The Ministry of Women, Children and Social Protection says outdated manual systems, fragmented data and inconsistent record-keeping practices across some social protection programmes led to the gaps in the audit findings.
In the Auditor-General’s report to Parliament last week, it was highlighted that the Ministry was unable to provide payment vouchers with the necessary supporting documentation for payments amounting to $3,119,090.
The Ministry says these expenditures relate to the Bus Fare Programme ($2,600,000), Allowance for Disability ($479,440), and Food Allowance for Rural Pregnant Mothers ($39,650).
The report states that due to the absence of adequate supporting documentation, auditors were unable to obtain sufficient and appropriate audit evidence to verify the accuracy and completeness of these expenditures.
However, the Ministry clarified that these findings do not indicate that funds are missing or that no response was provided.
The Ministry says the outdated system has been a recurring issue in recent years and they have already taken steps to implement system-wide reforms aligned with the National Digital Strategy.
Some of the variations highlighted in the report, the Ministry says, are due to normal administrative and accounting processes.
These include delays in reconciling returned cheques that were later re-deposited, reimbursements processed through Post Fiji based on cashed vouchers, and delays in receiving approved expenditure documents from the Ministry of Finance.
The Ministry stresses that these do not represent a loss of funds.
In the last financial year, the Ministry began transitioning from paper-based systems to fully digital platforms, including upgrades to the Financial Management Information System and the development of an Integrated Beneficiary Management System.
It adds that these reforms will ensure all transactions are recorded, tracked, and verified in real time, improving accuracy, transparency and accountability.
Minister Sashi Kiran says the Ministry is taking decisive action.
Kiran says they take the Auditor-General’s findings seriously and that the challenges stem from outdated manual systems that are no longer suitable for the scale of services delivered today.
She adds that the Ministry’s focus is on safeguarding public funds, strengthening accountability and ensuring assistance reaches the most vulnerable Fijians efficiently and transparently.
