COVID-19 FACT SHEET #3: The New Budget Betrays the President’s R500 Billion COVID-19 Rescue Package

The Institute for Economic Justice (IEJ) analyzes the Supplementary Budget tabled on 24 June 2020, arguing that it fails to deliver the R500 billion COVID-19 rescue package promised by President Cyril Ramaphosa on 21 April 2020. The IEJ asserts that the budget provides a net increase to non-interest spending of only R36 billion, representing less than 1% of GDP, and plans a further R230 billion reduction in spending over the next two years.

• The Supplementary Budget significantly underfunds the promised R500 billion rescue package, providing a net increase to non-interest spending of only R36 billion (less than 1% of GDP). Of the R145 billion targeted for COVID-19 expenditure, R109 billion is sourced from reprioritisations and the suspension of baseline allocations.
• Social security funding was reduced from the promised R50 billion to R41 billion, with only R25 billion in new spending. The IEJ notes that the COVID-19 R350 grant has seen low uptake, with only 1.5 million grants paid despite Treasury reporting up to 8 million eligible people and SALDRU projecting 10-15 million eligible individuals.
• Job protection and creation schemes received only R6 billion in 2020/21, which is 6% of the promised R100 billion. This funding was largely derived from budget reprioritisation, including funds previously meant for unemployment reduction and small business support.
• Health funding allocated only R2.9 billion in new funds out of a total R21.5 billion, with the majority coming from reprioritising essential social services. While bed capacity increased to approximately 27,000, the IEJ highlights a lack of detail on ICU bed increases, PPE for rural or low-income areas, and testing laboratory capacity.
• The TERS wage support scheme has seen conflicting reports on its reach: National Treasury claims R23bn supported 4.7 million workers, while the Department of Employment and Labour claims R23.8bn supported 3.66 million workers. In either case, the IEJ states that 60% of the budget has been used to support less than 30% of the workforce.

APA

Institute for Economic Justice (2020). COVID-19 FACT SHEET #3: The New Budget Betrays the President’s R500 Billion COVID-19 Rescue Package. https://iej.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/IEJ-COVID-19-fact-sheet-3-%E2%80%93-budget-analysis-1-1.pdf

Chicago

Institute for Economic Justice. COVID-19 FACT SHEET #3: The New Budget Betrays the President’s R500 Billion COVID-19 Rescue Package. 2020. https://iej.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/IEJ-COVID-19-fact-sheet-3-%E2%80%93-budget-analysis-1-1.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Institute for Economic Justice |title=COVID-19 FACT SHEET #3: The New Budget Betrays the President’s R500 Billion COVID-19 Rescue Package |date=1 July 2020 |url=https://iej.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/IEJ-COVID-19-fact-sheet-3-%E2%80%93-budget-analysis-1-1.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{instituteforeconomicjustice2020covid19, author = {{Institute for Economic Justice}}, title = {{COVID-19 FACT SHEET \#3: The New Budget Betrays the President’s R500 Billion COVID-19 Rescue Package}}, institution = {Institute for Economic Justice}, year = {2020}, month = jul, url = {https://iej.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/IEJ-COVID-19-fact-sheet-3-%E2%80%93-budget-analysis-1-1.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }