On Tuesday night, April 21, 2020, South Africa’s President, Cyril Ramaphosa, announced the country’s first major COVID-19 economic rescue package, amounting to R500 billion ($26 billion USD). This occurred towards the tail end of a five-week long lockdown, which has pushed the already ailing economy into further crisis.

The announcement follows weeks of intense lobbying and debate within the country. Until this point the government’s intransigence was best represented by the Minister of Finance, Tito Mboweni, blocking increases to social grants, which civil society groups and researchers had pushed. It took an independent think tank—the Institute for Economic Justice (IEJ)—to present the first coherent, costed emergency rescue package before the government had put anything on the table. Prior to the announcement, South Africa had allocated 0.1% of GDP to COVID-19 relief, compared to a G20 average of 10.1%.

The plan announced by Ramaphosa therefore represents a major step forward. If effectively implemented, it will make a material difference in the lives of millions of people and support tens of thousands of businesses. However, although the absence of details makes the package difficult to analyze, a number of weaknesses exist.