In his first Medium-Term Budget Policy Statement (MTBPS) under the Government of National Unity (GNU), Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana again failed to provide measures to address the country’s high levels of unemployment and the shrinking economy in yet another vague report to fellow South Africans.
This is according to the trade union UASA.
UASA spokesperson, Abigail Moyo said Godongwana’s approach to addressing the high unemployment rate by launching early retirement programs to attract younger people to the public sector is extremely discouraging.
“Most households depend on a single income, making the proposed initiative risky as there is no guarantee that the public service will absorb a sizeable percentage of the youth into the job market,” said Moyo.
She added that the UASA is concerned about:
- Cutting the Treasury’s current growth expectation from 1.3% to 1.1% for the current year.
- Income tax disappointment as the Treasury now expects to earn R22.3 billion less in tax than the previous expectation estimate in February – some bad news for overstrained taxpayers.
- There is a lack of detail about introducing a fiscal rule to legislate a ceiling above which government debt cannot rise as from the MTBPS.
- Lower estimated tax revenue of R22.3bn for 2024/25 which increases the consolidated budget deficit, keeping SA on its fiscal consolidation path.
Conversely, she said the union applauds Godongwana’s continuous “tough love” towards State Owned Enterprises (SOEs) and government agencies, particularly education and health, which have sometimes received budget increases from the minister.
“These departments are essential to domestic operations; however, the fact that they managed to survive under the initial budgets without receiving additional funds should open doors for the government to tend to other avenues needing financial boosts like infrastructure and reformation,” Moyo said.
IOL