Open letter to the President on social development policy contradiction ahead of 2024 MTBPS.docx

An open letter dated 24 October 2024, signed by a coalition of civil society, labour organisations, and policy experts, addressed to President Cyril Ramaphosa. The letter expresses concern that the National Treasury is exercising disproportionate influence over social development policy, specifically by obstructing the transition of the Social Relief of Distress (SRD) grant into a permanent basic income system.

• The authors argue that the National Treasury and the Minister of Finance have appropriated disproportionate authority in government policy-making, which they claim undermines the progressive realisation of constitutional rights and precludes democratic discussion on national challenges.
• There is a significant policy contradiction regarding basic income support: while President Ramaphosa has committed to a system of basic income, the National Treasury allegedly continues to oppose it, with one senior official suggesting the intention is to terminate the Social Relief of Distress (SRD) grant.
• The Social Relief of Distress (SRD) grant is described as highly exclusionary; despite over 17 million active applications, only approximately 8 million people receive the grant monthly, meaning roughly half of the eligible population is excluded.
• The authors contend that the exclusion of eligible recipients from the SRD grant is a direct result of the National Treasury failing to provide adequate funding to cover the target population, forcing the South African Social Security Agency and the Department of Social Development to implement arbitrary barriers.
• The letter criticizes the National Treasury for adhering to a narrow economic paradigm—characterized by austerity, privatization of essential services, and financialization—which the authors claim worsens poverty and inequality while undermining sustainable growth.
• The authors assert that resources are available to realize socio-economic rights and that investments in social assistance provide positive fiscal multipliers, particularly in highly unequal developing societies.
• The coalition requests urgent action from the Presidency and Cabinet to resolve policy contradictions, specifically calling for the publication of a roadmap to basic income with clear targets and deadlines, and for Treasury to be held accountable for financing these rights.

APA

Institute for Economic Justice (n.d.). Open letter to the President on social development policy contradiction ahead of 2024 MTBPS.docx. https://iej.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Open-letter-to-the-President-on-social-development-policy-contradiction-ahead-of-2024-MTBPS.pdf

Chicago

Institute for Economic Justice. Open letter to the President on social development policy contradiction ahead of 2024 MTBPS.docx. n.d. https://iej.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Open-letter-to-the-President-on-social-development-policy-contradiction-ahead-of-2024-MTBPS.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite press release |author=Institute for Economic Justice |title=Open letter to the President on social development policy contradiction ahead of 2024 MTBPS.docx |url=https://iej.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Open-letter-to-the-President-on-social-development-policy-contradiction-ahead-of-2024-MTBPS.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@misc{instituteforeconomicjusticendopen, author = {{Institute for Economic Justice}}, title = {{Open letter to the President on social development policy contradiction ahead of 2024 MTBPS.docx}}, publisher = {Institute for Economic Justice}, url = {https://iej.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Open-letter-to-the-President-on-social-development-policy-contradiction-ahead-of-2024-MTBPS.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }