The various Free State government departments were allocated their budget for the current financial year on Thursday (16/03).
These allocations were made by the MEC for Finance, Gadija Brown, during a budget speech held in the Xhariep district.
Brown announced that in the 2023-’24 financial year, the province plans to spend more than R5 billion on infrastructure investment.
This will be for the maintenance of provincial roads and delivery of human settlement, accounting for 58% of this total budget.
The planned infrastructure investment in the coming financial year is spread across all the five districts with Mangaung receiving 29,6%, Thabo Mofutsanyane 19,2%, Lejweleputswa 18,9%, Fezile Dabi 11,3%, and Xhariep 8,9%.
According to Brown, for the 2023-’24 financial year the province will receive an additional R187,2 million through the Performance Based Incentive System programme which is managed by the National Treasury.
“This programme is aimed at improving effective planning and deriving efficiencies within the infrastructure delivery chain,” said Brown.
- Allocations to the provincial departments are as follows: Department of Social Development: R32,137 billion;) Department of Education: R17,558 billion;) Provincial Treasury: R351,852 million;) Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs Department: R406,376 million; ) Department of Economic, Small Business Development, Tourism and Environmental Affairs: R629,507 million;) Department of Public Works and Infrastructure: R1,751 billion;) Agriculture and Rural Development: R814,817 million;) Department of Sport, Arts, Culture and Recreation: R633,328 million; ) Community Safety, Roads and Transport: R814,817 million;) Department of Human Settlements: R4,290 billion; and) The Office of the Premier: R637,807 million.
David van Vuuren, DA spokesperson on Public Accounts and Finance in the Free State Provincial Legislature, reinstated that roads are the lifeblood of our provincial economy and strongly warned government about continued failure to invest and maintain roads infrastructure.
“Without a functional road network, the Free State will continue to rapidly decline.
“This province cannot properly promote tourism, attract investment and export goods when our roads are impassable.
“Shockingly, the MEC bragged about the minuscule 25 km of roads constructed; this province has one of South Africa’s longest road networks at more than 40 000 km.
“The R3,339 billion allocated to road infrastructure is welcome but ultimately meaningless without rigorous standards and processes to account for every cent spent and ensure value for money.
“This department has proven itself incapable of effectively managing funds over and over again,” said van Vuuren.
Van Vuuren alluded government failure being the reason the Human Settlements department forfeited R150 million back to the National Treasury.
“This could have built more than 1 000 houses for Free State residents, providing them with the dignified shelter they deserve,” he said.
Van Vuuren added: “The Free State deserves the capable and ethical government the MEC promised. Unfortunately, it has been proven time and again that it cannot be an ANC government.”
