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The National Treasury is adopting zero-budget processes in which government departments have to justify from scratch each program they spend on, to determine if it offers value for money or should be phased out.
Learning and culture continue to receive the highest government consolidated spending allocations of R2.1 trillion in the 2020/21 adjusted budget. The sector receives 400 billion rand to be used to improve basic education, post-school education and training, the arts, as well as sports and recreation.
Economic development and community development received the largest increase in allocations with 4.6% and 4.3% respectively to offset increased spending on improving infrastructure and expanding access to basic services such as water.
Other adjustments during the year include additional R36bn for Covid-19 relief interventions announced in 2020.
Eskom gets the 23 billion rand it owes as part of the 350 billion rand in government guarantees; SAA obtains R17bn to pay its debts and implement a business rescue plan; while the Independent Communications Authority of SA (Icasa) obtains R84.7m to begin granting licenses for high demand spectrum.
Meanwhile, the presidency has obtained 12.6 billion rand to tackle youth unemployment. R 9.9 billion is used to employ 344,000 unemployed youth who passed enrollment as school assistants across the country; R 1.9 billion to create job opportunities in line departments; Rand 1 billion to retain self-employed food producers in agriculture; R630m for the provinces to create jobs through road maintenance projects; and R 393 million for the recruitment of community health personnel and nurses.
The department of social development has been allocated 6.8 billion rand to extend the special Covid-19 distress relief grant.
TimesLIVE
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