Govt to end tender 'leakage'

Cape Town - The national treasury is going to establish a unit to detect and investigate corruption in state purchasing processes.

During a recession every cent has to be spent effectively on the purpose for which it was intended, and any form of leakage in government must be attacked, urged Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan on Friday.

The envisaged unit will investigate the affairs of public servants and people in the private sector guilty of corruption. "There has to be an end to leakage in the tender system."

In the debate on President Jacob Zuma's state of the nation address he said the reality of the recession is something South Africa has to accept. It will lead to reduced tax revenue which will constrain state expenditure.

But thanks to the actions and difficult decisions taken by his predecessor [Trevor Manuel], South Africa has not been as badly affected as other countries.

"We mustn't waste a good crisis," he said. The global economic downturn offers an opportunity to restructure the economy so that full advantage can be derived from the recovery.

This year Gordhan will make proposals to the committee of ministers supervising development finance institutions on how the private banking sector can become involved in co-funding and sharing risk in infrastructural projects, as well as in broader access to credit.

- Sake24.com

For more business news in Afrikaans, go to Sake24.com.