If South African Airways had not received a R5 billion going concern guarantee, it would have posed a systemic risk to all state-owned enterprises (SOEs) in South Africa, Deputy Finance Minister Mcebisi Jonas said on Tuesday.<\/p>\n
Jonas, who made a few introductory remarks, was part of a delegation from National Treasury and SAA who briefed Parliament\u2019s Standing Committee on Finance on the airline\u2019s preliminary financial statements for 2014-15.<\/p>\n
He said SAA would have been unable to finalise their financial statements without a guarantee. \u201cBut it would have been been prudent to give that kind of support without first mitigating the fiscal risk.\u201d<\/p>\n
Jonas pointed out that SOEs\u2019 financial position poses a significant risk to South Africa\u2019s fiscal position. In fact, the financial well-being of all CEOs is being taken into account when rating agencies assess South Africa\u2019s credit risk.<\/p>\n
Before handing over to acting CEO Musa Zwane, Jonas said the R4.7bn guarantee SAA received put the airline in a position to finalise sets of financial statements for both 2014-15 and 2015-16.<\/p>\n
The 2015-16 financial statements would be finalised before September 30 this year, Jonas said.<\/p>\n
News24<\/a><\/p>\n SAA losing streak continues with R4.7 billion loss<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\nMore on SAA<\/h3>\n