“The ban is going to have a devastating impact on the millions of livelihoods the industry supports, which includes small businesses, and we fear they may not recover this time around. During the nine week lockdown we already saw over 100 000 jobs lost in the industry.”

Patricia Pillay: BASA

Representing: Beer – SAB, Heineken, Craft breweries

“When considering how many dependants each of those South Africans has, the consequences become terrifying. What makes the situation even more depressing is that many taverns are owned by South Africa’s most vulnerable group: black women.”

Busi Mavuso: Business Leadership SA

Representing: South African business sector