Audit bombshell at Ingutsheni Hospital

Auditor-General Vimbai Chikwenhere has issued a scathing assessment of Ingutsheni Central Hospital, citing widespread governance failures, weak financial controls and poor record-keeping, while warning that the institution has failed to address most of the deficiencies identified in previous audits.

In her audit report on the hospital's financial statements for the year ended December 31, 2022, Chikwenhere issued an adverse audit opinion, concluding that the financial statements did not fairly present the hospital's financial position in accordance with International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS).

"In my opinion, because of the significance of the matters discussed in the Basis for Adverse Opinion section of my report, the financial statements do not present fairly the financial position of Ingutsheni Central Hospital as at December 31, 2022, and its financial performance and cash flows for the year then ended in accordance with International Financial Reporting Standards," Chikwenhere said in the report signed on June 26, 2026.

The Auditor-General attributed the adverse opinion to several material weaknesses, including the hospital's failure to revalue its property, plant and equipment, poor inventory management and continued non-compliance with accounting standards relating to foreign currency reporting and hyperinflation accounting.

The report found that the hospital had not revalued its fixed assets as required under accounting standards, resulting in property and equipment not being reflected at fair value. Some assets had been fully depreciated despite remaining in active use, while their useful lives and residual values had not been reassessed.

Serious deficiencies were also identified in inventory management.

According to the report, Ingutsheni failed to provide inventory issue vouchers to support the medical supplies issued during the year. Instead, expenditure on supplies was calculated outside the accounting system using opening stock balances, purchases and closing stock figures.

As a result, the Auditor-General said she was unable to verify the accuracy and completeness of expenditure on supplies and services reported in the financial statements.

The audit further highlighted continued non-compliance with IFRS requirements relating to foreign currency transactions and hyperinflation accounting, with several issues previously identified by auditors remaining unresolved.

Beyond the financial statements, Chikwenhere said the hospital had made little progress in implementing recommendations contained in the Auditor-General's 2023 and 2024 reports.

"The hospital did not make significant progress in addressing audit findings raised in my 2023 and 2024 annual reports. Two findings were addressed, one was partially addressed and seven findings were not addressed," she said.

Among the unresolved governance concerns was the continued absence of a Hospital Management Board, despite repeated engagements with the responsible ministry.

The report also found that the hospital continues to rely on a manual accounting system after software licence fees went unpaid, a situation the Auditor-General said weakens financial reporting and internal controls.

Other outstanding weaknesses included discrepancies between physical stock and inventory records, incomplete asset registers, failure to recognise expected credit losses on receivables and inadequate documentation supporting inventory issued during the financial year.

While the audit acknowledged improvements in conducting regular stock counts and maintaining a donations register, it noted that debt management remained only partially addressed, with no ageing analysis of debtors and insufficient follow-up on outstanding receivables.

Chikwenhere urged the hospital to strengthen its governance structures, improve financial management systems and fully implement outstanding audit recommendations to enhance accountability and ensure compliance with statutory accounting standards.