Ngobeni, T.Mashapa, Ntebaleng Percy2026-06-192026-06-192026-05-19Mashapa, N.P. 2026. The role of school governing bodies in the management of school finances in selected primary schools: a case of Sekgoses East Circuit of Education. . .https://univendspace.univen.ac.za/handle/11602/3260MPMDepartment of Public and Development AdministrationThe School Governing Bodies (SGBs) play a vital role in the governance of public schools in South Africa, particularly in managing school finances as mandated by the South African Schools Act, 1996 (Act No. 84 of 1996). Poor financial literacy, training shortages, and weak institutional support within SGBs inhibit effective financial supervision in rural settings such as the Sekgosese East Circuit of Education (SECoE). This qualitative study employed an interpretivist paradigm and explanatory desktop research design, motivated by Agency Theory (Jensen & Meckling, 1976), through purposive sampling of 192 documents to explore the role of SGBs in financial management. We find that, while SGBs do budgeting, payments, fundraising, and reporting, financial decisions and actions are often handled by principals, leading to diminished levels of accountability, transparency, and community trust. While mechanisms like audits and reporting establish accountability, non-compliance and principal influence undermine legitimacy. It results that strengthening financial management by SGBs demands that SGBs be continuously trained, that their reporting tools be simplified, that partnerships should be enhanced, and oversight mechanisms be better put in place. Suggestions are: building SGB capacity with ongoing, continuous financial literacy programmes; dismantling principal domination with clear governance structures and empowering local community stakeholders; strengthening accountability with timely auditing, accessible reporting instruments, and local community engagement; and sustainable improvement strategies via user-friendly templates, partnerships with NGOs, corporates, and government departments, and strong monitoring mechanisms. These steps are necessary to improve transparency, effectiveness, and credibility in school financial governance in rural South African schools.1 online resource (v, 131 leaves)enUniversity of VendaSchool governing BodyUCTDFinancial ManagementPolicyPublic Financial AccountabilityTransparency and AccountabilitySouth African Education SystemDissertationMashapa NP. The role of school governing bodies in the management of school finances in selected primary schools: a case of Sekgoses East Circuit of Education. []. , 2026 [cited yyyy month dd]. Available from:Mashapa, N. P. (2026). <i>The role of school governing bodies in the management of school finances in selected primary schools: a case of Sekgoses East Circuit of Education</i>. (). . Retrieved fromMashapa, Ntebaleng Percy. <i>"The role of school governing bodies in the management of school finances in selected primary schools: a case of Sekgoses East Circuit of Education."</i> ., , 2026.TY - Dissertation AU - Mashapa, Ntebaleng Percy AB - The School Governing Bodies (SGBs) play a vital role in the governance of public schools in South Africa, particularly in managing school finances as mandated by the South African Schools Act, 1996 (Act No. 84 of 1996). Poor financial literacy, training shortages, and weak institutional support within SGBs inhibit effective financial supervision in rural settings such as the Sekgosese East Circuit of Education (SECoE). This qualitative study employed an interpretivist paradigm and explanatory desktop research design, motivated by Agency Theory (Jensen & Meckling, 1976), through purposive sampling of 192 documents to explore the role of SGBs in financial management. We find that, while SGBs do budgeting, payments, fundraising, and reporting, financial decisions and actions are often handled by principals, leading to diminished levels of accountability, transparency, and community trust. While mechanisms like audits and reporting establish accountability, non-compliance and principal influence undermine legitimacy. It results that strengthening financial management by SGBs demands that SGBs be continuously trained, that their reporting tools be simplified, that partnerships should be enhanced, and oversight mechanisms be better put in place. Suggestions are: building SGB capacity with ongoing, continuous financial literacy programmes; dismantling principal domination with clear governance structures and empowering local community stakeholders; strengthening accountability with timely auditing, accessible reporting instruments, and local community engagement; and sustainable improvement strategies via user-friendly templates, partnerships with NGOs, corporates, and government departments, and strong monitoring mechanisms. These steps are necessary to improve transparency, effectiveness, and credibility in school financial governance in rural South African schools. DA - 2026-05-19 DB - ResearchSpace DP - Univen KW - School governing Body KW - Financial Management KW - Policy KW - Public Financial Accountability KW - Transparency and Accountability KW - South African Education System LK - https://univendspace.univen.ac.za PY - 2026 T1 - The role of school governing bodies in the management of school finances in selected primary schools: a case of Sekgoses East Circuit of Education TI - The role of school governing bodies in the management of school finances in selected primary schools: a case of Sekgoses East Circuit of Education UR - ER -