Image Source: SABC News
Local – Despite a R3 per litre fuel levy reduction from 1 April 2026, millions of South Africans, including low-income workers, taxi commuters, and small business owners, will still face increased petrol and diesel costs at historic highs. The escalation of conflict in the Middle East has materially increased risks to global energy markets, placing significant upward pressure on domestic fuel prices.
Recent data from the Central Energy Fund Group indicates historically high fuel price increases from April 2026, prompting emergency consultations between the National Treasury and the Department of Mineral and Petroleum Resources to explore measures to provide short-term relief to consumers while maintaining a stable and sustainable fuel supply system.
In a joint statement, Minister of Finance Enoch Godongwana and Minister of Mineral and Petroleum Resources Gwede Mantashe announced a two-phase response to address the crisis.
Phase 1 introduces a temporary reduction in the general fuel levy, effective from Wednesday, 1 April 2026, to Tuesday, 5 May 2026, excluding other levies such as the Road Accident Fund levy and the Carbon Fuel Levy. The measure will be re-evaluated monthly for the next two months.
The ministers stated that the relief is designed to be fiscally neutral, with the government committing to implement mechanisms to recoup foregone revenue within the fiscal framework approved during the 2026 Budget.
“The Minister of Finance sought to balance the socio-economic impact on the country and welfare impact on South African consumers, specifically regarding food and transport inflation, with the fiscal objectives announced in the February Budget. Government further wishes to assure the public that there is sufficient fuel supply in the country to meet current and projected demand.”
The temporary levy reduction is estimated to cost approximately R6 billion in foregone tax revenue for the one-month period. The ministers noted that reports of shortages in certain areas are largely due to localised distribution and logistical challenges driven by panic buying rather than a lack of national fuel stocks, and that these are expected to self-correct in the coming days.
‘It’s Nonsense’: The Daily Burden of Rising Fuel Costs
For commuters and workers who rely on private vehicles and taxis, the fuel hike represents a direct and immediate strain on already stretched budgets. The increases move beyond the pump, touching food prices, transport fares, and the basic costs of everyday life.
Many South Africans expressed frustration at the disconnect between rising costs and stagnant wages, with some making direct appeals to President Cyril Ramaphosa to intervene. A resident who drives a car daily was clear about what the hike would mean for her household.
“It’s nonsense. It’s almost 30 bucks a litre of petrol. What nonsense is that? And because I use the car every day, it means that my budget now has to change completely. Not forgetting that the salary is not changing. That’s an extra expense.”
The sentiment was shared across the forecourt. Workers who rely on public transport were warned that rising diesel costs would be passed on to higher taxi fares, hitting those with the least financial buffer the hardest.
One resident drew a sharp distinction between global geopolitical events and the lived reality of ordinary South Africans, rejecting the idea that a war elsewhere should determine how people live at home. He and others directed a message to the president, demanding action on prices that were making life unaffordable.
“Diesel is up with nine rands. Petrol is up with nine rand. What about us? What about food here in South Africa? What the government are doing? It’s not good.”
Businesses Absorb the Shock — and Call for Structural Relief
For South African business owners and operators in the gig economy, the fuel hike introduces pressures that extend far beyond the cost of filling a tank. The increase feeds into supply chain costs, affects the viability of on-site work, and squeezes the margins of those whose livelihoods depend directly on fuel consumption.
One business owner at the forecourt described the adjustments now required of employers, noting that the burden would fall most heavily on workers who commute via taxi. He welcomed the government’s proposed reduction in the levy as a meaningful, if temporary, intervention.
“There’s been talks of the government at least giving a bit of the tax back to fuel users, and I do think it’s a great initiative, be it temporary, but just to alleviate a bit of the pressure that’s coming from the rise in fuel.”
The pressure was felt in the e-hailing sector, where fare structures do not adjust upward when fuel prices rise but drop immediately when they fall.
A driver who has lived in South Africa for over two decades described the gap as a form of exploitation, whether by government or by the platforms on which he depended. He noted that salaries and fares had failed to keep pace with the rising cost of living, leaving gig workers with no cushion against further increases.
“When the petrol price goes down, the price is going down immediately, but when the price rises, no one cares. So they don’t know how to increase the price, so we are really, really affected by this rising price.”
