Mapaballo Borotho
- A year after President Cyril Ramaphosa’s 2025 SONA, questions remain about whether the GNU has delivered on its promises of economic growth, job creation, and improved living conditions.
- South Africa continues to face high unemployment, water shortages, persistent gender-based violence, and uncertainty around the National Health Insurance rollout.
- Ramaphosa is expected to address these unresolved challenges in his 2026 State of the Nation Address.
It’s been a year since President Cyril Ramaphosa made a few promises in 2025’s State of the Nation Address (SONA).
Now, as he’ll be addressing the nation again in Cape Town on Thursday, the question remains: has the Government of National Unity (GNU) fulfilled all that it promised it would do?
These questions and many more others will be answered by the President on Thursday.
However, this article aims to go through some of the promises that the president made during his 2025 State of the Nation Address and how some of these issues have still not been addressed a year later.
After the African National Congress (ANC) lost its outright majority in 2024 for the first time since the dawn of democracy, it was forced to form a coalition with other parties to govern the country. During SONA, Ramaphosa said political parties have put their differences aside to serve South Africans.
Ramaphosa said part of their goal is to drive inclusive growth, job creation, reduce poverty, and tackle the high cost of living.
“Our most urgent task is to grow our economy so that we can create jobs, reduce poverty and improve the lives of all South Africans,’ said the president.
According to the latest statistics, South Africa continues to grapple with high youth unemployment, with more than 30% of young people currently without jobs.
Although the overall unemployment rate declined slightly to 31.9% in the third quarter of 2025 from 33.2% in the previous quarter, labour federation SAFTU says the figures still point to a collapsing economy that continues to burden the poor.
Ramaphosa also mentioned that there are actions that are currently in place to resolve the country’s water woes.
On Tuesday, 10 February 2026, the City of Tshwane said the City is currently experiencing extensive water pressure and supply challenges across multiple systems due to the significantly low inflow from Rand Water.
Whereas on Saturday, Rand Water warned that Gauteng residents are consuming water that is above the normal usage, putting a ‘significant strain’ on the utility’s infrastructure.
This is despite the fact that Rand Water has, over the previous months, embarked on repairs and maintenance work.
At the same time, Joburgers are still experiencing challenges with water, with Midrand, Melville, and other areas being without water for more than 7 days.
“It is impossible to live without water, and it is impossible for the economy to grow without water,” said the President.
The country’s second pandemic – Gender Based Violence
Ramaphosa’s government has been addressing the issue of Gender Based Violence in the country, with the president actually describing it as the second pandemic following Covid-19.
In his 2025 SONA, he said the government will continue to strengthen support to victims of GBV.
“There are now 65 Thuthuzela Care Centres across the country. Out of 52 districts in the country, 44 have GBV shelters.
All police stations in the country have victim-friendly services, and another 16 sexual offences courts will be established in the next financial year,” said the president.
Last year, Gender Based Violence (GBV) was declared a national disaster after scores of women took to the streets to voice their grievances about the rising number of women who lose their lives to the pandemic every day.
According to reports, the country’s femicide is five times higher than the global average, with South Africa ranking fourth worldwide for female interpersonal violence deaths in 2016.
Furthermore, between 2023 and 2024, more than five-thousand women were murdered, marking a 33.8% increase from the previous year.
On average, a woman is murdered every three hours, and daily, at least fifteen women are killed in South Africa.
The elephant in the room – NHI
Ramaphosa said the government will proceed with the preparatory work for the establishment of the National Health Insurance (NHI), despite some parties within the GNU being against the idea.
“The NHI will reduce inequalities in healthcare by ensuring everyone gets fair treatment,’ said the president.
In an article published by Business Tech this week, the Chief Executive Officer of Profmed, Craig Comrie, said the government’s National Health Insurance plans have hit a roadblock.
“While the long-term vision of universal healthcare is widely supported, the practical reality of NHI remains uncertain,” he told the publication.
Comrie said the healthcare system cannot afford to stagnate. Both public and private sectors are already carrying pressures that have been building for decades.
The President will give his 2026 State of the Nation Address on Thursday, and he’ll address these issues and many other challenges that South Africans face on a daily basis.
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