Dr Patience Nombeko Mbava is a distinguished leader and expert in fiscal governance, public policy, and economic development. Under her stewardship, the Financial and Fiscal Commission has evolved into a preeminent thought leader in South Africa's fiscal landscape, providing critical recommendations that shape the nation's intergovernmental fiscal relations. Dr. Mbava holds a PhD in Public and Development Management and an MBA from Stellenbosch University, complemented by a Bachelor of Arts in Economics from Smith College (USA). Her academic excellence is matched by over 20 years of strategic leadership experience spanning both public and private sectors. Beyond her FFC leadership, Dr. Mbava serves as a Council Member for the South African Council for Medical Schemes. She is also an evaluation advisor to the United Nations Development Program and a Brand Ambassador for the Stellenbosch Business School Alumni Association Future Fund. Dr. Mbava has held various senior management and executive positions at both the public and private sectors - including the Technology Innovation Agency, South African National Space Agency, Sasol Oil, Chevron South Africa, BP Southern Africa - reflecting her versatility and strategic acumen across diverse organisational contexts.

Prof Erasmus holds a Doctorate degree in Cost and Management Accounting and is based in the Department of Financial Governance at the UNISA College of Accounting Sciences. His fields of academic interest are in public sector financial governance and internal auditing. He is a rated researcher by the South African National Research Foundation (NRF).

Prof Erasmus is an affiliate member of the Chartered Institute of Government Finance, Audit and Risk Officers (CIGFARO), chairperson of the Education Committee of the Southern African Institute of Government Auditors (SAIGA), and chairperson of the UNISA College of Accounting Sciences Research Ethics Review Committee. He is also the treasurer of the Research Ethics Committee Association of Southern Africa (REASA) and member of the consultative working group of the Public Sector Audit Committee Forum. In addition, Prof Erasmus is Editor-in-chief of the Department of Higher Education accredited research journal, the Southern African Journal of Accountability and Auditing Research. He is an Associate Editor of the Scopus-listed, South African Journal of Accounting Research and an editorial board member of the Reforma scholarly journal affiliated with the Kyrgyz-Turkish Manas University in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan. Regarding engaged scholarship projects, he is leading the Research on Audit Committees South Africa (RACSA) group as is the founding member and leader of the Continuous Auditing in Public Sector Internal Auditing (CAPIA) group in collaboration with Bakirçay University in Izmir, Türkiye. He is also the founding member and leader of the Public Sector Accounting (PSA) project in collaboration with the South African Accounting Standards Board and Türkiye Ministry of Treasury and Finance.

Prof Fowler is a Visiting Adjunct Professor at the University of Witwatersrand (Wits) School of Governance and was the Interim CEO of Alexkor SOC until 31st March 2025. He serves on the boards of the Trevor Huddleston Memorial Centre and, previously, the Tirisano Construction Fund until October 2024. He is a graduate civil engineer of the University of Manitoba in Canada. He has more than 50 years' experience in civil engineering research, design, construction, project management, political and administrative leadership, management, negotiations, governance, community, national, and international stakeholder management, and water supply planning and development.

Prof Fowler was the City Manager/CEO of the City of Johannesburg until December 2016. Previously, he was an Executive Director of Murray and Roberts and Head of the SADC Construction Cluster responsible for subsidiary companies in South Africa, Botswana and Zimbabwe, the Chief Operations Officer and Accounting Officer/Deputy Head of the South African Presidency under Presidents Mbeki, Motlanthe and Zuma, Advisor to Premier Mbhazima Shilowa, the MEC of Development Planning and Local Government and Leader of the House, Speaker of the Gauteng Legislature, Head of the Transition Management Team and Advisor to first Minister of Water Affairs and Forestry, Hon Kader Asmal. He served on the boards of the Development Bank of Southern Africa (DBSA) and the Institute for Local Government Research, as well as the Health Systems Trust.

Prior to the democratic government in 1994, Prof. Fowler was a research officer and lecturer at Wits' Faculty of Engineering, a member of the National Local Government Negotiating Forum (LGNF), which negotiated transitional arrangements for CODESA, and a member of the Technical Committee of CODESA to demarcate the Provincial Boundaries.

Ms Masefateng Dorcas Letsatsi (also known as Khomotso Letsatsi) is a highly accomplished public finance and development expert with over 26 years of experience in the public sector. She has served in senior roles across key national and local institutions, including the City of Johannesburg, National Treasury, the South African Local Government Association, and the Public Investment Corporation.

Currently, she is the Executive Head for the Lanseria Smart City Project Management Office (PMO) at the Gauteng Growth and Development Agency. Her responsibilities include establishing the PMO, shaping the Lanseria Hi-Tech Special Economic Zone (SEZ), developing smart city strategies, and leading efforts on bulk infrastructure financing. Previously, she was a Senior Municipal Finance Expert at the United Nations Capital Development Fund, where she advanced local development and infrastructure finance projects globally. She also held the position of Chief Officer: Municipal Finance, Fiscal Policy and Economic Growth at SALGA, where she championed reforms to strengthen municipal fiscal sustainability and local economic development.

Her tenure at the City of Johannesburg, spanning a decade, included serving as Group Treasurer, where she pioneered the issuance of South Africa’s first municipal commercial paper and the first listed municipal Green Bond, which earned the C40 Cities Climate Leadership Group Innovation Award in 2014. Khomotso has also worked as an independent consultant, advising institutions such as: United Nations Capital Development Fund on Municipal Investment Finance, Gauteng Partnership Fund on Mega Project Bulk Infrastructure Financing, Development Bank of Southern Africa on product innovation, and the Inter-Ministerial Task Team on Electricity Distribution, as a member of its advisory panel.

She has held numerous governance roles, including Chairperson of the Coca-Cola Beverages South Africa Mintirho Foundation, Non-Executive Director of the Association of Corporate Treasurers of South Africa (ACTSA), and Board Member of the Sekhukhune Development Agency, including service on its Finance Committee.

Her work is particularly focused on municipal investment finance, fiscal policy, and public sector economic growth strategies, contributing to both national development imperatives and the international sustainable development agenda.

Ms Malijeng Ngqaleni holds an MSc in Agricultural Economics from the University of Saskatchewan, a BA in Economics from the University of Lesotho, and certifications in leadership and facilitation. With over thirty years' experience, she has held academic and public sector positions, impacting all three spheres of government.

Her career commenced in academia and research, where she dedicated eight years to deepening her expertise and refining her ability to distill complex concepts into actionable insights. She has an extensive background in the public sector, with nearly two decades serving in various senior leadership roles at the National Treasury. As Head of Intergovernmental Relations, she was responsible for coordinating fiscal and financial relations among national, provincial, and local governments. In this capacity, she spearheaded reforms across provincial and local government budgets, contributing to the transformation of the intergovernmental fiscal system. A strong advocate for collaborative partnerships, she has effectively engaged with all spheres of government, the private sector, civil society, and international donors, leading programmes aimed at enhancing infrastructure delivery and advancing urban transformation.

She is currently serving as a member of the 1998 Local Government White Paper Review, led by the Department of Cooperative Governance. In this capacity, she coordinates Finance and Infrastructure and also serves as Commissioner for the Fiscal and Financial Commission.