Mbombela — The Mpumalanga provincial government has approved a R216 billion budget for the 2026 Medium Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF), with R70,3 billion allocated for the 2026/27 financial year, starting 1 April 2026.


Finance MEC Bonakele Majuba presented the budget at the Mpumalanga Provincial Legislature in Mbombela on Wednesday, 11 March 2026.


Majuba said 79,6%, amounting to about R56 billion, will be raised from the provincial equitable share, while 15,2%, translating to about R10,7 billion will be funded through conditional grants from the national government. The remaining R3,7 billion will come from the provincial own revenue, including car licence renewals, gambling levies and liquor taxes.


The province's own revenue increased from R2,4 billion in 2025/26, while the share of national revenue (equitable-share) rose slightly from 8,2% in 2025/26 to 8,4% in 2026/27. 


Majuba said this increase is partly due to population growth in the province.


Mpumalanga’s economy is projected to grow by 1,3% in 2026, rising to 1,9% in 2027, and reaching 3% by 2029, according to Majuba. Growth is expected to be driven primarily by agriculture, finance, transport and communication and construction sectors.


He added that the financial sector has shown resilience, achieving about 2% growth annually, with an average annual growth projected at 3,2% for 2024–2029.


Majuba also announced a voluntary early retirement programme aimed at reducing payroll costs while allowing departments to bring in new employees. Eight provincial departments will receive R84,3 million to implement the programme.

An additional R250 million has been allocated for disaster relief.

The Education Department will receive the largest share at R30,6 billion, followed by Health with R21,1 billion, and Public Works, Roads and Transport with R6,5 billion. Other departmental allocations include:

• Office of the Premier – R505,9 million

• Provincial Legislature – R585,4 million

• Provincial Treasury – R729,1 million

• Co-operative Governance, Human Settlements and Traditional Affairs (CoGHSTA) – R2,37 billion

• Agriculture, Rural Development, Land and Environmental Affairs – R1,82 billion

• Economic Development and Tourism – R1,40 billion

• Community Safety, Security and Liaison – R2,35 billion

• Culture, Sport and Recreation – R721 million

• Social Development –  R2,25 billion