South Africa’s national accounts are facing pressures from every angle. With growth still flatlining on the back of extreme loadshedding, a collapse in freight rail and many municipal services, revenue collection is naturally underperforming. Borrowing has been ramped up to compensate at a time when borrowing costs are rising, as investors price in the risks that are obvious for all to see. As if that were not enough, cutting inefficient expenditure is politically unpopular as an election looms.