It has been a rough year South Africans to say the least.
From inflation, increasing interest rates and unceasing fears of a recession and a cost-of-living crisis, people in the country took a hit this year.
Here are the average costs of a household food basket from January to November according to Household Affordability Index by the Pietermaritzburg Economic Justice & Dignity Group (PMBEJD):
January - R4,917
February - R4,928
March - R4,966
April - R5,023
May - R5,071
June - R5,956
July - R5,081
August - R5,123
September - R5,155
October - R5,297
November - R5,134
With the ever-increasing food prices, some South Africans who are unemployed or do not have steady jobs have had to resort to extreme measures.
A tuckshop owner in Folweni, KwaZulu Natal told IOL that he had to start selling cooking oil by the spoon and rice by the cup.
He claimed that this was due to the desperation of those around him.
“Things are bad. People here now buy cooking oil by the spoon because they can only afford to cook one meal. Others get a cup of rice instead of a pack because they want to have a meal before they go to sleep,” he stated.
A customer of the small business owner asked his identity to be kept private. He told IOL that he lives off of construction jobs and the R350 Social Relief of Distress Grant which he does not received in some months.
“It is embarrassing to not even be able to feed yourself and have to be a nuisance to others by constantly asking for help. It is degrading,” he said.
“With these prices, I don’t know how we are supposed to live. Many of my friends have turned to drugs just to cope. This ends up ruining their lives as they turn into pharas (drug addicts who commits crime) and become a danger to the community,” he explained.
For those who are paying for homes, things did not look up either.
The interest rate gradually grew throughout the first six months of 2023 before holding steady beginning in July.
Additionally, according to the SARB's amended inflation forecasts, inflation in 2023 is now predicted to average 5.9%, down from 6.0% earlier.
This barely offers any comfort as individuals pay home loans that have increased by thousands of rands.
To add insult to injury, South Africans had to endure thousands of hours of load shedding.
Business owners had to buy expensive equipment just to keep their shops open. Franchisee of the Mozambik restaurant is one such example of an entrepreneur.
He said, “I have bled through over R600,000 to keep my business running during load shedding, but I might still lose it.
IOL