Johannesburg – Tuesday, 11 October 2022 – The South African Broadcasting Corporation’s (SABC) 2021/22 Annual Report was tabled in Parliament on Monday, 3 October 2022. The SABC’s net loss improved by R329 million (62%) compared to 2020/21, resulting in a R543 million (73%) improvement in net loss over five years (2018 – 2022). Revenue grew by R90m (2%) year-on-year as a result of the marginal increase in sponsorship revenue.

The improvement in net loss was negatively impacted by the acquisition of sport rights of the Olympics, which accounts for 58% (R122 million) of the reported net loss. If not for the Olympics investment – which is a public mandate obligation – the operating position would have resulted in a loss of R78m – an 85% improvement from the previous fiscal.

Despite the revenue increase in 2021/22, revenue levels previously achieved in 2020 have yet to be realised primarily due to audience share decline. As a result, advertising revenue was significantly under budget by 23%. Revenue is projected to grow in 2022/23 and several initiatives are in progress to mitigating  the risk.

Further to the above, the SABC’s public mandate continues to negatively affect the Corporation’s financial performance with an average annual cost of R1,5 billion.

Brand awareness campaigns strengthened the TV Licence brand and contributed to enhanced TV licence collections by R26,6 million to a total of R815,1 million. However, the evasion rate remains high, at about 81.7%.

Cash on hand at year-end 2021/22 was R1,18bn with R917m as the remainder of the recapitalisation funding, ringfenced for CAPEX, and content acquisition.

The Corporation’s Audit Opinion remained ‘Qualified with Findings’. Only one qualification area (from six years ago) remains. It relates to the completeness of the Irregular Expenditure register, due to historical opening balances as at 1 April 2020.

Over the past 5 years, the Corporation has consistently reduced its year-on-year expenditure reported as irregular due to non-compliance to policies and procedures.

The ability of the Corporation to maintain its going concern status remains an area of concern and ongoing monitoring. The underperformance in revenue generation put pressure on liquidity in the short-term, but the Corporation continues to pursue several initiatives to manage day-to-day working capital and sustainably reduce the risk.

The Corporation has received several national and international accolades. These achievements and awards presented to News, Video Entertainment (TV) and Radio, are a recognition of the SABC’s excellence in fulfilling its public mandate of informing, educating and entertaining South Africans.

Ends

Issued By:                              Group Communications

Media Enquiries:                   Ms. Gugu Ntuli (Group Executive: Corporate Affairs and Marketing)

NtuliGM@sabc.co.za|T. 011 714 3311|C. 071 877 0513