SONA lacked details on the consolidation of SA's constrained public purse - economists

JOHANNESBURG - Some economists have described the State of the Nation Address (SONA) as scant in detail about how to consolidate the country’s constrained public purse.

President Cyril Ramaphosa delivered the final SONA of the sixth administration before Parliament on Thursday.

His address came amid a range of economic challenges including poor economic growth and ballooning government debt.

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Operational and financial challenges at Eskom and Transnet have again been fingered as culprits for poor economic growth.

While relief measures are in the pipeline at both state-owned enterprises, the timeline for economic recovery has been described as slow.

Economist at the North West Business School, Raymond Parsons said the address amounted to a party-political statement and a stock-taking exercise by the government.

Parsons said the SONA failed to address government’s unfinished business and failed to provide a coherent economic plan for job-rich inclusive growth.

Economists at Nedbank also agreed, that while there has been some progress at Eskom there have been less sustained gains in addressing transport bottlenecks and other infrastructure challenges.