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File image: Medical equipment at a hospital.
Civil society organisation Section 27 says the Mid Term Budget Policy Statement (MTBPS), tabled by Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana on Wednesday, exposed government’s intention of continuing to underfund the health and education sectors.
The organisation says the MTBPS was a critical test of the Government of National Unity’s (GNU) commitment to turning campaign promises into reality.
Section 27’s Budget Researcher Matshidiso Lengoasa says, “Over the past 10 years, there has been an underfunding of public services, which has eroded the quality of public services, making it difficult for the state to deliver on its constitutional obligations to provide quality basic education and healthcare.”
“We were really looking forward to seeing a human rights-based budget, especially when you consider how our inequality is among the worst in the world and continues to keep growing.”
Lengoasa adds, “We were hoping to see a new administration introducing a different way if budgeting, that actually actively redresses these problems. Unfortunately, based on this budget, we’re likely just to see more of the same struggle.”
PODCAST: Interview with Lengoasa on SA fm’s The Weekend View Programme:
