South Africa Needs a CFO More Than a Finance Minister
The Finance Minister’s job is one of the toughest in the country right now. South Africa is grappling with rising debt, growing inequality, coalition politics, and a shrinking pool of taxpayers — all under public scrutiny.
The current path is unsustainable. What South Africa needs now is a clear turnaround plan, not more of the same.
If I Were the CFO of South Africa Inc.
If I were in office — even briefly — and asked to run South Africa like a business, I’d focus on a few of the critical financial levers needed to stabilise and rebuild — the kind of decisions any CFO would have to make in a turnaround.
Of course, I’m not the Finance Minister — but that comparison is precisely the point.
A Finance Minister leads from a political platform — managing tax policy, national spending, and social priorities within government, coalition, and ideological constraints.
A CFO, by contrast, brings a strategic lens. The focus is on fiscal discipline, cash flow and cost control, risk management, transparent reporting, and long-term value creation.
In essence, the Minister delivers policy. The CFO ensures performance.
In South Africa’s current fiscal climate, we don’t just need more speeches — we need execution, transparency, and tough financial decisions. That’s where a CFO’s mindset becomes essential.
1. Plug the Leaks Before Raising the Rates
Before asking taxpayers for more, we must stop wasting what we already collect.
Fruitless and wasteful expenditures, from interest on late payments to unfinished projects, continue to cost billions. The public sector wage bill consumes over R700 billion annually, yet efficiency lags.
Much of the inefficiency isn’t just about headcount — it’s about the wrong incentives. In some departments, work is slowed during regular hours to justify weekend shifts and overtime claims. This doesn’t just inflate costs — it quietly erodes public confidence and service delivery. A CFO wouldn’t just look at what we spend — they’d ask how we spend it, and whether the structure encourages productivity or rewards inefficiency.
Corruption and procurement abuse drain funds faster than any tax increase could replace.
Sound procurement isn’t just about compliance — it’s about value. When tender processes are abused or empowerment is reduced to box-ticking, the result isn’t transformation — it’s erosion. A CFO’s lens would ask: are we getting what we paid for, and are we building long-term capability, not just short-term connections?
A CFO’s first move would be to restore control and accountability, ensuring every rand works harder, not just harder to trace.
2. Expand — and Equalise — the Tax Base
Why should a salaried middle-income earner carry the weight while the massive informal sectors go untaxed?
The taxi industry alone generates close to R100 billion annually, largely untaxed. Spaza shops, traders, salons — all vital to the economy — operate outside formal systems.
The solution isn’t to punish — it’s to simplify registration, offer incentives for formalisation, and digitise collection through mobile payments.
Although tax rates increase with inflation, many tax thresholds and incentives haven’t been adjusted for years. That means people end up paying more tax without earning more in real terms — a silent burden that erodes trust in the system.
Let’s make contributing easy, fair, and worth it.
3. Restore Fiscal Credibility
The recent VAT increase proposal (and its abrupt suspension) reflect a deep uncertainty in fiscal planning. The suspension sent a clear signal—both investors and the public saw it as a sign of fiscal uncertainty.
CFOs know: credibility is currency. Budgets must be predictable, transparent, and grounded in execution.
The steady decline of the rand isn’t just a currency story — it signals that confidence in our economy and policies is slipping. A CFO knows that trust isn’t earned through promises, but through consistent delivery and clear direction.
I’d focus on credible revenue modelling, realistic expenditure targets, and clear fiscal anchors—not just for ratings agencies but also for our citizens’ trust.
Tax morale is eroded when people don’t see where their money goes. We need transparency that builds trust: visible delivery, clear reporting, and systems that show contribution equals value. A CFO doesn’t just publish numbers — they help people believe in the future the organisation is building.
A CFO would also expect to see a full balance sheet — a clear, timely, and consolidated view of the state’s financial position. But South Africa’s financial disclosures are often delayed, fragmented, and incomplete. Key risks — like SOE liabilities — are buried in footnotes or presented in isolation. If SA were a company, no board would accept that level of reporting.
Fiscal transparency isn’t a luxury — it’s the foundation of credibility.
4. Reignite Growth, Not Just Collections
You can’t tax your way out of a stagnant economy.
Growth fixes many problems: more jobs = more income tax, more spending = more VAT, more profits = more corporate tax.
That means:
- Unblocking critical infrastructure like energy and freight, because no economy can grow with power cuts and port delays
- Scaling real support for SMEs and entrepreneurs, not just through policy, but through funding access, payment efficiency, and regulatory reform
- Investing in climate resilience and digital infrastructure, to prepare the economy for the next decade, not the last
- Reimagining state-owned enterprises — not just as liabilities needing bailouts, but as strategic assets that are professionally managed, transparently governed, and ultimately, entities the country can be proud of
In other words, tax policy must work hand-in-hand with economic strategy.
Final Thought
South Africa faces more than a revenue shortfall—it faces an efficiency crisis and a loss of public confidence. But like any turnaround, recovery is possible.
It takes data, discipline, and, above all, leadership.
If I were the CFO of SA Inc., I’d start there.
A Final Reality Check
Of course, South Africa is not a business — it’s a democracy, with competing interests, coalition dynamics, and deep historical wounds. But that doesn’t change the fact that it must be run with the same financial discipline, transparency, and long-term thinking that successful organisations use.
Politics may complicate decisions, but they can’t excuse poor ones. The numbers still need to add up, and the people still need results.
