By Akani Nkuna
President Cyril Ramaphosa told investors in Cape Town on Wednesday that South Africa’s constitutional democracy, legal certainty and accountability remained central to the country’s economic recovery and its case for greater infrastructure investment.
Speaking at the BlackRock Infrastructure Investment Conference, Ramaphosa said the Constitution protected citizens’ rights, held the state accountable and provided the legal certainty needed for social justice and economic development.
“South Africa is a democracy in which the Constitution provides legal certainty. It protects the rights of everyone and it holds the state accountable, and even holds the president accountable. This is essential to both social justice and economic development,” he said.
His statements came days after the Constitutional Court ruled that Parliament’s decision not to refer the Section 89 Independent Panel report on the Phala Phala matter to an impeachment committee was invalid.
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Ramaphosa said the economy was showing signs of recovery, despite “nine years of State Capture, the energy crisis and Covid-19”.
“We are now seeing signs of recovery. We have recorded four consecutive quarters of growth into early 2026, although we are yet to see this translate into a meaningful rise in employment,” Ramaphosa said.
He said inflation was stable, South Africa’s sovereign rating had been upgraded and the country had been removed from the Financial Action Task Force grey list last year.
“South Africa’s fiscal position is improving. We are on track to record our third consecutive primary budget surplus. We are steadily stabilising our sovereign debt burden and have a clear path towards achieving sustainable levels of debt,” Ramaphosa said.
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The president said government was focused on creating an investment-friendly environment through structural reforms, improved infrastructure delivery and action against crimes that undermine economic activity.
He said crimes such as infrastructure theft, construction site extortion and illegal mining weakened confidence, damaged public assets and delayed development.
