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This fact sheet, produced by the Institute for Economic Justice and SECTION27, analyzes budget trends in South Africa's basic education sector. It argues that austerity measures have led to a real-terms decline in per-learner funding, resulting in critical infrastructure failures, particularly regarding school sanitation and support for learners with disabilities, despite the constitutional right to basic education.

This 2019 election brief by the Institute for Economic Justice and SECTION27 analyzes the funding crisis in South Africa's healthcare system, highlighting the disparity between private and public sectors and the impact of austerity measures on health outcomes and staffing.

A joint submission by the Institute for Economic Justice (IEJ) and the Socio-Economic Rights Institute (SERI) providing recommendations on the draft amendments to the regulations for the COVID-19 Social Relief of Distress (SRD) grant in South Africa.

A joint media statement from a civil society collective detailing a meeting on 18 January 2022 with President Cyril Ramaphosa and government ministers to discuss the extension of the R350 Covid-19 Social Relief of Distress (SRD) Grant and the implementation of a Basic Income Guarantee (BIG) in South Africa.

A letter dated 14 October 2025 from a coalition of 165 global and regional civil society and debt justice organisations to President Cyril Ramaphosa, urging South Africa to use its G20 Presidency to lead radical reforms of the international debt architecture to support the Global South, particularly Africa.

The Institute for Economic Justice (IEJ) submitted a report on 28 October 2022 urging the South African government to shift its fiscal framework from a narrow focus on debt stabilisation and primary budget surpluses toward targeting unemployment, poverty, and inequality. The IEJ argues that current austerity measures are causing a regression in the realisation of socio-economic human rights, specifically within education, healthcare, and social security, and proposes a transition to progressive taxation to fund public services and a permanent basic income support system.

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.

An open letter from over 75 economists and analysts to President Cyril Ramaphosa and the South African Cabinet arguing that government economic interventions to mitigate the impact of COVID-19 are insufficient in scale and speed compared to global responses.

This research paper finds that approximately half of the target population for South Africa's Covid-19 Social Relief of Distress (SRD) grant is excluded, with an average of 76% of those excluded being eligible. The study identifies that rapid digitalization and automation, lacking transparency and oversight, create systemic barriers to application, verification, payment, and appeal. These barriers disproportionately affect those already marginalized by digital, financial, and spatial inequalities, leading to severe hardship and hunger.

The Institute for Economic Justice (IEJ) and #PayTheGrants (#PTG), through the Socio-Economic Rights Institute (SERI), filed a court case in the North Gauteng High Court on 21 July 2023. The legal challenge targets regulations and implementation of the R350 Social Relief of Distress (SRD) grant, which the applicants argue unlawfully exclude millions of people in poverty and violate constitutional rights to social assistance and food.

This briefing by the Institute for Economic Justice (IEJ) and #PayTheGrants (#PTG) outlines a legal challenge against the regulations governing South Africa's Covid-19 Social Relief of Distress (SRD) grant. The applicants argue that the grant's eligibility criteria, application processes, and monetary value are unlawful, irrational, and violate the constitutional right to social assistance, resulting in the exclusion of approximately half of the intended beneficiaries.

The Unconditional Basic Income Coalition (UBIC) issued a statement on 1 May 2026 calling for the resignation or removal of South Africa's Minister of Social Development, Nokuzola Sisisi Tolashe, following allegations of financial misconduct and governance failures.

This policy brief by the Institute for Economic Justice examines the intersection between unpaid care work and gender-based violence (GBV) in Brazil and South Africa. It argues that economic crises and austerity measures exacerbate the 'crisis of care', increasing women's vulnerability to violence. The document proposes a multi-pronged approach including universal basic income, gender-responsive budgeting, and intersectional data collection to empower women economically and reduce GBV.

This briefing note by the Universal Basic Income Coalition (UBIC) analyses new conditions imposed by the South African National Treasury on the 2025/26 operating budget of the South African Social Security Agency (SASSA). The document argues that extending verification procedures used for the Social Relief of Distress (SRD) grant—such as bank surveillance, database cross-checks, and biometric profiling—to longer-standing grants will lead to the erroneous exclusion of millions of eligible vulnerable people, including children, seniors, and persons with disabilities.

This submission by the Universal Basic Income Coalition (UBIC) to the South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC) argues that food insecurity in South Africa is primarily driven by income poverty and unemployment rather than food scarcity. The document highlights critical gaps in the current social assistance framework, including the inadequacy of grant values relative to food inflation and systemic barriers to access. UBIC proposes transforming the Social Relief of Distress (SRD) grant into a universal, unconditional, and redistributive basic income for all adults aged 18-59 to immediately mitigate hunger, while calling for long-term structural reforms inS in the food system and an end to fiscal austerity.

This research paper by the International Institute for Sustainable Development examines critical development issues facing the World Trade Organization (WTO) ahead of the 13th Ministerial Conference (MC13). It focuses on the long-standing struggle to operationalize Special and Differential Treatment (S&DT) for developing economies and the need for a smooth transition for Least Developed Countries (LDCs) upon their graduation from that status.

This briefing analyzes the historical and systemic link between poverty and environmental degradation, arguing that sustainable development requires integrating these two goals. It highlights how extreme wealth inequality drives resource overconsumption and how the world's poorest populations are disproportionately affected by climate-related disasters, conflict, and zoonotic pandemics like COVID-19. The text advocates for shifting government metrics from GDP to national well-being indices and limiting the resource consumption of the wealthiest 10% to allow the poor to escape poverty within planetary boundaries.

This research paper by Rashmi Jose analyzes the proposed Investment Facilitation for Development (FID) Agreement and the challenges surrounding its incorporation into the World Trade Organization (WTO) framework ahead of the 14th Ministerial Conference (MC14).

This report analyzes energy subsidies in South Africa for financial year (FY) 2025, finding that they totaled at least ZAR 198 billion (USD 10.8 billion). The analysis highlights a heavy reliance on fossil fuel subsidies, significant financial bailouts for the state-owned power company Eskom, and inefficiencies in the Free Basic Electricity (FBE) policy. The document recommends a comprehensive action plan for subsidy reform, a financial recovery plan for Eskom, and a redesign of the carbon tax and liquid fuel subsidies to better support low-income households and the energy transition.

This guide outlines the grievance mechanism for the SUNCASA project in Johannesburg, South Africa, specifying that labour disputes are handled by the Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration (CCMA) for workers employed by the Johannesburg Inner City Partnership (JICP).