Gauteng govt refutes claims Nasi iSpani beneficiaries are being short-changed

JOHANNESBURG - The Gauteng government has refuted allegations that some beneficiaries of the Nasi iSpani programme have not been receiving their salaries.

This follows media reports accusing the provincial government of failing to pay over 300 beneficiaries since February.

The Nasi iSpani project - which is spearheaded by Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi - was launched in June last year to provide job opportunities to people under the age of 35 in Gauteng.

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The Gauteng provincial government says the Nasi iSpani project is not running out of funds and claims that some beneficiaries have not been paid are false.

It said the first batch of payments for people who were employed in February was made on Monday - with any outstanding payment set to be paid off in the next two weeks.

The programme has employed over 32,000 people since June last year, with the numbers expected to increase to half a million over the coming months.

This follows the Labour and Employment Department's launch of its labour activation programme funded by the Unemployment Insurance Fund in Gauteng over the weekend.