The verdict in three sentences
A purchase requisition and budget approval app for a distribution group in Cape Town costs 4 M to 7 M FCFA at Kolonell (6,100 to 10,670 EUR, roughly ZAR 120,000 to 210,000), for a 10 to 14 week project. It replaces paper circuits with approval workflows by amount, real-time budget control and automatic purchase orders, plus a structured accounting export. On 600 requests a month, the figure to set is simple: bring the approval delay from 6 days to 2 and eliminate off-budget commitments.
The target circuit: who approves what, from which amount
The first deliverable is not the screen, it is the delegation of authority matrix. Without written rules, the app reproduces paper bottlenecks in digital form.
| Request amount | Approvers | Target delay | Estimated share of requests |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under ZAR 7,500 | Department head | 4 h | 55% |
| ZAR 7,500 to 30,000 | Department head, management accountant | 1 day | 25% |
| ZAR 30,000 to 150,000 | Plus the CFO | 1.5 days | 14% |
| ZAR 150,000 to 600,000 | Plus the CEO | 2 days | 5% |
| Over ZAR 600,000 | Investment committee | 5 days | 1% |
| Off budget, any amount | CFO mandatory, written reason | 2 days | Variable |
Budget control runs before the first signature: the app shows the budget line (for example "store supplies, Bellville branch"), the amount already committed and what remains. A request that exceeds the remaining budget switches automatically to the off-budget circuit. The CFO sees overruns before they turn into invoices.
Budget and scope: what 4 M to 7 M FCFA covers
The amounts below are 2026 orders of magnitude for a group of 4 to 8 entities, 150 to 300 users and 600 monthly requests.
| Module | Essential version | Full version |
|---|---|---|
| Requisitions and attachments (supplier quotes) | 0.9 M FCFA | 1.3 M FCFA |
| Approval workflows configurable by amount and entity | 0.9 M FCFA | 1.4 M FCFA |
| Real-time budget control (budget, committed, available) | 0.8 M FCFA | 1.3 M FCFA |
| PDF purchase orders and supplier dispatch | 0.5 M FCFA | 0.8 M FCFA |
| Accounting export (expense accounts, journals, VAT) | 0.5 M FCFA | 1.0 M FCFA |
| CFO dashboard and alerts | 0.4 M FCFA | 1.2 M FCFA |
| Indicative total | 4 M FCFA | 7 M FCFA |
| Timeline | 10 weeks | 14 weeks |
Maintenance runs from 35,000 to 120,000 FCFA per month; for a tool used daily by 200 people, the Standard level at 75,000 FCFA (110 EUR) is usually enough. The accounting export is a structured file importable into your existing system (Sage, Xero, Odoo or other): there is no need to replace accounting to gain control.
What makes this kind of project fail
No budget baseline. If budgets per line and per entity are not loaded at launch, real-time control has nothing to control. Allow 2 weeks to load the financial year budget.
Forgetting mobile approval. A CEO travelling between Cape Town, Johannesburg and Durban does not approve from a desktop. Approval through a secure link on a smartphone, with a one-time code, keeps 5% of requests from blocking the whole month.
Unregistered suppliers. Without a clean supplier file (VAT number, bank details, B-BBEE status, payment terms), purchase orders go out incomplete and accounting reworks them by hand.
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Thabo, CFO of a 6-company distribution group in Cape Town (illustrative scenario), receives 600 purchase requests a month. Each paper request takes about 25 minutes of handling (copies, chasing, data entry), so 250 hours a month across departments.
With the app, that time falls to about 8 minutes per request: savings reach 600 x 17 minutes = 170 hours a month. At a loaded hourly cost of ZAR 250, that is about ZAR 42,500 a month. The approval delay drops from 6 days to 2, which supports a 2% early payment discount with suppliers. For an app at 5.5 M FCFA (about ZAR 165,000), payback comes in about 4 months, before counting avoided off-budget commitments.
FAQ
How much does a purchase requisition app cost in Cape Town in 2026?
At Kolonell, budget 4 M to 7 M FCFA, roughly ZAR 120,000 to 210,000, depending on entities, workflows and budget control depth. The essential version ships in 10 weeks.
Does the app replace our accounting software?
No. It produces an export importable into your existing accounting. Only commitments and purchase orders are managed in the app.
Can each subsidiary have its own workflows?
Yes, each entity has its own delegation matrix and thresholds. A 6-company group usually ends up with 10 to 15 distinct workflows.
How does real-time budget control work?
Each request is linked to a budget line; the app computes what remains by deducting approved commitments. An overrun automatically triggers CFO approval.
How long does user training take?
Half a day for approvers and 2 hours for requesters is enough. For 200 users, plan a 2-week progressive rollout entity by entity.
Let's scope your project. Send us your monthly request volume, number of entities and delegation thresholds: we will price an app deliverable in 10 to 14 weeks. Detailed quote within 48 h. WhatsApp +221 77 596 93 33.
Mohamed Bah
Fondateur, Kolonell
Passionate about digital and entrepreneurship in Africa, Mohamed has been helping Sénégalese businesses with their digital transformation since 2020. Founder of Kolonell, he believes every SME deserves a professional and accessible online présence.
