Budget 2022 reinforces inequality: less for schools and healthcare but tax breaks for corporates and taxpayers

The Budget Justice Coalition criticizes South Africa's 2022 budget for prioritizing a budget surplus and corporate tax relief over critical social spending. The coalition highlights real-term funding cuts to basic education, healthcare, and the Department of Women, Children and Persons with Disabilities, arguing that these measures entrench poverty and gender inequality. The document advocates for an alternative human rights-based budget featuring progressive taxation and a Universal Basic Income Guarantee.

• The 2022 budget follows an austerity path aimed at achieving a budget surplus by 2023-24, providing a 1% tax cut for big businesses and inflation-linked relief for personal income tax payers.
• Healthcare spending is projected to decrease by an average of 4.1% over three years when accounting for inflation, including real-term cuts of 2.8% for HIV, TB, and community outreach funding.
• Basic education funding is expected to be cut by an average of 2.5% annually in real terms over the next three years.
• The budget reduces funding for the Department of Women, Children and Persons with Disabilities by an average of 11.9% per year over the medium-term expenditure framework (MTEF).
• While the Social Relief of Distress (SRD) Grant was extended, the coalition argues the R350 amount is insufficient and should be increased to at least the Food Poverty Line of R624.

APA

Khumalo, D. M. Z. M. C.-L. S. A. L.-K. (2022). Budget 2022 reinforces inequality: less for schools and healthcare but tax breaks for corporates and taxpayers. Institute for Economic Justice. https://iej.org.za/press-room/in-the-media/budget-2022-reinforces-inequality-less-for-schools-and-healthcare-but-tax-breaks-for-corporates-and-taxpayers/

Chicago

Khumalo, Daniel McLaren, Zimbali Mncube, Cheryl-Lyn Selman and Lindi-K. Budget 2022 reinforces inequality: less for schools and healthcare but tax breaks for corporates and taxpayers. Institute for Economic Justice, 2022. https://iej.org.za/press-room/in-the-media/budget-2022-reinforces-inequality-less-for-schools-and-healthcare-but-tax-breaks-for-corporates-and-taxpayers/.

Wikipedia

{{cite press release |last1=Khumalo |first1=Daniel McLaren, Zimbali Mncube, Cheryl-Lyn Selman and Lindi-K |title=Budget 2022 reinforces inequality: less for schools and healthcare but tax breaks for corporates and taxpayers |publisher=Institute for Economic Justice |date=3 March 2022 |url=https://iej.org.za/press-room/in-the-media/budget-2022-reinforces-inequality-less-for-schools-and-healthcare-but-tax-breaks-for-corporates-and-taxpayers/ |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@misc{khumalo2022budget, author = {Khumalo, Daniel McLaren, Zimbali Mncube, Cheryl-Lyn Selman and Lindi-K}, title = {{Budget 2022 reinforces inequality: less for schools and healthcare but tax breaks for corporates and taxpayers}}, publisher = {Institute for Economic Justice}, year = {2022}, month = mar, url = {https://iej.org.za/press-room/in-the-media/budget-2022-reinforces-inequality-less-for-schools-and-healthcare-but-tax-breaks-for-corporates-and-taxpayers/}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }