwa, Fezekile and Kamvalethu.

Enquiries:
Africa Boso
Tel: (012) 426 8273
Cell: 082 8899 527
E-mail:africab@agsa.co.za

Issued by: Auditor–General of South Africa
14 November 2006
Source: Auditor–General of South Africa (http://www.agsa.co.za)