Cape Town - South Africa has paid some R29.56bn for the arms deal - to re-equip the defence force - so far, says Defence Minister Mosioua Lekota. He was replying to a question in the National Assembly on Wednesday from the Pan Africanist Congress of Azania leader Motsuoko Pheko who asked how much had been spent on the arms deal to date and how many jobs had been created.

Lekota said about 13 000 jobs in all had been created.

Pheko then asked how many people who had left the South African National Defence Force had taken up these jobs in the private sector.

Lekota said that as a general rule, these jobs had not targeted those leaving the defence force. Noting that the jobs involved tended to be fairly specialised jobs, he said that he was "unable to give any figures as to how many have benefited (from the arms deal programme)".

With acknowledgement to I-Net Bridge and Fin24.