JOHANNESBURG, June 29 (Xinhua) -- The South African government said on Saturday that the country achieved its first primary budget surplus in 15 years due to the implementation of prudent fiscal measures.
"The last time government had a budget surplus was before the 2008 global financial crisis," said a statement issued by the South African Government Communication and Information System.
According to the statement, the government under President Cyril Ramaphosa implemented prudent financial measures to record the budget surplus.
"The 6th government administration put in place prudent fiscal measures aimed at mitigating the country's dire economic situation, including the implementation of cost-cutting measures within the government, fewer bailouts to state-owned entities, strong monitoring of key performance measures to improve their performance, and the deployment of multidisciplinary intervention teams that included the private sector where applicable," Nomonde Mnukwa, acting government spokesperson, said in the statement.
"State-owned enterprises were propelled to impactful turn-around plans implementation, which has resulted in green shots in self-sustaining business models," she said.
Mnukwa pointed out that the country achieved a budget surplus while recovering from the global economic crisis, state capture, and prolonged financial constraints due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the July 2021 unrest.
"Critical economic growth drivers, such as infrastructure development, received necessary support and focus," said the spokesperson.
She also said the government continued to engage regularly with business and labor leaders to grow the economy.
"As the 7th administration begins its work, it does so with the advantage of a budget surplus, which will support the implementation of outstanding goals of Vision 2030 -- the National Development Plan," Mnukwa said.
"The government reiterates the importance of collaboration to achieve faster economic growth through job creation and public-private partnerships, among other strategies," she added. ■
