By Zukile Majova and Dylan Bettencourt
- The government claims job numbers are up since Covid-19 but one in three South Africans still can’t find work with young people hit hardest.
- Despite promises on health, crime and water projects, South Africa still faces major problems in these areas.
Leaders of big business are calling on President Cyril Ramaphosa to tone down the promises and concentrate on growing the economy and creating jobs.
After six years in office, Ramaphosa has become known for making new promises with every State of the Nation Address.
Now, as leader of the Government of National Unity (GNU), which is made up of 10 political parties, Ramaphosa has the task of putting South Africa first, not the ANC.
Having resolved the load shedding crisis, economic growth is now being hampered by a dysfunctional Transnet, which has led to congestion in the main harbours of Durban and Richards Bay.
Billions of rands will also be needed to fix the country’s rail network to improve the transport of coal to the Richards Bay Coal Terminal.
At the moment, hundreds of trucks use the N3 highway to transport goods, resulting in the destruction of the road surface and causing accidents.
Leader of the DA, John Steenhuisen, said the GNU should commit to reducing government debt and stop bailing out state-owned companies.
Instead, the government should start privatising some underperforming state companies and work with the private sector to rebuild them.
“We must implement a strictly managed spending review across government departments, ensuring measurable outcomes for allocated budgets and eliminating programmes that are duplicated or lack impact.
“And there should be no holy cows when we do this, and there should be no special interests,” said Steenhuisen.
SA Chamber of Commerce and Industry CEO Alan Mukoki said the business sector is particularly looking forward to how South Africa will use its chairmanship of the G20 to grow the economy, attract investors, and create jobs.
At last year’s speech on 8 February, Ramaphosa spoke about a child called Tintswalo, born when democracy began in 1994. He said her life showed how South Africa had changed for the better.
But the reality tells a different story.
While Ramaphosa said more people had jobs than before Covid-19, unemployment remains a huge problem. The latest figures show 32.1% of South Africans cannot find work. For young people aged 15–24, it’s even worse – six out of 10 have no jobs.
The president’s promise to roll out the National Health Insurance (NHI) has moved slowly. Public hospitals still face big problems, including not enough staff and poor infrastructure. Making things worse, about 1,800 new doctors sit at home without work, even though hospitals need them.
On crime, there is some good news. Operation Shanela led to 285,000 arrests between October 2024 and January 2025. Police also arrested 18,000 illegal miners.
But violent crime remains a massive worry. Murder, assault, armed robbery, and hijacking numbers are still among the highest in the world.
The government has started some big water projects to help areas without water. The Lesotho Highlands Water Project is moving forward, though it’s nine years late. The Hazelmere Dam and Giyani Water Project are now finished.
But many towns and cities still struggle with water problems because of old, broken pipes and poor management by municipalities.
As South Africans prepare to watch the speech, many wonder if they’ll hear new solutions or just more promises.
Pictured above: Cyril Ramaphosa.
Source: @CyrilRamaphosa
