What to expect from Ramaphosa's upcoming Budget 3. 0: A focus on infrastructure and reform

IOL News

07-05-2025

President Cyril Ramaphosa says the upcoming budget speech by Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana will be different.
The upcoming national budget, set to be delivered by Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana on May 21, will be 'different' from previous years and commit significant resources to infrastructure and economic reform, said President Cyril Ramaphosa.
This comes after the scrapping of a controversial 0.5% value-added tax (VAT) increase.
Speaking Wednesday afternoon at the launch of Phase Two of Operation Vulindlela at the Union Buildings in Pretoria, Ramaphosa said the new budget would reflect a shift in government priorities.
'The minister will deliver Budget 3.0 on the 21st, and the budget will, to a large extent, be different from what we've had in past years,' he said.
'It's a budget that is going to make us look forward… a budget that is going to commit a lot of money also to infrastructure.'
Ramaphosa said South Africa is now in a position to spend up to R1 trillion on infrastructure over the medium term, calling it a significant milestone after years of underinvestment.
The country is grappling with crumbling infrastructure in hospitals, schools, public buildings, and other essential facilities.
'Growth is the only way to achieve fiscal sustainability and social progress in our country, and this budget will speak to that,' he added.
Ramaphosa officially launched the second phase of Operation Vulindlela during the event, highlighting local government reform, spatial inequality, and digital transformation as key focus areas.
The joint initiative between the Presidency and National Treasury, launched in 2020, aims to accelerate structural reforms to boost economic growth.
IOL News previously reported that as South Africa transitioned to a Government of National Unity (GNU), Godongwana acknowledged the unprecedented challenges facing the upcoming budget.
Unlike previous years, when the ANC's parliamentary majority ensured smooth passage of the budget, the new coalition dynamic created what Godongwana called 'uncharted territory.'
Godongwana is expected to re-table the 2025 Budget Review following a Western Cape High Court ruling that led to the scrapping of National Treasury's plan to increase VAT by 0.5%.
Meanwhile, in response to the upcoming budget, ActionSA has urged the coalition government to prioritise meaningful economic reform.
ActionSA Member of Parliament Alan Beesley pointed to the declining state of the country's manufacturing sector.
'After over a decade of ANC-driven policy failure, South Africa's manufacturing industry is bleeding,' Beesley said.
'Unless bold steps are taken, the minister might as well include an annexure to his budget speech listing the companies likely to follow ArcelorMittal in closing their operations and shedding thousands more jobs.'
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