ActionSA has criticised the Government of National Unity (GNU) for failing to produce a credible plan to tackle the country’s lack of economic growth and its unemployment crisis.

ActionSA Member of Parliament Alan Beesley pointed out that economic growth had remained below 1% since the formation of the GNU, after Tuesday’s GDP statistics revealed 0.8% growth for the second quarter of 2025.

“These numbers are a damning indictment of a government unwilling or unable to work together to deliver solutions for South Africans,” he said.

Statistics South Africa on Tuesday pointed out that following marginal growth of 0.1% in the first quarter of 2025, real GDP strengthened by 0.8% in the second quarter of April to June.

Manufacturing, mining and trade led growth on the production (supply) side of the economy. The expenditure (demand) side was also positive, lifted mainly by stronger household consumption and softer imports.

Beesley called on all GNU partners – the African National Congress, Democratic Alliance, Inkatha Freedom Party, Patriotic Alliance, Freedom Front Plus, United Democratic Movement, the GOOD Party, Pan Africanist Congress of Azania, Al Jama-ah and Rise Mzansi – to use pragmatic solutions to fix the economy.

He accused government of industrial policy failures, citing this as a reason for potential job losses in the manufacturing sector.

“ArcelorMittal South Africa is winding down its Long Steel operations, directly affecting 3 500 workers in Newcastle and Vereeniging, and threatening over 100 000 downstream jobs.

“In the automotive sector, nearly 500 Ford employees across Pretoria and Gqeberha face retrenchment, while Goodyear’s closure of its 78-year-old tyre plant in Kariega will cost around 900 direct jobs and thousands more in the supply chain,” he said.

He noted that over the past two years, 12 companies in the automotive sector had closed, with more than 4 000 jobs lost.  

“These are not just numbers – they are families plunged into insecurity and inequality because of government failures. High electricity costs, loadshedding, inefficient ports, and collapsing rail and road infrastructure are strangling South African industries and the workers who depend on them,” he stated.

ILLICIT TRADE

Beesley pointed to illicit trade that he said was thriving.

“The GNU limps along at less than 1% growth while illicit markets are expanding at multiple-percentage-point rates: illicit alcohol volumes have grown by around 55% since 2017 and illicit cigarettes now account for roughly 60% of the market,” he explained.

He noted that the South African Revenue Service loses about R18-billion to illicit cigarettes a year, while losses from illicit alcohol are around R16.5-billion a year.

“These criminal markets are expanding because government is not addressing illicit trade with the urgency it demands, costing the fiscus tens of billions that could have been used to fight unemployment and rebuild public services,” he said.

It is also worth noting that South Africa’s official growth outlook has deteriorated sharply this year, he stated.

Beesley said when Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana first tabled the 2025 Budget in February, National Treasury projected GDP growth of 1.9% for the year.

“Annual growth now stands at 0.6%, underscoring how quickly confidence is collapsing under this government. Statements by President Cyril Ramaphosa supporting Zimbabwe’s catastrophic land reform further erode confidence in our already fragile economy,” Beesley claimed.