The South African Liquor Brandowners Association (Salba) says the relaxation of lockdown restrictions will help some liquor traders, but warned that the last 15 months of bans have come at a significant financial cost to the economy.<\/p>\n
South Africa has faced complete alcohol sales bans on four separate occasions since the end of March 2020 as part of the country’s lockdown restrictions.<\/p>\n
Salba chief executive Kurt Moore said that the bans have been harmful to both government and business revenue, and are a serious threat to jobs.<\/p>\n
“248,759 jobs are still at risk across the industry \u2013 about 1.59% of the national total of formal and informal employment for 2020.<\/p>\n
“In addition, the alcohol industry lost 161 days of trading between 26 March 2020 to 25 July 2021 due to the government\u2019s alcohol bans.<\/p>\n
“Even before the cost of the looting to the alcohol industry is factored in, the four alcohol bans have already cost the country\u2019s GDP an estimated R64.8 billion or 1.3% of GDP<\/strong>,” said Moore.<\/p>\n He said that the industry has repeatedly warned and demonstrated via research that the bans had fuelled illegal activity, particularly among crime syndicates whose positions were significantly strengthened during prohibition.<\/p>\n It will be difficult to reverse this, as syndicates have become entrenched, Moore said.<\/p>\n “Illicit trade has reached 22% of total market volumes in South Africa\u2014worth R20.5 billion in sales value.<\/p>\n “This has cost the fiscus R11.3 billion in tax revenues<\/strong> at a time when the country can least afford it,” said Moore.<\/p>\n Not of the woods<\/strong><\/p>\n Under the country’s adjusted level 3 lockdown, which came into effect on Monday (26 July), the sale of alcohol from retail outlets for off-site consumption will be permitted between 10h00 and 18h00 from Monday to Thursday.<\/p>\n Alcohol sales for on-site consumption will be permitted as per licence conditions up to 20h00.<\/p>\n Sibani Mngadi, chairperson of Salba, said the partial opening of sales as well as three months deferment in excise tax payments due on alcoholic beverages is a huge relief.<\/p>\n However, he said that the industry is ‘nowhere near being out of the woods’, especially for off-site consumption outlets that continue to be restricted to trading from Monday to Thursday.<\/p>\n “The government\u2019s use of prohibition in response to the Covid-19 pandemic has had devastating consequences.<\/p>\n “There was no justification for the prohibition\u2014implemented with no warning, no consultation and poor empirical justification\u2014that prevented legitimate businesses supporting more than 1,000,000 livelihoods across South Africa from operating.<\/p>\n “These include businesses in the agriculture, tourism, hospitality and manufacturing sectors, and importantly, hundreds of thousands of SMEs.\u201d<\/p>\n Mngadi stressed that legal businesses needed to be allowed to trade without the continual risk of further bans.<\/p>\n
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