Municipalities spend 21.5% of R521.3bn budget in the first quarter

THE National Treasury reports that, on aggregate, municipalities spent 21.5% (R111.9-billion) of the total adopted expenditure budget of R521.3-billion in the first quarter of the 2021/22 financial year ended September 30.

As for revenue, aggregate municipal billing and other revenue amounted to 25.3% (R130.6-billion) of the total adopted revenue budget of R516.7-billion, while 22.9% (R103.8-billion) of the adopted operating expenditure budget of R452.3-billion, was spent.

The Treasury also notes that municipalities have adopted the budget for salaries and wages expenditure at R138-billion, which is R11.5-billion more than the adopted budget of R126.5-billion reported for the first quarter of the 2021/22 municipal financial year. This constitutes 30.5% of their total adopted operational expenditure budget of R452.3-billion.

By the end of September, spending on salaries and wages was 21.6% (R29.8-billion).

Capital expenditure for the quarter amounted to 11.9% (R8.2-billion) of the adopted capital budget of R69-billion, while the aggregated year-to-date operating expenditure for