ANALYSIS: Mboweni’s Budget Plans Need Political Will And Support To Succeed

Thebe Mabanga

Finance Minister Tito Mboweni presented his ‘Dire Straits 2020’ budget as a reminder that while there are many policy ideas that a country can implement, one requires political will and support to succeed.

Political will, or lack of it, remains the government’s biggest challenge in implementing structural and policy reforms which are required to turn the economy around.

Political will needs to be demonstrated by the President before any of his key Cabinet Ministers, including Finance, can follow his lead.

And in some ways that has been lacking.

A striking feature of President Cyril Ramaphosa’s presidency is that it is easy to forget that he was the deputy chairperson of the National Development Commission.

When Basic Education Minister Angie Mosthekga presented the national matric results a few weeks ago, she reminded everyone that this is the decade of the National Development Plan.

One would expect Ramaphosa to pick