Latest news with #R60bn
IOL News
22-07-2025
- Business
- IOL News
Fast food fuels growth in food and beverage sector
Takeaway and fast-food outlets are driving growth in South Africa's food and beverage sector, according to the latest data from Statistics South Africa. In May, income generated by the overall industry rose in real terms by 4.5% compared to the same month last year, with quick-service outlets contributing the bulk of the increase. Fast food and takeaway chains made the biggest impact on the sector's performance over both the monthly and three-month reporting periods. Statistics South Africa's latest data shows that food and beverage businesses recorded an uptick of 4.3% in income for the three months to May, compared to the same period in 2024. Once again, fast food operators led the way, making the biggest contribution to the growth. In May alone, takeaway and fast-food establishments were the single largest driver of the year-on-year increase in total income across the sector, outpacing restaurants, coffee shops, and catering services. Research from Apollo Reports shows that the fast food and quick service restaurant market was valued at $2 billion, or R35.1bn, in 2022 with an expectation of it growing to R60bn by 2032. The overall food and beverage market is worth almost R7bn, Statistics South Africa's figures show.
The Citizen
16-07-2025
- Politics
- The Citizen
Now we wait for accountability, Mr Mayor
In a country where politicians and top policemen get away with murder and grand corruption, accountability is a chimera. Joburg mayor Dada Morero with members of the mayoral committee and officials from the Johannesburg Roads Agency at Hyde Park in Johannesburg on 10 July 2025, during the launch of the War on Potholes campaign in Ward 90. Picture: Nigel Sibanda A month after Joburg mayor Dada Morero said there were no potholes in ward 90, he arrived in Hyde Park on Thursday with hundreds of workers, fleets of trucks and tons of pothole-fixing equipment. This time he said there were 1 149 potholes in the ward. As Ward 90 councillor, I earlier mocked his 'no potholes' assertion but would not have done so at Thursday's briefing, had I been given the opportunity. Hosts should not insult guests. I was invited to sit at the table with the mayor for his media address. Before sitting, I offered him a welcoming hand and asked (off-mic) if he was sure he wanted me there, as there was a crush of seemingly eminent persons eyeing the seats. 'Yes,' he said, 'I want you to hold us to account.' His short address ended similarly, 'residents can hold us to account'. Some surprise then, when my request to address the gathering was turned down by his colleagues on the grounds that 'the mayor speaks for all of us'. What kind of accountability is that, when the only directly elected public representative of the ward 90 community is not allowed to use a publicly funded microphone at a publicly funded event where accountability is promoted? ALSO READ: WATCH: Joburg mayor sets out to fix potholes Ward councillors are the only directly elected public representatives in South Africa. In Johannesburg, half of the 270 councillors are ward councillors. The other 135 are PR councillors, drawn from party lists. Mayor Morero (ANC) and Transport MMC Kenny Kunene (Patriotic Alliance) are PR councillors. They are accountable firstly to their political parties. They were not directly elected by residents. How can we hold the mayor to account? When people use the word accountability, they usually don't have a clue what they are talking about. It's vaguely comforting to talk about accountability but in a country where politicians and top policemen get away with murder and grand corruption, accountability is a chimera. In his address, Morero said that by the end of August there would be 'no potholes here'. He also said all stormwater drains would be cleared. Streetlights and traffic signals would be working. These are significant undertakings and it was not always clear whether he was talking about ward 90 or all 12 wards in Region B. ALSO READ: Joburg's housing backlog needs R60bn and less red tape – Morero In the list distributed during his visit, there was considerable jumbling of wards and suburbs. In order to hold the mayor and the Joburg Roads Agency accountable, it will be best to have clear, consolidated lists, which do not exist. For proper tracking and accountability, the city should invest in technology which can detect and relay information on the exact positioning and dimensions of potholes. This equipment could be fitted to wide-roaming vehicles such as Pikitup trucks and we could have updated records. There's no chance such a set-up will be in place by the end of August, so we'll have to do our best using older methods. Mayor Morero is hereby invited to a public meeting in early September, (venue to be confirmed) to report back on the Region B 'War on potholes'. I'll bring my own public address system. We know Morero's counting has improved since last month. Now for accountability. NOW READ: Joburg mayor Dada Morero survives motion of no confidence
TimesLIVE
17-05-2025
- Business
- TimesLIVE
Last chance budget to get green flag
Another insider said: 'There's happiness throughout. I don't know how he came up with this, I don't know how he made it [the budget] this good, but it just means it was doable from the start. He did his job.' This source said Godongwana was 'even working very well' with his DA deputy minister Ashor Sarupen. A fourth source said the spending cuts might have an even worse effect on poor people than a VAT increase would have had and predicted there would be 'long faces' in parliament. 'The amount of cuts or reductions is bigger than what VAT would have been had we left it,' this source said. The trade-off was that instead of increasing VAT, 'you will have to wait longer for your clinic, or you have to wait longer for us to fix this road, or you will have to wait for a train because we can't put in all the signalling equipment'. Godongwana's first budget included an additional R232.6bn over the medium-term expenditure framework to address spending pressures. One of the sources said the opposition to the VAT hikes meant Godongwana had no choice but to cut spending. 'So that's what parties have been doing since February,' this source said. 'In fact, what they said was 'we're not going to give you the means to spend an extra R232bn, we reject your proposal'. Then he came back in March with I think it was R179bn. 'The parties said 'we don't want to give you R179bn'. So, he is coming back now, and he is saying from the March version we are going to have to cut another R75bn.' Godongwana said last month scrapping the VAT hikes would result in a R75bn shortfall in his budget. To cover this, and in the absence of other revenue mechanisms, the minister is believed to have decided to slash expenditure by at least R60bn. 'Well, let's just say the tough choices finally have to be made,' one of the sources said, citing the International Monetary Fund's decision last month to cut its projection for GDP growth in South Africa this year from 1.5% to just 1%. 'We can't borrow more because revenue projections track GDP, so reducing the amount by which we add to the baseline [last October's medium-term budget] is the only option,' the source said.
TimesLIVE
24-04-2025
- Business
- TimesLIVE
DA claims victory as finance minister backtracks on VAT rate increase
The DA has declared victory, saying the reversal of the VAT hike was a result of its opposition to an increase in the tax. This after finance minister Enoch Godongwana dropped the 0.5 percentage point hike which would have come into effect on May 1. DA federal chair Helen Zille said the backdown followed sustained opposition by her party in the cabinet, in parliament and in court. 'From the outset, the DA has opposed this tax increase, highlighting its impact on already struggling South African households,' she said. The party challenged the process by filing an urgent application in the Western Cape high court to contest the constitutionality of the increase and procedural flaws in tabling it. 'This exposed the arbitrary power the minister of finance sought to wield in imposing the VAT hike. The approach by lawyers acting on behalf of the minister with a proposal for an out-of-court settlement to scrap VAT marks a critical turning point in this battle. It is now clear that the Treasury had no choice but to reverse its decision in the face of our relentless and strategic legal pressure,' said Zille. The DA believes Godongwana's backtracking places emphasis on their arguments made in their court application, which accused the minister of exercising unconstitutional powers to impose or withdraw VAT unilaterally. 'While this represents a significant step towards stopping the VAT hike, the process is not yet complete. A final court order and a pronouncement on the validity of the fiscal framework by the speaker must still follow,' said Zille. The DA revealed that it is awaiting a formal written settlement offer before responding to the minister's request, and 'will keep the public informed of developments'. 'Even Godongwana's own court papers confirmed the intention to proceed with the VAT hike, and it was only the real prospect of losing in court, thanks to the DA's exceptional legal team, that forced the Treasury into retreat.' Zille said the Treasury's retreat was not a reconsideration but 'a retreat born of necessity in the face of likely legal defeat'. Boasting that its legal action achieved the intended result, the DA said it had to stand firm to protect the public from the 'consequences of a tone-deaf and anti-poor budget'. 'At every turn — from the cabinet table to the courtroom — we held the line. This underscores the power of the DA to effect change in a new context where there is no longer a majority party.' Meanwhile, TimesLIVE reported last week that Godongwana 'responded positively' to a proposal to amend the estimated revenue in his fiscal framework and include a projection that Sars will collect between R20bn and R60bn from its debtors between now and December.
