Tag: Social Relief of Distress Grant

Minister of Finance Enoch Godongwana delivered his Budget Speech 2024 to Parliament and the nation on 21 February 2024. A key announcement was that tax rates will not be increased in 2024/2025, as previously signalled by the Medium-Term Budget Policy Statement (MTBPS) 2023, to generate the extra R15 billion needed in revenue.

With the budget speech being delivered in an election year, I expect to hear populist promises and over-optimism which is geared more to voters than the financial markets. We will need to scrutinise the numbers coming out of the budget very carefully to see if Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana’s budget proposals are viable and achievable given the country’s high debt burden and strained tax base.

The National Budget delivered by South Africa’s Minister of Finance, Enoch Godongwana, showed that government is making some significant financial commitments to restore Eskom to viability and maintain social grants. But with GDP growth projected at 1.4% on average from 2023 to 2025, and a potential tapering-off of the commodities boom over the medium term, how will government fund these commitments?

When it comes to funding the basic income grant (BIG), I caution against putting further financial pressure on tax-paying citizens and the private sector. The BIG is the big issue on the table this year, as Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana prepares his inaugural Budget Speech.

President Ramaphosa delivered the Nation Address on Thursday evening from the Cape Town City Hall, as the country struggles with an ailing economy, civil unrest, corona virus, state capture and a promise-weary public.