SONA 2023: Restore hope, build state capacity to protect and advance rights

The Institute for Economic Justice (IEJ) critiques the 2023 SONA for relying on private sector solutions for infrastructure and the energy transition, which it argues undermines state capacity and affordability. While welcoming the National State of Disaster for the energy crisis and the extension of the Social Relief of Distress (SRD) grant, the IEJ highlights failures in grant accessibility and the imbalance of the Just Energy Transition Investment Plan (JET-IP), where infrastructure receives 89.4% of funding compared to minimal allocations for skills and diversification. The IEJ calls for a radical shift toward a rights-centered development agenda, including the removal of Eskom's debt from its balance sheet and the implementation of a universal basic income grant.

• The IEJ argues that the government's shift toward letting the private sector lead in infrastructure delivery, the Eskom crisis, and the Just Transition is an admission of state failure that threatens the affordability of services for the poor.
• The IEJ expresses concern that emergency power procurement mentioned in the SONA might involve Karpowership, which would increase greenhouse gas emissions and energy costs.
• The Just Energy Transition Investment Plan (JET-IP) is criticized for heavily prioritizing infrastructure over social justice elements; 89.4% of financing is for infrastructure, while economic diversification and innovation receive 0.3% and skills development receives 0.1%.
• To resolve Eskom's debt crisis, the IEJ proposes that the National Treasury absorb the debt, quasi-state creditors like the GEPF write off debt or provide interest holidays, and international climate finance be used while preventing privatization.
• Despite the extension of the Social Relief of Distress (SRD) grant, the number of people accessing it dropped from 10.9 million in March 2022 to 3.54 million fewer people, which the IEJ attributes to National Treasury's budget caps and resulting stricter criteria.
• The IEJ disputes the government's claim of a post-COVID economic recovery, noting that 2.2 million jobs were lost in the second quarter of 2020 and that current GDP figures are inflated by cost shocks and profit spirals.

APA

Institute for Economic Justice (2023). SONA 2023: Restore hope, build state capacity to protect and advance rights. https://iej.org.za/press-room/statements/sona-2023-restore-hope-build-state-capacity-to-protect-and-advance-rights/

Chicago

Institute for Economic Justice. SONA 2023: Restore hope, build state capacity to protect and advance rights. 2023. https://iej.org.za/press-room/statements/sona-2023-restore-hope-build-state-capacity-to-protect-and-advance-rights/.

Wikipedia

{{cite press release |author=Institute for Economic Justice |title=SONA 2023: Restore hope, build state capacity to protect and advance rights |date=10 February 2023 |url=https://iej.org.za/press-room/statements/sona-2023-restore-hope-build-state-capacity-to-protect-and-advance-rights/ |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@misc{instituteforeconomicjustice2023sona, author = {{Institute for Economic Justice}}, title = {{SONA 2023: Restore hope, build state capacity to protect and advance rights}}, publisher = {Institute for Economic Justice}, year = {2023}, month = feb, url = {https://iej.org.za/press-room/statements/sona-2023-restore-hope-build-state-capacity-to-protect-and-advance-rights/}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }