National Treasury publishes quarterly deviation reports to Parliament, documenting every deviation request received from government entities. This guide teaches you how to read and analyze these reports to understand procurement patterns and identify opportunities or concerns.
Who This Is For
- Researchers analyzing government procurement
- Journalists investigating spending patterns
- Civil society monitoring accountability
- Bidders researching entities and competitors
What Are Treasury Deviation Reports?
When a government entity wants to deviate from competitive bidding, they must request approval from National Treasury. Treasury compiles all these requests into quarterly reports that include:
- Which entity requested the deviation
- What type of deviation (sole supplier, emergency, expansion, variation)
- The value of the procurement
- The supplier who benefits
- Whether Treasury approved, declined, or is still considering
Where to Find Reports
Reports are available from:
- National Treasury website: treasury.gov.za → SCM → Quarterly Reports
- Parliament website: Parliamentary Monitoring Group (PMG) archives
- Okhantu: Aggregated and searchable in our Transparency Dashboard
Report Structure
Treasury deviation reports are typically provided as Excel spreadsheets with multiple tabs:
- PFMA entities: National and provincial departments, SOEs
- MFMA entities: Municipalities (sometimes separate report)
- Summary statistics: Totals by type, status, entity
Key Columns Explained
| Column | What It Means |
|---|---|
| Institution | The government entity requesting the deviation |
| Description | What goods/services are being procured |
| Type | Sole supplier, emergency, expansion, or variation |
| Contractor/Supplier | Who benefits from the deviation |
| Value (R) | Rand value of the procurement |
| Period | Contract duration or when deviation occurred |
| Status | Approved, Declined, Noted, or Pending |
| Reasons | Justification provided by the entity |
Status Meanings
- Approved: Treasury agreed the deviation was justified
- Declined: Treasury rejected the deviation (entity should re-tender)
- Noted: Below threshold; Treasury noted but didn't need to approve
- Pending: Still under consideration
- Condonation: Deviation happened before approval; retrospective request
Reading Patterns
Beyond individual entries, look for patterns across the data:
Analyzing by Entity
Questions to ask when filtering by entity:
- Volume: How many deviations does this entity request?
- Value: What's the total rand value of deviations?
- Approval rate: How many are approved vs. declined?
- Types: Are they mostly emergencies or sole suppliers?
- Repeat suppliers: Same company appearing multiple times?
Analyzing by Supplier
Questions when filtering by supplier:
- Multiple entities: Does this supplier get deviations from many entities?
- Value concentration: How much is flowing through deviations?
- Justification: Is "sole supplier" claim plausible for this product?
Red Flags to Watch
- High deviation rate: Entity uses deviations for >20% of procurement
- Repeat declines: Entity keeps getting declined but proceeds anyway
- Split contracts: Multiple small deviations just under threshold
- Generic products as "sole supplier": Products available from many suppliers
- Repeated emergencies: Same "emergency" every year
- Condonation requests: Entity didn't get approval before procuring
Using the Data
Practical applications for deviation data:
- Bid decisions: Check entity deviation rate before investing in their tenders
- Competitor intelligence: See which competitors win deviations
- Upcoming opportunities: Expired emergency contracts must be tendered
- Challenge basis: Evidence for challenging unfair sole supplier claims
- Research: Academic or journalistic analysis
Tools for Analysis
Options for analyzing deviation data:
- Excel/Sheets: Pivot tables for entity and supplier analysis
- Okhantu Dashboard: Pre-built analysis and searchable database
- Power BI: For advanced visualization
Frequently Asked Questions
Why do some deviations have no supplier name?
Sometimes the supplier field is blank or says "various" for framework contracts or when the deviation is approved before supplier selection.
Can I request more detail on a specific deviation?
Yes. Use PAIA to request the deviation application, supporting documents, and Treasury response from the relevant entity.
Are municipal deviations included?
Municipalities report to Provincial Treasury. National Treasury reports focus on PFMA entities. Municipal data may be in separate reports.
How far back do reports go?
Treasury has published quarterly reports since approximately 2015. Earlier data may be harder to find but is sometimes available in parliamentary archives.
Next Steps
Continue exploring deviation data:
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