Bulk of KZN health budget to be spent on appointing 932 additional staff

More than half the R302m allocated to the KwaZulu-Natal department of health for its 2021/22 budget will be spent on staff procurement. 

At least 932 additional staff members are expected to be employed by the department at a cost of R205.2m. 

This was revealed by health MEC Nomagugu Simelane-Zulu while presenting the budget vote speech at the KwaZulu-Natal Provincial Legislature in Pietermaritzburg on Friday. 

Simelane-Zulu said R16.7m would be spent on the procurement of refrigerators that operate at -40ºC and 34 ultra-cold freezers to store Covid-19 vaccines. 

She said R8.4m would be spent on the procurement of 34 vehicles to be used by vaccination teams during the Covid-19 pandemic and thereafter by outreach teams.

Information technology equipment for the Covid-19 vaccination rollout would cost the department R2.7m. The equipment would be used by health facilities after the pandemic. 

She said the rest of the budget would be used on consumables such as needles, syringes, cooler boxes, thermometers and other items. 

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