Bold action required in South Africa in the face of COVID-19 economic fallout

This research note by the Institute for Economic Justice argues for bold, decisive economic interventions in South Africa to mitigate the social and economic fallout of the COVID-19 pandemic. The authors propose a four-pronged strategy focusing on supporting households, protecting workers, sustaining businesses, and transforming the economy to be more equitable and sustainable, while warning against the use of austerity-based reprioritisation to fund these measures.

• The authors propose an emergency universal basic income (UBI) grant to support households and communities, suggesting that high-income households should reimburse these benefits through taxation. They also recommend freezing payments and interest on mortgages, rents, utilities, and student loans for a limited period.
• To support the public health response, the document calls for reversing austerity cuts to public services and the public sector wage bill, noting that in May 2018, there were 38,217 vacant posts in the public health-care sector. It suggests converting private hospitals into public facilities and providing free testing where deemed necessary by professionals.
• Worker protections should include emergency paid sick pay for all, including precarious and temporary workers, and the amendment of UIF provisions to increase the level and length of payments for low-paid and atypical workers. The authors also emphasize the need for rigorous occupational health and safety enforcement, particularly for mine workers.
• Business assistance should be tied to strict conditions to ensure public funds benefit the intended recipients. These conditions include honoring the national minimum wage, prohibiting layoffs, reducing wage inequality, and banning executive bonuses and dividend payouts during the relief period.
• The document suggests using the crisis as a catalyst for long-term structural transformation, including a 'South African Green New Deal' inspired by Asian nations' post-2008 recovery. Other proposals include a massive public works programme for social welfare and health functions, and investing in the local production of ventilators, masks, and medicines.
• The authors warn that financing the stimulus through the reprioritisation of existing budgets—effectively maintaining austerity cuts—will be ineffective. They argue for alternative financing through solidarity taxation, greater borrowing, and contributions from the wealthy.

APA

Ngidi, B., Phalatse, S., Osborne, C., Choga, P., Coleman, N., & Isaacs, G. (2020). Bold action required in South Africa in the face of COVID-19 economic fallout. Institute for Economic Justice. https://iej.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/Bold-Action-Required-in-South-Africa-COVID-19-2.pdf

Chicago

Ngidi, Bandile, Sonia Phalatse, Carilee Osborne, Pamela Choga, Neil Coleman, and Gilad Isaacs. Bold action required in South Africa in the face of COVID-19 economic fallout. Institute for Economic Justice, 2020. https://iej.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/Bold-Action-Required-in-South-Africa-COVID-19-2.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Ngidi |first1=Bandile |last2=Phalatse |first2=Sonia |last3=Osborne |first3=Carilee |last4=Choga |first4=Pamela |last5=Coleman |first5=Neil |last6=Isaacs |first6=Gilad |title=Bold action required in South Africa in the face of COVID-19 economic fallout |publisher=Institute for Economic Justice |date=23 March 2020 |url=https://iej.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/Bold-Action-Required-in-South-Africa-COVID-19-2.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{ngidi2020bold, author = {Ngidi, Bandile and Phalatse, Sonia and Osborne, Carilee and Choga, Pamela and Coleman, Neil and Isaacs, Gilad}, title = {{Bold action required in South Africa in the face of COVID-19 economic fallout}}, institution = {Institute for Economic Justice}, year = {2020}, month = mar, url = {https://iej.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/Bold-Action-Required-in-South-Africa-COVID-19-2.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }