IRBA Mourns the death of Auditor General Kimi Makwetu

Johannesburg, Thursday, November 12, 2020 – The Independent Regulatory Board for Auditors (IRBA) mourns the untimely passing of the Auditor-General (AG), Mr Kimi Makwetu.

Mr Makwetu was a true servant of the public, an inspirational leader who, over the years, brought the office of the Auditor-General closer to the people of South Africa. His advocacy efforts on the role of the AG’s office and the measures he put in place to hold other public servants accountable, is appreciated by all.

This was evidenced through his role in pursuing amendments to the Public Audit Act in order to strengthen the role of the AG. The amendments adopted in the Public Audit Act no 5 of 2018, gave his office supplementary powers to hold public servants accountable and to recover monies wasted through fruitless and wasteful expenditure.

“Kimi built a strong culture of fighting against corruption and exposing financial mismanagement in government through the work of his office,” says IRBA CEO Jenitha John. “My engagements with him, when I took over this role, demonstrated a committed professional who cared deeply for the people of South Africa. He was eager to collaborate with all stakeholders to restore trust in the auditing profession – a task we should all continue in his honour.”

His commitment to improving audit quality in the public sector is shared by the IRBA which has already put many measures in place to improve audit quality in the private sector. His fight to ensure that taxpayer’s money was correctly spent came from his determination to do the right thing.

South Africa and the auditing profession are poorer without the leadership of Kimi Makwetu. Our condolences go out to his family, friends and colleagues at the Office of the Auditor General South Africa.

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More about the IRBA:

The IRBA is a public protection statutory body established to protect the financial interests of the public by ensuring registered auditors and their firms deliver services of the highest quality. It upholds audit firm independence to ensure that audit quality is such that it enhances the accuracy and credibility of financial performance reporting. In this way, the IRBA has an important role to play in building the reputation of South Africa as an investment market for both local and global investors and driving economic growth for the country.

The IRBA also registers suitably qualified accountants as auditors, who must adhere to the highest ethics standards, and promotes the auditing profession through the effective regulation of assurance conducted in accordance with internationally recognised standards and processes.