FUND THE PEOPLE · SUPPLIER KNOWLEDGE
Understand the terms. Follow the right funding route.
Plain-language meanings for South African tenders, purchase orders, delivery records and invoice funding. Search an abbreviation, browse by topic, or connect a term to the government, SOE and municipality guide relevant to your work.
These explanations help you read the documents behind a transaction. The current tender notice, contract and buyer instructions govern the particular opportunity. Examples are illustrative, and references to public organisations do not imply an endorsement or funding approval.
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Invoices
Accepted invoice
In funding assessment, an invoice supported by evidence that the buyer acknowledges the relevant completed supply and the amount payable, subject to the transaction’s terms.
In practice: An emailed invoice or an upload confirmation may only show submission. Keep the buyer’s acknowledgement and the underlying delivery or service evidence together.
Invoices
Accounts receivable
Amounts owed to a business by its customers for supplies already invoiced on credit. They are different from cash already received.
In practice: An unpaid municipal invoice can be a receivable, but disputes, credit notes, acceptance and payment terms still affect its assessment for funding.
Orders
Award letter
A buyer’s written notification that a supplier has been selected for an award, subject to the conditions stated in the letter and contract documents.
In practice: Check whether signatures, conditions or a separate order are still required. Keep the award notification separate from the supplier quotation used to calculate delivery costs.
Orders
Call-off order
A specific order or instruction issued under an existing framework arrangement for the goods, services or works required on that occasion.
In practice: For a multi-site municipal arrangement, isolate the authorised call-off, its quantities and receiving locations. Do not use the entire framework ceiling as the value of one delivery.
Funding
Cash-flow gap
A period in which the cash needed to meet commitments exceeds the cash available from receipts and other resources.
In practice: Illustration: supplier costs fall due before an accepted delivery is paid. Map the dates and amounts so the funding enquiry addresses the actual gap.
Compliance
Central Supplier Database (CSD)
National Treasury’s database of suppliers seeking to do business with the South African government. Suppliers register and maintain their business information through the CSD.
In practice: Your MAAA supplier number identifies a CSD record. It does not, by itself, establish a tender award or completion of a buyer’s separate onboarding process.
Funding
Cession of receivables
The transfer of rights, such as a right to receive payment, to another party. In funding, the documents establish the rights transferred and the payment arrangement.
In practice: Disclose existing cessions before seeking new finance. Check the proposed agreement and the buyer’s applicable requirements; the same payment right cannot simply be promised to multiple funders.
Compliance
cidb contractor grading
A contractor classification combining a grading level and a class of construction works. It helps establish eligibility for construction tenders with specified grading requirements.
In practice: Read the particular tender’s grade and class requirements. A supplier delivering goods should not assume that every order has the same construction-registration conditions.
Tendering
Compulsory briefing
A briefing or site meeting that the tender documents identify as a mandatory part of participation.
In practice: For work at a road site, building or railway facility, check who must attend, where to report and what attendance evidence the notice requires.
Invoices
Credit note
A document that reduces or corrects an amount previously invoiced, for example after an agreed price adjustment or return. VAT adjustments must follow applicable SARS requirements.
In practice: If part of a delivery is returned, disclose the credit note when presenting the unpaid invoice for assessment. Use the remaining amount owed, not the original invoice total.
Orders
Framework agreement
An agreement establishing terms under which specific work or orders may be placed during a defined period. Its terms determine how individual instructions are issued.
In practice: A place on a supplier panel does not necessarily provide an immediate funded order. Identify the actual instruction and delivery value before committing supplier costs.
Delivery
Goods received note (GRN)
A buyer’s receiving record for goods delivered against an order. Its name and workflow can differ between purchasing organisations.
In practice: Reconcile the recorded quantities with your delivery evidence and invoice. A short delivery or rejected item can change the amount that the buyer accepts for payment.
Funding
Invoice discounting
A funding arrangement linked to eligible unpaid invoices, allowing a business to access an agreed amount before customer payment, subject to the provider’s terms.
In practice: FTP assesses eligible accepted unpaid public-sector invoices and their supporting evidence. Confirm the advance, charges, collection arrangements and settlement obligations in writing.
Buyers
Municipal buyer
A municipality purchasing goods, services or works through its procurement arrangements. The delivery town and the legal purchaser are separate details.
In practice: A Pretoria delivery might serve Tshwane, a national department or another buyer. Likewise, a city-owned entity may contract in its own name. Match the notice, order and invoice.
Invoices
Payment terms
The agreed conditions governing when and how a buyer must pay, including relevant invoice, acceptance and supporting-document requirements.
In practice: Read the contract’s payment trigger and submission route. A planned payment date is not evidence that cash has arrived; include possible verification time in your delivery budget.
Buyers
Procurement
The process an organisation uses to obtain goods, services or works, including defining requirements, choosing a supplier and managing the resulting contract.
In practice: Identify the buyer and procurement reference before searching by city alone. National departments, municipalities and public entities can procure work in the same area.
Delivery
Proof of delivery (POD)
A record supporting that specified goods reached the stated recipient or delivery point. The buyer’s process determines the evidence required.
In practice: For a park, depot or municipal facility, record the order reference, quantities, receiving person and delivery date. A receipt alone may not prove final quality acceptance.
Buyers
Public entity
A distinct public-sector organisation with its own legal identity and responsibilities. National Treasury’s PFMA schedules identify listed national and provincial public entities.
In practice: SANParks and a government department should not be treated as interchangeable purchasers. Verify the organisation issuing the contract and the party responsible for payment.
Orders
Purchase order (PO)
A buyer-issued document setting out an order for goods or services, usually identifying the supplier, items, quantities, prices and delivery details.
In practice: A supplier quote tells you what your inputs cost; the buyer’s PO tells you what has been ordered. Match the two before requesting funding.
Funding
Purchase order funding
Funding connected to the costs of fulfilling an eligible buyer order before delivery. The assessed order, supplier costs and settlement arrangement determine the proposed transaction.
In practice: FTP’s Purchase Order Funding Solutions assess qualifying public-sector tender-linked orders. Bring the authorised order and current supplier quotations; an advertised tender alone is not an awarded transaction.
Tendering
Request for quotation (RFQ)
A buyer’s request for a supplier to price a defined requirement and submit the information specified in the notice.
In practice: For a Durban or East London RFQ, read the quantities, delivery address, closing instructions and returnable documents before submitting your price.
Delivery
Service acceptance
Evidence that the buyer or authorised representative has accepted completed services or a contractual milestone in the required manner.
In practice: For maintenance work, a site visit alone may not establish acceptance. Match the completion report or approved certificate to the contract period and amount invoiced.
Buyers
State-owned enterprise (SOE)
An enterprise owned or controlled by the state. The label does not mean that every public organisation has the same legal form, procurement process or funding eligibility.
In practice: For Transnet or SAFCOL work, use the exact contracting organisation in the notice and order. A private subcontractor on a state project remains a different buyer.
Orders
Supplier quotation
A supplier’s priced offer for goods or services, stating the scope and relevant commercial conditions such as validity, delivery and payment requirements.
In practice: Include freight, installation and other required inputs when checking whether your quoted costs cover the buyer’s order. Confirm stock and quotation validity before relying on the budget.
Compliance
Tax Compliance Status (TCS) PIN
A SARS-issued PIN that lets an authorised third party check a taxpayer’s current compliance status. The result reflects the status when the check is performed.
In practice: Receiving a PIN is not the same as being compliant. Check the result and resolve outstanding issues before relying on it in a supplier submission.
Invoices
Tax invoice
An invoice documenting a taxable supply and containing the particulars required by South African VAT rules. Applicable requirements depend on the transaction.
In practice: Check the supplier and buyer details, description, amounts and VAT treatment against SARS guidance. A correctly formatted tax invoice does not by itself prove that delivery was accepted.
Tendering
Tender
An invitation to compete for a contract to supply specified goods, services or works. The word can also describe the offer a supplier submits in response.
In practice: An advertised municipal tender is an opportunity to bid. It is not an order authorising your business to buy stock or begin delivery.
Tendering
Tender addendum
An official addition or change to a tender’s documents or instructions. It may affect the specification, response requirements or closing arrangements.
In practice: Keep the original bid reference with every amendment. Recheck your price and submission plan when a buyer changes the requirement.
Funding
Tender funding
Funding intended to help a supplier fulfil an eligible awarded tender or contract. The term describes the transaction context, not automatic approval or one standard product.
In practice: Identify whether you need supplier inputs before delivery or finance against an accepted unpaid invoice. FTP’s assessment depends on the actual buyer, documents and transaction stage.
Funding
Working capital
In accounting, current assets minus current liabilities. In day-to-day planning, businesses also use the term when discussing resources needed to run operations.
In practice: A profitable order can still require cash for stock and transport before customer payment arrives. Calculate the timing and amount of that requirement separately from profit.
Municipal supplier guides by location
Connect the national meaning to the purchaser and delivery area. A city name alone does not identify who owes payment.
SOE, public-entity and department guides
For national organisations, identify the contracting buyer and the particular project or receiving site before selecting a funding route.
Put the terminology to work on your transaction
Choose Fund The People’s Purchase Order Funding Solutions to discuss eligible supplier costs before delivery, or our Invoice Discounting Solutions for an eligible accepted unpaid invoice. Our team assesses the buyer, documents and transaction terms.
Sources and scope
This dictionary combines concise explanations with practical supplier examples and links to FTP’s detailed guides. Source links support the relevant topic; they do not mean that a public body endorses FTP. Check the current notice and contract for requirements specific to your transaction. Financial, legal and tax terms can carry more detailed meanings in a particular agreement or law.
- National Treasury eTender portal
- National Treasury Central Supplier Database
- SARS Tax Compliance Status
- cidb Register of Contractors
- SARS VAT 404 guide
- National Treasury General Conditions of Contract
- National Treasury infrastructure delivery guide
- South African MSME funding policy
- National Treasury public-entity schedules
- South African Government: local government
Need a term clarified? Ask the Fund The People team and identify the document and transaction stage you are working with.