Durban — Underspending by the Department of Water and Sanitation is behind the service delivery protests in KwaZulu-Natal.
That was according to the national parliamentary Standing Committee on Appropriations which said it remained concerned about the underspending identified by the National Treasury across all government departments and state-owned entities as reflected in the first quarter expenditure report for the 2022/23 financial year.
The committee noted with concern the Department of Water and Sanitation underspending of R1.6 billion in relation to Umgeni Water due to the non-submission of project documentation. This underspending has led to service-delivery protests in KZN, which also displeased the committee.
According to the Treasury, Eskom’s reported revenue of R66.3 billion in June was largely driven by a tariff increase of 9.61% for the 2022/23 year. The Land Bank, meanwhile, has put R5bn of the R7bn allocation into the contingency reserve and is awaiting compliance with equity conditions attached to the fiscal funding.
The departments of Public Enterprises, Science and Innovation, Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development, Water and Sanitation, and Basic and Higher Education are some of those identified as having recorded lower than projected expenditure for the first quarter of the 2022/23 financial year.
Standing Committee on Appropriations chairperson Sfiso Buthelezi said: “If you look at the 5.4% variance in Police, it means a whopping R1.3 billion. It’s not just a question of saying it was only 5.4% if you look at the amount that is being underspent.”
The committee also noted that some key posts within the Department of Public Works and Infrastructure had not been filled. In addition, the department underspent on the Expanded Public Works Programme.
The committee was also concerned with underspending at the Department of Agriculture Land Reform and Rural Development, as it may cause problems for many smallholder and emerging farmers and could potentially push them out of the sector.
The ongoing financial and operational challenges at Eskom and the Land Bank, despite efforts to assist them, also left the committee concerned.
It also raised concerns about underspending at both the South African National Roads Agency and the Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa.
“Apart from denying the citizens critical service delivery, this undermines the Economic Reconstruction and Recovery Plan, localisation and job creation,” Buthelezi said.
National Treasury advised the committee that this situation was a timing issue and expected it to be corrected in the following quarters.
Daily News