| Universal access to healthcare | Climate change | Food security |
| Social grants | Basic income grant | Tuberculosis |
| HIV | Corruption | Gender-based violence |
Here’s what Al Jama-ah says about health issues.
Universal access to healthcare
Al Jama-ah supports the National Health Insurance (NHI) plan to achieve universal health coverage (which aims to give everyone access to the same basic health services, regardless of whether they can afford to pay for it and is a 2030 sustainable development goal).
The party says they’ll set up mobile clinics and what they call roving or “para-medical” structures in both urban and rural areas. (Mobile clinics have been part of national and provincial health departments’ services in various forms over the years.)
Al Jama-ah promises more investment in public health and uninterrupted access to safe drinking water for everyone.
Click here to go to the elections manifesto analysis tool.
Climate change
The only mention of climate change in Al Jama-ah’s manifesto is to say that they will “appropriately respond to climate change through effective and equitable local, provincial, national and global cooperation”. This suggests that the party accepts the science around climate change.
South Africa, together with more than 190 other countries, has signed up to the Paris Agreement, under which we pledge to reduce carbon emissions to achieve net zero by 2050. Net zero refers to the amount of greenhouse gases we emit (mostly from burning coal, oil and gas in producing electricity or fueling vehicles) balancing with the amount the Earth’s ecosystems are able to naturally absorb so that there’s no build-up of these gases in the atmosphere where they form a layer which traps heat, which would result in the Earth heating up.
The party promises to explore a mix of sustainable energy options, including from renewable sources (such as solar and wind power) and nuclear energy, while fixing the economy to ease financial pressure on consumers. The manifesto doesn’t mention the need for a just transition to help protect jobs in communities that depend on the fossil fuel industry at the moment.
Click here to go to the elections manifesto analysis tool.
Food security
Al Jama-ah promises to make it cheaper to buy a basic basket of household goods necessary for a dignified and healthy life, while working to exempt bread, milk, eggs and other basic food items from value-added tax (VAT) to ease the burden of people who live below the poverty line. However, brown bread, milk, eggs, rice, maize meal, sunflower oil and vegetables have been VAT free for more than 15 years already. (The food poverty line of R760 (as of May 2023) is the least someone needs to buy food for a month; the general poverty line (between R1 058 and R1 558) is the amount of the food poverty line plus the average amount for non-food expenses of a household.)
The Household Affordability Index, which tracks the cost of a monthly food basket of 44 foods for a family of seven, shows R5 336.31 was needed in April 2024 to buy these groceries (to buy only 17 of the most pressing food items that make up the basket cost R2 870.29).
The party also promises to uphold household food security across the country, get investment for agricultural projects (including large, medium and small-scale farming) to ensure that farm lands are protected, and to promote thriving local cooperatives that will enhance food security.
Click here to go to the elections manifesto analysis tool.
Social grants
Al Jama-ah promises to fix gaps in social grants so that they will be able to subsidise essential food and personal hygiene items in low-income communities.
Click here to go to the elections manifesto analysis tool.
Basic income grant
The party’s manifesto doesn’t mention a basic income grant.
Click here to go to the elections manifesto analysis tool.
Tuberculosis
The Al Jama-ah manifesto doesn’t mention tuberculosis specifically. TB kills more people than any other illness in South Africa.
Click here to go to the elections manifesto analysis tool.
HIV
The Al Jama-ah manifesto doesn’t mention HIV. About 7.8-million South Africans are living with HIV, of whom about 75% are on antiretroviral treatment.
Click here to go to the elections manifesto analysis tool.
Corruption
Al Jama-ah promises to stop corruption and nepotism and uphold the rule of law, setting up a values-based government led by “ethical, honest, well-qualified and competent officials in all spheres”.
At hospitals, Al Jama-ah promises to ensure quality control and real-time oversight to avoid corruption and sloppy service delivery.
The party further says that it will improve cooperation between police and private security and give watchdogs more power to stop dishonest dealings.
Click here to go to the elections manifesto analysis tool.
Gender-based violence
Al Jama-ah promises to oppose gender-based violence and tackle its root causes, but the manifesto doesn’t mention any specifics on how this will be achieved.
Click here to go to the elections manifesto analysis tool.
Read the full, original manifesto here.
