NPOs battle for funding as Gauteng government admits to non-compliance

The Gauteng government has conceded that it has not fully complied with the three court orders obtained by the Gauteng Care Crisis Committee (GCCC) on behalf of non-profit organisations (NPOs).

The court orders instructed the Gauteng Department of Social Development (GDSD) to address funding challenges for the 2024/2025 financial year.

The long-standing legal battle involves Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi, the MEC for Social Development, and the GDSD, who face allegations of contempt of court.

In May 2024, Judge Ingrid Opperman ordered the department to finalise which NPOs should receive funding after applications opened a few months before. The court order also told the department to enter into service level agreements (SLAs) with them. The judgment further stated that payment to the NPOs which already had such an agreement should be made by 31 May 2024.

The department filed a report a month later setting out its progress in complying with that court order.

After they failed to comply with this initial order, the GCCC obtained further orders in the matter in November and December 2024.

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Matter before court

The matter was before the Gauteng High Court in Johannesburg on Monday.

Deputy Judge President Roland Sutherland emphasised that the department needed to comply with last year’s orders.

Making representations on behalf of the department and provincial government, Advocate Ndumiso Luthuli acknowledged that the response so far had been unsatisfactory.

The matter was postponed to Friday to allow more time for the GCCC to respond to affidavits filed on Sunday on behalf of the DSD, the premier, and the MEC offices.

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Gauteng government working to comply

Speaking after proceedings on Monday, Gauteng government representative Rethabile Mokgatle they would “be working earnestly with the department to ensure compliance”.

“It will be filed. But if it’s not filed, then we’ll need to wait for the [Deputy Judge President’s] directives,” she explained.

“The report is important because I think the NPOs need to know what progress has been made since the filing of the department’s report in June [2024].

“And I think it’s crucial for the NPOs to receive the information, in terms of what the department’s progress has been since June up until now.

“There has been quite substantial progress, so that report will hopefully give the NPOs some comfort in relation to the department’s progress.”

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‘Difficulties’ in the Gauteng social development department

Mokgatle admitted to the delays but blamed them on difficulties within the department.

“There’s been substantial compliance, but the dates of complying were somewhat delayed. The department does take accountability for the delays, and that will be further explained in the reports.”

She said the election of new leadership in the department had also had an impact.

“There has been new leadership as of July last year, which could have contributed to the delays. But, administratively, the department is battling with a few issues, though working very hard, as we understand it, to correct them,” she added.

Signed for 12 months, funded for three

Chairperson of the GCCC Lisa Vetten said several NPOs signed 12-month contracts with the department, only to be informed they would receive funding for just three months.

This, according to Vetten, has now been reversed, and the department has agreed to honour the full 12-month contracts for organisations that have already been working and can provide evidence of their services.

“The department approved 101 new organisations for funding but only provided three months’ worth of payments to some, leaving others unpaid.

“It has yet to address hundreds of cases where funding was promised but not honoured. Additionally, some organisations that signed SLAs have not received any payment at all,” she said.

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Budget cuts

The court order seeks to get the acting head of the department, Bongani Ngomane, to submit an affidavit explaining the reasons for delayed payments and the steps taken to mitigate the impact on beneficiaries by 28 January.

It also seeks to get the DSD to pay all outstanding funds to organisations by 31 January.

Vetten said although the department had cited a R223 million budget cut as the reason for these funding challenges, this does not explain why organisations with valid contracts were not paid.

“The department has been unwilling to disclose the members of the external panel responsible for these funding decisions, raising concerns about accountability and transparency.

“The National Sector Funding Policy requires the department to publish a detailed list of funded organisations and amounts annually, but this has not been done, undermining public accountability.”

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