Stop BEE — We Will Not Be Silenced

The proposed 2026 amendments to the Broad-Based Black Economic Empowerment (B-BBEE) Codes represent a continuation — and intensification — of an economic policy framework that has failed to deliver inclusive growth, job creation, or competitiveness for South Africa. Instead of broadening participation in the economy, the proposed framework narrows opportunity, deters entrepreneurship, and weakens South Africa’s ability to compete globally. Free SA believes that true empowerment comes from economic growth, equal opportunity, skills development, and open markets, not coercive scorecards and state-managed redistribution.

We will not be silenced! 

Government may close its public comment window on the 2026 BEE regulations on 31 March 2026, but South Africans will not be silenced.

Make your voice heard
More about this campaign
In the media

Speak up, be heard, take a stand!

For years, we have seen wave after wave of race-based economic policies, each repackaged as reform, each adding new layers of compliance, and each pushing investment, businesses, and opportunity out of South Africa. FREE SA rejects the idea that public participation is a once-off exercise. Democracy requires continuous accountability, not deadlines that shut the public out while harmful policies continue to evolve.

We commit to submitting your comments every 3 months after 31 March 2026, until government abandons BEE and replaces it with a system that truly drives growth, inclusion, and opportunity for all.

Every submission will reinforce one message: South Africans reject BEE, and we will not go away.

Ongoing submission dates:

30 June 2026

30 September 2026

31 December 2026

31 March 2027
(and every 3 months thereafter)

Make your voice count

I, the undersigned, support the full repeal of B-BBEE and all race-based empowerment legislation.

I believe South Africa needs an economic framework based on:

  • Growth and job creation

  • Equal opportunity and fairness

  • Skills development and entrepreneurship

  • Investment and competitiveness

I reject ongoing regulatory expansions of BEE, including mechanisms such as the proposed Transformation Fund.

I support Free SA’s commitment to submit public representations every 90 days until BEE is repealed and replaced with a system that works for all South Africans.

My voice does not expire on 31 March 2026.

More about this campaign

Key concerns with BEE and the 2026 regulations

  • A failed policy, repeatedly repackaged
     For over two decades, BEE has not delivered broad-based economic upliftment, but has instead entrenched inequality and benefited a narrow elite.

  • Constant regulatory escalation
     Each new version of BEE increases complexity, compliance costs, and uncertainty for businesses—especially SMEs trying to grow and create jobs.

  • Investment and economic flight
     Ongoing regulatory pressure and race-based requirements discourage both local and foreign investment, weakening South Africa’s competitiveness.

  • The Transformation Fund as a coercive mechanism
     The proposed fund operates as a de facto tax, diverting resources away from productive investment and into state-directed structures.

  • No clear endpoint or accountability
     Government continues to “review” BEE without ever committing to measurable success or eventual repeal—suggesting permanent policy entrenchment.

What we're advocating for

  • The complete repeal of B-BBEE and all associated regulations
     South Africa needs a clean break from policies that have failed to deliver.

  • An end to race-based economic engineering
     Economic inclusion must be based on opportunity, need, and growth—not racial classification.

  • A pro-growth policy framework
     Focus on investment, job creation, entrepreneurship, and skills development.

  • Voluntary, incentive-driven empowerment
     Empowerment should enable—not coerce—businesses and individuals.

  • Ongoing democratic accountability
     Government must recognise that public opposition does not expire when a comment period closes.

How you can help

This campaign is about consistency, pressure, and collective action.

By participating, you will:

  • Be part of a legally recognised, recurring submission process

  • Help build sustained public resistance to harmful economic policy

  • Ensure government continues to hear the same clear message—again and again

  • Stand for an economy that works for all South Africans

You don’t need legal expertise. Free SA makes it simple to participate, and ensures your voice is formally submitted where it matters.

They may close the process. We will reopen the conversation, every 90 days.

In the media

Engineering News Article
Polity Article
Daily Maverick Article
Daily Investor Article
BusinessTech Article
Business Day Article

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