The Gauteng provincial government in South Africa has set aside almost ZAR16 million (US$1.8 million) for the Gauteng Broadband Network initiative, as it turns its attentions to infrastructure development.
Presenting the penultimate budget for the 2009-2014 political term, Mandla Nkomfe, Gauteng MEC for Finance, said ZAR25 billion of the ZAR76.9 billion budget would go on infrastructure projects.
Nkomfe said: “The 2013/2014 Provincial Budget marks the beginning of a new cycle of public spending in a way that makes a difference in our people’s lives.
“In line with Vision 2055, we will roll out massive infrastructure programmes, such as building of roads; building of and refurbishment of schools and hospitals; and connecting our people through the Gauteng Broadband Initiative.”
The funding for the Gauteng Broadband Network initiative will be broken down into ZAR5 million for 2013/14, ZAR5.3 million for 2014/15 and ZAR5.5 million for 2015/16.
The network, part of the G-Link project formerly known as Blue Umbrella, will be made up of 1,600km of high-speed fibre and aims to cover 95 per cent of province’s population.
