Exploration of Corporate Governance Challenges in Public Sector Information Systems- An Auditor General Perspective

Abstract

The aim of this article is to explore the obstacles that are within the South African public sector, preventing information systems from operating as efficiently as they could. The significance of the research lies in the fact that the accomplishment of the objectives outlined in the South African national development plan 2030 and the medium-term strategy framework is dependent on the performance of the public sector. In the course of the research, annual and general reports from the website maintained by the Auditor General of South Africa from 2017 through 2021 were used. This study made use of the qualitative analysis software, Atlas.ti 7 which was employed to analyse textual data in annual reports. The investigation of the difficulties posed by corporate governance in the South African public sector were unveiled from themes emerging form the use of thematic analysis. The research uncovered issues with both the macro and the micro levels of corporate governance in the South African public sector. The macro concerns that were brought to light were difficulties in the structure of information systems, an economic downturn, changes in the leadership of the government, and a lack of credible information offered to people. Poor leadership accountability, inadequate information technology capabilities, poor project management, poor information management, inadequate and ineffective disaster recovery, regression in information technology governance, and delay in filling information technology vacancies were some of the micro-obstacles of corporate governance that affected information systems. According to the findings of the research, a transformational approach should be used to solve the issues by first gaining an awareness of how users view the role that information technologies play in the running of public bodies. In addition, instruments of corporate governance that relate to information systems in the public sector should be assessed to gauge their effectiveness in the South African environment.