The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has approved a R70 billion loan to South Africa under its Rapid Financing Instrument (RFI). This is to support the government’s efforts to address the challenging health situation and severe economic impact of the Coronavirus pandemic.

Approaching the IMF for a loan was not a uniformly popular choice within the governing party, which has traditionally had an aversion to approaching the IMF.

The loan was also criticised by some trade unions and civil society organisations, for reasons ranging from mistrust of the IMF to concern over the spectre of corruption in the expenditure of so large a sum. The few curated articles below will assist in understanding some of the issues surrounding the loan.

Paper by CPLO