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Overview of the Provincial Revenue and Expenditure (OPRE %u2013 2025/26)5 PAYMENTS 5.1 Overall position The 2025 MTEF budget is prepared against the background of a constrained fiscal environment due to gradual but uncertain economic recovery, escalating global geopolitical risks and tensions, and continuing erratic weather events affecting mainly the agriculture sector. In the light of this, the 2025 MTEF budget protected the critical programmes, especially in health and education. In the context of continued fiscal pressure, departments and public entities must evaluate their spending priorities against key policy objectives. Furthermore, these institutions need to review and rationalise programmes and implement efficient ways to deliver government services. Government must spend efficiently and prudently to ensure that there is a multiplier effect that will benefit the province in achieving the goals of the Provincial Development Plan (PDP) as the province moves towards the new cluster system of enhancing collaboration and coordination in achieving its outcomes. Therefore, the 2025 MTEF budget is underpinned by the work of the three clusters. Furthermore, government continues to focus on infrastructure delivery with emphasis not only on social infrastructure, but increasingly also focusing on the economic infrastructure in order to boost the Gross Capital Formation of the province. In preparation for the 7th Government Administration, the provincial departments have been arranged in Clusters, which were created to promote an integrated governance approach, with the goal of enhancing government planning, decision-making, and service delivery. The primary aim is to achieve effective coordination of all government programmes at both national, provincial and local levels. There are three clusters, and they act in support of the Cabinet Committees as well as the Executive Council: %uf0b7 Governance, State Capacity and Institutional Development (GSCID) which is led by theDepartment of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs. The Justice, Crime Preventionand Security Cluster (JCPS) which is led by Department of Community Safety %u2013 is a subcluster of the GSCID cluster.%uf0b7 Economic Sectors, Investment, Employment and Infrastructure Development (ESIEID) whichis led by the Department of Economic Development, Environmental Affairs and Tourism.%uf0b7 Social Protection, Community and Human Development (SPCHD) which is led by theDepartment of Social Development.The clusters are arranged in departments as contained in Table 5.1 below. The total outlays for the payments by the province amount to R100 billion in 2025/26, R101.695 billion in 2026/27 and R106.104 billion in 2027/28. Figure 1 below shows split of the 2025/26 between the clusters. 64