Key Finance Initiatives. The NCT has recently experienced a steep increase in its caseload. This has necessitated increases in the employee complement and in particular an increased utilisation of contingent employees. The ongoing monitoring of the budget and oversight over spending by the Finance Unit has been critical in ensuring that the NCT delivers on its mandate. Adherence to sound financial disciplines and savings by virtue of increased efficiency will be in ensuring that all available funding will be optimally utilised. In reviewing our progress over the previous financial year we are proud of a number of important achievements including: • The clean audit received for 2014/15. • Implementation of recommendations made by the Audit and Risk Committee. • The updating and implementation of the Finance policies and Standard Operating Procedures on 1st April 2015. • Progress made in the development of a budget model that will ensure more accurate forecasting and budgeting. This budget model will be implemented in the first year of this APP period. • Progress made in a project encompassing enhancements to the NCT accounting system in order to provide more detailed financial information for budget purposes and to ensure compliance with new accounting standards. This project will also be implemented in the first year of this APP period. Currently, the biggest risk experienced by the Finance Unit is the increase in the NCT‟s caseload and the impact that this has on the management of cases. This increase has placed significant pressure on the financial resources of the NCT as well as on the employees within the Finance Unit itself, specifically in relation to the manual reconciliation of filing fees to be recognised as income. In order to mitigate this risk, Finance will have to increasingly utilise automated data capturing processes within the Case Management System and banking systems. This will allow for a reduction in the manual interventions required in the capturing and reconciling of financial transactions. This will not only increase efficiency but should also have a considerable impact on the accuracy of data capture. There is a strong indication that the case numbers will increase by at least 30% for non-debt rearrangement matters. For debt rearrangement matters we anticipate an increase of 80% for 2015/16; 60% for 2016/17; 40% for 2017/18 and 30% for 2018/19 on a year-on-year basis over the MTEF period. In order to fund the caseload increase, additional funding will be re...
