South African civil society organisations have called for a pro-poor policy agenda ahead of Finance Minister Malusi Gigaba’s maiden Budget Speech on Wednesday, which some analysts expect will also be his last.

Gigaba’s position is not certain amid talks of an imminent Cabinet reshuffle, which President Cyril Ramaphosa told Parliament would not be done in haste.

In a statement signed by organisations including Section27 and Equal Education, they expect the Budget to have profound implications for the poor and working class. 

Civil society organisations held a budget workshop last week to explore critical issues in the run-up to the 2018 Budget Speech.

Among the extensive range of issues discussed were those related to the Budget and fiscal framework such as approaches to managing government debt in a pro-poor manner including advancing a progressive taxation agenda.

Debate also focused on the role of macroeconomic policy in development and consolidating and expanding social protection, with a focus on enhancing the impact on women and children and working age people aged 18 to 59 who are currently not covered by any form of social grant.

Civil society wants to see the budget being used as an instrument to advance the progressive realisation of socioeconomic rights in the Constitution. In this respect, the interests and needs of the most marginalised, including rural populations must be prioritised, they said.

Specifically they also call for more equitable allocations to rural services such as health, education and social development, which recognise that in seeking quality services, rural communities face particular constraints.

The organisations state that urgent action is required to adequately resource rural service delivery.

“In addition, the budget must indicate where resources for combating violence against women and children have been allocated and will be spent,” the statement highlighted.

The groups reiterated their support for the fight against State capture and corruption.

They add that this should be accompanied by measures which see a real improvement in the lives of the poor. This, they say, must be done through the building of a developmental public service and the reorientation of State-owned enterprises towards servicing the public.

Ramaphosa assured South Africans during his State of the Nation Address (Sona) that under his Cabinet State capture and corruption would be dealt with decisively.

However, the group also expressed its concerns about growing pressures for budget austerity arising directly from the looting of public resources, which is in turn associated with a low rate of economic growth.

They thus expressed the need to protect social spending and advance pro-poor programmes and promote employment. 

The group added that budget prioritisation, including the filling of critical vacancies and elimination of unnecessary bureaucracy, needs to ensure that frontline services are improved and not eroded. 

The organisations are extremely concerned about the implications of proposals to increase value-added tax, which places a disproportionate burden on the poor.

“Any potential revenue shortfall should be addressed in a manner that increases the progressivity of the taxation system. Our organisations expect our new President to avoid any unilateral action in this regard, and ensure that there is proper engagement on this matter,” they said.

“We would like to see a new approach from Treasury in this new administration, including in the budget, which reflects active support for a pro-poor agenda. Civil society appreciates the role Treasury needs to play in fighting corruption, including through its public procurement office, but also recognises the conservative role, particularly regarding economic policy, that Treasury has played historically. In no sphere of government can we afford to revert to business as usual,” they said.

They went on to say that they acknowledged the commitment by Ramaphosa during his maiden Sona to convene a social sector summit this year and in turn committed to using such spaces to advance a progressive policy agenda that responded to the urgent social and economic challenges facing our country.