Johannesburg – Pressure is piling on President Cyril Ramaphosa ‘s administration to jump-start the country’s battered economy.
On Tuesday, Ramaphosa said that he would implement an employment stimulus plan within the next month.
Ramaphosa reacted after Stats SA revealed the most recent GDP results, which showed the country had slipped deeper into recession during the nationwide lockdown.
According to Stats SA the economy shrank by 16.4% from the first quarter to the second quarter.
But to look at this differently, if the economy continues to contract in a similar way for the next few quarters, Stats SA said the annualised figure is 51%.
“While the 16.4% contraction in the second quarter (or 51% on an annualised basis) represents an anomaly due to the lockdown imposed at the end of March, these figures nevertheless reinforce the importance of enabling a strong rebound in subsequent quarters,” Ramaphosa said in a statement.
“Countries across the world are facing significant economic disruption as a result of the pandemic, leading to the worst global downturn in decades. South Africa has not been spared these realities,” he said.
Ramaphosa said that the country could not continue with business as usual, and it was now time to act quickly and boldly to place South Africa on a rapid growth trajectory.
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