Durban — Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana allocated R6.3 billion towards disaster relief, especially after the April floods in several parts of the country this year.
This was included in Godongwana’s medium-term budget delivered on Wednesday afternoon.
In his opening, Godongwana said that structural challenges have been worsened by new ones, including the global economic slowdown, high energy and food prices and the destruction caused by natural disasters such as the recent floods.
He said the 2022 Medium-Term Budget Policy Statement aims to address the needs of South Africans and secure the country’s future stability and prosperity.
It provides for spending adjustments to continue rebuilding lives and infrastructure following devastating flood damage earlier this year.
“Domestically, the robust pace of economic recovery in early 2022 was derailed by floods in various parts of the country, particularly KZN and the Eastern Cape; industrial action in key sectors; and widespread power cuts,” Godongwana said.
He said they were allocating a net addition of R13 billion in spending adjustments for the 2022/23 financial year in the Adjustments Appropriation Bill.
“The largest adjustment — R6.3 billion, or 49% of the total — is allocated towards disaster relief, especially (after) the April flooding in several parts of the country,” Godongwana said.
He said that some state-owned companies represent critical components of economic activity, especially in transport, engineering and energy. These companies should be self-sufficient and must contribute to economic growth.
“Unfortunately, we face a situation where financial weakness caused in previous years by bad leadership and corruption still needs to be resolved. Moreover, when unavoidable events such as the recent floods destroy infrastructure and assets, it puts the whole economy at risk,” Godongwana said.
“Transnet is allocated R2.9 billion to ensure the return of out-of-service locomotives. This will be complemented by R2.9 billion from in-year spending adjustments to deal with flood damage that affected its operations in eThekwini.”
Daily News