Money down the drain: The direct cost to government of alcohol abuse

Soul City has recently embarked on a multi-year campaign that aims to prevent and reduce violence through focusing on alcohol abuse. This article describes an exercise commissioned by Soul City to estimate the expenditure allocations and expected revenue of national and provincial government departments in South Africa that can be attributed to alcohol abuse. The article highlights, in particular, the estimates derived for the security-related departments, namely Safety and Security, Correctional Services, Justice and Constitutional Development, and the national and provincial departments responsible for policing. The article concludes with suggestions regarding areas that would benefit from further investigation.