Table Mountain National Park (TMNP) has been allocated an additional R35,9 million to go towards infrastructure maintenance over the next three years.
The new CEO of South African National Parks (SANParks), Hapiloe Sello, shared the encouraging news at a stakeholder engagement held on Tuesday 6 June in Tokai.
Addressing various user groups’ concerns about the “decay” visible in the park, Sello announced that the Department of Environment, Forestry and Fisheries (DFFE) had allocated additional funding of R700 million to SANParks with approximately R36 million earmarked for TMNP.
There are currently 22 parks in the national park stable. When asked how TMNP’s share of the pie had been determined, SANParks said the infrastructure maintenance funds had not been allocated evenly throughout parks but had been allocated according to the size and state of infrastructure in the parks.
“Projects which are already in progress but short-funded were prioritised in the allocation and 60% of the R700 million is allocated to Kruger National Park.”
At present, TMNP’s maintenance budget for the 2023/24 financial year stands at R11,9 million. These funds are meant to cover all areas of maintenance across the park, including fire management, infrastructure maintenance (tourism facilities, administration facilities and staff housing) and equipment maintenance.
Speaking at the stakeholder meeting, SANParks Cape regional general manager Johan Taljaard said the additional funding, which was over and above TMNP’s normal capital expenditure budget, would make “a difference in a big way in those areas where they normally did not have big amounts of funds to address a specific thing”.
“And we are looking at very specific things with those monies,” he said.
SANParks said of the R35,9 million, R28 million was allocated for the Tokai precinct, R3,9 million for roads, and R4 million for strategic fencing.
It added that a R5 million allocation for trail maintenance had been requested “from a separate tourism funding source” but had not yet been confirmed by the department.
The R28 million, SANParks said, was needed for upgrading services – water, sewerage, power supply, communications and access “to have a viable tourism product” – for the Tokai manor house and surrounds, including the picnic site and stables. The latter, SANParks said, would be put out on a concession (public-private partnership).
With regard to road maintenance, SANParks said the R3,9 million was earmarked for some of the tar roads in the Cape of Good Hope area.
During the stakeholders’ meeting, Taljaard briefly touched on the money allocated for strategic fencing, saying it had to do specifically with baboon management.
Responding to a follow-up query, SANParks said strategic fencing was one of the interventions contained in the Baboon Strategic Management Plan which is currently still in draft form.
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“Workshops are being held with the three authorities: CapeNature, City of Cape Town and SANParks, with the input of experts, to determine where fences may be located and to prioritise fences.”
SANParks said that although the R35,9 million had been approved it would only be available after business plans were submitted and approved.
“And then the procurement process must take place according to the Public Finance Management Act prescripts and SANParks’ supply chain management policy. This means there will not be any work done on the ground in the next few months.”
However, SANParks said tenders were being drawn up “for some of the projects” and would be advertised when ready via the SANParks website.
Wrapping up the meeting, Sello said what was critical for SANParks “on the ground” was to ensure that implementation was quick and that they were able to meet their targets this financial year.
“That means that procurement processes must be speedy and urgent,” said Sello.
