Minister of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs Velenkosini Hlabisa announced that the Eastern Cape is set to receive more than R504 million for disaster relief.
Luba Lesolle/Gallo Images
The Eastern Cape will receive R504m municipal disaster recovery grant,following severe floods.Cogta Minister Velenkosini Hlabisa warned against the misuse of funds.The Western Cape and KwaZulu-Natal have also received allocations.Following severe flooding in the Eastern Cape,the province is expected to receive a R504-million allocation of a R1.2-billion municipal disaster recovery grant.
In addition,the province will also receive a municipal disaster response grant allocation of R58.6 million.
Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (Cogta) Minister Velenkosini Hlabisa announced this at a briefing at the Sandton Convention Centre on Monday.
Among the other provinces that will received municipal disaster response grant allocation are the North West (R50 million),Mpumalanga,(R13.6 million),the Eastern Cape (R50 million) and KwaZulu-Natal (R139.3 million).
ADVERTISEMENT
The funds should be transferred from the National Treasury to Cogta between 11 July and 18 July,Hlabisa said.
Meanwhile,the municipal disaster recovery grant allocations that are scheduled to be transferred on 28 August are as follows:
Limpopo (R26.4 million),Mpumalanga (R102 million),KwaZulu-Natal (R76.4 million),and the Eastern Cape,which will get the lion’s share of R504 million.
The allocations come in the wake of severe floods in the Eastern Cape,KwaZulu-Natal,Free State and Western Cape.
ADVERTISEMENT
The death toll in the Eastern Cape is 103,and there have been three deaths in KwaZulu-Natal,and one death in the Western Cape.
READ | Eastern Cape floods: Death toll rises to 103 as recovery,resettlement efforts intensify
However,Hlabisa cautioned that the funds must be used exclusively for sanctioned purposes and not be redirected to unrelated expenditures,such as employee travel.
“The municipal disaster recovery grant is contingent upon specific conditions that municipalities are required to follow,including compliance with various regulations,such as the DORA (Division of Revenue Act) and the Municipal Financial Management Act.
“After the National Disaster Management Centre transfers funds,municipalities are expected to use these resources promptly. Recipients of the funds must follow established reporting protocols and use the required templates to ensure accountability in their financial disclosures,” Hlabisa said.
Municipalities are notorious for mismanaging disaster relief funds or failing to spend the money without the necessary council resolutions,which the Auditor-General flagged in previous reporting cycles.
Follow detailed updates from the Minister's briefing in this thread: 🧵https://t.co/sX99yoSjfC#DisasterRelief #COGTA #LeaveNoOneBehind 🇿🇦 https://t.co/Bv8Dorxsnt
— NationalCoGTA 🇿🇦 (@NationalCoGTA) July 7,2025
Hlabisa said key areas of concern had been identified,including the appropriate spending of disaster grants and implementation.
“These include poor infrastructure planning and execution,inadequate workmanship,diversion or alteration of the scope of work,delays in appointing service providers that lead to municipalities underperforming,and the misallocation of funds to operational matters instead of the designated projects.
“Additionally,there is a significant lack of monitoring and contract management by implementing agents,as well as projects being underdesigned,which makes the infrastructure vulnerable to further damage,” Hlabisa said.
He cautioned that returning unspent grants to the National Treasury exposed communities to risks and added that “there is a concerning trend of non-reporting and a lack of accountability for the funding allocated to provinces and municipalities”.
ADVERTISEMENT
United News - unews.co.za