Old Issues Snag Govt in New Year

Little Progress: Graft, GBV, Unemployment Still Pressing Problems – NGO, Labour Bodies

- Thando Nondywana

The government faces mounting pressure in the new year to address a host of ongoing challenges from high unemployment to increasing inequality and public discontent.

In 2024, South Africa's unemployment rate reached 33.9%, while gender-based violence and service delivery protests surged.

Organisation Undoing Tax Abuse CEO Wayne Duvenage emphasised government needed to tackle corruption more meaningfully.

He said with the national budget coming in February, government allocates more resources to the criminal justice system including the Investigating Directorate, the Special Investigating Unit, the Public Protector, the SA Revenue Service and the Asset Forfeiture Unit among others.

"These entities are underfunded and lack capacity, but addressing this requires financial investment to bring in specialists and expertise," he said.

"Beyond funding, the money must be spent wisely to improve capacity and ensure these entities collaborate effectively through better systems.

"By focusing on these areas, we can start holding people accountable, reducing waste and ensuring public funds reach their intended purposes.

"Accountability is critical and government must begin holding individuals responsible for their actions. It has done far too little of that so far," he said.

He emphasised the need for reforms in procurement systems.