Author: Agency
Government has provisionally allocated an additional R19.2 billion over the medium term for the Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa’s (PRASA) critical signalling upgrades. Tabling the 2025 Budget Speech on Wednesday, Minister of Finance Enoch Godongwana, said the agency was making steady progress towards rebuilding infrastructure to provide affordable commuter rail services. “To sustain this progress, we have provisionally allocated an additional R19.2 billion over the medium term for critical signalling upgrades. This will enable commuters from areas like Mamelodi, Kwa-Mashu, Motherwell and Khayelitsha to catch a train every 10 minutes, to get to and from work and significantly reduce…
South Africa’s economy is projected to grow at an average of some 1.8% from 2025 to 2027, despite sluggish growth over the past decade. This is according to Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana who delivered the Budget Speech in Parliament on Wednesday. “[The] truth is our economy has stagnated for over a decade. In that time, Gross Domestic Product [GDP] growth has averaged less than 2%, far below the level required to meet our expanding list of needs. “In 2024, the economy grew by only 0.6%. Over the medium term, GDP growth is projected to average 1.8%. “To meet our goals…
South Africa requires upwards of R440 billion in the next 10 years to expand its transmission infrastructure, says Minister of Electricity and Energy, Dr Kgosientsho Ramokgopa. Addressing the Africa Energy Indaba in Cape Town on Tuesday, the Minister said the country’s transmission development plans have identified the need to modernise and expand the grid for 14 000 kilometres in the next 10 years. “This is going to require an enormous amount of investment. The fiscus won’t be able to carry that. The Eskom balance sheet is not sufficient, so it is important to find bespoke financing instruments to make this possible,” the…
The Minister of Finance Enoch Godongwana and National Treasury are set to finalise the budget and table it before Parliament next week on Wednesday, 12 March 2025. This is according to a Cabinet statement issued by the Government Communication and Information System (GCIS) on Tuesday, following a special meeting held by Cabinet on Monday. The meeting was convened to consider inputs by members of the Cabinet into best possible options, under the circumstances, to fund the Budget of 2025/26 financial year and the medium term. “This follows another special Cabinet meeting on Monday, 24 February 2025, that allowed broad discussions…
Small Business Development Minister Stella Ndabeni has announced the creation of a R500 million Spaza Shop Support Fund that aims to enhance market competitiveness to help spaza shops and food handling outlets compete with larger retailers. Addressing media in Pretoria on Sunday, the Minister said the fund will be launched soon and will support township convenience shops, including spaza stores. “The fund will be launched in the next two weeks and a date will be communicated,” she said adding that the fund will comprise of funds from the Department of Small Business Development (R150 million) and the Department of Trade,…
The South African government is committed to reinvigorating the country’s logistics sector as an enabler of economic prosperity. This is according to Transport Minister Barbara Creecy who delivered remarks at the launch of a new World Bank report titled: “Driving Inclusive Growth in South Africa: Quick Wins with Competitive Markets and Efficient Institutions”. “[Government has] established the National Logistics Crisis Committee [NLCC]…comprised of representatives from the Presidency, various government departments and the private sector. “Its work includes securing strategic logistics corridors handling commodities that are essential to the export market and economic growth; addressing backlogs and congestion at strategic border…
In a major step towards cementing South Africa’s position as a global leader in green hydrogen, the Minister of Forestry, Fisheries, and the Environment, Dr Dion George, has overseen the launch of two game-changing environmental planning mechanisms. The Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) Guideline for green hydrogen projects and the South African Green Hydrogen Potential Atlas will remove regulatory uncertainty, drive investment, and accelerate South Africa’s transition to a green hydrogen economy. Developed in partnership with the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ), the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), and GFA Consulting Group, these mechanisms will provide critical guidance…
Minister of Trade, Industry and Competition, Parks Tau, has emphasised the importance of regulating private healthcare costs to guarantee that affordable healthcare remains accessible to the majority of South Africans. “There is a serious concern about access to private healthcare in the country, given the high levels of market concentration and high prices,” he said on Tuesday. The Minister was speaking at a joint media briefing with Health Minister Dr Aaron Motsoaledi to share progress on implementing the recommendations from the Health Market Inquiry (HMI) into the private healthcare sector. The HMI, conducted five years ago by the Competition Commission…
The Department of Science, Technology and Innovation (DSTI) has expressed its strong support for government’s vision to bolster innovation as articulated by President Cyril Ramaphosa in the 2025 State of the Nation Address (SONA). The department said the Innovation Fund will be a key priority for the government in the 2025/26 financial year, with implementation overseen by the DSTI Minister, Professor Blade Nzimande. In his address earlier this month, President Ramaphosa reaffirmed the government’s commitment to advancing the Innovation Fund, which aims to bolster the growth of innovative startups and technology-driven Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs). “To build an innovative…
The National Treasury has expressed satisfaction with the progress being made to remove South Africa from the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) grey list. This follows an announcement by the FATF on Friday, in which it upgraded four of the six outstanding action items at the conclusion of its latest plenary meetings in Paris, France. The FATF is the international standard-setting body that oversees global compliance with anti-money laundering rules. The FATF grey list refers to the FATF’s practice of publicly identifying countries with strategic AML/CFT deficiencies. The FATF maintains two such lists with one being jurisdictions under “increased monitoring”…