South Africa overspent by 13.5% on Earth Summit - minister
Date: 11-Nov-02
Country: SOUTH AFRICA
Moosa said in a written response to a parliamentary question the latest estimate was that the event, officially known as the U.N. World Summit on Sustainable Development, had cost 624.3 million rand ($64.2 mln), up from a budget of 550 million rand.
Nearly 200 countries agreed on a number of targets to reduce poverty and fight environmental degradation, but were unable to agree a programme to boost renewable energy sources.
South Africa and the United Nations hailed the summit, which ran with barely a hitch, as a triumph for the planet and for the poor.
But Friends of the Earth International branded it "a shameful summit", saying governments had surrendered to the World Trade Organisation and big business.
Moosa said the bill included 3.8 million rand in debts left unpaid by foreign delegations. A spokeswoman for the organisers said the amount included delegates who registered and did not arrive and bills for hotel extras not settled.
Moosa said the government would contribute 332.1 million rand to the cost, but did not say who would pick up the rest of the tab.
Foreign donors and corporate sponsors had committed about 235 million rand before the event, but no updated tally of outside contributions has yet been published.
Moosa's department said recently the summit had injected an estimated eight billion rand into the South African economy, partly through contracts with local suppliers and partly through the spending of the 37,000 delegates.
Opposition Democratic Alliance legislator Janet Semple, who asked the question, said she was broadly satisfied that the money was well spent.
"The tourism benefits and the television exposure we got all around the world was fantastic..., but I think the financial management probably could have been a bit tighter," she said.
The biggest cost was 80 million rand for accommodation. Sixty million rand went to a successful security programme, which included the prevention of a right-wing attack using bombs hidden inside gas bottles destined for the summit kitchens.
