South Africa must finalise a policy on vaccine mandates for certain settings and activities as it seeks to fully reopen its coronavirus-battered economy, the nation\u2019s ruling party said.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe success of our economic recovery depends to a large measure on our ability to effectively manage Covid-19, as this virus is likely to remain part of our lives for the foreseeable future,\u201d president Cyril Ramaphosa, who heads the African National Congress, said at a rally in the northern town of Polokwane on Saturday that marked the 110th anniversary of the party\u2019s founding.<\/p>\n
Africa\u2019s most-industrialised economy contracted the most in at least two decades in 2020 and unemployment surged to a record 35% last year as virus-related lockdowns shuttered businesses, stalled trade, and weighed on tax revenue.<\/p>\n
The government started offering Covid-19 booster shots in December, even with only about 45% of adults fully vaccinated.<\/p>\n
Income support<\/strong><\/p>\n The government started paying a temporary social relief grant to jobless people during the pandemic.<\/p>\n With the payments due to end in March, ANC ministers and academics have proposed the introduction of a permanent basic income grant in one of the world\u2019s most unequal societies. The big sticking point is how it should be funded within a stretched national budget.<\/p>\n There\u2019s a clear need for some form of income support for the unemployed and poor, based on affordability and sustainability, Ramaphosa said.<\/p>\n \u201cThis in many ways is what is causing comrade Enoch Godongwana to lose more and more of his hair,\u201d Ramaphosa said, referring to the finance minister. This very issue \u201cis standing as a huge challenge that we have to find some resources for,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n Saturday\u2019s anniversary event comes at the difficult time for the ANC, which is Africa\u2019s oldest political movement and has ruled since South Africa\u2019s first multiracial elections in 1994.<\/p>\n Its support slipped below 50% for the first time in a municipal vote two months ago, a backlash against what is seen as its slipshod management of towns, high poverty levels, and a lack of jobs.<\/p>\n The ANC also came under fire in a report released this week by a judicial panel that\u2019s spent almost four years investigating graft during former President Jacob Zuma\u2019s rule.<\/p>\n Zuma and other top officials were found to have been at the center of an orchestrated campaign to loot state funds, while the party was found to have benefited from the proceeds of corrupt deals.<\/p>\n Ramaphosa reiterated that party members formally charged with corruption and other serious offenses must immediately step aside from all leadership positions in the ANC and government, pending the finalization of their matters. Those who don\u2019t step aside may be suspended, he said.<\/p>\n Insecurity concern<\/strong><\/p>\n Insecurity is also a mounting concern. Zuma\u2019s incarceration for flouting a court order to testify before the graft probe triggered riots in July that left 354 people dead. And last week, a fire\u00a0ravaged the nation\u2019s parliament, while a building housing the country\u2019s top court in Johannesburg was vandalized. A man was arrested in connection with each of the incidents.<\/p>\n The country\u2019s gains since 1994 are \u201cthreatened by a concerted effort to destroy the institutions of our democratic state, to erode the values of our Constitution and to undo the social and economic progress made,\u201d Ramaphosa said.<\/p>\n Turning the situation around will be critical for Ramaphosa, who succeeded Zuma as ANC leader in 2017 after campaigning on an anti-corruption ticket and is likely to seek reelection to the post at a party conference scheduled for December.<\/p>\n
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