In the document, the Treasury says the government had to “act swiftly to minimise the economic impact of the pandemic”, which meant that resources had to be redirected.
“On April 21 2020 the president [Cyril Ramaphosa] announced a R500bn fiscal support package that includes spending towards Covid-19 priorities. On April 30, the National Treasury published 'economic measures for Covid-19', outlining a R500bn response, as well as identifying the funding sources for the package.
“Part of the funding sources for this package is a R130bn baseline reprioritisation in the 2020/21 financial year,” the document states.
The process of the budget adjustment started on May 13, the document says, with the budget to be tabled in parliament on June 24.