The government has allocated R848.2 billion over the medium term to combat crime and ensure territorial integrity.
This is in line with the announcement by President Cyril Ramaphosa in the State of the Nation Address on the deployment of the South African National Defence Force (SANDF) alongside the police to fight illegal mining and gangsterism.
According to the National Budget Treasury review, the allocation seeks to build a capable, ethical, and developmental state through safer communities, improved prosecution, and effective border management.
“To support this and other efforts to intensify law and order, spending on peace and security increases from R268.2 billion in 2025/26 to R291.2 billion in 2028/29.
“The Border Management Authority has been allocated an additional R990 million over the medium term to build capacity by filling 738 positions,” Minister of Finance Enoch Godongwana said on Wednesday in Parliament.
A total of R2.7 billion has been added to Defence over the medium term to improve operations, including to maintain the South African Air Force’s fighter capability.
“In addition, we have allocated R1 billion to the police service, and another R1 billion to the South African National Defence Force (SANDF), through the CARA [Criminal Assets Recovery Account] fund for the fight against organised crime.
“Over the medium term, R883.8 million is shifted from the Department of Justice and Constitutional Development to the Office of the Chief Justice,” Godongwana said.
This will enable the Office of the Chief Justice to manage its own budgets, enhancing its independence from the Executive from the first of April.
Similar arrangements for the funding of Parliament are being undertaken in the spirit of the separation of powers.
“An additional R687 million has been allocated to increase capacity in the judiciary. The President also announced the establishment of specialised courts. Once the cost is finalised, allocation for this will be considered later in the year.
“For the various commissions of inquiry underway that are unlikely to finish within their initial deadlines, funding will also be made available when the costs become clearer,” the Minister said.
