Deputy FinMin Hits at Private Sector Cooperation on Ailing SOES

LOCAL NEWS

• Deputy FinMin Masondo says the ‘tough love’ approach to SOEs from the Treasury may involve more participation from the private sector or even closures for the worst performing state companies. Ramaphosa is expected to address the state of SOEs at Thursday’s SONA
• Security expert says new appointments in the State Security agency are critical for national security and cannot be factional deployments as members of the RET or CR22 factions, but independent experts.
  • Says he hopes Ramaphosa will address this at Thursday’s SONA, following the release of the report on the July riots that placed factional elements as a root cause. Here the panel recommended addressing internal differences now or risk further degradation of the party and similar national security threats
• DA-led coalition faces imminent collapse in Ekurhuleni due to infighting among coalition partners, according to ActionSA.
  • Gauteng metros have faces severe disruptions and could fail to pass their budgets – affecting service delivery for ~15m people. Ekurhuleni stand sin Gauteng’s manufacturing hub and saw a R46.75bn budget in 2021
• Joburg City Power warns If Eskom is permitted to hike its prices by 25% this year, it could increase municipal electricity bills by as much as 17.5%.
  • The group said it has strongly argued against Nersa granting Eskom this increase but has warned that the hikes may still be coming
• Harvard economists highlight SA’s poor performance relative to its peers over the last decade, failing to recover growth following the 2008 global financial crisis. SA’s growth more than halved from 2010-2019 and also slowed more than other mineral exporters.
  • They argue that the power crisis was a key hurdle over the period, with productivity dropping despite increased spending on capital and labour. They warn that fiscal consolidation is the only path forward and that there is no more room for tax hikes