Written submission on the 2023 Fiscal Framework and Revenue Proposals

The Institute for Economic Justice (IEJ) submitted a critique of South Africa's 2023 Budget Review, arguing that the fiscal framework prioritizes debt stabilization and austerity over the realization of socio-economic rights. The IEJ contends that cuts to public services, the failure to protect social grants from inflation, and the conditions attached to Eskom's debt relief exacerbate poverty and inequality. The submission calls for a new macroeconomic framework targeting unemployment and poverty, the implementation of a permanent basic income support system, and the use of progressive taxation to create fiscal space for public investment.

• The 2023 National Budget and Medium-Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF) propose a real reduction in non-interest expenditure of R162 billion over the medium term, representing a decrease of 2.65%. The IEJ argues these austerity measures undermine public services and disproportionately affect the poor and women.
• Public service allocations have failed to keep pace with inflation, resulting in medium-term shortfalls of R47 billion for healthcare, R39 billion for basic education, and R37 billion for social protection.
• Social grants are not sufficiently protected against inflation, particularly food-price inflation which reached a nine-year high of 13.4%. The IEJ notes that the Social Relief of Distress (SRD) and foster care grants are not in line with inflation, and the budget for the SRD grant was cut by R8 billion (18%) from 2022/23 to R36 billion.
• The budget provides no allocation for the Social Relief of Distress (SRD) grant for the 2024/25 and 2025/26 financial years, and there are no clear plans to replace it with permanent Basic Income Support.
• Conditions on Eskom's debt relief (R254 billion of R423 billion) prohibit the utility from investing in new renewable generation capacity, effectively shifting this to the private sector via Independent Power Producers (IPPs). The IEJ argues this risks increasing energy costs for the poor and facilitates the 'privatisation of Eskom through the backdoor'.
• The budget includes tax relief measures that primarily benefit the wealthy, including R15.7 billion in tax band adjustments and R9 billion for rooftop solar for big businesses and wealthy households, while the corporate income tax rate is reduced to 27%.

APA

Institute for Economic Justice (2023). Written submission on the 2023 Fiscal Framework and Revenue Proposals. https://iej.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/IEJ-2023-Submission-27-February-2023.docx.pdf

Chicago

Institute for Economic Justice. Written submission on the 2023 Fiscal Framework and Revenue Proposals. 2023. https://iej.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/IEJ-2023-Submission-27-February-2023.docx.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Institute for Economic Justice |title=Written submission on the 2023 Fiscal Framework and Revenue Proposals |date=27 February 2023 |url=https://iej.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/IEJ-2023-Submission-27-February-2023.docx.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{instituteforeconomicjustice2023written, author = {{Institute for Economic Justice}}, title = {{Written submission on the 2023 Fiscal Framework and Revenue Proposals}}, institution = {Institute for Economic Justice}, year = {2023}, month = feb, url = {https://iej.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/IEJ-2023-Submission-27-February-2023.docx.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }