IN CONVERSATION WITH GORDON MAETA-DIRECTOR OF RIXFORENSICA
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South Africa has recorded the highest number of occupational fraud cases in Sub-Saharan Africa in the latest global study by the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners (ACFE), highlighting persistent vulnerabilities in workplace controls, procurement systems and organisational governance.
The ACFE's Occupational Fraud 2026: A Report to the Nations recorded 123 cases involving South Africa, out of 397 cases captured across Sub-Saharan Africa. Nigeria followed with 64 cases and Kenya with 33.
The figures come from a global study of 2,402 real-world occupational fraud cases investigated across 143 countries and territories. The ACFE describes occupational fraud as fraud committed by an individual against the organisation for which they work. The cases examined in the report resulted in more than US$3.4 billion in total losses, with a median loss of US$104,000 per case globally.
The findings do not mean that South Africa necessarily experiences more fraud than every other African country. Rather, South Africa had the largest number of cases represented in the ACFE's Sub-Saharan Africa dataset, making the country's figures an important indicator of the fraud risks identified by fraud examiners.
The report estimates that organisations worldwide lose approximately 5% of their annual revenue to fraud. A typical occupational fraud case also goes undetected for about 12 months, giving perpetrators considerable time to conceal losses or manipulate systems before the misconduct is discovered.
For South African organisations, the findings are particularly significant given the country's continuing challenges around procurement, financial controls and accountability.
Procurement remains a major vulnerability
Corruption was the most common occupational fraud scheme identified in Sub-Saharan Africa, featuring in 56% of cases in the region.
The forms of asset misappropriation identified included theft of non-cash assets and billing fraud, each accounting for 23% of cases, followed by cheque and payment tampering at 13% and expense reimbursement fraud at 12%.
The risks are particularly relevant to procurement, where fraudulent activity can involve inflated invoices, fictitious or preferred suppliers, conflicts of interest, kickbacks, bid manipulation and collusion between employees and external service providers.
South Africa's public sector provides a wider context for these concerns.
The Auditor-General of South Africa (AGSA) reported that government institutions recorded R42.58 billion in irregular expenditure during the 2024-25 financial year, down from R49.53 billion in the previous year. However, AGSA cautioned that the figure may not represent the full extent of the problem because 33% of auditees either had qualified disclosures relating to the completeness of their irregular expenditure or were still investigating amounts that could potentially be irregular.
Procurement and contract-management failures were identified as the primary drivers of the irregular expenditure.
The ACFE's Occupational Fraud 2026: A Report to the Nations recorded 123 cases involving South Africa, out of 397 cases captured across Sub-Saharan Africa. Nigeria followed with 64 cases and Kenya with 33.
The figures come from a global study of 2,402 real-world occupational fraud cases investigated across 143 countries and territories. The ACFE describes occupational fraud as fraud committed by an individual against the organisation for which they work. The cases examined in the report resulted in more than US$3.4 billion in total losses, with a median loss of US$104,000 per case globally.
The findings do not mean that South Africa necessarily experiences more fraud than every other African country. Rather, South Africa had the largest number of cases represented in the ACFE's Sub-Saharan Africa dataset, making the country's figures an important indicator of the fraud risks identified by fraud examiners.
The report estimates that organisations worldwide lose approximately 5% of their annual revenue to fraud. A typical occupational fraud case also goes undetected for about 12 months, giving perpetrators considerable time to conceal losses or manipulate systems before the misconduct is discovered.
For South African organisations, the findings are particularly significant given the country's continuing challenges around procurement, financial controls and accountability.
Procurement remains a major vulnerability
Corruption was the most common occupational fraud scheme identified in Sub-Saharan Africa, featuring in 56% of cases in the region.
The forms of asset misappropriation identified included theft of non-cash assets and billing fraud, each accounting for 23% of cases, followed by cheque and payment tampering at 13% and expense reimbursement fraud at 12%.
The risks are particularly relevant to procurement, where fraudulent activity can involve inflated invoices, fictitious or preferred suppliers, conflicts of interest, kickbacks, bid manipulation and collusion between employees and external service providers.
South Africa's public sector provides a wider context for these concerns.
The Auditor-General of South Africa (AGSA) reported that government institutions recorded R42.58 billion in irregular expenditure during the 2024-25 financial year, down from R49.53 billion in the previous year. However, AGSA cautioned that the figure may not represent the full extent of the problem because 33% of auditees either had qualified disclosures relating to the completeness of their irregular expenditure or were still investigating amounts that could potentially be irregular.
Procurement and contract-management failures were identified as the primary drivers of the irregular expenditure.
