Gauteng government outlines how it will settle e-toll debt

JOHANNESBURG - The Gauteng government says it will settle its multibillion rand e-toll debt through repriotising its budget. 

The province owes the South African National Roads Agency (SANRAL) about R13 billion for upgrades and maintenance of its highways. 

During a media briefing on Monday, the Gauteng government announced that it had made its first payment of R3.8 billion towards the debt. 

Earlier this year, the previous Finance MEC, Jacob Mamabolo, said the provincial government would be borrowing money to settle its e-toll debt with SANRAL.

READ: Gauteng govt makes first payment to settle e-toll debt

"To manage the current economic difficulties, and the current complexities of the fiscal space, let's go borrow, pay now but open up a long-term payment plan and an opportunity to relieve the fiscus in the province," Mamabolo said at the time.

However, it seems the province has changed its strategy. 

The current Gauteng Finance MEC, Lebogang Maile, said it doesn’t make sense to borrow money to settle debt. 

"The province will prioritise the repriotisation of budgets, identification of efficiency gains, and making trade-offs to fund the government priorities," Maile said.

Maile said the government is looking at revenue-enhancing methods to cover the shortfall.