Build One South Africa (BOSA) is today ramping up our call for the immediate establishment of a Public Register of all government vendors in the form of a transparent and digitally accessible database showing who does business with the state, what they are paid, and all directors of those companies.
BOSA Leader Mmusi Maimane has written to the Minister of Finance, Enoch Godongwana, requesting urgent action to implement this digital register and mandate its adoption across all government departments and SOEs.
This proposal comes amid growing revelations of systemic procurement fraud and tender abuse exposed during the Madlanga Commission of Inquiry and Parliament’s Ad Hoc Committee Inquiry – which laid bare how public contracts have become the primary vehicle for corruption and patronage in South Africa.
Despite the existence of the Public Finance Management Act (PFMA) and the Municipal Finance Management Act (MFMA), South Africa’s procurement system remains opaque and prone to manipulation. Departments and State-Owned Entities (SOEs) record procurement data internally but seldom make it publicly available.
The Central Supplier Database (CSD) containing supplier details and director information is not open to the public, and tender awards are published inconsistently, without transparency on the total payments made or beneficial ownership of companies.
This lack of visibility has created fertile ground for corruption, fronting, and inflated contracts. And it inarguably comes at the expense of service delivery and public trust.
BOSA proposes that the National Treasury establish a real-time, publicly accessible register linking directly to the CSD and Treasury’s payment systems.
This register should disclose:
- All registered and approved vendors doing business with government and SOEs
- The tenders and contracts awarded to each vendor
- The amounts paid for each contract, updated quarterly
- The names of all company directors and beneficial owners.
Such transparency would allow the public, media, Parliament, and oversight bodies to follow the money and hold officials and companies accountable for how public funds are used.
National Treasury already has the legal authority to implement this reform immediately under existing law. Section 76(4)(c) of the PFMA empowers Treasury to issue regulations ensuring transparency in procurement, and Section 168(1)(b) of the MFMA grants the same power for municipalities.
BOSA further calls for amendments to the PFMA and MFMA to make the public register a mandatory, legally entrenched requirement to ensure uniform reporting, safeguarding against political interference, and standardising the data format and frequency of publication across all government entities.
A public procurement register would:
- Expose and deter tender fraud by making data publicly visible
- Empower citizens and watchdogs to monitor spending
- Strengthen fair competition among legitimate suppliers
- Reduce the dominance of politically connected “tenderpreneurs”
- Bring South Africa in line with international best practice under the Open Contracting Data Standards (OCDS) and Open Government Partnership (OGP).
Transparency is the most powerful weapon against corruption. The technology, the legal authority and the moral imperative all exist today to make this reform possible.
If government is serious about ending state capture and procurement fraud – as the Madlanga Commission has underscored – then every cent of public spending must be made visible to the people who fund it.
BOSA calls on National Treasury and Parliament to act without delay. South Africans deserve to know who profits from their taxes.
Media Enquiries:
Roger Solomons
BOSA Spokesperson
072 299 3551