Government prioritises investment in transport infrastructure

Government is prioritising
investment in transport
infrastructure, according
to finance minister Pravin
Gordhan.
Delivering his mediumterm
budget policy speech
to Parliament, Gordhan said
“investment in transport
infrastructure and services
is the largest category,
accounting for R80 billion
next year and rising by 8.4% a
year over the MTEF (medium
term expenditure framework).
Spending on rail rolling
stock and signalling
infrastructure will increase by
nearly 20% a year, he said.
Government expects to
collect 7.6% more in the
current financial year – with
revenue estimated at R901
billion. In the next financial
year, government will absorb
27.5% of GDP, or R986
billion, of which R901 billion
is made up of taxes.
Total revenue is budgeted to
rise to R1.2 trillion in 2015/16.
More money and support
will be provided at local level
to improve the transport
infrastructure.
The total allocation to
provinces next year will be
R418 billion, rising to R478
billion in 2015/16.
Infrastructure investment
for schools, clinics, hospitals,
and roads is a key priority in
provincial spending plans.
“Provinces are called on
to modernise their supply
chain management systems to
deliver projects on time, at the
right price and of the required
quality. We will channel more
funding to provinces that
adopt transparent systems and
demonstrate their readiness
to implement projects
effectively,” he said.