IRR: Yes, the cabinet is large. But is it growth friendly?

The creation of the newly constituted Government of National Unity (GNU) has resulted in what can only be described as a bloated cabinet. But just making it smaller will not produce economic growth or solve South Africa’s looming debt crisis, says the Institute of Race Relations (IRR).

Said Marius Roodt, IRR analyst and writer: “The cabinet could be reduced to ten portfolios but without better policies South Africans will continue to become poorer. The cabinet must have a laser-like focus on one thing: economic growth.”

South Africa’s cabinet has 34 members. It consists of President Cyril Ramaphosa, Deputy President Paul Mashatile, and 32 ministers. There are a further 43 deputy ministers who do not form part of cabinet. This means that almost one in every five members of parliament is either a minister or a deputy minister.

Ministerial salaries cost South Africa close to R200 million a year. This is without including the value of other perks which cabinet ministers and their deputies receive.

Roodt said that the size of the cabinet was a concern but political realities meant that reducing its size was difficult.

“The size of the cabinet has been a bone of contention for some time. While Mr Ramaphosa has in the past promised to reduce its size, political realities have made this difficult. The president has had to accommodate a large number of GNU partners as well as manage internal dynamics within the ANC,” Roodt commented.

“But cutting the size of the cabinet would not make much of a difference in the grand scheme of things in any case. The saving on salaries would be less than a hundredth of one percent of South Africa’s R2.16 trillion budget. Saving a bit of money on ministers would not put South Africa on a path of fiscal sustainability.”

Instead, economic growth had to be the top priority of the cabinet now, said Roodt.

“Getting South Africa on a path where the economy grows at 5% or more a year is vital. While economic growth is not a panacea, it will go a long way to reducing unemployment and poverty. It is one of the tragedies of post-apartheid South Africa that the country has struggled to deal with these issues adequately so as to give all South Africans the prospect of a secure, fulfilling life. In particular, accelerated economic growth is essential to underwrite the creation of employment, which survey after survey has identified as South Africans’ number one priority. Growth is also needed to improve South Africa’s fiscal sustainability, which is currently in a perilous position,” Roodt went on.

“The IRR has put forward a number of proposals on how to get the economy growing, “said Roodt. The proposals are available here, here, and here.

“Of course, a smaller cabinet would be ideal, but political realities mean that we have to live with a large cabinet for the time being. The new cabinet must now act with urgency to implement policies which allow South Africa to grow rapidly and to reach its full potential,” Roodt concluded.

Media Contact: Marius Roodt Tel: 082 779 7035 Email: marius@irr.org.za

Media enquiries: Michael Morris Tel: 066 302 1968 Email: michael@irr.org.za