The Good, the Bad and the Ugly: An Economic Review of Zuma’s Presidency

The review of Jacob Zuma's presidency highlights a period of economic decline characterized by low GDP growth, high unemployment, and state-owned enterprise debt. While the administration saw successes in renewable energy investment via the Independent Power Producers Procurement Programme and international acclaim for its HIV/Aids response, it was marred by corruption, state capture, and investor-unfriendly policies in mining and land expropriation. The presidency also shifted diplomatic focus toward China and the BRICS grouping, though this came at the expense of other strategic partnerships.

• South Africa's economy deteriorated under Zuma's leadership, with a 2017 GDP growth forecast of 0.7%, unemployment at 27.7%, and gross national debt reaching its highest level since 2008, largely due to state-owned enterprises.
• Political instability, including 12 cabinet reshuffles, contributed to a technical recession in the first quarter of 2017 and led S&P and Fitch to downgrade South Africa's credit rating to junk.
• The administration faced significant resistance and legal disputes over policies intended to increase state or black ownership in the security and mining sectors, including a revised Mining Charter requiring 30% black ownership.
• The Independent Power Producers Procurement Programme successfully positioned South Africa as a top-10 global investment destination for renewable energy.
• Economic diplomacy shifted toward China and the BRICS grouping, with China becoming the largest trading partner by 2010 and trade with BRICS increasing from US$27.9 billion in 2010 to US$28.9 billion in 2016.

APA

South African Institute of International Affairs (2017). The Good, the Bad and the Ugly: An Economic Review of Zuma’s Presidency. https://saiia.org.za/research/the-good-the-bad-and-the-ugly-an-economic-review-of-zumas-presidency/

Chicago

South African Institute of International Affairs. The Good, the Bad and the Ugly: An Economic Review of Zuma’s Presidency. 2017. https://saiia.org.za/research/the-good-the-bad-and-the-ugly-an-economic-review-of-zumas-presidency/.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=South African Institute of International Affairs |title=The Good, the Bad and the Ugly: An Economic Review of Zuma’s Presidency |date=14 December 2017 |url=https://saiia.org.za/research/the-good-the-bad-and-the-ugly-an-economic-review-of-zumas-presidency/ |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{southafricaninstituteofinternationalaffairs2017good, author = {{South African Institute of International Affairs}}, title = {{The Good, the Bad and the Ugly: An Economic Review of Zuma’s Presidency}}, institution = {South African Institute of International Affairs}, year = {2017}, month = dec, url = {https://saiia.org.za/research/the-good-the-bad-and-the-ugly-an-economic-review-of-zumas-presidency/}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }