Criminal justice the sector showing greatest reform progess says BLSA Tracker, as President announces police commissioner suspension

South Africa’s progress in terms of implementing key reforms is improving, according to the latest Reform Tracker from Business Leadership South Africa (BLSA).

The third BLSA Reform Tracker Quarterly Review, covering January to March 2026, shows the overall reforms completion index at 71.75 – up 27% from the March 2024 baseline.

The Tracker monitors 245 reform deliverables that matter most for business across economic, criminal justice and governance categories.

These are key to unlocking economic growth, says BLSA.

“South Africa’s reform programme has now been tracked for eight quarters and the overall trajectory remains positive,” says BLSA CEO Busisiwe Mavuso.

The latest data was released on the day President Cyril Ramaphosa announced that National Police Commissioner General Fannie Masemola has been placed on precautionary suspension as he faces criminal charges in connection with an irregularly awarded tender.

RELATED: President places Masemola on precautionary suspension as he faces criminal charges

And, speaking to Stephen Grootes, Mavuso notes that the strongest progress they're seeing is in criminal justice, which has risen from 84.05 to 85.77.

"Criminal justice is one of the standout areas, particularly the strengthening of the Financial Intelligence Centre (FIC)... Remember that this also supported South Africa's exit from the FATF's greylisting."

Mavuso also highlights the strong performance of the financial sector, and what is a mixed bag from an energy perspective.

"We are seeing improvements in the energy sector with the President intervening decisively at the last SONA on transmission independence, which is critical for investor confidence. But we are concerned with the delay in the launch of our wholesale energy market."

And while the BLSA CEO welcomes the reforms in the Public Administration Management Amendment Act and Public Service Amendment Act, she questions whether these go far enough.

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Scroll up to the audio player to listen to this important conversation about South Africa's reform progress