Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana is set to deliver the national Budget in the National Assembly on Wednesday, amid mounting pressure to address soaring unemployment and sluggish economic growth.
Labour federations, the Congress of South African Trade Unions (COSATU) and the South African Federation of Trade Unions (SAFTU), have called for a budget that prioritises job creation and economic recovery.
COSATU spokesperson Matthew Parks stressed the need for urgent intervention.
“The budget must respond decisively to the hardships faced by the working class. It must provide hope to society and be anchored in tackling our dangerously high unemployment rate of 41.1%, weak economic growth of 1.4%, entrenched poverty and inequality, as well as endemic crime and corruption,” Parks said.
SAFTU described the 2026 Budget as being tabled at a time of profound economic and social crisis, urging the government to reject further austerity measures.
Federation spokesperson Asive Dyani warned that continued fiscal contraction would worsen instability and undermine long-term growth.
“The fiscal crisis cannot be separated from mass unemployment and deindustrialisation. South Africa continues to experience factory closures, retrenchments, and declining productive capacity across manufacturing, steel, mining value chains, agro-processing, and chemicals,” Dyani said.
VOC News
Photo: @_cosatu/X
