Bookkeeping Made Easy: A Practical Beginner’s Course for South Africans

Bookkeeping Without Guesswork: The Skills Every Business Actually Needs The purpose of this course is to build strong, reliable bookkeeping skills that work in real business environments. It exists to eliminate guesswork, reduce errors, and create bookkeepers who understand the impact of their work on cash flow, tax, compliance, and decision-making. Valued at R2 300 - yours for R0. CIBA fully subsidises this course because every South African who can balance a ledger is one step closer to running a business, getting hired, or helping their community manage money properly. No catch, no hidden fees, just the skills, on us.

12 CPD units 1 February 2026 4 presenters

What will set you apart

By completing this course you will gain the following competencies

Capture transactions correctly using proper source documents
Maintain accurate journals and ledgers
Manage cash, bank accounts, debtors, and creditors with confidence
Understand payroll basics in a South African business context
Apply VAT and basic tax principles correctly
Complete the full bookkeeping cycle without confusion
Produce basic financial reports that actually make sense
Use technology tools to support bookkeeping work
Work professionally and ethically in a bookkeeping role

Event breakdown

The course follows the real bookkeeping workflow used in small businesses:
Chapter
Description
1
Introduction to Bookkeeping
2
Accounting Basics
3
Source Documents and Recordkeeping
4
Journals and Ledgers
5
Cash and Bank Management
6
Debtors and Creditors (Revenue and Supplier Cycles)
7
The Accounting Cycle in Practice
8
Payroll Basics in the South African Context
9
VAT and Basic Tax
10
Financial Reporting for Small Entities
11
Technology Tools for Bookkeepers
12
Budgeting Basics
13
Ethics and Professionalism
Each chapter builds practical skill and reinforces accuracy and control.

Category: AccountingType: CPD CourseCPD category: Accounting

Description

Most bookkeeping problems don’t come from complex accounting rules, they come from weak basics. Missing documents, poor records, confused VAT, incorrect payroll, and numbers no one trusts. This course fixes that. This course teaches bookkeeping the way it is used in real businesses. It focuses on understanding what you are doing, why you are doing it, and how each step affects the next one. You are taken through the full bookkeeping process, from capturing source documents to producing basic financial reports, without shortcuts or assumptions. By the end of the course, you will no longer “just capture data”. You will understand the flow of transactions, spot errors early, and keep records that business owners, accountants, and auditors can rely on. Who This Course Is For

This course is designed for:

Aspiring bookkeepers who want to do the job properly
Small business owners who want control over their numbers
Admin or finance staff responsible for day-to-day bookkeeping
Anyone tired of copying entries without understanding them

This course is not for advanced accountants or theory-driven study.

Valued at R2 300 - yours for R0.

CIBA fully subsidises this course because every South African who can balance a ledger is one step closer to running a business, getting hired, or helping their community manage money properly. No catch, no hidden fees, just the skills, on us.

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Presenters

Faith Ngwenya — Faith Ngwenya is an accomplished leader in the accounting profession with extensive experience in professional education, skills development and stakeholder engagement. As Head of Education at CIBA, she plays a key role in advancing professional development, strengthening relationships with education and industry stakeholders, and supporting initiatives that prepare accounting professionals for the evolving demands of the profession.

Eszter Rapanos — Eszter Rapanos is a Chartered Accountant (SA) with extensive experience in auditing, quality assurance and the public sector. She began her career at the Auditor-General South Africa and has worked on projects involving organisations such as the European Union, World Bank, GIZ and KfW. She has also held senior roles in audit, training and quality control within accounting firms. At CIBA, Eszter leads quality assurance and public sector initiatives, drawing on her strong technical, regulatory and professional experience.

Leana van der Merwe — Leana van der Merwe is a Chartered Accountant and Registered Auditor with over 18 years of experience in business accounting, audit and corporate governance. A former Audit Director and professional-body Technical and Standards Executive, she has guided more than 14,000 professionals through complex regulatory matters. Leana also serves on the PAFA Technical Advisory Group, the IFAC Anti-Money Laundering Committee and the IFRS Foundation SME Implementation Group.

Nicolene Smit — Nicolene Smit is an accounting professional, academic, and education strategist with experience across professional practice, higher education, and professional body leadership. She completed her accounting articles in 2015 before moving into academia in 2017, where she served as a lecturer, subject head, and programme coordinator in Accounting Sciences. Nicolene holds a Master's degree in Taxation, a BCom Honours degree in Financial Management, and is a Chartered Business Accountant in Practice (CBAP) with CIBA. Since joining CIBA as Education Manager in 2023, she has led initiatives in academic partnerships, professional designation development, competency frameworks, and the advancement of future-focused accounting education, including the integration of artificial intelligence into finance and accounting learning

You will earn a certificate

On successful completion you will receive a certificate for 12 CPD units in Accounting.

Requirements

Laptop, desktop, or mobile device with internet access
Microsoft Edge, Google Chrome, Safari, or Firefox browser