BusinessLive reports that Finance Minister Tito Mboweni said in the National Assembly on Tuesday that financial support for struggling state-owned entities (SOEs) such as the SA Broadcasting Corporation (SABC), Denel and SA Airways (SAA) would be released in chunks as certain conditions were met.  

There had to be progress in these organisations before the government would grant them funds, Mboweni said.  He added that chief restructuring officers would be announced for each of these entities on Wednesday and that they would work with the managements to get them back on track.  Summing up the debate on the Appropriations Bill, the finance minister said the allocations would be made from the contingency reserve, which was increased by R6bn to R13bn in the February budget so government could respond to requests for fiscal support from SOEs.  Additional funds would be raised by selling noncore assets.  The SABC is on the verge of collapse and has requested a R3.2bn government guarantee to stay afloat.  Though Mboweni declined to grant the SABC the guarantee, he previously indicated that he recognised the immediate need for the public broadcaster to be given some form of assistance.  Meanwhile, Denel has told employees that it remained at risk of not being able to pay salaries for July.

• Read the full original of Linda Ensor’s report in the above regard at BusinessLive
• Read too, SA's troubled parastatals to be placed under curatorship as they receive billions in State funding, at Engineering News

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