Following the tabling of the 2025 National Budget Speech on the 12th of March 2025, the Gauteng
Provincial Government (GPG) will, on the 18th of March 2025, be tabling the 2025 Provincial Budget
Speech; the Appropriation Bill for 2025/2026; the Explanatory Memorandum to the Bill; Estimates of
Provincial Revenue and Expenditure; Estimates of Capital Expenditure; and the Socio-Economic
Review and Outlook (SERO). These documents, collectively, provide a comprehensive picture of the
state of the provincial economy and finances, and the roadmap that we are using to alter this state in
a quest to build an inclusive and sustainable economy.
The theme of this year’s Budget Speech is Reaffirming and Strengthening Gauteng’s Role in the
Continental Economy. This theme captures an appreciation of the complexities that have had to be
surmounted in compiling the 2025 Medium Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF) Budget aggregates,
while also asserting the resolve of the Gauteng Provincial Government in asseverating the place of
the provincial economy both nationally and regionally. This is against the backdrop of Gauteng being
host to the G20 Summit scheduled for later this year, the first time that the significant event has ever
been hosted in Africa. This is an affirmation of the role of Gauteng as a key player in the global
landscape.
ECONOMIC OUTLOOK OF SOUTH AFRICA AND THE GAUTENG PROVINCE
South Africa continues to experience weak economic performance due to structural challenges and
logistical constraints. As a result, Statistics South Africa has indicated that the country’s economy
grew by just 0.6 per cent in 2024. The National Treasury projects that the economy will grow by 1.7
percent in 2025 and 2026 respectively. These growth figures are concerning in light of the empirical
research by both the National Treasury and the World Bank, which posits that to address the
country’s economic challenges and achieve sustainable development, the South African economy
needs to grow at a rate of 5 percent or higher, annually, requiring a combination of policies focused
on infrastructure, investment and skills development. For a province like Gauteng, which is home to
the biggest proportion of the total population of South Africa, this growth rate is imperative.
Gauteng remains by far the biggest contributor to the South African economy, with the province
currently contributing 35 percent to the National Gross Domestic Product. And while the provincial
economy continues to grow above national levels, with the economy growing by 1.3 percent in 2024
and expected to rise to 1.8 percent in 2025 before reaching 2 percent in 2026, these numbers are not
adequate. There is no question that more work still needs to be done to achieve economic growth
levels necessary to create much needed jobs and improve the living conditions of people in Gauteng.
This is especially urgent in light of the liquidity pressures that are escalating in the province, with net
cash balances projected to turn negative by the 2025/2026 financial year, largely due to the e-toll debt
burden and persistent accruals.
