Government spends R1.73-trillion during the 2019/20 fiscus

The government spent R1.73-trillion in 2019/20, according to the latest financial statistics of national government report.

Employee costs accounted for 10% of government’s total spending.

Departments involved in safety and security dominated spending on employee costs. The police service accounted for 43% of the national government wage bill, followed by the Department of Defence (18%) and the Department of Correctional Services (10%). The other 44 national government departments accounted for 29%.

The biggest expenditure item went to financial grants to other spheres of government, accounting for 56% (R968-billion) of the R1.73-trillion.

After financial grants, the second-biggest expense item on national government’s financial statement was interest paid on public debt, accounting for R205-billion of total expenses.

The Reserve Bank, in its Quarterly Bulletin on Tuesday, said the government needs to rein in its debt service costs as a top priority because they are draining financial resources from other areas that require government support.