"The World Bank has no understanding that the ANC government's socialist ideology has almost completely destroyed the economy in South Africa and that greater unaffordable social spending is by no means a solution to solve the serious fiscal and social problems in the country," says Fanie Brink, an independent agricultural economist.
The ANC government's destructive socialism has already widened the gap between government revenues and expenditures to such an extent that it has resulted in growing budget deficits and government debt, poverty, famine, unemployment and inequality that have already spilled over into uprisings, riots and looting of private businesses and important transportation routes.
However, the World Bank's recommendation that the solution lies in even greater social support for unemployed adults who have no source of income in the form of a basic income grant is totally unrealistic and unaffordable. Despite this recommendation, the Bank "acknowledged in its report that the fiscal constraints facing the government will make it difficult to extend the social assistance system for the foreseeable future."
The recent decision by the National Treasury to throw the government's intended undertaking to stabilise the very serious fiscal conditions out the window by shifting it from debt consolidation to further spending will significantly widen the gap between government revenue and expenditure. It will only plunge the government into further bankruptcy which will accelerate the deterioration of the economy!
The "extra expenses will be financed by the tax windfall resulting from the rises in international metal prices" as if it would continue permanently.
The Parliamentary Budget Office argued that “the Treasury's failure to take a broader fiscal stance has contributed to the social insecurities and poverty caused by the recent looting and destruction that further devastated the economy. The Budget Office was also of the opinion that the stabilisation of fiscal conditions would only further increase social and political instability and that the fiscal framework should therefore provide for greater spending.”
"There is nothing else the socialists understand about the economy!"
From the report it is very clear that the Bank does not understand that South Africa no longer have:
(a) any opportunity “to link beneficiaries to other government services and programmes that help advance access to the labour market and earnings;”
(b) any possibility “to support social grant beneficiaries a transition to jobs by strengthening public and non-government employment service programmes;”
(c) a “social assistance system that is effective intervention and well targeted towards those who most need support;”
(d) a “social assistance programme that represents one of the country’s most important post-apartheid successes in reducing poverty and inequality” which is totally untrue as it was responsible for the destruction of the economy, higher budget deficits and government debt, poverty, famine, unemployment, inequality, unrest and looting of business and private property;
(e) the fiscal ability to afford a “basic income grant” at all and the Minister of Finance has already rejected it;
(f) a department of social development and government officials that the Bank talk to that have any understanding about the creation of economic growth, while there are many other information sources that can provide the Bank with the very facts and realities about the destructive situation in South Africa that the Bank seems not interested in.
One of the most worrying aspects of the report is the fact that the Bank also apparently does not care that South Africa's economy is further destroyed by the destructive socialist ideology of the ANC government and does not intend to do anything about it.
South Africa is in fact asking the Bank to help stop the country's further economic deterioration and to help get it back on a path to economic growth and prosperity, but it seems very clear that the Bank has no solution for it or does not sees its way open to recommending that the ANC government abandon its socialist ideology! The Bank rather prefers to follow the path of the least resistance!
"The only solution to all the serious problems lies purely in adopting a mixed capitalist/socialist economic system that accepts the good qualities and eliminates the bad qualities of both systems that can create economic growth from the supply and demand side of the economy that is driven by the profit motive which can increase revenue of the government to solve the serious fiscal and social problems.
There is absolutely no possibility that socialism can create economic growth as has been proven worldwide in the past as well as in South Africa after the ANC government came to power in 1994.
'Therefore, the latest report from the World Bank should be completely rejected because it means nothing to the country, while the bank should rather take serious cognisance and understand that the economic outlook for the country today looks much worse than at any other time in the past," says Brink.
"Unemployed adults are weak link in SA's social support system, World Bank says"
https://www.businesslive.co.za/bd/national/2021-10-07-unemployed-adults-are-weak-link-in-sas-social-support-system-world-bank-says/
