Hospitals spend almost R700 million to avoid load shedding in South Africa

PUBLIC hospitals in South Africa are spending millions on diesel to keep the lights on and operating rooms functioning.

Responding to parliamentary Q&A, the minister of health, Joe Phaahla, said that between the period 1 April 2022 to 28 February 2023, hospitals had spent a total of roughly R686 million on diesel alone – R19 million over budget.

According to the minister, KwaZulu-Natal spent the most at R178 million, followed by Gauteng (R131 million) and the Western Cape (R102 million). The Free State recorded the lowest amount spent over the period at R21 million.

Four out of nine of the provinces were out of budget when it came to spending on diesel; however, the total deficit was enough to exceed that which was under budget.

When queried if the generators across hospitals in the various provinces were in workable condition, the minister said they were.

To better combat load shedding