Financial conditions in South African municipalities: Analysis of irregular, unauthorized, fruitless, and wasteful expenditure

In the modern world, developing countries like Kenya, Tanzania, Ethiopia and several others in the African continent have been encouraged to reform their public expenditure management systems through computerization of the entire public sectors in response to the increasing volume of data or information that need to be processed. There are, however, various factors to be considered prior to the implementation of the public expenditure management information systems. This paper undertakes a theoretical review of the critical success factors that impact on the implementation of an Integrated Financial Management Information System (IFMIS) with a view to identify factors applicable to the Migori County of Kenya. The paper, then, identifies the key factors to be incorporated in the proposed IFMS framework. The proposed framework draws from the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM), Innovation Diffusion Theory (IDT) and the Work Around Theory (WAT). The paper fuses these theories towards a successful adoption of use of modern technology within the public sector IFMS. The key factors include technical, organizational, environmental, cultural and ethical behavior. These factors could improve efficiency and transparency through direct payments to suppliers and contractors, reduced prices due to gains based on the time value of money, as well as the comparative analysis of market rates and advanced relations across the numerous organizational units within government on execution, reporting, and thoroughness of budget transactions.

In Ukraine, there is a steady increase in the mortality rate of the population, which is due to the low quality of medical provision. The main advantages and the efficiency factor of the health care system in the Western European countries are analyzed; the key factors regulating medical provision in Ukraine are systematized; the effectiveness of modern health care reform in Ukraine is evaluated; practical recommendations to improve the administrative and legal regulation of the system are developed. The analysis showed that the effectiveness of health care reform in Ukraine is currently about 30%, and the high mortality rate of the population in Ukraine is primarily due to the low quality of medical care and inadequate investment in the industry. The main health problems in Ukraine are failure to comply with legislation on the amount of funding and remuneration in the public health system, high levels of corruption and lack of control over the competence of doctors, inaccessibility of medical products for consumers due to the pharmaceutical market monopolization.

As education gains prominence in sustainable development strategies, assessing the effectiveness of public education spending has become essential, particularly in Southeast Asia. Despite being seen as a driver of economic growth, its actual impact remains debated due to differing outcomes across countries and stages of development. This study aims to analyze the impact of public education expenditure on economic growth in nine Southeast Asian countries: Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam, during the period 1998–2022. The study employs secondary data sourced from the World Development Indicators. Econometric techniques used include Ordinary Least Squares, Fixed Effects Model, Random Effects Model, and the Generalized Method of Moments to ensure consistency and robustness in the estimations. The findings show that public spending on education in Southeast Asia during the studied period did not produce a clearly positive effect on economic growth. In several models, the coefficient of education spending on GDP growth was statistically insignificant or even negative. For instance, in the GMM model, the coefficient was –0.031 (p > 0.1) – a negative, though statistically insignificant, impact. Meanwhile, the institutional quality variable exhibited a positive and statistically significant effect, suggesting that the effectiveness of public spending depends strongly on the quality of governance and fiscal management. The study concludes that public education spending is unlikely to be effective without strong governance. Therefore, in addition to increasing budgets, countries should focus on institutional reform and improving education quality to ensure long-term economic benefits.