Economic Relief in the Face of the Third Wave

The Institute for Economic Justice argues that South Africa's initial R500 billion COVID-19 relief package was insufficient and poorly implemented, with only 41% (R207 billion) spent. The brief highlights severe economic vulnerabilities, particularly in construction, manufacturing, and the informal sector, and notes that South Africa spent only 4% of its GDP on relief, compared to a G20 average of 10%. To mitigate the third wave's impact, the IEJ proposes a R71.2 billion package over three months, focusing on sector-specific grants, tax relief, wage support via TERS, and expanded social grants.

• South Africa's initial R500 billion COVID-19 relief package was under-utilized and poorly implemented, with only R207 billion (41%) spent by the time of the report.
• South Africa's emergency relief spending as a percentage of GDP (4%) is significantly lower than the G20 average of 10%, placing the country in third last place among G20 nations.
• The Auditor General reported significant financial mismanagement, estimating that R26 billion was spent in ways that did not comply with supply management legislation.
• Economic vulnerabilities were most severe in the construction sector, which saw the largest reduction in turnover (6.9% fall between Q1 2020 and Q1 2021) and the largest percentage contraction in employment (19.7%).
• The proposed R71.2 billion relief package consists of 10 key policies, including R24.2 billion for TERS wage support, R23 billion for social relief grants (SRD and Caregivers Allowance), and R7 billion for sector-specific business grants.
• The proposed relief package suggests funding R29.5 billion from the existing R39 billion UIF surplus, with the remaining R40.5 billion coming from the national fiscus via underspends from the original R500 billion package.

APA

Institute for Economic Justice (2021). Economic Relief in the Face of the Third Wave. https://iej.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/IEJ-COVID-19-policy-brief-series-4-Emergency-relief-package.pdf

Chicago

Institute for Economic Justice. Economic Relief in the Face of the Third Wave. 2021. https://iej.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/IEJ-COVID-19-policy-brief-series-4-Emergency-relief-package.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Institute for Economic Justice |title=Economic Relief in the Face of the Third Wave |date=15 July 2021 |url=https://iej.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/IEJ-COVID-19-policy-brief-series-4-Emergency-relief-package.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{instituteforeconomicjustice2021economic, author = {{Institute for Economic Justice}}, title = {{Economic Relief in the Face of the Third Wave}}, institution = {Institute for Economic Justice}, year = {2021}, month = jul, url = {https://iej.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/IEJ-COVID-19-policy-brief-series-4-Emergency-relief-package.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }