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Finance Minister Tito Mboweni addresses the media during the 2020 National Budget Press Conference at Parliament House on February 26, 2020 in Cape Town, South Africa. The national budget speech is the government’s spending plan for the next financial year. The finance minister is responsible for allocating money to different government programs and objectives.
- Finance Minister Tito Mboweni did not apologize for the pressure that economic reality exerts on spending on social subsidies.
- In terms of the budget revision, the total social subsidies were reduced by R5.8 billion in 2021/22.
- The special Covid-19 social aid grant will receive R2.1 billion to be extended until the end of April 2021.
Finance Minister Tito Mboweni told reporters after his budget speech on Wednesday that while the government appreciates the urgent need for social spending and aid interventions, he did not apologize for the pressure that economic reality is putting. about this expense.
According to the Budget Review, during the Medium Term Spending Framework period, the social grants budget is reduced by 2.2%. Furthermore, all grant values will increase less than inflation, while the number of beneficiaries is expected to increase by 300,000 people.
The Budget Review indicated that total social grants had been reduced by R5.8 billion in financial year 2021/22, R10.7 billion in financial year 2022/23 and R19.5 billion in financial year 2023 / 24.
During his speech, Mboweni told Members of Parliament that 6.3 billion rand would be allocated to extend the special Covid-19 social distress relief grant until the end of April 2021.
“In addition, R678.3 million are earmarked for the provincial departments of social development and basic education to continue launching free sanitary products for students from low-income households,” said Mboweni.
Grant increases
Mboweni said other grant increases include an increase from R30 for old age, disability and care dependency grants to R1 890; an increase from R30 in the war veterans grant to R1 910; an increase of R10 in the child support grant to R460; and an increase of R10 for the foster care grant to R1 050.
The deputy director general of public finances of the National Treasury, Mampho Modise, said the budget managed to increase subsidies despite the economic pressure and much-needed fiscal consolidation.
“When we looked at the overall tax consolidation, we couldn’t protect the social subsidy. We did the best we could, but the consolidation we needed was more than we could afford to protect the subsidies,” Modise said.
Immediately after Modise responded to media inquiries, Mboweni chimed in to emphasize that the government should not regret facing the same economic pressures that governments around the world are also experiencing, and provide relief despite it.
“There is no need to apologize for it. There is no social contract that says there must be a certain increase every year. The allowances we made are what we can afford. Social services take up 56% of the allowances, which is substantial. in a country like ours, ”Mboweni said.
