South African President Cyril Ramaphosa has expressed confidence in his government's ability to manage the country’s rising debt levels while ensuring essential services are adequately funded.
During a recent campaign rally in the Western Cape province ahead of the May 29 elections, Ramaphosa addressed concerns about the country's debt burden and emphasized the government's commitment to fiscal responsibility.
"Through the policies we have executed, particularly this year, we have maintained a fairly good prudent macroeconomic approach to manage our debt while ensuring that we make available resources for services that need to be delivered to our people," Ramaphosa told supporters of the ruling African National Congress (ANC).
Notably, the South African National Treasury's decision to utilize the nation's gold reserves rather than implement further budget cuts has provided some relief.
Ramaphosa acknowledged the challenges posed by South Africa's debt-to-GDP ratio, which currently stands at around 72%. Factors such as inflation and civil servant wage increases have contributed to this rise.
"Debt is one of the concerns that we have as a government," the ANC leader said. "We don’t want our debt to balloon to unmanageable levels to a point where we will not be able to deliver services."
The government has implemented measures to curb debt-service costs, with the Treasury predicting a significant decline in the coming years. This, coupled with a revised projection for the debt-to-GDP ratio, suggests a positive trajectory towards fiscal sustainability.