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With the intensity of the Fourth Industrial Revolution, Artificial Intelligence (AI) is being widely adopted to perform key tasks in economic activities. The audit profession has also embraced AI in the performance of its function in carrying out activities like audits, oversight, and advisory functions. The application of AI has been met with acceptance, given its advantages in some quarters and with resistance/scepticism in some. Proponents table benefits such as improved sampling procedures, reduced labour, and time in performing audits, increased efficiency, and effectiveness (due to increased audit coverage) including improved audit quality. Opponents raise pragmatic concerns such as the violation of ethical principles governing the audit profession, potential biases (loss of employment) as well as the challenges of coordinating machine and human activities. The study has two objectives. Firstly, to explore the role of AI in the external audit function. Secondly, to evaluate the ongoing debates on artificial intelligence and external auditing and assess the implications of using AI in the external audit function. The study adopts a qualitative research approach, employing a critical literature review. The study will accentuate the controversies and convergences among researchers on the role and implications of applying AI in external auditing to bring to light possible research gaps that can be explored by future researchers on the subject area. Highlighting the potential externalities of using AI has both theoretical and practical implications.

Over the last decade, developing countries have been promoting public-private partnerships (PPPs) as an alternative approach to developing infrastructure and services. This is done by utilising the efficiency and innovation of the private sector and enabling access to private-sector finance through public-private partnerships (PPP). Importantly, PPPs ensure more value for money than traditional financing options and highway and transportation infrastructure revenue sources. The study is qualitative, relied on the extensive review of written documents. In light of this, the study explores the utility and efficacy of PPPs in road tolling initiatives and highway infrastructure investment in Zimbabwe. Emphasis was placed on the PPP arrangement between the Zimbabwe National Roads Administration (ZINARA) and a South African company- Group Five, which saw road tolls being erected and operationalised to fund Zimbabwean highway infrastructure. The paper established that despite this PPP arrangement being a success, as seen by the faster completion of the trunk roads, lower project lifecycle costs, better risk allocation, faster implementation of public works and services, improved service quality and additional revenue streams a myriad of operational and administrative challenges equally dogged it. To this effect, the paper, therefore, recommends some strategies to strengthen and enhance the adoption, operationalization, and management of PPPs for road tolling and highway infrastructure investments in developing countries.

The primary aim of this study was to assess the demand for internet services before and during the Covid-19 pandemic, considering the challenges and opportunities brought about by the global health crisis. While the pandemic has had numerous negative impacts on people's lives, it has also facilitated advancements in technology, particularly the adoption of the 4th industrial revolution. To explore the positive impacts of these technological advancements, the study focused on analysing changes in household internet usage using the 2019 and 2021 General Household Survey data obtained from STATS SA. The study examined the shifts in internet usage between the two data sets and found a modest increase in internet usage over time. To further investigate the determinants of household internet usage, the study employed descriptive analysis, cross-tabulations, and a binary logistic regression model. Income, age, household size, and gender were used as independent variables, while internet usage served as the dependent variable. The results revealed that all the independent variables were statistically significant factors influencing the probability of internet usage. Income and household size demonstrated a positive relationship with internet usage, indicating that higher levels of income and larger household sizes were associated with increased demand for internet services. Conversely, the age of the household head showed a negative effect on internet usage, suggesting that as individuals grew older, their likelihood of using the internet decreased. Additionally, the study found that male-headed households exhibited higher levels of internet usage compared to their female counterparts. To ensure that digital inclusion is prioritized, it is crucial for authorities to ensure that internet access is accessible to low-income households. Addressing the disparity in internet usage between higher and lower-income households is essential. Government regulators can encourage broadband providers to expand affordable internet access, while reducing administrative burdens to facilitate network deployment, thereby supporting the current levels of internet usage, and promoting further growth. By considering these findings, policymakers and stakeholders can develop strategies to bridge the digital divide and ensure equal access to internet services for all segments of society. This will contribute to a more inclusive and equitable digital landscape, fostering social and economic development in the medium to long term.

The delivery of public services in South Africa is dependent on good governance and decisive leadership. Furthermore, the success of government programmes depends on the size of the budget that has been allocated to a given government department or entity. When the Minister of Finance delivers the budget speech in the National Assembly, there is a clear indication on how much is going to be allocated to each government department over the next financial year. It is up to the government departments to ensure that the allocated budget is used as efficiently and effectively as possible. Each government department is guided by the Public Financial Management Act (PFMA), 1999. The PFMA seeks to regulate financial management in the national government and provincial governments; to ensure that all revenue, expenditure, assets and liabilities of those governments are managed efficiently and effectively; to provide for the responsibilities of persons entrusted with financial management in those governments; and to provide for matters connected therewith. Given the objectives of the PFMA, accounting officers are tasked with the responsibility of enforcing the PFMA in all procurement processes. According to Section 36 of the PFMA, an accounting officer is the head of a department. These accounting officers play an important role in ensuring that services are delivered, while they must ensure that public funds are spent responsibly and in accordance with the relevant government policies and the PFMA. This paper analyses the role that accounting officers need to play in ensuring responsible public financial management, especially because of the limited resources available to our government. By employing a qualitative study, this paper looks at instances where accounting officers did not act in accordance with the PFMA and the implications of this failure.

Over the past decades there has been a remarkable paradigm shift in Public Administration. Traditional Public Administration was in dire need for a change of a New Public Administration (NPA) approach in the 1980s. From early 2000s, the NPA began to be subjected to heavy criticism, which influenced public administration to take complete control of different reforms and approaches regardless of their diversity, complexity, hybrid and contradictory situations rather than offering the perfect approach and reform to the public sector. The New Public Management (NPM) and Post-New Public Management (Post-NPM) paradigms emerged in times whereby the NPA was already experiencing a massive deconstruction and reconfiguration of the public sector management. To scan and understand the remarkable paradigm shift in the field and practice of public administration, this study applies both NPM and Post-NMP to examine different views, principles, values and norms, and reform proposals for South African Public Administration. Methodologically, this study used qualitative research methods with the aid of secondary data to evaluate both the NPM and post-NPM paradigms, criticisms, arguments, challenges, and changes in public policy implementations. Recommendations are provided based on the existing challenges confronting the current public administration in South Africa. This study contributes to literature, new policy proposals and research within public administration.

The delivery of public services in South Africa is dependent on good governance and decisive leadership. Furthermore, the success of government programmes depends on the size of the budget that has been allocated to a given government department or entity. When the Minister of Finance delivers the budget speech in the National Assembly, there is a clear indication on how much is going to be allocated to each government department over the next financial year. It is up to the government departments to ensure that the allocated budget is used as efficiently and effectively as possible. Each government department is guided by the Public Financial Management Act (PFMA), 1999. The PFMA seeks to regulate financial management in the national government and provincial governments; to ensure that all revenue, expenditure, assets and liabilities of those governments are managed efficiently and effectively; to provide for the responsibilities of persons entrusted with financial management in those governments; and to provide for matters connected therewith. Given the objectives of the PFMA, accounting officers are tasked with the responsibility of enforcing the PFMA in all procurement processes. According to Section 36 of the PFMA, an accounting officer is the head of a department. These accounting officers play an important role in ensuring that services are delivered, while they must ensure that public funds are spent responsibly and in accordance with the relevant government policies and the PFMA. This paper analyses the role that accounting officers need to play in ensuring responsible public financial management, especially because of the limited resources available to our government. By employing a qualitative study, this paper looks at instances where accounting officers did not act in accordance with the PFMA and the implications of this failure.

With the intensity of the Fourth Industrial Revolution, Artificial Intelligence (AI) is being widely adopted to perform key tasks in economic activities. The audit profession has also embraced AI in the performance of its function in carrying out activities like audits, oversight, and advisory functions. The application of AI has been met with acceptance, given its advantages in some quarters and with resistance/scepticism in some. Proponents table benefits such as improved sampling procedures, reduced labour, and time in performing audits, increased efficiency, and effectiveness (due to increased audit coverage) including improved audit quality. Opponents raise pragmatic concerns such as the violation of ethical principles governing the audit profession, potential biases (loss of employment) as well as the challenges of coordinating machine and human activities. The study has two objectives. Firstly, to explore the role of AI in the external audit function. Secondly, to evaluate the ongoing debates on artificial intelligence and external auditing and assess the implications of using AI in the external audit function. The study adopts a qualitative research approach, employing a critical literature review. The study will accentuate the controversies and convergences among researchers on the role and implications of applying AI in external auditing to bring to light possible research gaps that can be explored by future researchers on the subject area. Highlighting the potential externalities of using AI has both theoretical and practical implications.

Tax compliance and evasion pose significant challenges to tax authorities in South Africa and other countries. In recent times, corporate governance issues have increasingly involved tax compliance. This study focuses on unresolved audit issues with the South African Revenue Service (SARS), expensive litigation, and lengthy arbitration with the tax Ombudsman. These issues are complicated by legal elucidations, legislative components, and regulatory frameworks. The paper aims to clarify the purpose of a tax legal audit expert at SARS in the initial phases of an audit procedure.  To answer this research question, a thorough mapping review using methodical, technique-based literature evaluation was conducted. The study found that the lack of skilled tax legal audit experts hampers the effectiveness and efficiency of tax audits. Therefore, tax authorities must invest in the skills of tax legal audit experts to improve audit outcomes.

The psychological, behavioral, and technological impacts of adopting online modalities in the Universities within the post-COVID-19 and 4IR era were assessed in this paper. The current researcher obtained informed consent from the 125 academic staff members from five universities in four provinces—the University of Pretoria, University of Johannesburg, Durban University of Technology, University of Western Cape, and North-West University—through a cross-sectional survey methodology. This study's researcher promoted voluntary participation and ensured ethical standards were respected. In total, 116 surveys were located and completed. Statistical Packages for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 29 was used to clean and analyze the data. This study illustrates how willingness to use online modalities inside universities during the post-COVID-19 and Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR) is highly influenced by a readiness to change, innovative work behavior, and technological competence. This study demonstrated that adopting online modalities in South African universities during the post-COVID-19 and 4IR periods was significantly influenced by technological proficiency, innovative behavior, and willingness to change.

The correlational impact of intra-organizational social capital, job burnout, and organizational reward in sustaining employee performance in the 4IR was evaluated in this paper. Four Hundred (400) employees of the following four businesses in the Nigerian states of Oyo and Lagos were given questionnaires on purpose: First City Monument Bank Plc, British American Tobacco Nigeria, Health Emergency Initiative, and Eko Pearl Towers. The current researcher encouraged voluntary participation and ensured that moral standards were upheld. There were found and appropriately concluded 377 surveys in total. The data was cleaned up and analyzed using SPSS version 29 of the statistical package for social sciences. This study demonstrates how organizational rewards and intra-organization social capital significantly impact employee performance. Job burnout negatively impacts it. Additionally, the study discovered that job burnout, organizational reward, and intra-organizational social capital had a significant and combined impact on employee performance.