A Johannesburg-based progressive economics think-tank.
Braamfontein, Johannesburg
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JOIN OUR TEAM | The IEJ is looking for a Junior Researcher: Fiscal Policy to contribute to research and advocacy advancing fiscal justice in South Africa and across the African continent. The role focuses on taxation, public expenditure, progressive revenue mobilisation, and key budget processes, including the national budget and the Medium-Term Budget Policy Statement (MTBPS).
Apply by Friday, 6 November 2026 🔗 ow.ly/F4tX50ZZXvG
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IEJ Senior Researcher Dr Kelle Howson pulls no punches on the question at the heart of the MTBPS: whose interests does fiscal policy serve when “savings” come at the expense of those most in need?
Who pays for social grant “savings”?
In @dailymaverick, IEJ Senior Researcher @kellehowson examines R13bn in #MTBPS2026 grant cuts, including R6.8bn from the SRD grant, and the consequences for poverty, GBV, and child malnutrition.
dailymaverick.co.za/opinioni…
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Who pays for social grant “savings”?
In @dailymaverick, IEJ Senior Researcher @kellehowson examines R13bn in #MTBPS2026 grant cuts, including R6.8bn from the SRD grant, and the consequences for poverty, GBV, and child malnutrition.
dailymaverick.co.za/opinioni…
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FROM REPORTING TO REFORM? | 6/6
What would it take to make gender budgeting transformative?
Government needs to:
• Conduct sector-specific gender analysis
• Move beyond expenditure tagging
• Integrate gender analysis into fiscal decisions
• Set clear outcomes, targets and timelines
• Strengthen accountability
From reporting to reform means asking not only what government spent, but what public spending changed.
Read Koketso Masenya’s From Reporting to Reform? ow.ly/nNOJ50ZYRle
#GenderBudgeting #EconomicJustice
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CALL FOR PROPOSALS | The IEJ is inviting proposals for a working paper examining the determinants of productive investment in South Africa between 1994 and 2025. The research will explore how investment is financed, the factors influencing the allocation of finance towards productive investment, and the implications for fiscal policy, economic development and structural transformation.
The terms of reference can be found here 👉🏾 ow.ly/ooZ750ZZF3y
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1/8 In Daily Maverick, @SharpSchutters highlights additional funding for GBV prevention and early childhood development in the #MTBPS2026.
These are vital commitments. How they are funded and what grant “savings” mean for households also deserve scrutiny.
GBV and early childhood development get prioritised in mini-budget of maximum efficiency dailymaverick.co.za/article/…
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7/8 There are alternatives to making essential programmes compete for limited funds.
Our statement calls for greater revenue mobilisation, including taxes on net wealth and reduced tax breaks for high-income households, to support public services and social protection.
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8/8 Fiscal policy should begin with people’s needs and rights.
Our concern is that the proposed fiscal anchor could entrench spending restraint and make these trade-offs harder to resolve.
Read our response: “2026 MTBPS: When Austerity Becomes Law”.
iej.org.za/press-room/statem…
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1/8 in @BDliveSA, @TamarKahn reports that R13bn in grant “savings” will help fund the fight against gender-based violence.
But whose money is being “saved”, and why should protecting women depend on excluding people from social assistance? #MTBPS2026
Treasury expects to save R13bn in social grant payments over the medium term, freeing up money to help combat gender-based violence and reduce child stunting.
Link in comments.
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7/8 These trade-offs are policy choices. Government can mobilise additional revenue through taxes on net wealth and by reducing tax breaks for high-income households.
Essential services and social protection should be adequately funded together.
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8/8 The proposed fiscal anchor risks entrenching the spending restraint behind these false choices in law.
Fiscal policy must begin with people’s needs and rights.
Read our response: “2026 MTBPS: When Austerity Becomes Law”.
iej.org.za/press-room/statem…
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