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President Cyril Ramaphosa at the Bana Pele 2030 Early Childhood Development (ECD) Roadmap Leadership Summit held at the Atlas Studios in Milpark, Johannesburg, Gauteng Province, March 17, 2025.
President Cyril Ramaphosa says discussions on the final approval of the national budget are still ongoing.
He was speaking to the media on the sidelines of the Bana Pele Early Childhood Development (ECD) Leadership Summit in Johannesburg this morning.
Last week, the National Treasury tabled a contentious budget with half a percentage point increase on the Value Added Tax for this year and another half for 2026/2027 financial year.
Most political parties including the Democratic Alliance (DA) which is the second biggest party in the Government of National Unity (GNU) arrangement have vowed not to support it.
Speculation is rife that the African National Congress (ANC) is in discussion with the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) to have the budget passed.
But President Ramaphosa says they are talking to everyone.
“The discussions on the budget are ongoing. They have started and we are going to have a number of discussions across government with various political parties. Because it is now in the hands of Parliament and Parliament is the one that is going to be the arbiter.”
“So let’s leave that to parliamentarians – so they will deal with that. We are talking to everyone about the budget. So everyone who is represented in Parliament will be interacting and engaging on the budget issue. We are not just talking to one party,” adds Ramaphosa.
VIDEO | Ramaphosa speaks to the media on the sidelines of the Bana Pele ECD Leadership Summit in Johannesburg:
