Budget Speech: ‘Are we going to be alright?

On 22 February 2018, MANCOSA hosted a Post Budget Dialogue Dinner at its Johannesburg Learning Centre. The purpose of the event was to unpack and analyse the budget speech delivered by the Minister of Finance, Mr. Malusi Gigaba on 21 February 2018.

MANCOSA invited two experts to explain and analyse the budget speech from a political, economic and social perspective. The founder of the ZYPO Zone, Ms Nozipho Moyo moderated the panel discussion.

Political analyst, Mr Lukhona Mnguni stated that social grants should be used as an instrument of uplifting citizens out of poverty rather than disempower them into depending on social grants. According to the South African Social Security Agency (SASSA), the total number of citizen who are reliant on social grants is over 17 million. Mr Mnguni further stated that the biggest challenge South Africa will encounter in the next 15 years is that of climate change. He stressed the importance for government to invest more in environmental initiatives.

Independent investment analyst and market commentator, Mr. Chris Glimour, stated that the South African economy is now beginning to show signs of improvement. Mr. Glimour highlighted the ‘Cyril Spring’ that has inspired confidence in many South Africans. Mrs Moyo, Director at MANCOSA, summed up the panel discussion by stating that South Africa is an economic powerhouse in the Southern African Development Community (SADC) region and the role it plays is vital for SADC’s development.