Government

R445 million for Ramaphosa’s projects in South Africa

Caitlyn Hilliard-Lomas

 ·12 Aug 2026

President Cyril Ramaphosa has revealed that his office has received R445.6 million in external private funding over the past five years to feed various presidential programmes.

He noted that the government operates several programmes that receive external funding and technical support.

Some of these programmes include Operation Vulindlela, the Presidential Employment Stimulus (PES), and the Just Energy Transition Investment Plan.

Responding to a parliamentary Q&A from Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) Deputy Secretary General Leigh-Ann Mathys, the president outlined the private sector funding for these programmes.

Mathys asked for details on the total private-sector funding, the specific funders, and the beneficiary programmes for initiatives focused on economic recovery, job creation, and job development.

Ramaphosa stressed that the total amount of R445.6 million in external partner support is not used to finance general government budgets or daily operations.

“The Presidency coordinates several strategic programmes aimed at accelerating economic growth and job creation,” Ramaphosa said.

“During the past five financial years, the Presidency has received support from a wide range of partners,” he said.

This includes philanthropies, industry associations, development finance institutions, and bilateral donors, which provide technical expertise, fund research papers, and offer other in-kind capacity-building support.

To ensure full accountability and prevent any conflicts of interest, all such support is strictly regulated by applicable state regulations and policies, he added.

“In each instance, the support is accepted subject to the relevant regulations and policies and includes measures to prevent any conflicts of interest that could arise.”

Government’s external partnerships

Funding from external partners allocated to South Africa’s presidential strategic initiatives has increased each year. 

In the 2022/23 financial year, the allocation was R11,740,493. This amount rose to R25,016,229 in 2023/24, then increased to R51,069,719 in 2024/25, peaking at R67,491,865 in the 2025/26 financial year. 

For the 2026/27 financial year, the allocated support is recorded at R44,282,532. Overall, this annual breakdown totals R199,600,838 in scheduled support. 

The remaining R245,971,800 of the grand total of R445,572,638 includes multi-year commitments from the Resource Mobilisation Fund (R180 million) and the Gates Foundation (R65.97 million).

The Government-Business Partnership received R180 million from the Resource Mobilisation Fund to provide technical support for the National Energy Crisis Committee (NECOM), the National Logistics Crisis Committee (NLCC), and the Joint Initiative on Crime and Corruption (JICC). 

The Just Energy Transition (JET) project received R95.6 million from the African Climate Foundation to build technical capacity within the JET Project Management Unit.

Nearly R72 million was secured for the Digital Transformation Roadmap. This amount includes around R66 million from the Gates Foundation and around R6 million from This Day.

These funds were reportedly provided to coordinate the roadmap’s implementation and strengthen technical capacity for key citizen services, such as transport, education, and social protection.

Operation Vulindlela was allocated a total of R56,315,459 across three partners. 

This includes R19,191,229 from Business Leadership South Africa/National Business Initiative, and R25,552,738 from Yellowwoods.

It also includes R11,571,492 from the International Economic Partnership to support reforms in logistics, water management, visas, and local government.

The Presidential Youth Employment Intervention (PYEI) received a total of R21,375,673. 

Of this amount, R20,980,673 was provided by Yellowwoods for critical implementation capacity, and R395,000 was funded by the DG Murray Trust for monitoring, evaluation, and staff support.

The Presidential Employment Stimulus (PES) received a total of R20,293,017 from various sources. 

This includes R8,543,800 from This Day, R4,500,281 from the European Union, R4,373,906 from Agence Française de Développement via Trade and Industrial Policy Strategies, and R2,875,000 from the DG Murray Trust. 

These funds are intended to assist with technical capacity, research facilities, and exit pathways.

External partner support over five financial years