R29 BILLION FOR SOCIAL SERVICESFinance MEC, Mr Sa’ad Cachalia announced that Limpopo’s provincial budget has been increased from R28,6 billion to R36,8 billion at the legislature in Lebowakgomo on Thursday.
This increase means departments, municipalities and other institutions relying on fiscal will have their grants increased with the aim to “enhance the province’s capacity to deal with some of the pressing backlogs and national and provincial priorities”. A big chunk, R29 billion, of this year’s budget will go to social services, an area which Cachalia said has been neglected for many years.
Cachalia said while many people have access to social grants and other poverty alleviation programmes, “many households and communities remain trapped in poverty, are dependent on the state and thus unable to access the opportunities created by an improving economic climate”.
Cachalia said, while empowering the citizenry economically, it is also important for government to have a social safety net to protect the most vulnerable sectors of society. He said it is on this basis that a lot of money is going to be spent on social services such as housing, education and infrastructure. Cachalia singled out education and health as core elements of social transformation to be prioritised. Spending on programmes such as school nutrition will increase by R60 million to cover more learners, improve quality of meals and the number of days on the school calendar. Currently the programme takes place on a specific number of days on account of ‘resources’. It is usually in the last weeks when schools are to close and when schools reopen that the programme doesn’t run.
Cachalia challenged residents to assist in running the programme. "We need more cooperatives and community based formations that will cook for the children and see to it that they are well nourished and energised to take to their books with vigour," he said. Cachalia went on the charm offensive in an attempt to sensitise everyone about the need to eradicate poverty employing such Sotho expressions such as “Molomo ge o eja o roga wo mongwe” (direct translation: If people consume something, the person next to them would naturally envy them). According to Cachalia, spending on housing will increase by R131 million to over R783 million with priority being given to finishing houses abandoned by developers.
R400 million was also allocated to infrastructure, with it being used to construct schools and clinics and revitalise hospitals. Construction of these facilities will be done through the extended public works programme.
by Kgaogelo Magolego on Tue, 2008-03-04 09:22. Northern Review: News | 
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