The Kgala Project, which employs Cuban technicians in the maintenance of South African military equipment, will be discontinued following legal challenges and irregular expenses amounting to 278.6 million rands (approximately 16.9 million dollars). Ongoing courses may be completed.
The instruction was revealed by Rear Admiral James Matshimane, head of Policy, Strategy, and Planning for the South African National Defence Forces (SANDF), during an appearance before the parliamentary committee responsible for overseeing the sector, according to the South African media News24.
Matshimane confirmed that an instruction had already been issued to halt the program, but explained that the ongoing training courses would be allowed to finish before it was officially concluded.
The senior official did not identify the authority that issued the order nor specified when the pending activities would conclude. He also did not clarify whether new payments will be made while the courses are ongoing.
The closure impacts an initiative through which Cuban engineers and technicians provided maintenance and repair services to the South African Armed Forces, including work related to military vehicles, aviation equipment, and naval components.
According to a written response from the Minister of Defense and Military Veterans to Parliament, cited by News24, 119 Cuban citizens were deployed to South Africa under the Kgala Project.
The project began in January 2025 as a replacement for the Thusano Project, the previous military cooperation scheme between Pretoria and Havana.
However, the new designation did not eliminate the controversies surrounding the hiring of Cuban services nor the objections from oversight agencies.
One of the most important questions was legal. According to the investigation by News24, the chief legal advisor of the South African state concluded that the Kgala Project agreement violated public procurement legislation and was invalid.
This report was supplemented by the findings of the Auditor-General of South Africa regarding the management of public resources. The irregular expenditures attributed to the Kgala Project reached 278.6 million rands (approximately 16.9 million dollars), according to figures collected by the South African opposition.
The term "irregular expenses" does not automatically equate to fraud, embezzlement, or the complete loss of funds. In South African public auditing, it is used to identify expenditures made without adhering to specific legal requirements or financial procedures.
The decision to close Kgala was positively received by the Democratic Alliance (DA), a party that is part of South Africa's National Unity Government, which had questioned the costs and legality of military cooperation with Cuba for years.
In a statement released this Thursday, the party requested that the order be translated into a verifiable termination process, with a defined timeline, a complete reconciliation of expenditures, and an explanation of the contractual commitments that remain in effect.
The DA warned that the announced instruction does not mean that the program is fully closed, as some training activities will continue until their completion.
The controversy has an important financial precedent. According to data provided by the Department of Defense to Parliament in March 2025, The Thusano Project had cost approximately 3.04 billion rands (about 184 million dollars) over a decade.
The General Audit identified an additional 1.699 billion rand in irregular expenses (approximately 103 million dollars) associated with that previous program, according to information cited by the Democratic Alliance.
These figures belong to the Thusano Project and should not be confused with the 278.6 million rands (approximately 16.9 million dollars) attributed to Kgala.
Another questioned aspect is the cost of air travel. The DA indicated that the reported expenses for Kgala include 100.3 million rands (approximately 6.1 million dollars) for the hiring of charter flights and demanded to identify the trips funded with that money.
The formation recalled that it had previously reported a flight of nearly 34 million rands (about 2.1 million dollars) to transport more than 200 members of the South African Armed Forces to Cuba for a graduation ceremony. It is now requesting clarification on whether this movement is part of the 100.3 million recorded in the most recent program.
Military cooperation between both countries has been sustained by a historic political relationship. The African National Congress (ANC) has defended its ties with Cuba, which supported the anti-apartheid movement, while its critics question the cost of contracted services and the possibility of hiring South African professionals.
Objections to these agreements had already sparked debates in the South African Parliament. In September 2025, military cooperation with Cuba generated new controversy over the costs of training South African officers on the island, compared to the training alternatives available within the country.
Despite the criticism, bilateral contacts continued. In November 2025, it was reported that Cuba and South Africa had strengthened their military cooperation discussions, focusing on training and technical assistance.
Controversies also reached the South African military deployed in Cuban territory. In September 2026, a union called for an investigation into allegations of alleged pressures on military personnel assigned to Cuba to hand over part of their financial allocations.
The Armed Forces rejected the notion that there was an obligation to make those contributions.
That same month, the million-dollar agreements with Havana were once again under scrutiny, amid questions regarding budget priorities and the infrastructure needs of the South African state itself.
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