South Africa Vision

The National Treasury and the South African Revenue Service (SARS) have invited the public to comment on the second batch of the 2021 Draft Taxation Laws Amendment Bill and 2021 Draft Tax Administration Laws Amendment Bill (TALAB).

The publication of these bills follows the announcement by the Minister of Finance on 28 July 2021 on the emergency tax measures as part of the fiscal package outlined by President Cyril Ramaphosa on 25 July 2021. This was in response to the continuing COVID-19 pandemic and recent unrest in the country that resulted in the destruction of businesses.

“The second batch of draft tax bills contains emergency tax measures taking effect on 1 August 2021 and seek to make amendments in the Disaster Management Tax Relief Act, 2020 and Disaster Management Tax Relief Administration Act, 2020.

“These measures are over and above the tax proposals made in the 2021 Budget on 24 February 2021, which were included in the initial batch of the 2021 draft tax bills, published for public comment on 28 July 2021,” Treasury said on Thursday.

The two sets of amendments will be combined to form the 2021 Taxation Laws Amendment Bill and 2021 Tax Administration Laws Amendment Bill that will be tabled in Parliament during the 2021 Medium-Term Budget Policy Statement.

The measures are:

• The introduction of a tax subsidy of up to R750 per month for 4 months for those private sector employees earning below R6 500; this subsidy will be provided under the current Employment Tax Incentive.

• SARS will accelerate the payment of Employment Tax Incentive reimbursements from twice a year to monthly to get cash into the hands of compliant employers as soon as possible.

• Tax compliant businesses with a turnover of less than R100 million will be allowed to delay 35% of their Pay As You Earn liabilities over 3 months without penalties or interest.

“Tax compliant businesses in the alcohol sector can apply to SARS to obtain deferrals of up to three months for excise duty payments, after setting out the circumstances justifying a deferral. This measure does not require a legislative amendment as the customs and excise rules that SARS administers were amended in 2020 to provide for deferrals of excise in cases of temporary financial constraint.”

The public has been encouraged to forward written comments to the National Treasury’s tax policy depository at [email protected] and SARS at [email protected] by close of business on 28 August 2021.

The second batch of the 2021 draft tax bills and the draft explanatory notes can be found on the National Treasury (www.treasury.gov.za) and SARS (www.sars.gov.za) websites.

Source: South African Government News Agency

Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development Minister, Thoko Didiza, says access to financial services and knowing where to go to apply is a challenge that persists for women in the agricultural sector.

“The majority of [women in the industry] will tell you how they struggle for production credit at our development financial institutions, as well as our commercial banks.”

In addition to available funding mechanisms such as the Comprehensive Agricultural Support Programme (CASP), Ilima Letsema, Land Development Support, the Minister said the department has developed a blended finance instrument working with the department’s development finance institutions and private banks.

Didiza made the remarks during a webinar on the role of women in agriculture on Thursday hosted by the department in partnership with the Government Communication and Information System (GCIS).

She said the issue of access to the market is another area of concern that the majority of women raise as a constraint, as well as extension and advisory services, which are not enough to support the many farmers that the country has, particularly smallholder farmers.

“Government has agreed to add 10 000 extension officers in our agricultural system within a three-year period,” Didiza said.

The Minister announced that the department is rolling out a smallholder empowerment approach, a program which enables farmers to understand the market and how it operates.

The program also helps farmers understand what is needed by the market in products, quality and volume.

“SHEP (Horticulture Empowerment and Promotion) also changed the mindset of farmers to plant for the market instead of planting or producing and then thinking about the market later. Through SHEP, farmers and buyers are brought together on a platform where they can interact,” Didiza said.

In order to respond to the growing demands of diverse types of foods by consumers, the Minister stressed the importance of technology transfer, noting that through the Agricultural Research Council, the department assists farmers with new knowledge and new plant varieties.

“Technology is also critical in mitigating against climate change. Currently we are developing climate smart agriculture seeds and farming systems,” she said.

Agro-processing and Agribusiness Program

Didiza said the department has started a Women in Agro-processing and Agribusiness program, to expand women’s knowledge and entry into the agri-business sector.

The department is doing this in order to ensure that support mechanisms for women in the agri-business sector are available.

“The majority of us believe that entry into agriculture is through ownership and access to land. Yes, when it comes to primary production that is true. But entry into the industry as a whole can be achieved through our participation at various levels, for instance, we can source commodities from those who produce for processing,” the Minister said.

The department is this year piloting a programme with 100 women who have already entered the agro-processing space. The intention is to incubate the women enterprises so they can become sustainable and grow.

“This pilot will ensure that we learn from our interventions as well as from the women themselves. At the end of the pilot we can then roll out at scale,” Didiza said.

Logistics and transport system

The Minister noted that the movement of goods from farm to the market, both locally and abroad, is another market entry point which women need to look at.

“It doesn’t mean that if you want to be in the agricultural sector, you only need to be a farmer, but you can be in the logistics industry. You can be in the distribution centres, and you can also participate in the cold storage and grain storage facilities,” the Minister said.

These are the areas the department wants to entice women to participate in.

“We are currently working on the Agriculture and Agribusiness Master Plan and we want to make sure that the issue of gender parity is engrained in the master plan, because we know that women are part and parcel of our society, economies and entire livelihoods, and if we live women behind, our society will not progress,” Didiza said.

Source: South African Government News Agency

Minister of Employment and Labour, Thulas Nxesi, has assured workers that government will assist workers that were affected by the recent unrest.

“We are collating all the necessary workers’ information so they can benefit from both the Unemployment Insurance Fund (UIF) and Public Employment Services work-seekers database for reemployment when the Plaza resumes its operations in the near future,” the Minister said on Tuesday.

Nxesi was addressing workers at Theku Plaza in KwaZulu-Natal after inspecting and assessing the damage caused during the recent looting and recent unrest in and around Newcastle, particularly at Theku Plaza.

Department of Employment and Labour Deputy Director General for Public Employment Services, Sam Morotoba, encouraged all the affected workers to register with the Public Employment Services of the department so they can be assisted when employers request workers for possible recruiting.

He further urged workers to access employment counselling services provided by the department at the Newcastle labour office.

Acting Commissioner for the Unemployment Insurance Fund, Advocate Yawa, called on workers to apply for unemployment insurance benefits, including Temporary Employers/Employees Relief Scheme.

The Minister’s delegation also went to the Madadeni Business Zone.

“He encouraged employers to access the South African Special Risk Insurance Association, as recently pronounced by the President. He further urged them to apply for Reduced Work Benefit from Beneficiary Service of the Department so that those affected and working for minimal hours can access relief,” the department said.

Source: South African Government News Agency