The Gauteng departments of health, education and social services will get 81% of the province’s R132.4bn budget for 2019/2020, finance MEC Barbara Creecy said on Tuesday.
Creecy said at a media briefing in Johannesburg ahead of her budget address that “despite persistent tough economic conditions”, R9.2bn had been added to Gauteng’s budget.
She said transfers in the form of the provincial equitable share and conditional grants amounted to R102bn and R23bn, respectively.
The province’s own revenue would be R6.3bn — 5% of the total budget.
The total budget for health is R50.8bn, which included R30bn for the wage bill. R17bn has been allocated for goods and services , which included carry through costs of an R1.8bn per annum commitment made by the department to pay off its accruals. R150m has been allocated over the medium term expenditure framework to obtain a suitable office accommodation for the department, following the crippling Bank of Lisbon fire in the Johannesburg CBD in 2018, which led to the deaths of three firefighters.
The department of health also budgeted R300m through the office of the premier to compensate the families of the mentally ill patients who died after the department of health stopped its contract with Life Esidimeni, and the patients were transferred to various unregistered nongovernmental organisations. At least 143 people died.
The department of education received R49.4bn, while R5.5bn has been allocated to social development.
Source: Business Live
