Reflections on Inequality in South Africa: A Call for Unity and Urgency in the Age of the Government of National Unity

On Monday, 15 July 2025, the Rivonia Circle, in partnership with the French Development Agency and the European Union, convened an important and intriguing dialogue at the Sandton Skye Hotel to launch their paper interrogating inequality in South Africa. The launch symbolised a rallying call to confront South Africa’s most persistent socio-economic fault line, inequality.

The paper at the centre of this launch paints a backdrop by identifying South Africa as one of the most unequal countries in the world, with a Gini coefficient of 0.67. It argues that wealth and opportunity remain deeply skewed along racial, class and gender lines, citing that the enduring legacy of apartheid-era policy, coupled with the failures of the democratic epoch, collectively continue to define the socio-economic experience of millions. What emerges from the paper is a nuanced and grounded analysis that describes inequality in South Africa as structural and rooted in systemic exclusion and sustained by deeply embedded socio-economic patterns. It warns that addressing inequality requires deliberate, redistributive policy anchored in historical redress, coupled with real political will and coordinated state capacity.

The GNU and Inequality

RC’s paper presents a compelling analysis on the manifesto stances of GNU (Government of National Unity) partners about inequality, describing the 2024 elections as first time since democracy, a coalition government composed of ten political parties governs South Africa. The paper the distinct ideological leanings of GNU partners, ranging from liberal market fundamentalism to radical redistributive socialism, unpacking these ideological divergences by interrogating the parties’ 2024 election manifestos.

The ANC’s manifesto is described as explicitly centering inequality, advancing state-led initiatives such as reducing the cost of living, land reform, public employment programmes, healthcare expansion, and re-industrialisation.

In contrast, the Democratic Alliance (DA) prioritises economic growth through market-friendly reforms, with a manifesto that focuses on job creation via deregulation, tax relief, and private sector investment, but pays limited attention to the structural roots of inequality.

Parties like the Pan Africanist Congress (PAC), call for aggressive land redistribution and a planned economy to dismantle colonial economic legacies.

Rise Mzansi and the GOOD Party offer hybrid approaches, advocating for community-centred development, ethical governance, and targeted interventions such as tax relief for single mothers and the implementation of a basic income grant.

The Patriotic Alliance (PA) adopts a more pragmatic and localised approach, promoting job creation through community-based economic empowerment, municipal reform, and targeted service delivery.

While smaller parties like the IFP, FF Plus, and Al Jama-ah make mention of inequality, their manifestos tend to emphasise decentralization, minority rights, or moral governance without engaging deeply with systemic economic disparities.

The reflection on the GNU was, however, not to the exclusion of opposition parties such as the EFF and MK, where analysis was performed, sighting their convergence and interrogating the challenges and opportunities at their disposal in the current administration.The EFF’s manifesto is decribed as being anchored in dismantling structural inequality through state ownership and a fundamentally transformed economic system. While bold and direct, the paper notes that concerns remain about feasibility, investor reaction, and institutional capacity. On the hand uMkhonto weSizwe Party (MKP) manifesto is idenfited as centering historical redress and economic justice through labour protections, community-owned development, and expanded access to basic services. While the MKP does not explicitly structure its programme around inequality, the party emphasises the lived realities of poor and working-class South Africans, aiming to build dignity through redistribution, free quality education, and subsidised living costs.

In its final analysis, the paper identifies both promising opportunities and sobering challenges for the GNU, arguing that the diversity of the GNU allows for richer policymaking, with potential for creative compromise and broader legitimacy. RC’s paper points out evident consensus among GNU partners on the need for infrastructure development, job creation, and anti-corruption. Conversely, the paper cautions that ideological divergence, particularly between market-oriented and redistributive factions, could lead to gridlock. It purports that the GNU’s ability to address inequality will depend on whether it can overcome internal tensions and align around people-centred priorities. The paper does not present the GNU as a hopeless venture; rather, it offers a tempered optimism that parties would choose to focus on convergence points to solve inequality.

The event, attended by representatives from political organisations alongside civil society organisations, posed a critical question emanating from the paper: Can the Government of National Unity (GNU) solve the problem of inequality?

The panel discussion featured representatives from the ANC, Rise Mzansi, and Oxfam South Africa. The panelists grappled with key issues raised in the paper, such as the legacy of apartheid, the role of state versus market, and prospects for future economic transformation. The engagement was robust, frank and thought-provoking, including reflections on South Africa’s development trajectory over the past 30 years, attempts to find points of convergence among differing political ideologies, and detailed discussions on the multifaceted nature of inequality. The audience participation was strong, further enriching the discourse with lived experience and civic insight.

Through the panel discussion and engagement, the importance of the National Dialogue was identified as a crucial tool to offer the GNU a structured space to listen, build trust, and co-create solutions with communities, trade unions, traditional leaders, youth formations, and businesses.

Ultimately, the question is not whether inequality can be solved, but whether South Africa’s political leaders are prepared to place the greater good above narrow partisan politics. The RC’s paper is not a solution in itself; it is an invitation for all stakeholders to act to eradicate inequality.

The GNU has an opportunity to make history, not merely through power sharing, but by committing to shared purpose. The Rivonia Circle believes that the purpose must be to overcome inequality in South Africa.

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About the Author:
JR Sebastian is a seasoned development practitioner who posses experience across project management, M&E, research, policy development, and stakeholder relations within South Africa’s political and development landscape.