Abstract
This study sought to investigate whether South African Metropolitan Municipalities comply with the Information Technology (IT) governance disclosure requirements as per the KING IV code, Principle 12. This was performed to assist in the mitigation of various IT-related risks faced by the Metropolitan Municipalities. IT and the governance surrounding it have become increasingly topical because of operational environments becoming increasingly technologically enhanced; hence, this study probed these municipalities to take these concepts even more seriously.
The manner followed in identifying risks and actions that would mitigate these risks is partially the responsibility of the corporate governance segment of the municipalities. For South African public sector institutions, including Metropolitan Municipalities, the KING IV code requires them to comply with the principles from the implementation of the report. This also includes compliance with the disclosure requirements contained in Principle 12 of the KING IV code. To achieve the research objective stated, an empirical study using a qualitative method through documentary analysis.
A literature review was performed on IT, public sector, and the IT governance disclosure requirements as per the KING IV code, and the findings from the empirical study indicate that most of the Metropolitan Municipalities are aware of the disclosure requirements and have disclosed as per the KING IV code, Principle 12 requirements. In the study, it was also noted that there is still room for improvement in certain municipalities. The study also found that the introduction and utilisation of modern digital technology is continuously changing to enhance the chances of an organisation achieving its strategic and operational objectives. It is not just about changing the way people complete processes and tasks in business and in their personal lives; it is a total change of organisational and personal culture and adopting the mind of continuously exploring better, new and efficient ways of completing these tasks and processes.
KEYWORDS: Information Technology; Public sector; KING IV code; Corporate governance; Metropolitan Municipalities; Disclosure.