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Accounting Manual for Departments
The Standard Chart of Accounts and
Systems
The Standard Chart of Accounts and Systems
Chapter Content
1
Overview ...................................................................................................................... 4
2
Key Learning Objectives .............................................................................................. 5
3
Understanding the Standard Chart of Accounts (SCOA) .............................................. 5
3.1
Infrastructure classification.................................................................................. 6
3.2
Item segment .................................................................................................... 13
3.3
Asset segment .................................................................................................. 17
3.4
Project segment ................................................................................................ 18
3.5
Objective segment ............................................................................................ 20
3.6
Fund segment ................................................................................................... 20
3.7
Responsibility segment ..................................................................................... 21
3.8
Regional segment ............................................................................................. 22
4
Understanding the Economic Classification ............................................................... 23
5
The Basic Accounting System (BAS) ......................................................................... 24
6
Recording of Basic Accounting Transactions ............................................................. 25
6.1
Year end closure............................................................................................... 26
7
Bank Reconciliation (BAS / PMG Account) ................................................................ 27
8
Debtors’ and Creditors’ Reconciliation ....................................................................... 27
9
Salaries’ Reconciliation (BAS / PERSAL) ................................................................... 27
10
Assets’ Reconciliation (BAS / LOGIS) ........................................................................ 28
11
Inventory Reconciliation (BAS / LOGIS) ..................................................................... 28
12
The Payments Process .............................................................................................. 28
12.1 PERSAL ........................................................................................................... 28
12.2 LOGIS............................................................................................................... 29
12.3 MEDSAS .......................................................................................................... 29
12.4 Sundry payments .............................................................................................. 29
13
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Methods of Payment .................................................................................................. 30
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The Standard Chart of Accounts and Systems
13.1 Electronic Fund Transfers (EFT) ....................................................................... 30
13.2 Cash payments ................................................................................................. 30
13.3 Petty cash ......................................................................................................... 30
14
Reconciliations ........................................................................................................... 30
15
SUMMARY OF KEY PRINCIPLES ............................................................................ 31
15.1 Understanding the Standard Chart of Accounts ................................................ 31
15.2 The Basic Accounting System .......................................................................... 31
15.3 Recording of basic accounting transactions ...................................................... 31
15.4 Bank reconciliation (BAS / PMG Account) ......................................................... 31
15.5 Debtors’ and creditors’ reconciliation ................................................................ 32
15.6 Salaries’ reconciliation (BAS / PERSAL) ........................................................... 32
15.7 Assets and inventory reconciliation (BAS / LOGIS) ........................................... 32
15.8 The payments process...................................................................................... 32
15.9 The receipting process...................................................................................... 32
ANNEXURE 1: BAS PROCESSING RULES ...................................................................... 33
ANNEXURE 2: BAS REPORTS OF BANK RECONCILIATION .......................................... 34
ANNEXURE 3: LOGIS REPORTS FOR ASSETS’ RECONCILAITION AND REPORTING IN
THE AFS............................................................................................................................. 35
ANNEXURE 4: LOGIS REPORTS FOR INVENTORY RECONCILAITION AND REPORTING
IN THE AFS ........................................................................................................................ 52
ANNEXURE 5: UNDERSTANDING THE BAS TRIAL BALANCE ........................................ 53
ANNEXURE 6: BAS AND SCOA SEGMENTS .................................................................... 56
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1
Overview
The purpose of the chapter is to:

provide a basic understanding of how the Standard Chart of Accounts (SCOA) is structured;

discuss how the Basic Accounting System (BAS) together with the independent stand-alone
systems is organised to facilitate transaction processing and reporting; and

provide guidance on the basic accounting for transactions in order to demonstrate how the basic
accounting equation and double-entry system, dealt with in Chapter on Fundamental Accounting
Concepts, works. It also provides guidance on the compilation of some important reconciliation.
This chapter does not deal with processes and procedures. Departments can obtain the latest
information on the website of SCOA at https://scoa.treasury.gov.za/, BAS on http://bas.pwv.gov.za/
,PERSAL on http://persal.pwv.gov.za/ and LOGIS on http://logis.pwv.gov.za/logisweb/
The Office of the Accountant-General compiles a Modified Cash Standard (MCS), this manual serves
as an application guide to the MCS which should be used by departments in the compilation of their
financial statements.
Explanation of images used in manual:
Definition
Take note
Management process and decision making
Example
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The Standard Chart of Accounts and Systems
2
3
Key Learning Objectives

Understand the composition of the SCOA

Understand the BAS General Ledger and other systems where transactions are initiated

Understand the payments transaction processing and capture in BAS

Understand the receipts transaction processing and capture in BAS

Understand how to record basic accounting transactions

Understanding the various systems of accounting

How to do certain reconciliations
Understanding the Standard Chart of Accounts (SCOA)
SCOA comprises the coding of items used for classification, budgeting, recording and reporting of
receipts and payments within the financial system. It serves to facilitate and systematise the recording
of all transactions and is directly linked to the Economic Reporting Format (ERF), in fact, the posting
level items roll up to the ERF reporting format.
The coding structure comprises eight segments. When recording a transaction, a selection must be
made from each of the eight segments. One transaction can thus be broken down into all of the eight
different segments. The diagram below illustrates this:
When establishing the appropriate classification code from a segment, the following questions arise
for each segment.
1.
Infrastructure classification: Does the transaction relate to an infrastructure or noninfrastructure asset?
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2.
Item segment: What is the nature of the payment and what is the nature of the receipt?
3.
Assets segment: Does the transaction relate to an asset or the use of an asset and if so, which
class of asset?
4.
Project segment: Does the transaction relate to a specific project and if so, what type of
project?
5.
Objective segment: Against which programme / activity should the transaction be recorded?
6.
Fund segment: Against which source of funding should the payment be allocated and against
which source should the receipt be allocated?
7.
Responsibility segment: To which cost centre should the transaction be allocated?
8.
Regional segment: In which region does the service get delivered and in which region is the
beneficiary that benefits from the transaction?
Each segment is explained in more detail below.
3.1
Infrastructure classification
Purpose: To identify whether or not a spending item relates to infrastructure and to
show the type of infrastructure it relates to.
At the highest level the infrastructure segment distinguishes between expenditure and nonexpenditure (i.e. revenue, assets and liabilities) transactions. Expenditure is then sub-classified into
infrastructure, which includes infrastructure project payments and non-infrastructure categories. This
provides for a direct link to the reporting requirements as discussed in the Reference Guide to the
new Economic Reporting Format (Blue Book) where such distinction is required.
The infrastructure segment has been introduced specifically for reporting purposes (Economic
Reporting Format - ERF) and it provides a direct link to the reporting requirements as discussed in the
Reference Guide to the new Economic Reporting Format (Blue Book) where such distinction - as
discussed in the previous paragraph - is required.
The infrastructure segment is centrally controlled and standardised for all departments and aligned to
the economic classification. The segment is aligned to the Infrastructure Reporting Model (IRM)
At the highest level within transactions, spending is disaggregated into seven sub-categories
discussed below.
Existing infrastructure assets
For existing infrastructure assets, there are three types of classifications available:
Maintenance and repairs - Includes activities aimed at maintaining the capacity and effectiveness of
an asset at its intended level. The maintenance action implies that the asset is restored to its original
condition and there is no significant enhancement to its capacity, or the value of the asset. Spending
under this classification is of a current nature.
Upgrades and additions - Includes activities aimed at improving the capacity and effectiveness of an
asset above that of the intended purpose. The decision to renovate, reconstruct or enlarge an asset is
a deliberate investment decision which may be undertaken at any time and is not dictated by the
condition of the asset, but rather in response to a change in demand and or change in service
requirements. Spending under this classification is of a capital nature.
Rehabilitation and refurbishment - Includes activities that are required due to neglect or
unsatisfactory maintenance or degeneration of an asset. The action implies that the asset is restored
to its original condition, enhancing the capacity and value of an existing asset that has become
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inoperative due to the deterioration of the asset. Spending under this classification is of a capital
nature.
New infrastructure assets
A department may purchase a completely new infrastructure asset or have a project to construct new
infrastructure. In both cases the expenditure incurred is capital in nature and should be classified
under new infrastructure assets.
Infrastructure transfers
Infrastructure transfers can be either capital in nature or current in nature.
Infrastructure transfers capital - This category is relevant when the department makes a transfer of
funds that the beneficiary must use either

for the construction of new infrastructure; or

for upgrades / additions to capital or refurbishment / rehabilitation of existing infrastructure.
Infrastructure transfers current - This category is relevant when the department makes a transfer of
funds to an entity to cover administrative payments relating to the construction of infrastructure, such
as conducting a feasibility study in the construction of a new office building. Administrative costs
directly relating to the infrastructure project will only be capitalised once the decision has been made
to construct the infrastructure. Therefore records of such costs should be maintained until the final
decision on the project is made.
It is important to note that departments must record transfers related to infrastructure
assets separately from other project related transfers. This is a requirement under the
IRM.
Payments for financial assets
This category caters for concessional loans to other sectors of governments for construction of
infrastructure assets. An example will be monies loaned for the construction of the Gautrain and
purchases of equity.
Infrastructure leases
This category caters for both finance leases and operating leases. The category is used to classify the
monthly repayment as per the lease agreement.
Non-infrastructure
This category is specifically for spending not directly related to the construction or purchase of
infrastructure assets. Such spending can be either of a current or capital nature. For noninfrastructure assets, there are six types of classifications available:
Non-infrastructure: current - This category includes payments relating to stand-alone purchases of
goods and services, as well as purchases of goods and services relating to the maintenance and
repair of a non-infrastructure asset. It also includes payments relating to non-infrastructure projects of
a current nature other than maintenance projects. However it is important to note that assets (major)
bought into a current project should be recorded as “stand-alone capital assets”.
Non-infrastructure: capital - This category caters for the purchase of stand-alone capital assets and
for projects for the creation of new, and or the upgrading, rehabilitation or refurbishment of existing
non-infrastructure assets as well as other non-infrastructure projects of a capital nature.
Non-infrastructure: leases - This category caters for both finance and operating leases and is used
to classify the monthly payments as per the lease agreement.
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It is important to note that any maintenance works performed on a leased asset
should be allocated against the repairs and maintenance item within the infrastructure
segment, for example outsourced maintenance of a leased photocopier will be
allocated against the non-infrastructure - maintenance and repairs.
Non-infrastructure: Payments for financial assets - Is broken down into stand-alone current as
well as stand-alone capital.
Non-infrastructure: internal charge - This is for goods and services produced by the department for
resale. For example, furniture manufactured by inmates for resale.
Non-infrastructure: CARA expenditure -. The account consist of all money derived from the
execution and confiscation and forfeiture orders contemplated in terms of this Act, the balance of all
moneys derived from the execution of foreign confiscation orders as defined in the International Cooperation in Criminal Matters, Act No 75 of 1996 after payments have been made to requesting
States in terms of the Act, any moneys appropriated by Parliament or paid into the account in terms of
any other act, domestic and foreign grants, any amount of money received or acquired from any
source and all moneys transferred to the Account in terms of the Act.
Non-expenditure
All posting levels not directly related to payments have been provided for within the non-expenditure
category. Non expenditure includes General Account of revenue, general account of a vote, direct
charges to rev fund and receipts.
Infrastructure refers to fixed structures that are constructed or acquired by the public sector
or in partnership with the private sector and whose benefits will accrue to the community at
large.
This includes government buildings, such as schools, hospitals, clinics, community centres
and administrative buildings, as well as roads, communication networks, canals, airports, rail
lines, dams and water distribution schemes, electricity, and so on. Government expenditure
on housing is seen as a transfer to households and does not fall under the infrastructure
definition. It also includes machinery and equipment that was purchased for the exclusive use
on an infrastructure project, (i.e. consumed within a project).
Other machinery and equipment such as desktop computers, vehicles, laptops, furniture and
individual air conditioners etc., do not constitute infrastructure expenditure.
All maintenance / repairs, upgrading / extensions and refurbishment / rehabilitation
expenditure on infrastructure that prolongs the life, adds value to the asset and/or maintain the
value of the asset, should be reported as expenditure on infrastructure.
This should not include day-to-day upkeep, such as sweeping or grass cutting.
At a lower level, the infrastructure segment requires a further breakdown of the transaction into either
one of the following:

Own account (part of a project)

Outsourced projects (part of a project)

Stand-alone current (non-capital items)

Stand-alone capital (capital assets)
Below are examples of the classification of transactions and how the infrastructure, item and asset
segments work together.
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Example: Infrastructure assets - new acquisition
Provincial Department of Public Works (DPW) buys a new office building in Pretoria
from Old Mutual Property Investments for R20 million.
This transaction will be recorded as follows in SCOA (SCOA extract July 2013):
INFRASTRUCTURE SEGMENT
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
Expenditure
Infrastructure assets
New infrastructure assets
New infrastructure assets capital
Purchase of new infrastructure capital
ITEM SEGMENT
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
Payments
Purchase/construction of capital assets
Buildings and other fixed structures
Buildings and other fixed structures
New buildings and other fixed structures
New Buildings and other fixed structures
ASSET SEGMENT
6
7
8
9
1
2
3
4
5
Tangible assets
Buildings and other fixed structures
Non-residential buildings
Office Buildings
TPA Building
Example: Infrastructure assets - own account
DPW construction a new office building in Pretoria on own account.
This transaction will be recorded as follows in SCOA (SCOA extract July 2013):
INFRASTRUCTURE SEGMENT
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
Expenditure
Non-infrastructure current
Non-infrastructure current
[Payment for compensation of employees - will always be current]
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1
2
3
Expenditure
4
INFRASTRUCTURE SEGMENT
5
6
7
8
9
Infrastructure assets
New infrastructure assets
New infrastructure assets capital
Construction own capital
ITEM SEGMENT
6
7
8
9
1
2
3
4
5
Payments
Payment
Compensation of employees
Salaries and wages
Remuneration
Pensionable
Basic salary
ITEM SEGMENT
6
7
8
9
1
2
3
4
5
Payments
Payment
Goods and services
Consultants and professional services: infrastructure
planning
Consultants and professional services
engineering
Consultants and professional services civil
engineer
Own consultants and professional services
civil engineer
ITEM SEGMENT
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
Payments
Payment
Goods and services
Inventory materials and supplies
Inventory materials and supplies - building and
construction materials
Own inventory materials and supplies - building
and construction materials
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ITEM SEGMENT
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
Payments
Payment
Goods and services
Travel and subsistence domestic
Travel and subsistence domestic accommodation
Own travel and subsistence domestic accommodation
ITEM SEGMENT
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
Payments
Payment
Goods and services
Travel and subsistence domestic
Travel and subsistence domestic - transport
Travel and subsistence - car rental
Own travel and subsistence - car
rental
1
2
3
4
5
Non asset related
Non asset related
ASSET SEGMENT
6
7
8
9
[Payment for compensation of employees]
1
2
3
4
Tangible assets
5
ASSET SEGMENT
6
7
8
9
Buildings and other fixed structures
Non-residential buildings
Office Buildings
TPA Building
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Example : Infrastructure assets - outsourced
DPW outsources the construction of a new office building in Pretoria to Thazanya
Construction.
This transaction will be recorded as follows in SCOA (SCOA extract July 2013):
INFRASTRUCTURE SEGMENT
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
Expenditure
Infrastructure assets
New infrastructure assets
New infrastructure assets capital
Construction outsourced capital
ITEM SEGMENT
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
Payments
Purchase/construction of capital assets
Buildings and other fixed structures
Buildings and other fixed structures
New buildings and other fixed structures
Outsourced contractor new buildings and other
fixed structures
ASSET SEGMENT
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
Tangible assets
Buildings and other fixed structures
Non-residential buildings
Office Buildings
TPA Building
Example: Infrastructure assets - maintenance and repair current
Provincial Department of Roads and Transport purchase road construction material
to do normal maintenance work on the N4 between Doornpoort Plaza and Rosslyn.
This transaction will be recorded as follows in SCOA (SCOA extract July 2013):
INFRASTRUCTURE SEGMENT
5
6
7
8
9
1
2
3
4
Expenditure
Infrastructure assets
Existing infrastructure assets
Maintenance and repair current
Existing infrastructure maintenance and repair:
Own account
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ITEM SEGMENT
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
Payments
Payments
Goods and services
Inventory materials and supplies
Inventory materials and supplies:building and
construction materials
Own inventory materials and supplies: building and
construction material
ASSET SEGMENT
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
Tangible capital assets
Building and other fixed structures
Other fixed structures
Roads
National Roads
National roads tar
N4 toll road
Example: Infrastructure classification
Provincial Department of Public Works (DPW) purchases bricks for the construction of
a new hospital in the province.
The invoice is paid using departmental appropriation, voted funds discretionary and is
allocated against Programme 2 Public Works and the relevant Region cost centre.
Against which infrastructure will this transaction be allocated?
New Infrastructure Assets Capital, Construction - Own Account.
3.2
Item segment
Purpose: To record receipt and payment transactions as well as transactions in
assets and liabilities.
The item segment identifies the goods, services and other payments to be made in achieving the
objective of a department, also commonly referred to as the “what” government is paying for.
The payment categories show what has been bought; or to “whom” funds have been transferred.
Receipts are also classified according to the nature of goods/ services rendered.
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The high level categories of the item segment are:
Receipts - these are the appropriations, departmental revenue etc, as referred to under the fund
segment.
Assets, liabilities and net assets - this are the balances of the assets, liabilities and net assets as
per the statement of financial position.
Payments - these are the different types of payments made by the department which is broken down
into:

Compensation of employees - all payments made to employees of the department are
allocated here
Personnel Salary system (PERSAL) allowance and deduction codes are aligned /
mapped to the SCOA items. This is because the PERSAL system interfaces with
BAS. For example: Many different allowance codes are mapped to a single item in
SCOA namely “Non-pensionable allowances”.

Goods and services - payments for all goods and services to be used by the department,
excluding purchases of capital assets.
The item goods and services is broken down into broad product groups, for example, capital
assets less than R5 000, inventory, consumables, consultants and professional services,
administrative fees and operating payments.
All capital assets purchased with a value of less than R5 000 are included under the “goods and
services” classification category and not the “purchases / construction of capital assets”
classification category.
Inventories are those goods that are essential for satisfying the service delivery obligation of
a department. If the goods don’t qualify to be inventory items, they will most likely be
consumable items. It is important to note that some of the inventory categories will be blocked
and would therefore only be available for use by specific departments or sectors. For example,
“Military Stores” can only be used by the Department of Defence and “Health Medicine” can only
be used by the Department of Health. Refer to the SCOA’s website where more details can be
obtained on this.
This category includes all administration related fees inherent to the administration of the
department. It includes travel agency fees, personnel agency fees, bank charges, etc.
Operating payments include items relevant to the day-to-day operation of the department and
typically include goods and services that do not meet the classification criteria for other major
spending categories. Examples are cleaning services, courier and delivery services, resettlement
costs, roadworthy tests, school boarding costs, storage of files and assets, air, freight, harbour
services, printing and publications, protective and special clothing, and costs for witnesses.
Only lease payments for operating leases are included under the “goods and services”
classification category. Payments for finance leases are included as part of the “purchases /
construction of capital assets” classification category. The department should recognise the
actual lease payments made during the financial year as capital expenditure in the statement of
financial performance

Transfers and subsidies - Transfers include all unrequited payments made by the government
unit to another institutions, businesses and individuals, it does not constitute final expenditure by
the department. Subsidies are unrequited payments that government makes to public
corporations and private enterprises, these payments usually have a direct policy outcome, either
by subsidizing the price of goods and services or by influencing the level of production. A
payment is unrequited provided that the government unit does not receive anything directly in
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The Standard Chart of Accounts and Systems
return for the transfer to the other party. Transfers and subsidies encompass both current and
capital transfers.
Current transfers include social security benefits paid to households, fines, penalties, compulsory
fees paid by reporting unit and compensation for injuries or damages paid to another unit.
Capital transfers include conditional payments provided to a government unit for purchasing new
capital assets, transfers to enterprises to cover large operating deficits or finance their purchases
of capital assets, debt forgiveness (cancellation of a debt by mutual agreement between two
parties) and capital taxes paid to other government units.

Purchases / construction of capital assets - payments for capital assets which are goods that
are expected to be used during more than one reporting period and from which future economic
benefits or service potential are expected to flow, provided their value exceeded the
capitalisation threshold, currently R5 000, when originally purchased.
This item classification category represents only part of the total of payments for capital assets
as it is identified in the economic classification. The item, “payments for capital assets”, as
recorded in the economic classification is derived from the infrastructure segment, and not from
the item segment. Thus, the “purchases / construction of capital assets” classification category in
the item segment should not be confused with “payments for capital assets” as identified in the
budget documentation of departments.
In the item segment, “purchases / construction of capital assets” should be used for certain
purchases of capital assets, mainly in the following situations.
o When a stand-alone item of a capital nature is purchased, for example a vehicle, the
transaction is recorded as a non-infrastructure - capital payment in the infrastructure segment
and as “purchases / construction of capital assets” in the item segment. Under both the
infrastructure and item segments the transaction will furthermore be allocated as a “standalone capital” item.
o When a project of a capital nature is undertaken, for example, the building of a new
classroom, the transaction is recorded as an infrastructure - capital payment in the
infrastructure segment and as “purchases / construction of capital assets” in the item
segment. Under both the infrastructure and item segments the transaction will furthermore be
allocated as a “stand-alone capital” item. Under both the infrastructure and item segments the
transaction will furthermore be allocated as either “own account” or “outsourced projects”
depending on whether the department incurs the project on its own or outsources it to a
contractor.
The “purchases / construction of capital assets” classification category should not be used when
paying for labour (compensation of employees) or goods and services. Instead, the appropriate
posting level under either the “compensation of employees” or “goods and services” classification
category should be selected and will further be allocated as either “stand-alone capital” or “standalone current” depending on whether the project is of a capital or current nature.
However when goods and services items are used as inputs into a capital project undertaken on
own account, it will not be classified as “stand-alone” but as “purchases / construction of capital
assets”.
Major capital assets used for multiple projects or used in maintenance projects should be
classified as stand-alone purchases.
Remember that finance lease payments are included as part of this classification
category and that the finance lease payment item includes the capital portion and the
interest portion of financial lease payments. Therefore there is no need to split the
capital and interest portions.
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Both the item and asset segments have accounts relating to capital asset classes. For example, when
departments buy stand-alone capital assets and when an outside contractor undertakes a capital
project on behalf of a department, the entries are very similar in the two segments. However, the
entries differ in some situations, one example is provided below.
Under the item segment the purpose is to record the immediate use of funds. Therefore, for
example payments relating to a capital project for the construction of a capital asset, such as
payments on salaries and good and services are classified as “compensation of employees” and
“goods and services” and not as “payments for capital assets” as would be done in the asset segment
where the asset type is specified. This reflects the ultimate use of the funds.
Similarly the allocation under the economic classification will also be different, here the purpose is
(similar than that of the asset segment) to record the ultimate use of funds - namely the construction
of a capital asset. The economic classification entry is then also “payments for capital assets”, where
the asset class is sourced from the asset segment only. For more detail on understanding the
economic classification and the relationship of the segments of the SCOA to the economic
classification, refer
Similar to the infrastructure segment the item segment requires a further breakdown of the
transaction into:

Own account (part of a project)

Outsourced projects (part of a project)

Stand-alone current (non-capital items)

Stand-alone capital (capital assets)
During the 2012/2013 financial year the SCOA Technical Committee introduced Own
account and Outsourced classification principles. The Own account item was created
as PRJ (project) items. The previous PRJ items have been renamed to OWN items, to
eliminate the confusion between the PRJ items in the item segment and the project
segment. The prefix OWN and OUTS will now be used to distinguish between “Own
Account” and “Outsourced” items respectively. In short, OWN items are used when a
department undertakes an activity using its own inputs (e.g. personnel, materials etc.)
whereas OUTS items are used when a department outsources the activity.
An activity is outsourced when the department appoints a third party to carry out
specific projects on its behalf. In understanding this concept a distinction should be
made between ad hoc “contracting out” and “outsourcing”. “Contracting out” involves
short-term assignment or specific projects whereas “outsourcing” involves appointing
one or more entities to take responsibility for a function or process mainly related to
infrastructure projects for which the department remains accountable. Furthermore
outsourced projects usually take a longer period of time to complete and often span
over financial years.
The following, individually or in combination, could indicate the department has
outsourced the project:
 The department is not involved in the purchase of materials used as inputs to the
project.
 The project is fully carried out by the service provider and the department is only
responsible for management of that project.
 The third party only delivers the final product at the end of the project.
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 Single payment or a series of payments of the entire project are made to the
service provider.
In some instances a department appoints multiple contractors with specific skills and
responsibilities required to complete the project. This will not imply that the project as
a whole is not outsourced.
An activity is carried out on own account when the department purchases all the
necessary inputs and uses its own resources (e.g. staff and equipment) to plan,
implement, and execute the activity. Unlike outsourced projects, the department takes
full responsibility for the inputs, processes and ultimate delivery of the project outputs.
Inputs into the project may include the appointment of professional services such as
engineers, architects, project managers, materials, etc. Inputs also include small
outsourced projects. For example, the construction of a laboratory outsourced to a
private firm forming part of a school building project which is implemented by the
department on own account.
Example: Item segment - payments
Provincial Department of Public Works (DPW) purchases bricks for the construction of
a new hospital in the province.
The invoice is paid using departmental appropriation, voted funds discretionary and is
allocated against Programme 2 Public Works and the relevant Region cost centre.
Against which item will this transaction be allocated?
Goods and Services, Inventory: Materials and Supplies.
3.3
Asset segment
Purpose: To identify asset classes to which a transaction is allocated when the
purpose relates to an asset or the use of an asset. This segment in combination with
the infrastructure and item segment provides economic classification.
The economic classification is now derived from the combination of accounts in the infrastructure and
item segments, with the asset segment providing additional information on the type of capital asset
constructed or utilised in the transaction or project.
The asset segment provides information relating to specific assets and is useful in construction and
maintenance contracts. This segment is breakdown allowed so that departments’ can create their own
assets according to their needs.
The asset segment is aligned with financial statements and asset registers. While the asset segment
is the most important source of information for compiling the asset register, there is no one-on-one
relationship with the asset register.
Both the item and asset segments have accounts relating to asset classes. For example, when
departments buy stand-alone capital assets and when an outside contractor undertakes a capital
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project on behalf of a department, the entries are very similar in the two segments. However, the
entries differ in some situations.
The asset segment is divided into a number of different asset classes, with the high level categories
being tangible capital assets and intangible assets.
The category tangible capital assets consists of the following asset classes:

buildings and other fixed structures

machinery and equipment

heritage assets

specialised military assets

biological assets

land and sub-soil assets
The category intangible capital assets consist of a single main item:

software and intangible assets
There is no leased assets category under the asset segment. Allocating leased
assets will be done in the item segment under the relevant categories of “purchases /
construction of capital assets”. Departments should use the “tangible capital assets”
category to allocate transactions relating to operating leases.
Example: Asset segment
Provincial Department of Public Works (DPW) purchases bricks for the construction of
a new hospital in the province.
The invoice is paid using departmental appropriation, voted funds discretionary and is
allocated against Programme 2 Public Works and the relevant Region cost centre.
Against which asset will this transaction be allocated?
Buildings & Other Fixed Structures, Health Assets, Hospitals.
3.4
Project segment
Purpose: To identify whether or not a payment is part of a project.
Under this segment departments are encouraged to name the project entered into.
The project segment identifies projects within a department, allowing for the allocation of all payment
items to projects. This is a change from previous years, the project segment should now be used for
listing of projects. For purposes of detailed reporting on infrastructure, individual projects will be linked
to the appropriate reporting categories in the infrastructure segment, such as the split between current
and capital.
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Provision has been made for recording of research and development (R&D) expenditure for both
projects and stand-alone transactions.
The project segment only has two main levels to choose from:
1.
Projects
2.
No projects (stand-alone)
These are discussed below.

Projects
A project is a collection of tasks to achieve a certain goal.
Example: the construction of a new road.
Normally projects are related to capital assets.
Examples: building a new road or upgrading the existing one; adding to an existing building.
A project may consist of only one single contract.
Examples: the outsourcing to a single provider of a road construction; or to numerous service
providers together constituting a project, such as separate contracts with an electrician, a plumber
and builder contracted to complete a maintenance project related to a school.
Note: When a department performs normal maintenance, for example, replacing a
light bulb, painting an office room or repairing carpets (by the employees within their
establishment), the acquisition of material and supplies to be used on an ad-hoc basis
should be classified as “consumables” and not “purchases / construction of
capital assets”. No financial transaction takes place when the employees eventually
perform repairs and maintenance. If an external firm carries out repairs and
maintenance, the “contractors, maintenance and repairs” item under the “property
payments” category should be used when payment is made.

Stand-alone items
Expenditure on stand-alone items occurs when government buys individual goods or services from
outside suppliers / providers, provided that such purchases are not part of a project.
Examples: a department buying computers or vehicles, not part of a project, constitutes expenditure
on stand-alone items; a department paying an institution to train government employees is
expenditure on a stand-alone item.
Example: Project segment
Provincial Department of Public Works (DPW) purchases bricks for the construction of
a new hospital in the province.
The invoice is paid using departmental appropriation, voted funds discretionary and is
allocated against Programme 2 Public Works and the relevant Region cost centre.
Against which project will this transaction be allocated?
Projects, Project*.
The department should name the project.
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3.5
Objective segment
Purpose: To identify the programme / activity against which any given transaction
should be recorded. The segment reflects a department’s programme and subprogramme structure in as much detail as is required both for reporting and
management purposes.
In terms of the requirements of the Public Finance Management Act (PFMA), funds are appropriated
by programme (or main division within a vote).
The objective segment is also used to derive the functional classification of government expenditure
at a detailed sub-programme or activity level.
Example: Objective segment
Provincial Department of Public Works (DPW) purchases bricks for the construction of
a new hospital in the province.
The invoice is paid using departmental appropriation, voted funds discretionary and is
allocated against Programme 2 Public Works and the relevant Region cost centre.
Against which objective will this transaction be allocated?
XXX Province, DPW, Public Works Infrastructure.
3.6
Fund segment
Purpose: To identify the source of funding from which payments are effected, and the
nature of receipts.
The fund segment is also used to record receipts collected by departments for the
rendering of services, delivery of goods and other funds received within the normal
course of operations, i.e. departmental own revenue.
The main source of funding is from annual appropriations which consist of the following:
Voted funds discretionary is the main source of funds available to departments. These funds are
allocated through the annual appropriation by Parliament/Legislature per the Appropriation Act and
the Adjusted Appropriation Act and are used to finance the annual operating activities of departments.
Voted funds can be discretionary or “earmarked and specific funds”.
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Earmarked and specific funds are items identified in the departmental allocation letters as earmarked
funds, as well as amounts appropriated as “specifically and exclusively appropriated” in the
Appropriation Act and the Adjusted Appropriation Act.
Conditional grants are allocations to provinces and municipalities from national government’s share of
nationally raised revenue, which are conditional on certain services being delivered or on compliance
with specified requirements.
Any other expenditure not relating to “earmarked and specific funds” or “conditional grants” is
recorded against “voted funds discretionary”.
The SCOA is updated annually to be aligned with the published Appropriation and Division of
Revenue Acts for the specific year.
The assets and liabilities section in the fund segment provides for interdepartmental transactions at
national and provincial level and transactions relating to assets and liabilities.
Example: Fund segment
Provincial Department of Public Works (DPW) purchases bricks for the construction of
a new hospital in the province.
The invoice is paid using departmental appropriation, voted funds discretionary and is
allocated against Programme 2 Public Works and the relevant Region cost centre.
Against which fund will this transaction be allocated?
Departmental Appropriation, Voted Funds Discretionary, Voted Funds.
3.7
Responsibility segment
Purpose: To identify the cost centre of any given transaction. As the location of cost
centres various across departments, depending on their organisational structure, this
segment is not standardised and the departments maintains the segment.
The responsibility segment identifies the “cost centre” in the department’s organisational structure,
i.e. who takes responsibility and requires the funds for spending and accounting purposes.
The responsibility segment identifies the particular unit of the department, such as an office, a school
or a hospital clinic. Normally it includes a responsibility manager and a group of employees, who are
responsible for certain activities.
The responsibility segment is the only remaining non-standardised segment. This is because the
responsibilities are identified according to the needs of a department. Therefore departments need to
amend the structure according to their needs in terms of the requirements of their organisational
structure.
Note that objectives explain what needs to be done while responsibilities identify
who is responsible for the specific task / service. There is not always a one to one
relationship between a responsibility and an objective. The SCOA provides the facility
for individuals in one particular responsibility to work one or more objectives within a
department.
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Example: Responsibility segment
Provincial Department of Public Works (DPW) purchases bricks for the construction of
a new hospital in the province.
The invoice is paid using departmental appropriation, voted funds discretionary and is
allocated against Programme 2 Public Works and the relevant Region cost centre.
Against which responsibility will this transaction be allocated?
The department
Responsibilities.
3.8
should create own
responsibilities
under Departmental
Regional segment
Purpose: To identify which region benefits from government spending.
The regions are defined in great detail, down to individual municipalities and sometimes even to
wards, depending on the necessity of this detail and the arrangement between departments and the
relevant treasuries.
Note that the regional identifier segment identifies the beneficiary of the amounts
spent.
The beneficiary may differ from the department incurring the payments.
The regional segment is only relevant for payment transactions. Notwithstanding
this fact, all transactions must be posted to a segment.
Transactions in receipts and assets/liabilities should be posted to the item:
No payments: No regional identifier.
The regional segment, on the other hand, identifies the geographical location of the beneficiary of
the service delivery or recipient of goods.
Example: Regional identifier segment
Provincial Department of Public Works (DPW) purchases bricks for the construction of
a new hospital in the province.
The invoice is paid using departmental appropriation, voted funds discretionary and is
allocated against Programme 2 Public Works and the relevant Region cost centre.
Against which region will this transaction be allocated?
Regional Identifier, Region: Provincial, XXX, XX: Municipalities, XXX.
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Consolidated answer to the examples:
Infrastructure:
New Infrastructure Assets Capital, Construction - Own Account
Item:
Goods and Services, Inventory: Materials and Supplies
Assets:
Buildings & Other Fixed Structures, Health Assets, Hospitals
Project:
Projects, Project (the department to indicate the name of the project)
Objective:
XXX Province, DPW, Public Works Infrastructure
Fund:
Departmental Appropriation, Voted Funds Discretionary, Voted Funds
Responsibility:
XXX
Regional identifier:
Regional Identifier, Region: Provincial, XXX, XX: Municipalities, XXX
In summary, a transaction is complete once a selection is made from each of the eight segments. The
information generated per transaction is important for decision making and accountability purposes.
4
Understanding the Economic Classification
As described in the first part of this guideline, the Economic Reporting Format (ERF) provides for the
presentation format of government payments and receipts. It shows the way in which payments and
receipts are presented in the budget, and in-year and year-end financial reports of government units.
In order to record and report transactions, the SCOA must provide for all relevant aspects of the
economic classification within the ERF. As it is not possible to do this within a single dimension of the
chart, SCOA provides for the implementation of the economic classification across three different
segments, namely:
1.
Infrastructure segment;
2.
Item segment; and
3.
Asset segment.
The structure of the economic classification is very similar to that of the item segment. For the final
results, there are also many similarities between the numbers in the economic classification and item
segment. It is therefore not surprising that the item segment contributes importantly to the economic
classification.
The economic classification is derived from the combination of accounts in the infrastructure and item
segments, with the asset segment providing additional information on the type of asset constructed or
utilised in the transaction or project.
This is best explained by an example. If bricks are bought as part of the construction of a new school
building, the payment made will be classified as an infrastructure project payment, i.e. capital
payment, since the transaction forms part of a project to construct a building.
However, the bricks are as part of goods and services on the item list, which would result in such
items being classified as current payments if bought as stand-alone items. However, the intended
purpose, or ultimate use, of buying the bricks is to construct a capital asset, i.e. building and therefore
the transaction should be classified as capital payments - own-account construction in terms of
the economic classification. This is done by linking the transaction to the asset class “Buildings and
other fixed structures” in the asset segment and allocating the transaction to a capital project in the
infrastructure segment.
In the item segment, each transaction is recorded according to the immediate use of funds, without
taking into account its ultimate use. In the infrastructure and asset segments, on the other hand, the
ultimate use of the funds prevails. For example, if a government unit engages in a capital project to
build a new road, the ultimate use of the funds is to create a new capital asset, in this case a road.
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To achieve this, it must pay for labour and materials during the construction phase; these payments
represent the immediate use of the funds. In the economic classification, where the ultimate use of
funds is recognised, both entries are classified as payments for capital assets, buildings and other
fixed structures. However, the entries in the item segment reflect the immediate use; thus,
“compensation of employees” and “goods and services” are recorded.
Thus, the immediate use provides for the description of the item being bought and refers to its actual
form. The ultimate use, on the other hand, defines the eventual purpose for which the item being
bought will be used. For the ultimate use, the eventual or intended use of the item is considered, and
not the form of the item being bought.
In terms of economic classification the following items are used to present payments:
Current payments
Compensation of employees
Goods and services
Interest and rent on land
Financial transactions in assets and liabilities
Transfers and subsidies
Provinces and municipalities
Departmental agencies and accounts
Universities and technikons
Public corporations and private enterprises
Foreign governments and international organisations
Non-profit institutions
Households
Payments for capital assets
Buildings and other fixed structures
Machinery and equipment
Cultivated assets
Software and other intangible assets
Land and sub-soil assets
5
The Basic Accounting System (BAS)
BAS is the core of government accounting systems; it is the general ledger where all transactions are
recorded and classified in accordance with the principles of the SCOA and is the main source of
information for the preparation of management reports and the departmental financial statements.
For detail processes and procedures, the departments must regularly make reference to the BAS
website at http://bas.pwv.gov.za/ for all updated documents and training manual
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Transaction processing originates from transactions processed on BAS itself and also from
independent stand-alone systems that interface with BAS before they are “captured” in the general
ledger. An important internal control measure is to reconcile information in the independent standalone systems to BAS to ensure that transactions processed in the former are captured (i.e.
interfaces) correctly in BAS.
The various independent stand-alone systems interface with BAS, from where expenditure
transactions are initiated are depicted below, for example PERSAL, LOGIS, MEDSAS, etc.
All payments are disbursed in BAS, except for PERSAL.
There are exceptions where payments are captured directly in BAS and not via an
independent stand-alone system. These are referred to as “sundry payments” and are
NOT recommended. Sundry Payments should be limited to only payments that don’t
require purchase orders.
6
Recording of Basic Accounting Transactions
Accounting transactions are the components of a system that keeps track of the flow of money or
funds. In accounting, all money that flows in or out of a department must be recorded. Accounting
transactions are recorded according to the principle of a “debit” being recorded in one account and a
corresponding “credit” being recorded in another account.
Financial transactions must be captured by a department, in order to assist the department to manage
its operations efficiently and effectively, to assist with the financial planning and budgeting and to
ensure economic, efficient and effective service delivery to the public. Furthermore, financial
transactions form the basis for the compilation of financial statements at the end of each financial year
that report to the public how the department spent public money. Accounting can thus be seen as the
process of identifying, measuring and communicating information to different stakeholders.
Due to the latter, it is of the utmost importance that financial transactions are recorded timeously (cutoff), that all financial transactions are recorded (completeness), that transactions are recorded at the
correct amount (accuracy), in the correct account (classification) and that goods and or services have
either been received or given for the transactions recorded and they are supported by adequate
documentation (occurrence).
In order to ensure the above, reconciliations of departmental bank accounts, assets, accounts
receivable and accounts payable must be done on a regular basis in accordance with National
Treasury’s guidance.
An efficient and effective system of internal control is the cornerstone of a sound accounting system.
This includes a filing system for all supporting documentation, proper and regular reviews, and
segregation of duties amongst finance staff.
A financial transaction is an agreement, communication, or movement carried out
between two parties to exchange an asset or service for payment. In some instances
the other party does not exchange an asset or service and still receives payment.
This is called a non-exchange transaction.
It is still a transaction if you exchange the goods at one time, and the money at
another. This is known as a two-part transaction, part one is receiving the goods or
services; part two is giving the money.
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Below are examples of recording of basic accounting transactions in order to demonstrate how the
basic accounting equation and double-entry system, dealt with in Chapter on Concepts and
Principles of the Accounting Manual, works.
Example: Cash purchase of a motor vehicle to the value of R50 000.
The department’s assets, liabilities and net asset will be affected as follows:
The cash in the bank decreases and the capital expenditure increase.
The transaction therefore affects the assets and the expenditure of the department.
Bank (asset)
Increase
Capital Expenditure
Cr 50 000
Dr 50 000
Decrease
Increase
Decrease
Example: Payment of electricity bill amounting to R1 500
The department’s assets, liabilities and net assets will be affected as follows:
The cash in the bank decreases and the expenditure incurred increases.
An increase in expenditure means a decrease in surplus, which means a decrease in
liabilities since the surplus to be surrendered will be lower. Thus, to balance the
accounting equation, a decrease in assets will always result in a decrease in net
assets, unless the other leg of the transaction is assets or liabilities.
Bank (asset)
Increase
Current Expenditure
Cr 1,500
Dr 1,500
Decrease
Increase
Decrease
Example: Cash sale of goods to the value of R20 000
The department’s assets, liabilities and net assets will be affected as follows:
The cash in the bank increases and the revenue generated increases.
An increase in own revenue means an increase in surplus. This needs to be
surrendered to the Revenue Fund of which will lead to an increase in liabilities. Thus,
to balance the accounting equation, an increase in assets will always result in an
increase in net assets, unless the other leg of the transaction is assets or liabilities.
Bank (asset)
Own Revenue
Dr 20 000
Increase
6.1
Cr 20 000
Decrease
Decrease
Increase
Year end closure
At the end of each financial year the revenue and expenditure accounts are closed off and these
accounts will start with zero balances at the beginning of the next financial year.
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On the other hand, all asset and liability accounts will be reconciled and balances are carried forward
to the next financial year. Thus, as an example, the balance of the department’s bank account as at
31 March will be the opening balance of the department’s bank account as at 1 April.
7
Bank Reconciliation (BAS / PMG Account)
Payments and deposit recorded in the cashbook must, as a minimum, be reconciled to the bank
statement at the end of each month. The Treasury Regulations prescribe that bank reconciliations
must be performed daily.
Bank reconciliation is therefore the comparison of the cashbook balance (per BAS) and the bank
statement balance. The Bank Reconciliation Functional Area within BAS provides an automated
facility to reconcile the Cash Book balance with the Bank Balance, as per Bank Statement.
The actual Cash Book balance of the Department should at all times agree with the Bank balance.
Any discrepancies should be investigated.
8
Debtors’ and Creditors’ Reconciliation
Just as it is important for the department to reconcile the receipts and payments to the cashbook, it’s
also important to reconcile the debtor and creditor payments and receipts with the supporting
documentation.
The Debtors Reconciliation Functional Area within BAS provides an automated facility. Therefore only
Creditors reconciliation is manually performed.
It is good practice to reconcile the balance of the creditors (accounts in BAS or other reports) to the
balance as per supporting documentation on a monthly basis.
Steps to follow when performing creditors’ reconciliations:
9

Start with the closing balance of the previous month.

Include all the purchases which the department made during the month. The purchases need to
be included with reference to the invoice number to ensure that the information agrees to the
supplier’s information.

Deduct all the payments which the department made to the supplier during that month. The
invoice which was paid, as well as the payment date and reference need to be included in the
reconciliation to ensure that any discrepancies are followed up.

Calculate the closing balance based on above.

Agree the closing balance as per the records of the department to the closing balance as per the
creditor’s monthly statement.

Follow up any differences.

In the case of other creditors, review the cashbook for any payments made to and received by
other departments or entities. Prepare confirmation letters asking the relevant department or
entity to state if they agree / do not agree with the balance outstanding at a specific point in time.

Follow up any discrepancies between the balances as per the department’s records and that of
the supplier / creditor.
Salaries’ Reconciliation (BAS / PERSAL)
The Personnel Salary system (PERSAL) is the payroll system that performs all personnel
transactions. All salaries and allowances are paid through PERSAL and deductions are made directly
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from employee’s salary. PERSAL assembles the information and makes it available to interface into
BAS.
Users should check accuracy of the payroll postings because BAS does not initiate all payroll
transactions. Departments should not capture salaries information on BAS and no payment should be
made directly on BAS.
10
Assets’ Reconciliation (BAS / LOGIS)
As per the PFMA, the accounting officer of the department is responsible for the management and
safeguarding of the assets; it is therefore important that the department maintains an asset register to
ensure that the department records where all the assets are located and what the value is of those
assets.
The Logistical Information system (LOGIS) is the independent stand–alone system used in the supply
chain process for the procurement of goods and services, including capital assets. LOGIS is designed
to administer stores, monitor stock levels and provide an asset and inventory management facility (i.e.
asset registers).
The information included in the asset register should be used to complete the notes in the financial
statements.
It is best practice for the department to perform monthly reconciliations between the information
included in the asset register (LOGIS) and the information included in BAS to ensure that the
information on the assets agrees.
11
Inventory Reconciliation (BAS / LOGIS)
Similarly to assets the accounting officer of the department is responsible for the management and
safeguarding of inventory; it is therefore important that the department maintains an inventory register
or list to indicate where all inventories are located, the quantity on hand and what the value is of those
inventories. This should be maintained for all locations where inventory is kept. Items remain part of
inventory until such time as they are consumed no matter if they are issued from one store to another
in a different location.
12
The Payments Process
When capturing payments in the general ledger a standard process is followed. The accounting
entries will change depending on the payment method. (e.g. debit order, electronic bank transfer etc.)
or the type of expense (e.g. PERSAL, LOGIS, MEDSAS etc.).
12.1 PERSAL
The Personnel Salary system (PERSAL) is the independent stand-alone system used
for collection and recording all employee related information such as leave records,
personal information, medical aid benefits and taxation information.
PERSAL is also the payroll system that calculates the monthly salaries and deductions for all
employees. These transactions are recorded in the general ledger as “compensation of employees”.
When payments are processed through PERSAL the individual transaction is interfaced to BAS via
Transaction Processing Rules.
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Note that all personnel costs should be transacted through PERSAL. The processing
of personnel payments directly through BAS is NOT recommended.
12.2 LOGIS
The Logistical Information system (LOGIS) is the independent stand–alone system
used in the supply chain process for the procurement of goods and services.
The system is designed to administer stores, monitor stock levels and provide an asset and
inventory management facility (i.e. asset register). It provides information on inventory
received and paid in current financial year, inventory donated, etc
12.3 MEDSAS
MEDSAS is used for the procurement and management of pharmaceutical products
(mainly medicine). This independent stand–alone system is used by the Health
departments and their trading entities where applicable.
12.4 Sundry payments
A sundry payment is a method of payment whereby payment can be made for goods
and services for which no order was placed. BAS provides the facility to capture
sundry payments from an invoice or relevant source document.
Sundry payments can only be made to suppliers that are registered as entities on
BAS. Sundry payments are not recommended; they should only be utilised in
exceptional circumstances.
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13
Methods of Payment
When departments pay money in respect of goods or services received, it is part of the procurement
process which concludes when payments are processed for the goods or services received. The
preferred method of payment is electronic payments.
Each method of payment has its own payment process and procedure. However, the details of such
internal processes are not explained here as the various banking institutions may have different
requirements and reports associated with the methods of payment.
Departments and the relevant treasuries’ internal processes and procedures for the methods of
payment may therefore differ depending on their relationship with the relevant banking institution.
The preferred methods of payment are discussed below.
13.1 Electronic Fund Transfers (EFT)
Electronic payments are preferred and the majority of payments are made electronically because it is
a secure payment method. Cash or cheque payments are the exception and should be avoided.
13.2 Cash payments
Cash payments must be avoided. Where the exception arises, the payment must be carefully
administered by the relevant Treasury and the bank. An exception would be cash payments made
from petty cash which is discussed below.
13.3 Petty cash
The purpose of petty cash is to have a reasonable amount of cash on hand to pay small expenses as
a result of the day-to-day operations of a department.
14
Reconciliations
In the sub-systems discussion above “reconciliations” were referred to throughout.
Reconciliations are important as internal control measures and sound cash management practices.
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15
SUMMARY OF KEY PRINCIPLES
This chapter provides a basic understanding of how the Standard Chart of Accounts (SCOA) is
structured and how the Basic Accounting System (BAS) together with the stand-alone systems, is
organised to facilitate transaction processing and reporting.
It also provides guidance on the basic accounting for transactions in order to demonstrate how the
basic accounting equation and double-entry system, dealt with in Chapter on Concepts and
Principles, works.
15.1 Understanding the Standard Chart of Accounts
SCOA comprises the coding of items used for classification, budgeting, recording and reporting of
receipts and payments within the financial system. It serves to facilitate and systematise the recording
of all transactions and is directly linked to ERF, in fact, the posting level items roll up to the ERF
reporting format. When recording a transaction, a selection must be made from each of the eight
segments.
The segments are:
1. Infrastructure
2. Item
3. Assets
4. Project
5. Objective
6. Fund
7. Responsibility
8. Regional identifier
15.2 The Basic Accounting System
BAS is the core of government accounting systems; it is the general ledger where all transactions
are recorded and classified in accordance with the principles of the SCOA and is the main source of
information for the preparation of management reports and the departmental financial statements.
Transaction processing originates in independent stand-alone systems before they are “captured” in
the general ledger. An important internal control measure is to reconcile information in the subsystems to BAS to ensure that transactions processed in the sub-systems are captured correctly in
BAS.
The systems referred to above most commonly used are LOGIS, PERSAL and MEDSAS.
15.3 Recording of basic accounting transactions
Accounting transactions are recorded according to the principle of a “debit” being recorded in one
account and a corresponding “credit” being recorded in another account.
15.4 Bank reconciliation (BAS / PMG Account)
Bank reconciliation is the comparison of the cashbook balance (accounts per BAS) and the bank
statement balance (per PMG Account) at regular intervals. BAS provides automated bank
reconciliation functionality.
Differences between these balances must be investigated and explained.
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15.5 Debtors’ and creditors’ reconciliation
The Debtors Reconciliation Functional Area within BAS provides an automated facility. Therefore only
Creditors reconciliation is manually performed.
15.6 Salaries’ reconciliation (BAS / PERSAL)
The Personnel Salary system (PERSAL) is the payroll system that performs all personnel
transactions. All salaries and allowances are paid through PERSAL and deductions are made directly
from employee’s salary. PERSAL assembles the information and makes it available to interface into
BAS.
15.7 Assets and inventory reconciliation (BAS / LOGIS)
An assets or inventory reconciliation is the comparison of the information as per the LOGIS system,
the asset or inventory register and the information as per the BAS system on a monthly and yearly
basis.
Differences between these balances must be investigated and explained.
15.8 The payments process
When capturing payments in the general ledger a standard process is followed. The accounting
transaction differs depending on the payment method selected. bank transfer etc.) or the type of
expense (e.g. PERSAL, LOGIS, MEDSAS etc.).
PERSAL is the independent stand-alone system used for collection and recording all employee
related information such as leave records, personal information, medical aid benefits and taxation
information.
LOGIS is the independent stand-alone system used in the supply chain process for the procurement
of goods and services.
MEDSAS is used for the procurement and management of pharmaceutical products (mainly
medicine). This independent stand-alone system is used by the Health departments and their
trading entities where applicable.
15.9 The receipting process
The main types of receipts are annual and statutory appropriation and departmental revenue.
For the processing of receipt of annual appropriation (voted funds and conditional grants), into BAS,
two accounts are important. The exchequer grant account and the general account of the vote.
The exchequer grant account informs the department of the funds available in the relevant revenue
fund for withdrawal.
The general account of the vote informs the department of the total funds available for a particular
financial year. The balance in this account represents the total budget for the department per Fund.
For the processing of receipts of departmental revenue into BAS, the general account of revenue is
important.
The general account of revenue consists of the monthly pay-overs of revenue to the relevant revenue
fund.
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The Standard Chart of Accounts and Systems
ANNEXURE 1: BAS PROCESSING RULES
BAS has defined processing rules that determine how it collects, processes and responds to
information. To understand these processing rules, it is important to be familiar with the following
terms:
Functional area: the logical split of BAS functionalities into groups.
Transaction type: pre-defined rules per functional area that identifies where the transaction is
derived from. For example:

AP: Accounts payable (Sundry Payments transactions)

BR: Bank Reconciliation (Bank interfaced transactions)

CR: Cash Receipts (Cash Receipts transactions)

GJ: General Journal (General Journal transactions)

DB: Disbursements (Disbursement transactions)

CL: Commitments and Liabilities (Creditor Payments transactions)

PS: PERSAL (Transactions interfaced from Personnel System: PERSAL)
Three types of processing rules have been defined, namely:
1. Transaction Processing Rules (TPR)

Used to process transactions that have been defined according to transaction type and in
accordance with the predefined allocations associated with that transaction type.

Configured to indicate the fixed debit and/or credit leg(s) of a financial transaction.

Ensures that the basic accounting principles are adhered to e.g. debits are equal to credits.

Minimises the incidence of user errors.
2. Item Function Rules (IFR)

Restricts user access to certain Item Segment Details.

A user will only be able to post transactions to the Debt Account by using the Debt Functional
Area and if the user should select the General Journals Functional Area, the user will not be able
to see the Debt Account.
3. Item Processing Rules (IPR)

Links matching fields (additional components of allocations) to specific items allowing for
grouping of individual transactions to facilitate reconciliation.
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The Standard Chart of Accounts and Systems
ANNEXURE 2: BAS REPORTS OF BANK RECONCILIATION
Bank reconciliation report (BAS extract July 2013):
2014
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The Standard Chart of Accounts and Systems
ANNEXURE 3: LOGIS REPORTS FOR ASSETS’ RECONCILAITION AND
REPORTING IN THE AFS
Balancing sum - major assets on asset reporting:
Balancing sum - Major assets
Reports to use
Opening Balance as at 31 March 20x0
RY0A3 - beginning of period
Add: Additions
RY0A4 - Major Assets Additions
(Less): Disposals
RY0A5 - Major Assets Disposals
Add/(Less): Adjustments
RY0A6 - Major Assets Adjustments
(Less): Net Subsidiary Issues
RY0A7 - Major Assets Subsidiary Issues
Add/(Less): Net Internal Transfers
RY0A9 - Major Assets Internal Transfers
Closing Balance as at 31 March 20x1
RY0A3 - Major Assets Closing Balance
Balancing sum - minor assets on asset reporting:
Balancing sum - Minor assets
Reports to use
Opening Balance as at 31 March 20x0
RY0M3 - beginning of period
Add: Additions
RY0M4 - Minor Assets Additions
(Less): Disposals
RY0M5 - Minor Assets Disposals
Add/(Less): Adjustments
RY0M6 - Minor Assets Adjustments
(Less): Net Subsidiary Issues
RY0M7 - Minor Assets Subsidiary Issues
Add/(Less): Net Internal Transfers
RY0M9 - Minor Assets Internal Transfers
Closing Balance as at 31 March 20x1
RY0M3 - Minor Assets Closing Balance
Reporting of an individual store:
Include internal transfers within the same department for management and audit purposes.
Calculation:
RY0AM3 (
opening
) + RY0AM4 - RY0AM5 +- RY0AM6 - RY0AM7 +- RY0AM9 = RY0AM3 (
closing
)
Financial statement’s reporting:
Only net internal transfers within the same department should be included in the asset movement
calculation.
Calculation:
RY0AM3 (
opening
) + RY0AM4 - RY0AM5 +- RY0AM6 - RY0AM7 - (+- Net RY0AM9) = RY0AM3 (
closing
)
Below are extracts from the LOGIS reports listed above, with breakdowns on what they are made up
of.
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The Standard Chart of Accounts and Systems
Layout for Report RYAM4 Asset Register Additions (LOGIS extract July 2013):
Layout for Report RYAM5 Asset Register Disposals (LOGIS extract July 2013):
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The Standard Chart of Accounts and Systems
Layout for Report RYAM6 Asset Register Adjustments (LOGIS extract July 2013):
Layout for Report RYAM7 Asset Register Subsidiary Issues (LOGIS extract July 2013):
2014
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The Standard Chart of Accounts and Systems
Layout for Report RYAM9 Asset Register Internal Transfers (LOGIS extract July 2013):
Layout for Report RY0A3 - Major Asset Register Closing Balance (LOGIS extract July 2013):
2014
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The Standard Chart of Accounts and Systems
Layout for Report RY0A4-1 Major Asset Register Cash Additions (LOGIS extract July 2013):
Layout for Report RY0A4-2 Major Asset Register Non-Cash Additions (LOGIS extract July 2013):
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The Standard Chart of Accounts and Systems
RY0A4 Major Asset Additions Breakdown
Major Asset Additions
=
Cash Additions (RY0A4-1) + Non-Cash Additions
(RY0A4-2)
Cash Additions (RY0A4-1)
=
Cash Payment: Assets Received and paid in Current
Financial Year (FY)
+
Cash Outstanding: Assets Received but not yet Paid
+
Cash Sundry: Extra Ordinary Receipt of Assets from
Supplier
+
Cash Transfer In: Assets Received from External Store
+
Petty Cash: Assets Received and Paid with Petty Cash
=
Non-Cash Donation: Assets Received as Donation
+
Non-Cash In Kind: Assets Received for Free or Without
Price
+
Non-Cash Transfer In: Assets Received from External
Store
-
Non-Cash: Assets Return to Supplier
-
Non-Cash: Assets Return to External Store
Non-Cash Additions (RY0A4-2)
Layout for Report RY0A5-1 Major Asset Register Disposals Sold for Cash (LOGIS extract July
2013):
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The Standard Chart of Accounts and Systems
Layout for Report RY0A5-2 Major Asset Register Non-Cash Disposals (LOGIS extract July 2013):
RY0A5 Major Asset Disposals Breakdown
Major Asset Disposals
=
Sold for Cash (RY0A5-1) + Non-Cash Disposals (RY0A52)
Sold for Cash (RY0A5-1)
=
Assets Sold for Cash
Non-Cash Disposals (RY0A5-2)
=
Transfer Out: Assets Issued to External Store
+
Assets: Destroyed or Scrapped
+
Assets: Donated
+
Assets Lost: Recovered
+
Assets Lost: Non-Recovered
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The Standard Chart of Accounts and Systems
Layout for Report RY0A6-1 Major Asset Register - Adjustments to Prior Period Balances (LOGIS
extract July 2013):
Layout for Report RY0A6-2 Major Asset Register - General Adjustments (LOGIS extract July
2013):
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The Standard Chart of Accounts and Systems
RY0A6 Major Asset Adjustments Breakdown
Major Asset Adjustments
Adjustments to Prior Period Balances
(RY0A6-1)
General Adjustments (RY0A6-2)
=
Adjustments to Prior Period Balances (RY0A6-1) +
General Adjustments (RY0A6-2)
= +-
Adjustments to Prior Period Additions
+-
Adjustments to Prior Period Disposals
-
Reclassified: Prior Period Assets to Inventory
+-
Reclassified: Prior Period Asset Category Corrections
+-
Cash: Price Increase/Decrease on Prior Period Additions
+-
Non-Cash: Current Period Price Corrections
=
Non-Cash: Asset Verification Surplus
+-
Non-Cash: Asset Data Correction
+-
Reclassified: Current FY Asset to/from Inventory
+-
Reclassified: Current FY Asset Category Corrections
+-
Cash: Price Increase/Decrease on Current Period
Additions
+-
Non-Cash: Current Period Price Corrections
Layout for Report RY0A7-1 Major Asset Register - Cash Subsidiary Issues (LOGIS extract July
2013):
2014
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The Standard Chart of Accounts and Systems
Layout for Report RY0A7-2 Major Asset Register - Non-Cash Subsidiary Issues (LOGIS extract
July 2013):
Layout for Report RY0A9-1 Major Asset Register - Matched Internal Transfers (LOGIS extract July
2013):
2014
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The Standard Chart of Accounts and Systems
Layout for Report RY0A9-2 Major Asset Register - Unmatched Internal Transfers (LOGIS extract
July 2013):
RY0A9 Major Asset Internal Transfers Breakdown
Major Asset Internal Transfers
=
Matched Internal Transfers (RY0A9-1) + Unmatched
Internal Transfers (RY0A9-2)
Matched* Internal Transfers (RY0A9-1)
=
Cash Transfer In: Assets Received from Internal Store
+
Non-Cash Transfer In: Assets Received from Internal
Store
-
Reversals of Prior Year Assets Internal Transfer In
+
Reversals of Prior Year Assets Internal Transfer Out
-
Cash Transfer Out: Assets Issued to Internal Store
-
Non-Cash Transfer Out: Assets Issued to Internal Store
* An asset will be a match if the ICN, serial number, unique number, transfer out price and transfer in price in
an exact match
Unmatched Internal Transfers (RY0A92)
2014
=
Cash Transfer In: Assets Received from Internal Store
+
Non-Cash Transfer In: Assets Received from Internal
Store
-
Reversals of Prior Year Assets Internal Transfer In
+
Reversals of Prior Year Assets Internal Transfer Out
-
Cash Transfer Out: Assets Issued to Internal Store
-
Non-Cash Transfer Out: Assets Issued to Internal Store
Page 45
The Standard Chart of Accounts and Systems
Layout for Report RY0M4-1 Minor Asset Register Cash Additions (LOGIS extract July 2013):
Layout for Report RY0M4-2 Minor Asset Register Non-Cash Additions (LOGIS extract July 2013):
2014
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The Standard Chart of Accounts and Systems
RY0M4 Minor Asset Additions Breakdown
Minor Asset Additions
=
Cash Additions (RY0M4-1) + Non-Cash Additions
(RY0M4-2)
Cash Additions (RY0M4-1)
=
Cash Payment: Assets Received and paid in Current
Financial Year (FY)
+
Cash Outstanding: Assets Received but not yet Paid
+
Cash Sundry: Extra Ordinary Receipt of Assets from
Supplier
+
Cash Transfer In: Assets Received from External Store
+
Petty Cash: Assets Received and Paid with Petty Cash
=
Non-Cash Donation: Assets Received as Donation
+
Non-Cash In Kind: Assets Received for Free or Without
Price
+
Non-Cash Transfer In: Assets Received from External
Store
-
Non-Cash: Assets Return to Supplier
-
Non-Cash: Assets Return to External Store
Non-Cash Additions (RY0M4-2)
Layout for Report RY0M5-1 Minor Asset Register Disposals Sold for Cash (LOGIS extract July
2013):
2014
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The Standard Chart of Accounts and Systems
Layout for Report RY0M5-2 Minor Asset Register Non-Cash Disposals (LOGIS extract July 2013):
RY0M5 Minor Asset Disposals Breakdown
Major Asset Disposals
=
Sold for Cash (RY0M5-1) + Non-Cash Disposals (RY0M52)
Sold for Cash (RY0M5-1)
=
Assets Sold for Cash
Non-Cash Disposals (RY0M5-2)
=
Transfer Out: Assets Issued to External Store
+
Assets: Destroyed or Scrapped
+
Assets: Donated
+
Assets Lost: Recovered
+
Assets Lost: Non-Recovered
2014
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The Standard Chart of Accounts and Systems
Layout for Report RY0M6-1 Minor Asset Register - Adjustments to Prior Period Balances (LOGIS
extract July 2013):
Layout for Report RY0M6-2 Minor Asset Register - General Adjustments (LOGIS extract July
2013):
2014
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The Standard Chart of Accounts and Systems
RY0M6 Minor Asset Adjustments Breakdown
Minor Asset Adjustments
Adjustments to Prior Period Balances
(RY0M6-1)
General Adjustments (RY0M6-2)
=
Adjustments to Prior Period Balances (RY0M6-1) +
General Adjustments (RY0M6-2)
= +-
Adjustments to Prior Period Additions
+-
Adjustments to Prior Period Disposals
-
Reclassified: Prior Period Assets to Inventory
+-
Reclassified: Prior Period Asset Category Corrections
+-
Cash: Price Increase/Decrease on Prior Period Additions
+-
Non-Cash: Current Period Price Corrections
=
Non-Cash: Asset Verification Surplus
+-
Non-Cash: Asset Data Correction
+-
Reclassified: Current FY Asset to/from Inventory
+-
Reclassified: Current FY Asset Category Corrections
+-
Cash: Price Increase/Decrease on Current Period
Additions
+-
Non-Cash: Current Period Price Corrections
Layout for Report RY0M9-1 Minor Asset Register - Matched Internal Transfers (LOGIS extract
July 2013):
2014
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The Standard Chart of Accounts and Systems
Layout for Report RY0M9-2 Minor Asset Register - Unmatched Internal Transfers (LOGIS extract
July 2013):
RY0M9 Major Asset Internal Transfers Breakdown
Major Asset Internal Transfers
=
Matched Internal Transfers (RY0M9-1) + Unmatched
Internal Transfers (RY0M9-2)
Matched* Internal Transfers (RY0M9-1)
=
Cash Transfer In: Assets Received from Internal Store
+
Non-Cash Transfer In: Assets Received from Internal
Store
-
Reversals of Prior Year Assets Internal Transfer In
+
Reversals of Prior Year Assets Internal Transfer Out
-
Cash Transfer Out: Assets Issued to Internal Store
-
Non-Cash Transfer Out: Assets Issued to Internal Store
* An asset will be a match if the ICN, serial number, unique number, transfer out price and transfer in price in
an exact match
Unmatched Internal Transfers (RY0M92)
2014
=
Cash Transfer In: Assets Received from Internal Store
+
Non-Cash Transfer In: Assets Received from Internal
Store
-
Reversals of Prior Year Assets Internal Transfer In
+
Reversals of Prior Year Assets Internal Transfer Out
-
Cash Transfer Out: Assets Issued to Internal Store
-
Non-Cash Transfer Out: Assets Issued to Internal Store
Page 51
The Standard Chart of Accounts and Systems
ANNEXURE 4: LOGIS REPORTS FOR INVENTORY RECONCILAITION AND
REPORTING IN THE AFS
Departments needs to complete an annexure to the financial statements showing the opening
balance, movement and closing balance of their inventory. For more detail refer to Chapter on
Inventory.
The reports to be used from LOGIS for reporting in the financial statements are as follows:
Inventory
Reports to use
Opening balance
Opening Balance (RY0I3) as at 31 March 20x0
Add/(Less): Adjustments to prior year
balance
Adjustments to Opening Balance (RY0I6-1/2)
Add: Additions/Purchases - Cash
Additions (RY0I4-1/2)
Add: Additions - Non-cash
Additions (RY0I4-3/4) Minus Inventory Verification Surplus
(RY0I4-3/4)
(Less): Disposals
Disposals (RY0I5-1/2)
(Less): Issues
Issues (RY0I7-1/2/3/4) Minus (+- Net Internal Transfer
RY0I9-1/2/3/4)
Add/(Less): Adjustments
Adjustments (RY0I6-3/4) Plus/Minus Weighted Average
Price
Variance (RY0I8) Plus Inventory Verification Surplus (RY0I43/4)
Closing balance
Closing Balance (RY0I3) as at 31 March 20x1
Reporting of an individual store:
Include internal transfers within the same department for management and audit purposes.
Calculation:
RY0I3 (
opening
) + RY0I4 - RY0I5 +- RY0I6 – [RY0I7 – (+- RY0I9)]= RY0I3 (
closing
)
Financial statement’s reporting:
Only net internal transfers within the same department should be included in the inventory
movement calculation.
Calculation:
RY0I3 (
2014
opening
) + RY0I4 - RY0I5 +- RY0I6 – [RY0I7 – (+- Net RY0I9)] = RY0I3 (
closing
)
Page 52
The Standard Chart of Accounts and Systems
ANNEXURE 5: UNDERSTANDING THE BAS TRIAL BALANCE
The BAS trial balance (extract of report: July 2013) has been broken down into sections and is
analysed to explain what the information means and how it should be verified:
TRIAL BALANCE
RECEIPTS
DEBIT
GENERAL ACCOUNT OF FUND/VOTE
EXCHEQUER GRANT ACCOUNT:CL
CREDIT
961 091 000.00
-
MARK ESTAB:RENTAL DWELLINGS
REQ INFO:DUP CERTIFICATE
SERV REND:COMM INSURNCE&GARNSHEE
PATIENT FEES
INTEREST:BANK ACCOUNTS
INT REC:PRIV SEC:DOM:CONTR DEBT
SALES OF CAPITAL ASSETS
REV:FA:LN:PRV S:DOM:CON DPT DEBT
REV:FA:REC:PRIV SEC:DOMESTIC SER
REV:FA:REC OF PREV YEARS' EXP
REV:FA:STALE CHEQUES
GENERAL ACCOUNT OF REVENUE
Voted funds:
Used funds:
Compensation:
Goods & services:
Transfers:
Capital assets:
Voted funds to be surrendered:
Departmental revenue:
Monthly pay-overs
Departmental revenue to be surrendered:
PAYMENTS
S&W:BASIC SALARY (RES)
S&W:PERFORMANCE BONUS (RES)
S&W:SERV BASED OTHER (RES)
S&W:COMPENS/CIRCUMSTAN: RES
S&W: NON PENSIONABLE ALL OTH(RES
EMPL CONTR:BARGAIN COUNCIL(RES)
EMPL CONTR:MEDICAL (RES)
EMPL CONTR:PENSION (RES)
REGISTRATION FEES
BANK CHARG&CARD FEES COMM BANK
TRAVEL AGENCY FEES
ADVERT:PROMOTIONAL ITEMS
ADVERT:MARKETING
ADVERT:RECRUITMENT
EQP<R5000:DOMESTIC EQUIPMENT
EQP<R5000:GARDENING EQUIPMENT
EQP<R5000:KITCHEN APPLIANCES
EQP<R5000:LAUNDRY EQUIPMENT
C/EQP<R5000:COMPUTER EQUIPMENT
F&O/EQP<R5000:CROCKERY & CUTLERY
F&O/EQP<R5000:DOMESTIC FURNITURE
F&O/EQP<R5000:OFFICE EQUIPMENT
F&O/EQP<R5000:OFFICE FURNITURE
PHO EQP<R5000:PHOTOGRAPHIC EQUIP
AUDIT FEES:EXT CURRENT YEAR
AUDIT FEES:EXT PREVIOUS YEAR
BURSARIES (EMPLOYEES)
CATERING:DEPARTML ACTIVITIES
2014
248 000.00
850.00
347 728.42
23 895.00
1 046 795.66
257.50
626 609.29
511 113.31
2 028.00
2 783 713.54
2 000.00
5 079 654.81
SOURCE DOCUMENTATION
Approved budget
Funds not requested (avaliable budget)
Own revenue generated by department
(sources include: receipts, PERSAL
deductions, binding arrangements with
3rd parties, etc)
Monthly pay-overs of own revenue to
revenue fund
961 091 000.00
(957 588 010.63)
361 113 681.89
171 421 195.57
346 652 947.52
78 400 185.65
3 502 989.37
Liability in statement of financial position
5 592 990.72
(5 079 654.81)
513 335.91
Liability in statement of financial position
DEBIT
245 542 364.69
4 230 528.30
89 038.87
1 597 314.11
50 363 289.23
99 209.41
27 334 612.48
31 857 324.80
41 145.32
47 527.09
1 858 482.93
2 758 811.36
1 681 732.06
37 100.30
17 923.00
9 010.04
72 527.62
798.00
17 495.31
27 009.95
15 198.98
132 365.26
1 357 279.29
23 438.35
1 012 268.88
1 998 368.08
931 503.28
8 024 139.43
CREDIT
SOURCE DOCUMENTATION
Compensation paid to employees
(sources include: BAS/PERSAL recon,
employee files, leave registers, etc)
NB: BAS/LOGIS reconciliation
Page 53
The Standard Chart of Accounts and Systems
PAYMENTS (cont)
COM:CELL CONTRACT (SUBSCR&CALLS)
COM:LICENCES (RADIO&TV)
COM:POST/STAMP/FRANK MACH
COM:RENT PRIV BAG&POST BOX
COM:TEL/FAX/TELEGRAP&TELEX
COM:TELEPHONE INSTALLATION
SITA DATA LINES
SITA INFORMATION SERVS
SITA SYSTEM DEVELOPMT
EXT COMP SER:DATA LINES
EXT COMP SER:SOFTWARE LICEN
C/P:BUS&ADV SER:AUDIT COM(N-OFF)
C/P:BUS&ADV SER:HUMAN RESOURCE
C/P:BUS&ADV SER:RESEARCH&ADVISOR
C/P:BUS&ADV SER:QUALIFICTN VERIF
C/P:BUS&ADV SER:TRNSLAT&TRNSCRPT
C/P:L/STATE ATTNY:LEGAL ADVICE
CONTRCTRS:BUILDING&CONSTRUCTION
CONTRCTRS:CASUAL LABOURERS
CONTRCTRS:FIRE FIGTHTING SERV
CONTRCTRS:MAINT&REP OF MACH&EQP
CONTRCTRS:STAGE AND SOUND CREW
A&S/O/S:SOCIAL CARE SERVICES
A&S/O SER:ADMIN&SUPPORT STAFF
A&S/O/S:PROFESSIONAL STAFF
A&S/O/S:INTERNAL AUDITORS
A&S/O/S:RESEARCHER
A&S/O CATERING SER:PATIENTS
A&S/O SER:BURIAL SERVICES
F/SER:TRACKING(PHYS CS)
F/SER:FUEL,OIL&GREASE
F/SER:SPARES&ACCESSORIE
F/SER:TYRES&TUBES
F/SER:VEHICLE REPAIRS
F/SER:TOLL FEES
INV FOOD SUP:BREAD&CONFECTIONERY
INV FOOD SUP:EGGS&EGG PRODUCTS
INV FOOD SUP:FRUIT & VEGETABLES
INV FOOD SUP:GROCERIES
INV FOOD SUP:MEAT,POULTRY,FISH
INV FOOD SUP:MILK&MILK PRODUCTS
INV F&G:FUEL, OIL & LUBRICANTS
INV F&G:GENERAL GAS
INV F&G:HOUSEHOLD GAS
INV MAT&SUPPLIES:BATTERIES
INV RAW MAT:BUILDING&CONSTRC MAT
INV MAT&SUP:ELECTRICAL SUPPLIES
INV MAT&SUP:HARDWARE
INV MAT&SUP:SPARES & ACCESSORIES
INV MAT&SUP:WORKSHOP ACCESSRIES
INV MED:SURGICAL/MEDICAL SUPPLS
INV OTH CONS:BROOMS&BRUSHES
INV OTH CONS:CROCKERY & CUTLERY
INV OTH CONS:DISP PAPER/PLASTIC
INV OTH CONS:GARDENING SUPPLIES
INV OTH CONS:INSECTICIDES
INV OTH CONS:LABORATORY CHEMS
INV OTH CONS:LINEN
INV OTH CONS:NEEDLEWRK ACCESSRS
INV OTH CONS:LICENCE PLATES
INV OTH CONS:SPRT&RECRN CONSMBLS
INV OTH CONS:TOILETRIES
INV OTH CONS:TUBELGHTS&LGHT BULB
INV OTH CONS:UNIF&PROTEC CLTHING
INV OTH CONS:WASH/CLEAN DETERGNT
INV STA&PRNT:COMPUTER CONSMBLES
INV STA&PRNT:MAGZINES/NEWSPAPRS
INV STA&PRNT:PRINTING DEPRTMNTAL
INV STA&PRNT:GOVERNMENT PRINTER
INV STA&PRNT:STATIONERY
OPERATING LEASES
RENTAL & HIRING
P/P:CLEANING SERVICES
P/P:CONTRACT MAINTNNCE PROP
P/P:MUNICIPAL SERV EXCL R&T
P/P:SAFEGUARD&SECURITY
2014
DEBIT
645 179.66
6 225.00
21 630.61
9 206.60
11 790 603.28
5 757.00
151 506.09
1 042 537.25
108 448.60
241 915.83
26 842.21
207 563.78
207 961.02
495 672.00
7 050.00
7 478.40
85 000.00
92 576.02
4 427.00
3 418.57
183 330.91
916 004.92
2 612 765.28
117 878.79
316 298.38
672 305.52
1 530 957.84
739 870.00
212 092.47
686 185.39
11 347 264.59
3 723.74
75 025.91
306 524.42
42 902.50
66 466.20
3 332.94
65 632.53
3 393 808.26
332 037.48
72 774.51
14 291.30
1 086.36
2 139.84
5 173.22
5 877.26
163 001.40
8 956.01
77 445.91
144.20
15 266.97
62 153.72
39 947.08
97.45
52 483.47
277.58
25 000.20
171 949.02
225.00
90.00
14 203.99
379 989.58
19 345.36
229 513.90
573 099.94
1 807 996.55
10 607.70
902 233.82
21 841.20
2 219 306.74
17 333 904.73
92 239.40
342 214.57
1 829 570.78
4 854 484.21
31 982 482.17
CREDIT
SOURCE DOCUMENTATION
Goods and services
(sources include: invoices, contracts
claims, bank statements, etc)
Page 54
The Standard Chart of Accounts and Systems
PAYMENTS (cont)
O&L/P/P:UPGRADE&ADDITIONS PROP
TRANSPT OF PATIENTS&CORPS
TRANSPT FOR PUBLIC EVENTS
T&S DOM:ACCOMMODATION
T&S DOM:DAILY ALLOWANCE
T&S DOM: SPECIAL DAILY ALLOWANCE
T&S DOM:FIXED DAILY ALLOWANCE
T&S DOM:FOOD&BEVER(SERVED)
T&S DOM:INCIDENTAL COST
T&S DOM WITHOUT OP:CAR RENTAL
T&S DOM WITHOUT OP:KM ALL(OWN TR
T&S DOM WITHOUT OP: KM ALL(SMS>)
T&S DOM WITH OP:AIR TRANSPORT
T&S DOM WITH OP:ROAD TRANSPORT
TRAIN & DEV:EMPLOYEES
TRAIN & DEV:MATERIAL&MANUALS
O/P:COURIER & DELIVERY SERVS
O/P:HONORARIA(VOLUNTARY WORKERS)
O/P:NONLIFE INSRNC PRM-TRY12.1.2
O/P:PROF BODIES,MEMB&SUBSC FEES
O/P:RESETTLEMENT COST
O/P:ACHIEVEMENTS AND AWARDS
O/P:STORAGE OF FILES
O/P:FREIGHT SERVICES TRSPRT GOOD
VENUES AND FACILITIES
NPI:OTH NON PROFIT INSTITUTIONS
H/H EMPL S/BEN:INJURY ON DUTY
H/H EMPL S/BEN:LEAVE GRATUITY
H/H EMPL S/BEN:SEVERANCE PACKAGE
H/H:BURSARIES(NON-EMPLOYEE)
BUILDINGS & OTHER FIX STRUCT
MOTOR VEHICLES
COMPUTER HARDWARE&SYSTEMS
DOMESTIC EQUIPMENT
DOMESTIC FURNITURE
OFFICE EQUIPMENT
OFFICE FURNITURE
GARDENING EQUIPMENT
KITCHEN APPLIANCES
ASSETS
DEBIT
CREDIT
SOURCE DOCUMENTATION
1 113 723.62
150.00
923 597.00
14 029 616.47
7 665.69
658 108.82
68 304.00
957 687.39
422 682.30
164 493.35
12 298 280.08
1 355 496.43
421 726.24
72 325.70
4 174 120.93
437 353.83
293.87
4 515 804.30
1 837 656.83
410.40
112 598.19
547.20
234 532.53
58 000.00
5 375 073.74
339 222 395.21
2 712.27
383 211.52
343 045.69
6 701 582.83
Transfers and subsidies
(sources include: budget, employee files,
invoices, etc)
66 877 782.37
4 002 732.57
3 857 428.15
76 151.54
52 897.98
430 912.65
2 951 376.28
74 637.18
76 266.93
DEBIT
BANK ACCOUNT:DOM
Expenditure for capital assets
(sources include: invoices, claims, etc)
NB: BAS/LOGIS reconciliation
CREDIT
SOURCE DOCUMENTATION
66 288.62
CHEQUES PAYABLE:DOM
OUTSTANDING PAYMENTS:DOM
Consolidated PMG account
NB: Bank reconciliation
1 869.03
58 167.19
PETTY CASH:DOM
-
ADV:DOM:PRIVATE ENT:ADV ACC:CA
1 026 904.76
DEBT ACCOUNT:CA
UNAUTHORISED EXP: DEPT VOTE:CA
SAL:INCOME TAX:CL
STAFF DEBT
CLAIMS RECOVERABLE
OTHER DEBTORS
1 855 000.00
Disbursements
Petty cash on hand - NB: Controls & count
Prepayments and advances
NB: Reconciliation & recording of
necessary expenditure
103.31
699 291.18
454 587.66
379 409.72
Receivables (cash due to department)
NB: Monthly reconciliation and age
analysis of uncleared balances
Credit balances to be investigated
LIABILITIES
DEBIT
DISALLOWANCE MISCELLANEOUS: CA
NET ASSETS
DEBT RECEIVABLE INCOME:CA
DEBT RECEIVABLE INTEREST:CA
CREDIT
9 775.41
DEBIT
CREDIT
392 103.46
3 138.26
SOURCE DOCUMENTATION
Payables
(sources include: PERSAL deductions
schedules)
SOURCE DOCUMENTATION
Recoverable revenue
---------------------- ---------------------967 149 147.38
967 149 147.38
---------------------- ----------------------
2014
Page 55
The Standard Chart of Accounts and Systems
ANNEXURE 6: BAS AND SCOA SEGMENTS
The eight segment types of the SCOA are required fields when posting transactions in BAS.
Number
Segment
Description
Examples
1
Infrastructure
Identifies whether or not a spending
item relates to infrastructure and to
show the type of infrastructure it
relates to
 Existing infrastructure assets:
Maintenance and repairs
 Existing infrastructure assets:
Upgrades and additions
 Existing infrastructure assets:
Rehabilitation and
refurbishment
 New infrastructure: Purchased
 New infrastructure: Construction
 Non-infrastructure transfers
2
Item
To record receipt and payment
transactions as well as transactions
in assets and liabilities




Assets (furniture)
Liabilities (loans)
Expenditure (electricity)
Revenue (patient fees)
3
Assets
Identifies asset classes to which a
transaction is allocated when the
purpose relates to an asset or the
use of an asset




Tangible capital assets
Intangible capital assets
Minor assets < R5 000
Non-asset related
4
Project
Identifies whether or not a payment
is part of a project
 Projects
 No projects (Stand-alone)
5
Objective
Identifies the programme / activity
against which any given transaction
should be recorded. The segment
reflects a department’s programme
and sub-programme structure in as
much detail as is required both for
reporting and management
purposes.
The Programme structure or main
division within a Vote
The number of programmes in each
Vote may vary
6
Fund
Identifies the source of funding from
which payments are effected, and
the nature of receipts.
This segment is also used to record
receipts collected by departments
for the rendering of services,
delivery of goods and other funds
received within the normal course of
operations, i.e. departmental own
revenue.
 Voted funds (expenditure &
revenue)
 Donor funds
 Trust funds
 Trading accounts
 Assets & liabilities
7
Responsibility
Identifies the cost centre of any
given transaction. As the location of
 Principle responsibility
2014
Page 56
The Standard Chart of Accounts and Systems
Number
8
2014
Segment
Regional
identifier
Description
cost centres various across
departments, depending on their
organisational structure, this
segment is not standardised and
the departments maintains the
segment.
Examples
Identifies which region benefits from
government spending




 Departmental responsibility
Ward
Municipality
District
Province
Page 57