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President Cyril Ramaphosa delivered a frank assessment of South Africa\u2019s most pressing challenges on Thursday night, pledging decisive action to confront rampant crime, worsening water outages, dysfunctional municipalities and the next phase of Eskom\u2019s restructuring.<\/p>\n
In his 2026 State of the Nation Address at Cape Town City Hall, Ramaphosa said while progress had been made in stabilising the economy and ending load shedding, \u201cwe must be honest about the challenges we still face\u201d, warning that \u201cwe are still far from where we need to be\u201d.<\/p>\n
Watch: 2026 State of the Nation Address
Read: Crime, job prospects drive rich, skilled South Africans abroad<\/p>\n
Crime and public safety<\/strong><\/p>\n Crime took centre stage in the address, with Ramaphosa describing organised crime as \u201cthe most immediate threat to our democracy, our society and our economic development\u201d.<\/p>\n \u201cThe cost of crime is measured in lives lost and futures cut short,\u201d he said, adding that fear and insecurity were deterring investment and eroding social cohesion.<\/p>\n He announced a stepped-up offensive against criminal syndicates, including the consolidation of intelligence at national level and the deployment of multidisciplinary intervention teams \u201cfocused on dismantling criminal networks\u201d.<\/p>\n Ramaphosa confirmed that the South African National Defence Force would be deployed to support the police in hotspot areas. \u201cWe have to act to rid our country of gang violence,\u201d he said, noting that deployments would focus initially on the Western Cape and Gauteng.<\/p>\n The president also announced the recruitment of 5 500 additional police officers this year, stricter gun-control enforcement and the establishment of a national illicit economy disruption programme, targeting sectors such as tobacco, fuel and alcohol.<\/p>\n Water outages and infrastructure failure<\/strong><\/p>\n ADVERTISEMENT<\/p>\n CONTINUE READING BELOW<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n Water security was identified as \u201cthe single most important issue for many people in South Africa\u201d, with Ramaphosa acknowledging mounting frustration in cities such as Johannesburg and towns like Knysna and Giyani.<\/p>\n Listen\/Read: \u201cThere is no silver bullet to address this challenge,\u201d he said, attributing the crisis largely to \u201cpoor planning and inadequate maintenance of water systems by many municipalities\u201d over many years.<\/p>\n To address immediate outages, Ramaphosa announced the creation of a National Water Crisis Committee, which he will chair, modelled on the National Energy Crisis Committee that helped end load shedding. \u201cThis structure will bring together all existing efforts into a single coordinating body,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n Government has committed more than R156 billion to water and sanitation infrastructure over the next three years and is advancing projects such as the Lesotho Highlands Water Project and the Ntabelanga Dam.<\/p>\n Ramaphosa also warned that municipalities failing to deliver would face consequences. \u201cWe will not hesitate to use the powers enshrined in the Constitution and in the Water Services Act to intervene,\u201d he said, adding that criminal charges had already been laid against dozens of municipalities and would now be extended to municipal managers in their personal capacity.<\/p>\n Fixing dysfunctional municipalities<\/strong><\/p>\n The president said water outages were \u201ca symptom of a local government system that is not working\u201d and confirmed that a \u201cfar-reaching overhaul\u201d of local government was underway.<\/p>\n Citing the Auditor-General\u2019s assessment of weak accountability, poor financial management and instability, Ramaphosa said government would finalise a revised White Paper on Local Government in the coming months to \u201creimagine the way that local government works\u201d.<\/p>\n ADVERTISEMENT:<\/p>\n CONTINUE READING BELOW<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n The reforms will introduce a differentiated approach to municipal powers, professionalise senior appointments and strengthen the ability of national government to intervene where councils fail. \u201cThese changes may be difficult. But they must be done,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n Listen: Operation Vulindela: Challenges and triumphs Eskom restructuring and energy reform<\/strong><\/p>\n While load shedding has ended, Ramaphosa said the focus had shifted to securing long-term energy stability and lowering electricity costs.<\/p>\n \u201cWe are establishing a level playing field for competition, so that we are never again exposed to the risk of relying on a single supplier to meet our energy needs. We are restructuring Eskom and establishing a fully independent state-owned transmission entity.\u201d<\/p>\n Ramaphosa said the entity will have ownership and control of transmission assets and be responsible for operating the electricity market.<\/p>\n Read: \u201cGiven the importance of this restructuring for the broader reform of the electricity sector, I have established a dedicated task team under the National Energy Crisis Committee to address various issues relating to the restructuring process, including clear timeframes for its phased implementation. It will report to me within three months.\u201d<\/p>\n Ramaphosa confirmed that the first round of independent transmission projects would begin this year to enable private investment in expanding the grid, while work continues to eradicate load reduction linked to transformer overloading and illegal connections.<\/p>\n \u201cWe are committed to the path that we have embarked on to modernise our energy system,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n ADVERTISEMENT:<\/p>\n CONTINUE READING BELOW<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n \u2018Sovereignty is sacrosanct\u2019<\/strong><\/p>\n In the final section of the address, Ramaphosa turned to South Africa\u2019s place in a shifting global order, stressing that foreign policy would be guided by sovereignty, equality and national interest.<\/p>\n \u201cWe are building mutually beneficial relationships with all countries on terms of equality and respect,\u201d he said, adding that South Africa\u2019s \u201ccommitment to sovereignty and self-determination is sacrosanct. It is not negotiable\u201d.<\/p>\n Ramaphosa said the country would continue to respect the sovereignty of other nations, but warned that \u201cwe must be equally clear that we will not be bullied by any other country\u201d.<\/p>\n He said South Africa would forge stronger partnerships with like-minded states to improve resilience to global disruptions, while advancing the priorities of the Global South through multilateral platforms such as the G20.<\/p>\n Those priorities include \u201cinclusive growth, debt relief, climate action, reform of global governance institutions and the beneficiation of critical minerals at source\u201d, he said.<\/p>\n Striking an optimistic note, Ramaphosa said the country was \u201cleaving behind an era of decline and turning towards an era of prosperity and growth\u201d, pointing to progress made in rebuilding institutions and stabilising the economy.<\/p>\n \u201cWe have done much to overcome the effects of state capture, the Covid-19 pandemic, the public unrest of 2021 and the devastating floods of the following year,\u201d he said, arguing that the task now was to convert recent gains into lasting and inclusive growth.<\/p>\n Follow Moneyweb\u2019s in-depth finance and business news on WhatsApp here.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n
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