Botswana’s management of billions of pula meant to fight the COVID-19 pandemic has come under fierce scrutiny after the latest Auditor General’s report exposed widespread misuse, weak oversight and questionable spending across several government ministries.
The audit report which was released recently by Auditor General Keneilwe Senyarelo shows how public funds earmarked for pandemic relief were allegedly diverted to activities with little or no connection to the national health emergency, raising fresh questions about accountability in the handling of one of the country’s largest emergency funding programmes.
According to the report, a staggering P416.3 million was spent on activities “not related to COVID-19” in violation of the COVID-19 Pandemic (Corona Virus) Relief Fund Order, 2020.
According to the report, a staggering P416.3 million was spent on activities “not related to COVID-19” in violation of the COVID-19 Pandemic (Corona Virus) Relief Fund Order, 2020.
The Auditor General states that the expenditure amounted to “non-compliance with the governing legal framework” and pointed to “weaknesses in expenditure oversight and adherence to approved fund management controls.”
Among the questionable expenditures flagged in the report was P25.1 million spent on psychosocial support activities for government employees — an amount that exceeded the authorised budget of P14.95 million.
While psychosocial support was recognised as part of the pandemic response, the Auditor General noted that the fund mandate specifically intended such support to benefit the general public through counselling centres and public facilities, not exclusive employee-focused activities.
The report further exposed what it termed “incorrect charges” to the COVID-19 Fund, including P5 444 spent on a Ministry of Health Christmas party, P62 580 paid to Wild View Resort in Kasane for recreational activities, and P80 080 spent on accommodation, a boat cruise and a game drive for 55 officers attending a stress management workshop.
The Auditor General concluded that the spending represented “misclassification and misuse of funds under the guise of psychosocial support therapy.”
The Ministry of Presidential Affairs also came under fire after auditors discovered that P8 million from the COVID-19 Fund was used to settle a lawsuit arising from the unlawful termination of a contract for electronic movement tracking devices.
The report questioned why pandemic relief money was used to pay for what it described as nugatory expenditure resulting from contractual failures.
“I consider that the circumstances leading to nugatory expenditure should be investigated through a submission of loss report by the Ministry,” the Auditor General stated.
The absence of supporting documents meant auditors could not determine whether the expenditure complied with the Fund Order or whether the transactions recorded were complete and accurate.
Serious accountability gaps were also uncovered at the Ministry of Basic Education, where auditors failed to obtain documentation supporting expenditure amounting to P3.15 million from the COVID-19 Fund.
The absence of supporting documents meant auditors could not determine whether the expenditure complied with the Fund Order or whether the transactions recorded were complete and accurate.
The report warned that failure to provide documentation constituted non-compliance with Section 124(2) of the Constitution relating to access to information by the Auditor General.
Meanwhile, the Ministry of Trade and Industry received P84 million from the COVID-19 Fund but spent only P17 234 on a hospital bill, leaving nearly the entire allocation untouched by March 2023.
The Ministry of Finance report further showed that the COVID-19 Fund had total income exceeding P2.36 billion during the period under review, with 99 percent of the funds representing unutilised balances transferred from ministries.
