How world sees SA: an IMF loan leads to talk of corruption – Wall Street Journal

When a Treasury statement announced that executive board of the International Monetary Fund had approved South Africa's request for emergency financial support under the Rapid Financing Instrument for a whopping US$4.3 billion (about R70bn) the response was what any South African might have expected: an immediate assumption that the money would be "captured". The loan is supposed help the country mitigate the adverse social and economic impact of the Covid-19 pandemic – but many citizens are not sure that that will actually happen. As the Wall Street Journal notes, President Cyril Ramaphosa's spokeswoman is taking leave of absence to allow for an investigation of two government contracts awarded to her husband to supply protective gear for health workers. And, as people are pointing out on social media, that's but one example of corruption that goes back years. – Renee Moodie

IMF grants $4.3 billion coronavirus loan to South Africa

By Gabriele Steinhauser

Johannesburg — The International Monetary Fund agreed to lend South Africa $4.3 billion, the largest loan any African country has received since the start of the coronavirus crisis, underscoring the force of the pandemic's blow to the continent's most developed economy and prompting concerns among South Africans that the funds could encourage government corruption.

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