Additional NGO Funding Approved for Persons with Disabilities

Media Statement by Albert Fritz, Minister of Social Development

In December last year, I presented to parliament my department's adjustment budget, in which we managed to save R50 million by cutting back on non-essential spending. I undertook to make the savings available for welfare and related services, particularly for persons with disabilities, older persons and youth development.

On Wednesday, 1 February, we release the first tranche of this funding to NGOs selected via an application and adjudication process. These funds will be used for the last quarter of this financial year (until 1 April 2012) and is specific to persons with disabilities.

Disability: Total Additional Funds Approved - R 19.4 million

A funding panel has evaluated the applications for funding from these NGOs, as well as their track records, to ensure that we fund projects that speak directly to our strategic objective of social inclusion and poverty reduction. The resources are targeted at sites across the province to ensure they reach rural areas and provide equitable access to the opportunities created.

Further allocations are to follow shortly as we use the remainder of the savings from our adjustment budget.

The Western Cape Government is committed to ensuring that taxpayers get value for their money. We will continue cutting away non-essential expenditure to make more funds available to serve the people of this province - better together.