Release of report on cost of living trends
This as it seeks ways to address poverty and inequality.
The report looks at how the increased cost of living impacts service provision and household well-being and whether wages have kept pace with these increases.
According to Professor Julian May from the Centre of Excellence in Food Security, prices have climbed by 95% since the period they covered , while wages have not kept up.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
TimesLIVE
28-07-2025
- TimesLIVE
‘My first car was a BMW — now I'm driven in one': Ramaphosa says BMW has always been a part of his journey
President Cyril Ramaphosa has praised BMW South Africa's commitment to innovation, skills development and inclusive economic growth during an event showcasing the automaker's latest investment in hybrid vehicle production at its Rosslyn plant in Pretoria. Speaking at the event, themed 'BMW Group South Africa: Leading Today, Enabling Tomorrow', Ramaphosa lauded the launch of the local production of the new BMW X3 plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV), calling it a major milestone for the automotive sector and a symbol of trust in South Africa's workforce and manufacturing capability. 'The Rosslyn plant is a testament to BMW's long-standing presence in the South African market. This world-class facility was the first BMW plant to be built outside Germany and has been at the centre of the group's operations since 1973,' Ramaphosa said. The president joked about his own long-standing relationship with the brand. 'I don't know what they will call me because my first car was a BMW — not that I tried to run away from BMW. I am now also being driven in a BMW. So BMW has never left me,' he quipped. Ramaphosa also welcomed the automaker's inclusive approach to its workforce. 'I am very pleased that they call you associates because that means you are very much a part of this company,' he said. The president highlighted the importance of BMW's investment in plug-in hybrid technology and its alignment with South Africa's transition to a low-carbon, climate-resilient economy. 'As the transition to battery electric vehicles, plug-in hybrids and hydrogen mobility gathers momentum, South Africa is perfectly positioned as a key global manufacturing base for the mobility of the future,' Ramaphosa said. He emphasised that the government is committed to supporting the green transition through clear policy frameworks. 'We are determined to ensure there is an enabling regulatory and policy environment. Through the Automotive Production and Development Programme and more recently, the Electric Vehicle White Paper and incentive programme, we have committed to a stable, predictable and supportive framework for companies to invest, localise and grow in South Africa,' he said. The president noted the country's competitive edge, citing the automotive sector's contribution of about 4.9% to GDP and support for more than 115,000 direct manufacturing jobs and more than half a million jobs across the value chain. 'South Africa is the 22nd largest vehicle exporter globally, with our main export destinations being the EU, US and UK,' he said. Ramaphosa also praised BMW for its efforts in empowering youth and advancing transformation. 'BMW Group is to be congratulated for its commitment to skills development and training for young people. This includes its partnership with Unicef to train learners and educators in coding and robotics in schools and the BMW South Africa IT Hub in Tshwane that employs over 2,000 professionals, including software engineers and digital specialists,' he said. He noted that the company's training academy produces 300 apprentices annually and has trained more than 2,000 artisans since 1978. BMW's partnership with the Youth Employment Service has supported more than 3,500 youth with placements across provinces in sectors such as retail, IT, education and health. 'BMW's commitment to transformation includes active mentorship of young women, the development of black industrialists, and investment in a pipeline of future managers through its Leadership Acceleration Programme,' Ramaphosa said. The president also addressed recent developments in international trade, pointing out that new US tariffs underscore the urgency for South Africa to diversify its export base and invest in domestic value creation. 'With our significant reserves of critical minerals, we must become a hub for processing and beneficiation. We are finalising targeted incentives for battery cell localisation, EV component manufacture, clean mobility research and design, and critical mineral beneficiation,' he said. 'BMW's roots may be in Bavaria, but its beating heart is South African. We see BMW as an integral part of the South African growth story. As the government of national unity, we welcome the role you continue to play in supporting our drive for inclusive growth and job creation.'
Daily Maverick
29-05-2025
- Daily Maverick
New report reveals cost-of-living crisis deepening for South Africa's poor
From 2011 to 2023 the cost of living in South Africa has nearly doubled. This was revealed in the Trend in the Cost of Living in South Africa report, released on Friday, 16 May 2025. Electricity increases and food inflation are shown to be hitting poor and working-class households the hardest. A new report by the National Planning Commission (NPC) and Unicef (United Nations Children's Fund) reveals a troubling trend: while cumulative headline inflation rose by 94.6% between 2011 and 2023, the cost of essentials surged at a much faster rate. Electricity prices tripled, education costs more than doubled, and food prices climbed by 136.1%, far outpacing the growth in wages for poorer households. 'This report is not just about graphs and figures, it's not only about the cost of living. It is about the cost of being human — the cost of being a mother, a child, or a worker,' said Professor Julian May, a commissioner from the University of the Western Cape. May presented the findings to a room filled with officials from various government departments and civil society organisations on Friday, 16 May, highlighting both the improvements and challenges in addressing South Africa's cost-of-living crisis. The report aims to inform policies created through the National Development Plan (NDP). The NDP 2030, drafted in 2012 by the National Planning Commission, sets out to eliminate poverty and reduce unemployment by 2030. With the deadline for this long-term strategic plan approaching, the commission partnered with Unicef to update and deepen the analysis. 'This report is important for planning purposes and for informing policy with evidence,' said Professor Phakama Ntshongwana, a commissioner at the National Planning Commission. 'The different domains researched in this report are critical because they affect millions and millions of people in the country.' Cost of living essentials outpace everything else The report reveals that while general inflation nearly doubled prices over 12 years, essential goods and services increased far more sharply. Meanwhile, real wages — what people take home after adjusting for inflation — fell by 3.4%. In other words, the average South African worker could buy less in 2023 than in 2011. Electricity saw the most dramatic increase, rising by 230% over the 12-year period. With persistent load shedding and above-inflation tariff hikes, many poor households were forced to spend a disproportionate share of their income just to keep the lights on and cook meals. Food inflation hit the poorest the hardest. Staples like maize meal and cooking oil experienced steep price increases, with overall food and non-alcoholic beverage inflation at 136.1%. These are not luxury goods but the backbone of sustenance for South Africa's poor. As a consequence, households were forced to cut back on food spending. May said some even went as far as skipping meals or relying on cheap, nutrient-poor alternatives to survive. Transport costs also rose sharply, especially for those reliant on minibus taxis or buses. With public transport inflation estimated at about 130%, and private transport closer to 165%, commuting to work or school became unaffordable for many. While education is often hailed as a pathway out of poverty, it has become less accessible over the past 12 years. Education costs increased by 138% overall, and primary and secondary school fees rose even faster. The report shows that it is no longer just about access, but affordability. The soaring cost of essentials was only exacerbated by the fact that real wages declined by 3.4% between 2011 and 2023. For many low-income workers, each year brought less purchasing power. Despite the introduction of a national minimum wage, wage growth lagged far behind inflation in essentials, squeezing household budgets even tighter. Challenges to Achieving NDP Goals Ntshongwana noted that while there have been pockets of improvement, the report highlights significant challenges to the National Planning Commission's goal of meeting key objectives in the National Development Plan. 'We are not much closer to the goals of the NDP. There are pockets of improvement, but much remains to be done regarding policy delivery and improving quality of life for children, women, and society as a whole,' he said. She also pointed to South Africa's spatial patterns — a legacy of apartheid spatial planning where non-white people were removed from urban areas and placed in townships on the periphery — as a strong impediment to improving the quality of life for the poorest communities. 'With low-income people living far away from economic hubs where they can access jobs, there comes the question of their job-seeking patterns, with transport costs playing a huge role in their ability to access employment,' Ntshongwana said. The value of social grants The report highlights that social grants have become a critical lifeline for a large portion of South Africa's population amid rising living costs and economic challenges. In 2023, Pietermaritzburg Economic Justice and Dignity released a statement revealing that about 93% of grant money is spent on food, underscoring the grant's role in mitigating the impact of soaring prices on poor households. The Trends in the Cost of Living report found that between 2011 and 2023, social assistance in South Africa expanded, with the number of grants paid out by the government in the same period. However, the report found that the real value of grants declined over the assessment period when compared to the headline CPI, particularly for the old age grant, war veterans grant, disability grant, and care dependency grant Despite their importance, the report argues that social grants alone are insufficient to fully offset the rising costs of essentials, leaving many people vulnerable to ongoing economic pressures. However, Mervyn Abrahams, a programme coordinator at Pietermaritzburg Economic Justice and Dignity, said his organisation was working on a research project advocating for social grants to be set above the upper-bound poverty line to adequately address the cost of living crisis. 'If you set it below, it will only be used to sustain life — to pay for food, transport, and the like. But if it's set above, it allows some level of decision-making as to what the grant beneficiary will do with the extra R200 or R300. They can then start to question how they can invest the extra money to create some kind of income stream for themselves,' Abrahams said. He added that the two-year research project found that 67 of the 100 grant beneficiaries involved used the money to develop alternative income streams, such as growing extra food and selling it, thus alleviating some of the pressures of the cost-of-living crisis. DM
eNCA
17-05-2025
- eNCA
Release of report on cost of living trends
CAPE TOWN - The National Development Plan Vision 2030 has collaborated with UNICEF to report on cost of living trends from 2011-23. This as it seeks ways to address poverty and inequality. The report looks at how the increased cost of living impacts service provision and household well-being and whether wages have kept pace with these increases. According to Professor Julian May from the Centre of Excellence in Food Security, prices have climbed by 95% since the period they covered , while wages have not kept up.
