Civil society organisations test government’s commitment to human rights

South Africa risks continued failures to fulfil its human rights obligations to people if the government’s austerity policy is maintained, civil society organisations have warned at the United Nations Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (the UN Committee) in Geneva. The organisations outlined the systemic challenges that impede access to adequate health care, housing, education, work, […]

Joint Submission to the United Nations Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights,

64th Session, 24 September – 12 October 2018 This report on the implementation of economic, social and cultural rights in South Africa (focusing on selected issues and rights) is a joint initiative of members of the Steering Group of South Africa’s Ratification Campaign of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights and its […]

SPII Talk Newsletter 2nd Quarter April – July 2018

In this edition of SPII Talk, Nsimbi helps us understand the disastrous human consequences of a failing land reform programme. Nsimbi, a 56-year-old domestic worker, talks about how she has been forced to live like a vagrant. To have no home in the place of your birth seems like a perverse trick of history, especially […]

Joint Submission to the United Nations Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, 64th Session, 24 September – 12 October 2018

About two decades after signing the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR), South Africa finally ratified the instrument in January 2015. In accordance with the provisions of the ICESCR, the South African government submitted its initial report to the United Nations Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (CESCR) in April 2017, […]

Vulekamali to improve public access to government budget data

Rhodes University’s Public ServiceAccountability Monitor (PSAM), last week gathered members from the National Treasury, the Legal Resources Centre, Afesis Corplan, and open data activist institute OpenUp for a dialogue on Vulekamali, an online budget data portal which was established by Treasury in alliance with Imali Yethu – a coalition of civil society organisations for open budgets.  

Hot off the press

Decent Standard of Living Index (DSLI) Project Meeting 22 June 2018 Overview What is a Decent Standard of Living (DSL) threshold? How might a DSL measure be useful? How will the DSL and Decent Standard of Living Index (DSLI) be constructed? How could the DSL be updated?  

Researcher Position

Researcher Position We are looking for a Researcher to join our office in Newtown, Johannesburg. Apply by:  27 June 2018, 5 pm SAST Studies in Poverty and Inequality Institute (SPII) is a non-profit think tank committed to advancing the Constitution and supporting the eradication of poverty and inequality in South Africa and the sub-region through […]

SUBMISSION BY BUDGET JUSTICE COALITION WITH RESPECT TO THE CURRENT LIST OF ZERO-RATED ITEMS, AND MITIGATING THE IMPACT OF THE INCREASE IN THE VAT RATE ON POOR AND LOW-INCOME HOUSEHOLDS

As civil society organisations (CSOs) we are concerned by the tax proposals made by the 2018 National Budget (‘the Budget’) and contained within the Rates and Monetary Amounts and Amendment of Revenue Laws Bill 2018 (‘the Bill’), in particular its regressive tax measures, most notably the increase to VAT, and the harsh spending cuts that […]