Fixing Zuma’s financial wreckage: One list at a time

English and Afrikaans soundbites by Dr Mark Burke MP.

Another week, another step in undoing the legacy of destruction wrought by former president Jacob Zuma with South Africa's removal from the European Union's list of High-Risk Third Country Jurisdictions.

Being on this list has compelled European banks to conduct enhanced due diligence on South African companies, with the attendant cost and exclusion risks. It makes business tougher when our country desperately needs fewer obstacles to financial success.

It is no coincidence that since the DA joined government, with ministers on the Ministerial Committee on the Budget and a deputy minister inside Treasury and the DTIC, we've also seen ratings upgrades, global greylist removal, cheaper bond financing, a lower inflation target and stabilising national debt.

We understand that for as long as millions remain unemployed, these achievements should be noted rather than celebrated.

The road is long, it's full of potholes but the car now ceases to be in reverse. We are gradually, but undoubtedly moving forward.

It is critical that our institutional infrastructure continue to be strengthened, especially when it comes to the 2026 skills needed to both detect and prosecute money laundering as well as terrorism financing.

We cannot afford backsliding.