Letter dated 11 November 2003, from the Minister of Environmental Affairs and Tourism to the Speaker of the National Assembly, in terms of section 65(2)(a) of the Public Finance Management Act, 1999 (Act No 1 of 1999), explaining the delay in the tabling of the Annual Report of the South African National Parks for 2002-2003:

The tabling of the attached Annual Report of South African National Parks 2002/2003 has reference.
In terms of section 55(1)(d) of the PFMA, South African National Parks in its capacity as Public Entity must submit an Annual Report to you within 5 months of the end of the financial year. The explanation for the delay in the tabling of the Annual Report of the South African National Parks is that the final report was unsatisfactory and they appointed an external editor to put the finishing touches to the report. This process delayed the production of the report by three weeks. The World Parks Congress put further strain on the production of the report, as the persons primarily responsible for preparing the annual report were also principal organisers for the congress. This delayed the final product by a further thirty days.

In addition, the final printed product that was delivered to our offices had a number of pages missing from the financial statements. These copies were returned to be reprinted and these were delivered to our offices on 10 November 2003.

Your understanding in this regard is highly appreciated.

Yours sincerely
Signed
M V MOOSA
MINISTER OF ENVIRONMENTAL AFFAIRS AND TOURISM