Pre-SONA considerations for moving South Africa onto a growth trajectory

The report argues that South Africa's economic growth is contingent upon strengthening political institutions and accountability. It recommends a ten-point plan focusing on electoral reform, the professionalization of the public service, and the governance redesign of state-owned enterprises like Eskom and Transnet. Regionally, it urges a more proactive role in SADC to defend electoral integrity and improve security mechanisms. On climate, it advocates for the operationalization of the Climate Change Act and a just energy transition through public-private partnerships.

• Economic growth in South Africa is unlikely to materialize without strengthening political institutions and deepening political accountability to create an environment for economic dynamism.
• South Africa's regional influence has been undermined by weak responses to electoral crises in Zimbabwe (2023) and Mozambique (2024), necessitating a more proactive role in SADC through stronger observer missions and consequences for irregularities.
• Local government governance is weak, characterized by declining audit outcomes and significant wasteful spending; for the 2022-2023 period, R241.1 billion in unauthorized expenditure was revealed, with only 34 of 257 municipalities receiving clean audits.
• Major state-owned enterprises, specifically Eskom and Transnet, require a wholesale governance redesign to provide the infrastructure necessary for expanding mining and industrial capacity.
• The government should operationalize the Climate Change Act by integrating climate goals into fiscal policy and utilizing public-private partnerships to transition toward a low-carbon economy.
• To address social instability and anti-migrant sentiment, the report recommends establishing a multi-agency border coordination unit involving the Department of Home Affairs, SAPS, SANDF, and SARS.

APA

Good Governance Africa (2025). Pre-SONA considerations for moving South Africa onto a growth trajectory. https://digitalmallblobstorage.blob.core.windows.net/wp-content/2025/02/GGA_SONA_2025.pdf

Chicago

Good Governance Africa. Pre-SONA considerations for moving South Africa onto a growth trajectory. 2025. https://digitalmallblobstorage.blob.core.windows.net/wp-content/2025/02/GGA_SONA_2025.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Good Governance Africa |title=Pre-SONA considerations for moving South Africa onto a growth trajectory |date=February 2025 |url=https://digitalmallblobstorage.blob.core.windows.net/wp-content/2025/02/GGA_SONA_2025.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{goodgovernanceafrica2025presona, author = {{Good Governance Africa}}, title = {{Pre-SONA considerations for moving South Africa onto a growth trajectory}}, institution = {Good Governance Africa}, year = {2025}, month = feb, url = {https://digitalmallblobstorage.blob.core.windows.net/wp-content/2025/02/GGA_SONA_2025.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }