The National Treasury has warned that the increasing demand for higher education and training funding is causing other critical government programmes to face unanticipated budget cuts. The government has continued to pump billions of rand into the higher education and training sector amid mounting pressure from students demanding free education. In its Budget Review document, the Treasury notes that policy changes without adequate consideration of the budgetary consequences — such as those related to higher education — have required billions of rand to be shifted within tight resource limits, causing other critical programmes to face budget cuts. Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan said in his budget speech that, in addition to the increases of R32bn made in the higher education allocations in last year’s budget and the 2016 medium-term budget policy statement, a further R5bn in the outer year of the medium-term expenditure framework had been added. Briefing the media, Gordhan said gove...
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