THE South African Democratic Teachers’ Union (Sadtu) says the announcement of a 0.5% VAT increase is deeply concerning. The teacher’s union says the increase imposes an additional burden on the majority of South Africans, who are already grappling with high levels of unemployment and rising costs of essential goods such as food, electricity, water, and transport.
“We recognise the expansion of the zero-rated food basket to include canned vegetables, meat and poultry, and dairy liquid blends. However, there are no mechanisms in place to prevent manufacturers and sellers from increasing the prices of these essential goods, which could undermine the intended relief for consumers.”
Sadyu added that while it notes the increase in social grants, it is disappointed that the government did not increase the Social Relief Grant.
“The cost of living continues to rise, and the recipients of this grant, like all South Africans, are affected by inflation,” it said.
Sadtu also noted the allocation of R598.7 billion to learning and culture, with basic education receiving R332.3 billion, as well as the additional R19.1 billion over the medium term to retain approximately 11,000 teachers in classrooms. However, the union stressed that this funding remains insufficient to address the sector’s critical challenges.
“Although the Minister acknowledged that learner-teacher ratios remain higher than desired and more teachers are still needed, this budget will not be able to employ the hundreds of unemployed teacher graduates or the Grade R educators who have now been absorbed into the system due to Grade R becoming a compulsory school starting age.”
Sadtu said it also cannot guarantee that the funding will secure the jobs of those already in the system. More than 11 000 teaching posts in KwaZulu-Natal are at risk, and the Western Cape has already cut 2,407 posts.
“We doubt that the budget will adequately address infrastructure backlogs in education. We welcome the additional R10 billion allocated over the medium term to increase the subsidy for Early Childhood Development (ECD) from R17 per day per child to R29 and expand access to ECD for approximately 700,000 more children. This long-overdue intervention is a step in the right direction, as ECD is essential for laying a solid foundation for learning.”
The union said it remains skeptical about the government’s early retirement initiative. “Given the stagnant economy, we doubt that many public servants, including educators, will accept the offer. The initiative, introduced in 2019, failed to attract the expected numbers. While we support the recruitment of younger educators into the system, the government must have an efficient and effective human resource plan to inform supply and demand in education. Such planning shall inform universities in the areas of training as needed by Basic Education.”