The latest BLSA Reform Tracker showed governance reforms making progress, but setbacks in electricity and freight logistics pushed the overall reform completion index slightly lower.
South Africa's economic reform programme lost momentum for the first time since monitoring began, with setbacks in the energy sector outweighing progress in governance and visa reforms during the second quarter of 2026.
The latest Business Leadership South Africa (BLSA) Reform Tracker, compiled by research consultancy Krutham, showed the overall reform completion index slipped marginally to 71.5 during the April to June period from 71.7 in the previous quarter. Despite the decline, the index remains 26% above its March 2024 baseline.
The tracker monitors 247 reform deliverables across economic, governance and criminal justice categories, with more reforms declining than advancing for the first time since the index was introduced.
BLSA Chief Executive Busisiwe Mavuso said the latest results highlighted emerging challenges in the implementation of key reforms.
