Fiscal Framework and Revenue Proposals

The Institute for Economic Justice (IEJ) submitted a report to the South African Parliament on February 26, 2024, criticizing the 2024 Budget for continuing a decade of austerity and budget cuts. The IEJ argues that the National Treasury's focus on debt stabilization and primary budget surpluses sacrifices public services and long-term economic growth, recommending instead a human-rights based fiscal approach with increased spending on social grants, public employment, and infrastructure.

• The National Treasury is implementing significant real-term spending cuts to non-interest expenditure. Between 2019/20 and 2026/27, adjusted for inflation, the government will have cut R270 billion in main budget non-interest expenditure, leading to a 23% decrease in spending per person over that eight-year period.
• Social grants have failed to keep pace with inflation, leaving several below poverty benchmarks. The Child Support Grant is currently below the food poverty line, and the foster care grant is below the inflation-adjusted upper-bound poverty line. The IEJ recommends increasing the Social Relief of Distress (SRD) grant and the Child Support Grant to the food poverty line (FPL).
• Spending on critical social services and public employment is declining. Public healthcare spending per user is projected to fall from R5,381 in 2023/24 to R4,864 by 2026/27, and basic education spending per learner will decrease from R25,130 in 2023/24 to R24,493 in 2026/27. Additionally, the budget for the Presidential Employment Stimulus (PES) has dropped from R12.9 billion in its first phase to R7.4 billion in the latest phase.
• Economic development spending is falling across several key sectors, undermining job creation goals. Real spending growth is projected to tumble in innovation, science and technology (-5.09%), agriculture and rural development (-2.9%), and industrialisation and exports (-1.8%).
• The IEJ proposes several revenue-raising measures to replace austerity, noting that corporate income tax rates have fallen and wealth remains undertaxed. Specific proposals include raising R65 billion from retirement fund benefits for those earning above R750,000, R70-R160 billion from a wealth tax, and restoring the Corporate Income Tax (CIT) rate to 28%.
• The current fiscal strategy focuses on aggressive debt stabilization that the IEJ deems unnecessary. While the National Treasury aims for a debt-to-GDP ratio of 75.3% by 2025/26, the IEJ notes that emerging and market middle-income countries averaged 69% in 2023. The report argues the primary issue is the cost of debt—South Africa pays 5% of GDP in interest compared to a 2% average for upper-middle income countries.
• The report criticizes the reliance on Public-Private Partnerships (PPPs) for infrastructure and electricity, warning that this model shifts disproportionate risk to the state and may lead to higher tariffs for consumers and businesses to ensure private sector profit.

APA

Institute for Economic Justice (2024). Fiscal Framework and Revenue Proposals. https://iej.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/IEJ-Budget-2024-Parliamentary-Submission.pdf

Chicago

Institute for Economic Justice. Fiscal Framework and Revenue Proposals. 2024. https://iej.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/IEJ-Budget-2024-Parliamentary-Submission.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Institute for Economic Justice |title=Fiscal Framework and Revenue Proposals |date=26 February 2024 |url=https://iej.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/IEJ-Budget-2024-Parliamentary-Submission.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{instituteforeconomicjustice2024fiscal, author = {{Institute for Economic Justice}}, title = {{Fiscal Framework and Revenue Proposals}}, institution = {Institute for Economic Justice}, year = {2024}, month = feb, url = {https://iej.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/IEJ-Budget-2024-Parliamentary-Submission.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }