National and provincial departments have paid out 70% more than the previous year on performance bonuses to employees, despite SA battling worsening levels of debt, low growth and downgrades by two major ratings agencies over that period.

Of the R2.6bn paid out in the 2018/2019 financial year, R629m was spent by national departments and about R2bn by provincial governments.

A total of R1.5bn was spent in the previous year, which was lower than the R1.9bn paid in 2016/2017.

Finance minister Tito Mboweni has highlighted the need for a reduction in the growth of the wage bill — which consumes about 35% of the national budget — to achieve the government’s fiscal consolidation targets of reducing the budget deficit and debt.

Credit ratings agency Moody’s Investors Service is giving the government three months, until the February budget, to put together concrete plans it will implement to achieve its fiscal consolidation targets. The ratings agency recently held off from downgrading the country’s debt to junk but cut the outlook on the rating from “stable” to “negative”.

National and provincial departments have spent R6bn over the last three years on performance bonuses.

Details of the bonus payments were made by public service & administration minister Senzo Mchunu in a written reply to a parliamentary question by the DA spokesperson on public service and administration, Leon Schreiber.