ANC WELCOMES MOODY'S CONFIRMATION SA'S SOVEREIGN RATING

7 MAY 2016

The African National Congress welcomes the confirmation by Moody’s Investor Service of South Africa’s sovereign ratings at Baa2 assigned with a negative outlook. The rating affirms the effectiveness of the measures put in place by government; signalling that indeed we are on the right track with our economy expected to start recovering beyond 2016. The ratings are further a testament to our strong and maturing political system and the resilient and robust institutions that support it and our democracy.

The ANC commends the efficacy of the societal compact championed by Comrade President Jacob Zuma and the Minister of Finance which brought together social partners in government, business, labour and civil society to yield the most welcome results in stabilising the labour environment and ensuring security of electricity supply. While we are not oblivious to remain challenges and existing concerns, the outcome of the review will go a long way to restoring investor confidence and attracting continued investment in our economy.

The ANC is confident that government will continue with its program of aggressive fiscal consolidation while maintaining the delicate and very necessary balance between prioritizing radical socio-economic transformation, meeting basic needs and fiscal sustainability.

Statement issued by Zizi Kodwa, ANC national spokesperson, 7 May 2016