Ministries cost R8m each to establish

IT cost R8-million to fund the establishment of each new ministry in the cabinet.

This is according to Finance Minister Nhlanhla Nene, who was responding to a written question from DA MP Malcolm Figg.

Nene also revealed that it cost the public purse a further R4-million to set up each of the new deputy ministries created by President Jacob Zuma.

He said new ministers deployed to departments that existed prior to the election would operate within the confines of their existing budgets.

Provision for newly created ministries would be made in the medium-term expenditure framework, which would reprioritise existing budget allocations.

Nene also said the new Department of Small Business Development, under Lindiwe Zulu, would be expected to specifically function in a cost-effective way. - Jan-Jan Joubert