A growing case of unauthorised spending by regional and local authorities has been flagged by the Ministry of Urban and Rural Development.
This comes after minister James Sankwasa warned that poor financial management is undermining service delivery and public trust.
Speaking at a financial management workshop at Swakopmund on Monday, Sankwasa said some councils are bypassing legal budgeting frameworks by exceeding approved budgets, spending on unapproved projects and making payments outside authorised allocations.
The ministry says the trend has resulted in the mishandling of public funds, diverting resources from essential services and slowing regional and local development.
The ministry reminds councillors and administrators that the Regional Councils Act and Local Authorities Act separate the roles of elected leaders and technocrats while setting out strict financial management.
“Financial management is critical to ensuring public funds are used efficiently and align with councils’ development priorities,” Sankwasa said.
The workshop aimed to strengthen financial integrity, accountability and governance across regional and local authorities while improving service delivery and restoring public confidence.
He said authorities must proactively investigate financial irregularities and enforce consequence management measures to hold those responsible accountable and deter future violations.
He urged political and administrative leaders to lead by example, strengthen internal controls and tackle systemic corruption through responsible leadership.
Sankwasa criticised the use of third-party debt collectors by some local authorities, saying the practice has fuelled public dissatisfaction. Instead, councils were urged to use internal mechanisms to recover outstanding municipal debts while maintaining direct engagement with residents.
He called on participants to apply the lessons from the workshop in their daily work, stressing that transparency and accountability must remain central to the management of public resources.
