Minister in the Presidency Ms Khumbudzo Ntshavheni tabled the Statistics South Africa (StatsSA) budget vote of R2,77 billion for the 2025/26 financial year, which will rise to R2,9 billion in 2026/27 and R3 billion in 2027/28.
Outlining the allocations for this financial year, the minister stated that the main divisions in this budget vote are administration (allocated R742 million), economic statistics (R310.5 million), population and social statistics (R307 million), methodology and statistic infrastructure (R166.1 million), statistical support and informatics (R300.6 million), statistical operations and provincial coordination (R800.9 million), and South Africa’s national statistic system (R48.4 million).
She urged MPs to support the vote, saying: “We are navigating a path in a world that is undergoing rapid and profound changes, and this is equally true in the realm of statistics.” In the midst of global fundamental shifts that are shaping every facet of human life from climate change to the swift advancement of artificial intelligence, statistics provide one constant: “the truth told in numbers,” the Minister added. Statistics are the evidence upon which sounds decisions are made and this budget will serve to improve our statistical analysis and provide us with high-quality data and insights to support informed decision-making and policy development, the Minister said.
The Chairperson of Portfolio Committee on Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation, Ms Teliswa Mgweba (ANC), emphasised that the work of StatsSA goes beyond data and includes various factors that, “speak to the credibility of our democracy and the integrity of our national planning architecture in monitor poverty, inequality, unemployment, gender equity, the realisation of sustainable developmental goals and Africa Agenda 2063.” She said the committee supports this budget vote.
We rise to reject this budget vote, said Mr Siyabonga Gama (Umkhonto weSizwe Party). He went on to explain why. “We do so because StatsSA continues to be underfunded and sabotaged by the government not to deliver on its mandate.” This is a missed opportunity by the government to use data as a transformative tool for national development, he said. “StatsSA should be an engine that pivots all government’s planning and all programmes that are key to GDP growth for employment creation, reduction of poverty and inequality.”
This current government’s promises of inclusive growth are hollow and the Government of National Unity will fail because instead of using the information that is already at its disposal to drive service delivery and economic growth, it wants to go on a R700 million junket to discover what is already in front of it, he suggested.
Ms Katherine Christie (DA) noted that StatsSA has several times indicated that it is not receiving enough money from the fiscus to fulfill its mandate adequately. She also noted that the committee has visited StatsSA’s offices and has seen for itself how much the entity has achieved with a skeleton staff and a shoe-string budget. Despite its importance, it is short-staffed by 720 personnel and is losing key staff members to the private sector, Ms Christie said.
She explained, “It takes 10 years to develop a young statistician to a level of knowledge and experience required by StatsSA, yet the entity is losing up to 131 members per annum to financial and international institutions that offer better wages and working conditions.” This is coupled by its outdated ICT infrastructure that continues to put the credibility and security of its work at risk, Ms Christie said.
Mr Chumani Matiwane rejected the budget vote on behalf of the EFF, saying that the budget has been eroded over several years by below inflation allocations and budget cuts. “We have heard the entity complain about the high vacancy rate over years and this Parliament hasn’t done anything about that. And, if anything, the observations and recommendations contained in the committee report are nothing but the regurgitation of previous reports. And they offer no practical or much needed interventions,” Mr Matiwane suggested. It is for these reasons that the EFF refuses to support the proposed budget, he maintained. .
Meanwhile, Mr Nsikayezwe Cebekhulu (IFP) said his party views the R2.7 billion budget as a critical investment in data integrity and public accountability. However, he noted his party’s concern about the high turnover of skilled staff members and called for StatsSA to be empowered to meet its constitutional obligations. “Our democracy and our people depend on it,” he stressed.
This view was echoed by Ms Jasmine Petersen (Patriotic Alliance), who urged the National Treasury to address StatsSA’s budget shortfalls. She also noted her party’s call for improved oversight to ensure that allocated funds are used effectively.
Dr Kgosi Letlape (Action SA) noted that StatsSA must function to maximum efficiency but, instead, the government is allowing “such an important institution to operate without data”. He went on to pose a question: “What would make sense, to spend R700 million for a national dialogue or R300 million investment in StatsSA? If we invest R300 million in StatsSA, we will have far more information than we will ever get from a dialogue.” StatsSA needs the R300 million, he stated. “If it doesn’t get it, we would never get out of the ICU,” he suggested.
Abel Mputing
3 July 2025
Arrange a tour