Budget 2022: Create and Retain Jobs, Expand Income Support, Improve Services

The Institute for Economic Justice (IEJ) outlines its expectations and recommendations for the South African 2022/23 budget, advocating for a 'human-centred budget' focused on job creation, expanded income support, and the improvement of public services to facilitate social and economic recovery from the pandemic.

• The IEJ recommends transitioning the social relief of distress (SRD) grant from a temporary disaster framework to a permanent provision. They propose setting the grant at the food poverty line of R624, with a progressive increase toward the upper bound poverty line of R1,335, and argue that a R200bn revenue windfall from commodities could finance this extension.
• The IEJ opposes using Value Added Tax (VAT) increases to fund the budget, as it would negatively impact the disposable income of low-income households. Instead, they propose the cancellation of the employment tax incentive (ETI), which they claim could raise up to R4.9bn to finance a universal basic income guarantee (Ubig).
• While the presidential employment stimulus (PES) has reached over 800,000 beneficiaries, the IEJ criticizes the quality of these jobs. Specifically, participants in the Basic Education Employment Initiative have reported a lack of skill transfers and secure employment pathways.
• The IEJ calls for increased funding for sector-specific industrial policy and master plans to reverse deindustrialisation and localise production inputs. They also express concern over the Loan Guarantee Scheme, noting it was a failure in its initial phase due to poor uptake by small businesses.
• The IEJ warns that proposed budget cuts in the medium-term budget policy statement (MTBPS) will deteriorate public services. They note that real per person expenditure is projected to fall from R26,140 in 2020/21 to R25,117 in 2024/25, citing specific failures such as insufficient ambulances in the Eastern Cape and poor school infrastructure.

APA

Justice, I. F. E. (2022). Budget 2022: Create and Retain Jobs, Expand Income Support, Improve Services. Institute for Economic Justice. https://iej.org.za/press-room/in-the-media/budget-2022-create-and-retain-jobs-expand-income-support-improve-services/

Chicago

Justice, Institute for Economic. Budget 2022: Create and Retain Jobs, Expand Income Support, Improve Services. Institute for Economic Justice, 2022. https://iej.org.za/press-room/in-the-media/budget-2022-create-and-retain-jobs-expand-income-support-improve-services/.

Wikipedia

{{cite press release |last1=Justice |first1=Institute for Economic |title=Budget 2022: Create and Retain Jobs, Expand Income Support, Improve Services |publisher=Institute for Economic Justice |date=22 February 2022 |url=https://iej.org.za/press-room/in-the-media/budget-2022-create-and-retain-jobs-expand-income-support-improve-services/ |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@misc{justice2022budget, author = {Justice, Institute for Economic}, title = {{Budget 2022: Create and Retain Jobs, Expand Income Support, Improve Services}}, publisher = {Institute for Economic Justice}, year = {2022}, month = feb, url = {https://iej.org.za/press-room/in-the-media/budget-2022-create-and-retain-jobs-expand-income-support-improve-services/}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }