The Finance Department in the North West province has presented a budget of over R53.7 billion for the 2024/2025 financial year. The budget reflected on how the provincial government has performed in the last 30 years.
It also considered the progress made by the provincial government to support ailing municipalities, the provision of basic services and dealing with the triple challenges of unemployment, poverty and inequality. But opposition parties in the provincial legislature are pessimistic about the budget.
The social cluster consisting of the Health, Education and Human Settlement departments amongst others have been allocated more than R42 billion.
In the economic cluster, the Department of Public Works and Roads was allocated just over R4 billion. Agriculture and Rural Development receives R1.2 billion while the Economic Development, Environment, Conservation & Tourism Department gets over R982 million. But the biggest chunk of the budget went to the Education Department.
“In this cluster, the Department of Education receives R21.932 billion, Health is allocated R16.522 billion, Human Settlements’ budget is R1.826 billion, Social Development allocation amounts to R1.811 billion, whilst arts, culture, sports & recreation receives R750 million,” says Motlalepula Rosho, MEC for Finance for the NW.
Rosho says audit outcomes have also improved in the provincial departments from eight unqualified audit reports in 2019 to ten unqualified reports. However, opposition parties have slammed the budget allocations.
“Unfortunately, the budget also said nothing about creating jobs and or even creating conducive environment whereby people will come and invest. There was not even mention of those Investment Indabas, those pledges have no space in the budget,” says Freddy Sonakile, DA MPL North West.
“The budget as we see each year and I think is going to be same for next year. It won’t be conveyed to service delivery, we won’t see service delivery, real service delivery coming from this budget,” says Erns Kleynhans, FF Plus MPL North West.
Meanwhile, with 39% of the people in the province unemployed, young people say government must do more to create jobs.
“As unemployed young persons, we plead with government to assist us because many of us are not working. Our parents are depending on us.”
“I have been unemployed for the past twelve years and I’m now 34 years old. I completed my matric when I was 20 years, I have never worked and my CVs are all over. I wanted to become a correctional officer, soldier or police officer.”
MEC Rosho says she is optimistic that they will reduce the high rate of unemployment in the province.
