'Most Notably' (7 April 2026)

We open this week's 'Most Notably' with a parliamentary media statement on efforts to curb gangsterism and illegal mining. Issued following a joint committee briefing, the statement provides information on the planned deployment of South African National Defence Force (SANDF) members in support of ongoing interventions by the South African Police Service (SAPS). The deployment was announced by President Cyril Ramaphosa in his 2026 State of the Nation Address.

According to the statement, the deployment's first phase began in Gauteng on 31 January 2026 and is expected to end on 30 April 2026. While the second deployment's commencement date is unclear, a presentation document circulated during the briefing tends to suggest that – having undergone the necessary drills and "joint mission readiness training" at forward mounting bases in the Eastern Cape, Free State, Gauteng, North West and Western Cape – participants in the joint operation's next phase may have begun their mission during the Easter weekend. It is scheduled to end on 31 March 2027.

The document also refers to:

• separate SANDF and SAPS codes of conduct

• joint rules of conduct and engagement

• "strict compliance with strategic guidelines", and

• "rebuilding the social fabric of ... (affected) communities through outreach initiatives".

infrastructure development

Last week's official launch of the Infrastructure Finance & Implementation Support Agency's (IFISA's) programme office was cancelled at short notice with no explanation. Scheduled for 31 March 2026 during the sixth investment summit, had the launch proceeded as planned it would have signaled the beginning of a new era in public-private partnerships. According to a National Treasury media statement on the event (issued before it was cancelled), "by centralising infrastructure finance functions, the new (programme) office ... (is expected to) reduce duplication, eliminate inefficiencies and create a trusted, strategic interface between government and the private sector". This is noting that IFISA "is mandated to mobilise private finance and technical expertise at scale to accelerate infrastructure delivery across the country".

Once established, as a single "coherent, high impact structure" the programme office will bring together:

• National Treasury's:

  • Public Private Partnership Unit

  • Capital Projects Appraisal Unit, and

  • Neighbourhood Development Partnership Programme with

• the Infrastructure Fund.

It is anticipated that, in turn, this will "strengthen and expand the public-private partnership and blended infrastructure finance pipelines" by:

• "enabling greater private sector participation"

• "reducing pressure on the fiscus"

• "improving risk allocation", and

• "fast track(ing) projects to financial close".

"The office will also provide procurement support, project management capability, and information and data management to improve spending and delivery outcomes."

Eskom and municipal debt

A landmark agreement reached between Eskom and the City of Tshwane in December 2024 could well be replicated in other municipalities "facing significant Eskom debt". Co-operative Governance & Traditional Affairs Minister Thembi Simelane confirmed this recently in a written reply to questions from ActionSA's Malebo Kobe. However, this would be subject to each municipality concerned:

• meeting National Treasury's Eskom dept relief programme eligibility requirements

• demonstrating commitment to "maintaining payment discipline"

• strengthening internal revenue management controls

• complying with prevailing Division of Revenue Act and 2003 Municipal Finance Management Act prescripts, and

• adhering to Eskom's credit control policies.

According to the Minister, these measures seek to ensure that a municipality's financial recovery is sustainable "while protecting revenue streams critical to service delivery".

National Treasury's Eskom dept relief programme includes "conditional interest relief", as well as support in improving long-term revenue and expenditure management. Augmenting this, the Department of Co-operative Governance & Traditional Affairs provides targeted technical assistance with administrative and management procedures ranging from:

• the use of National Treasury's cost-reflective tariff-setting tool, to

• tariff policy reviews, and

• effective bulk services management.

Until next Monday ...

Policy Watch SA

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