To summarise: in this coming year, we expect revenues of R1.58 trillion and spending of R1.83 trillion. That means we will spend R243 billion more than we earn.

Put another way, we are borrowing about R1.2 billion a day, assuming that we don’t borrow money on the weekend.

This coming year, interest expenditures will be R209.4 billion. This is R1 billion per day. The expenditure and tax adjustments are designed to largely counteract the additional allocation for Eskom and the revenue shortfall. As a result, gross national debt will still stabilise at about 60 per cent of GDP in 2023/24, broadly in line with our October forecast.

We are masters of our own destiny.

Our determination to regain our fiscal prudence will form the basis of our economic recovery.

We will be on our way back to the plum years.

As we face the future, I am reminded of the words of one of the continent’s independence leaders, Ghana’s Kwame Nkrumah:

“…the task ahead is great indeed, and heavy is the responsibility; and yet it is a noble and glorious challenge - a challenge which calls for the courage to dream, the courage to believe, the courage to dare, the courage to do, the courage to envision, the courage to fight, the courage to work, the courage to achieve - to achieve the highest excellencies and the fullest greatness of (people). Dare we ask for more in life? "

Restoring our finances and fixing our state owned enterprises will take great courage.

But it can be done.