South Africa was greylisted by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) in February 2023 following assessments of deficiencies in anti-money laundering (AML) and counter-financing of terrorism (CFT) frameworks. The legislative response included the General Laws Amendment Act (2022), Financial Sector Laws Amendment Act (2022), and subsequent amendments to the Companies Act and Trust Property Control Act. The FATF Action Plan required 22 priority actions across beneficial ownership registers, prosecutorial capacity, and financial intelligence. South Africa exited the greylist in October 2024 after addressing most action items. The reform's significance extends beyond the list: greylisting raised correspondent banking costs, deterred foreign portfolio investment, and increased compliance burdens on SA financial institutions. Sustained AML/CFT capacity at the FIC, NPA, and Hawks is needed to maintain the exit and prevent re-listing.
The SIU Special Tribunal, established in 2019, enables civil recovery of state losses from corruption without criminal prosecution requirements. The committee has monitored recovery outcomes — the SIU has referred matters worth over R50bn but actual recoveries remain a fraction of this. The June 2025 session reviewed the SIU Annual Performance Plan alongside Legal Aid SA. Strengthening the Tribunal pipeline from investigation to recovery order to execution is the critical bottleneck, particularly for Digital Vibes and PPE-era corruption matters.
The NPA, under NDPP Shamila Batohi (appointed 2019), has made progress rebuilding prosecution capacity following the state capture era. The Investigating Directorate Against Corruption (IDAC), established as a permanent unit, has secured several high-profile convictions. However, the committee has tracked persistent vacancy rates in complex commercial crime units and the slow pace of Zondo Commission referral prosecutions. The June 2025 Annual Performance Plan review noted that NPA conviction rates have improved but remain below the 92% target in priority crime categories.
The National School Nutrition Programme (NSNP) feeds approximately 9 million learners at nearly 20,000 primary and secondary schools daily, representing a R9.8 billion annual budget that is one of South Africa's most effective social protection programmes: attendance research shows NSNP participation increases school attendance by 8–12% and measurably improves learning outcomes, particularly in the Foundation Phase. However, NSNP procurement—controlled by Provincial Education Departments (PEDs) through conditional grants—is among the most fraud-prone in government: the Auditor-General's 2023 report found irregular expenditure exceeding R1.5 billion across three provinces, including ghost schools, inflated food prices, and payments to non-compliant service providers. The procurement reform proposes: centralised NSNP food category price benchmarking by National Treasury, mandatory use of the CSD (Central Supplier Database) with a nutrition-focused supplier filter, co-location of NSNP procurement with DAFF's agri-processing supplier development programme to source from small-scale farmers, and SASSA cross-verification to exclude schools with inflated learner numbers. The BRRR synthesis identifies NSNP fraud as fiscally recoverable (savings of R600 million–R1 billion annually).
The National Student Financial Aid Scheme's administration collapse became a national crisis between 2021 and 2024: delayed allowance payments left students unable to pay rent or buy food; a R2.1 billion irregular expenditure finding by the Auditor-General revealed procurement failures in the student accommodation and allowance payment systems; and a Special Investigating Unit (SIU) probe uncovered fraudulent registrations by students, ghost students, and institutions claiming NSFAS funding for enrolled students who had dropped out or never attended. The administration overhaul reform covers: replacing the current bursary management system with an integrated student information system linked to HEMIS and institutional student records, implementing biometric verification for allowance collection, establishing an NSFAS fraud investigative unit within the SIU, and restructuring the NSFAS board and executive management. The MTBPS 2025 notes NSFAS as a fiscal risk entity with qualified audit opinions in three consecutive years. The PC on Higher Education BRRRs 2022–2024 contain over 40 specific recommendations on NSFAS governance that remain partially implemented.
South Africa was placed on the FATF Grey List in February 2023 following deficiencies in anti-money laundering, counter-terrorist financing, and proliferation financing frameworks. An inter-agency Action Plan (National Treasury, FIC, SAPS, NPA, SARB) addresses 22 action items across six priority areas. The NCOP's Select Committee on Security and Justice plays a monitoring role, particularly for the provincial implementation of AML/CFT obligations on Designated Non-Financial Businesses and Professions (DNFBPs: attorneys, accountants, estate agents, car dealers). Key legislative reforms include the General Laws Amendment Act (2022) and the Protected Disclosures Amendment Act. FATF on-site assessment in late 2024 determined progress sufficient for grey list exit, expected in mid-2025. Asset forfeiture, beneficial ownership registers (CIPC), and suspicious transaction reporting volumes are the key performance indicators.
The National Lotteries Commission (NLC), which distributes approximately R3 billion annually from lottery proceeds to charitable, sports, and arts organisations, has been subject to sustained parliamentary and media scrutiny since 2019 for systemic governance failures. The Special Investigating Unit (SIU) investigation completed in 2023 identified R3.1 billion in irregular, fruitless, and wasteful expenditure across the NLC distribution portfolio — including grants to non-existent NGOs, politically connected beneficiaries, and construction projects with no charitable purpose. The NLC Amendment Act (under parliamentary development since 2022) proposes: mandatory public disclosure of all grants above R1 million, an independent NLC board with publicly nominated trustees replacing Ministerial appointments, a ring-fenced arts and culture fund with sector-governed distribution, and criminal referrals for implicated officials through the NPA. The PC on Trade BRRRs 2022–2024 consistently rank NLC among the worst-governed entities in its oversight portfolio. The reform is simultaneously a governance imperative and an arts sector recovery issue: legitimate arts and cultural organisations were excluded from NLC grants by politically connected intermediaries during the critical COVID-19 recovery period.