Extra-budgetary accounts and funds (EBAs) involved in the transport sector increased their spending in the 2021/22 fiscal year. However, despite the rise, expenditure is still below pre-pandemic levels.

South Africa’s 256 EBAs are public institutions. They form an important arm of general government, responsible for delivering services to the public on behalf of government. Examples include the South African Revenue Service, the Road Accident Fund, and the Unemployment Insurance Fund. EBAs obtain most of their revenue from national and provincial government departments.

EBAs are involved in a variety of government functions, such as education, social protection, health and public safety. The total EBA expenditure bill in 2021/22 was R303,6 billion, according to the latest Financial statistics of extra-budgetary accounts and funds statistical release. The 19 EBAs involved in transport-related activities accounted for R29,4 billion. This is higher than the R23,1 billion recorded in 2020/21. Although there has been some growth, transport expenditure remains lower than it was before the pandemic (Figure 1).

Transport is classified in a broader category referred to as economic affairs. This includes spending by EBAs that are active in different economic sectors. Total expenditure related to economic affairs was R61,7 billion in 2021/22 (Figure 2). Transport expenditure dominated, accounting for R29,4 billion.

Breaking this down further, the South African National Roads Agency (SANRAL) claimed the lion’s share, accounting for R18,1 billion. The institution is responsible for several tasks, including the planning, design, building, operation, management and maintenance of the national road network. Naturally, SANRAL commits a relatively significant sum to capital expenditure such as construction, equipment, machinery, buildings and other fixed assets. SANRAL’s capital expenditure was R4,8 billion in 2021/22, accounting for 74% of total capital expenditure across the 19 EBAs.

Other top spenders include the Gautrain Management Agency (R2,7 billion), the Road Traffic Management Corporation (R1,3 billion) and Roads Agency Limpopo (R1,2 billion).

In terms of capital expenditure, the Roads Agency Limpopo was the second biggest spender (R0,5 billion) after SANRAL, followed by g-FleeT Management (R0,4 billion) and Western Cape Government Motor Transport (R0,3 billion).

For more information, download the 2021/22 Financial statistics of extra-budgetary accounts and funds report here.

EBAs are not the only contributors to transport expenditure in government. There are institutions in other arms of government (national, provincial and higher education institutions) that spend money on transport-related activities. Stats SA publishes financial reports for each arm of government. The national government report for 2021/22 is available here. Reports will be published later in the year for provincial government (on 28 September) and higher education institutions (on 26 October). A consolidated release, which incorporates data from these publications, will be available on 30 November.

Similar articles are available on the Stats SA website and can be accessed here.

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