{"id":94398,"date":"2025-12-16T16:47:21","date_gmt":"2025-12-16T16:47:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/all-news\/edward-kieswetters-r9-7-billion-win"},"modified":"2025-12-16T17:58:06","modified_gmt":"2025-12-16T17:58:06","slug":"edward-kieswetters-r9-7-billion-win","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/all-news\/edward-kieswetters-r9-7-billion-win","title":{"rendered":"Edward Kieswetter\u2019s R9.7 billion win"},"content":{"rendered":"

Africa-Press – South-Africa. <\/strong><\/span>A boom in South Africa\u2019s counterfeit goods market over the past few years has led to billions being lost from the fiscus.<\/p>\n

Over the past five years, Customs and Excise Operations teams have made 3,291 seizures of various counterfeit items with an estimated value of over R9.7 billion.<\/p>\n

The most common products involved in these seizures were clothing, textiles, leather goods and footwear, followed by tobacco and alcohol.<\/p>\n

This was revealed by Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana in response to a recent Parliamentary question from ATM MP Thandiswa Marawu.<\/p>\n

Marawu asked the minister to estimate the total annual loss to South Africa\u2019s economy due to counterfeit goods and how this impacts the country\u2019s GDP.<\/p>\n

In his response, Godongwana explained that the South African Revenue Service (SARS) has no accurate data on the losses resulting from counterfeit goods or their economic impact.<\/p>\n

However, the minister revealed that, over the past five financial years, Customs and Excise Operations teams, in collaboration with Special Campaigns Teams, carried out thousands of seizures.<\/p>\n

These teams made 3,291 seizures of counterfeit goods with an estimated value of over R9.7 billion.<\/p>\n

He said these seizures were mainly for clothing and footwear products and occurred across the country, in land, air, and sea modalities.<\/p>\n

Godongwana\u2019s response comes as the government is looking to clamp down on illicit and counterfeit goods in South Africa, which have seen a boom in recent years.<\/p>\n

In his Medium-Term Budget Policy Statement (MTBPS) in November 2025, Godongwana said illicit trade threatens the local economy, endangers consumers, and robs the fiscus of billions in revenue.<\/p>\n

He estimated that the government has lost around R40 billion in excise revenue due to the illicit cigarette trade alone since 2020. The same is true for illicit alcohol and fuel.<\/p>\n

These products not only threaten government revenue but also present a notable public health risk.<\/p>\n

Public safety concern<\/b><\/p>\n

Godongwana also highlighted the public safety risks that counterfeit products present in his MTBPS.<\/p>\n

\u201cCustoms officials must fulfil their duty to prevent criminals from dodging taxes and flooding our markets with dangerous products,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

In February 2025, Nedbank released a blog post warning consumers about the health, safety and legal risks counterfeit goods present.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou might think buying counterfeit goods is harmless, but the trade exposes consumers to many dangers and funds organised crime,\u201d the bank said.<\/p>\n

\u201cAccording to the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, the global counterfeit trade is linked to international crime syndicates \u2013 so any fake \u2018bargains\u2019 you buy from an unscrupulous dealer could be financing other illegal activities like human trafficking and terrorism.\u201d<\/p>\n

The bank also highlighted the health risks associated with counterfeit goods, even products that are not consumed like tobacco and alcohol.<\/p>\n

Nedbank warned that clothing with harmful chemicals in the dye can cause severe skin irritations that may require hospitalisation.<\/p>\n

The bank said fake beauty products are particularly dangerous, as they can cause serious skin reactions, infections, and other health issues.<\/p>\n

In addition, Nedbank cautioned that poorly made fake name-brand appliances are a major safety hazard.<\/p>\n

\u201cThese appliances often do not meet safety standards, increasing the risk of electrical shock, fire, or kitchen accidents,\u201d the bank warned.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou might save on the price of counterfeit products, but you expose yourself to all these health and safety risks, and more.\u201d<\/p>\n

The bank attributed the rise in counterfeit products, in part, to a boom in eCommerce, which has made buying imported goods easier than ever.<\/p>\n

Many experts have also pointed to the government\u2019s Covid-19 pandemic lockdown regulations as a key reason for the surge in South Africa\u2019s black cigarette and alcohol markets over the past few years.<\/p>\n

Government bans on buying these goods from legitimate sellers during the pandemic pushed many consumers towards illicit alternatives, fuelling the black market, which has only continued to grow since.<\/p>\n

Illicit products are also often far more affordable than legitimate products, as sellers are typically not SARS-compliant and do not have to factor excise taxes into the prices they charge consumers.<\/p>\n

South African consumers are highly price-sensitive, leading many to favour cheaper illicit goods over their legal, but more expensive, counterparts.<\/p>\n

For More News And Analysis About South-Africa<\/span> Follow Africa-Press<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Africa-Press – South-Africa. A boom in South Africa\u2019s counterfeit goods market over the past few years has led to billions being lost from the fiscus. Over the past five years, Customs and Excise Operations teams have made 3,291 seizures of various counterfeit items with an estimated value of over R9.7 billion. The most common products […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":84,"featured_media":94396,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2,5],"tags":[275],"class_list":["post-94398","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-all-news","category-economy","tag-south-africa-2"],"yoast_head":"\nEdward Kieswetter\u2019s R9.7 billion win - South Africa<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"A boom in South Africa\u2019s counterfeit goods market over the past few years has led to billions being lost from the fiscus ...\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/all-news\/edward-kieswetters-r9-7-billion-win\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Edward Kieswetter\u2019s R9.7 billion win\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"A boom in South Africa\u2019s counterfeit goods market over the past few years has led to billions being lost from the fiscus ...\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/all-news\/edward-kieswetters-r9-7-billion-win\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"South Africa\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/AfricaPressTunisiaa\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2025-12-16T16:47:21+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2025-12-16T17:58:06+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/sites\/31\/2025\/12\/sm_1765895170.478497.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"690\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"389\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"cfeditoren\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"cfeditoren\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/all-news\/edward-kieswetters-r9-7-billion-win#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/all-news\/edward-kieswetters-r9-7-billion-win\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"cfeditoren\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/#\/schema\/person\/068c7ab4e9634ae78ec5d54ec46598bb\"},\"headline\":\"Edward Kieswetter\u2019s R9.7 billion win\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-12-16T16:47:21+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-12-16T17:58:06+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/all-news\/edward-kieswetters-r9-7-billion-win\"},\"wordCount\":702,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/all-news\/edward-kieswetters-r9-7-billion-win#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/sites\/31\/2025\/12\/sm_1765895170.478497.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"South-Africa\"],\"articleSection\":[\"all news\",\"economy\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/all-news\/edward-kieswetters-r9-7-billion-win#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/all-news\/edward-kieswetters-r9-7-billion-win\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/all-news\/edward-kieswetters-r9-7-billion-win\",\"name\":\"Edward Kieswetter\u2019s R9.7 billion win - South Africa\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/all-news\/edward-kieswetters-r9-7-billion-win#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/all-news\/edward-kieswetters-r9-7-billion-win#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/sites\/31\/2025\/12\/sm_1765895170.478497.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-12-16T16:47:21+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-12-16T17:58:06+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/#\/schema\/person\/068c7ab4e9634ae78ec5d54ec46598bb\"},\"description\":\"A boom in South Africa\u2019s counterfeit goods market over the past few years has led to billions being lost from the fiscus ...\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/all-news\/edward-kieswetters-r9-7-billion-win#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/all-news\/edward-kieswetters-r9-7-billion-win\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/all-news\/edward-kieswetters-r9-7-billion-win#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/sites\/31\/2025\/12\/sm_1765895170.478497.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/sites\/31\/2025\/12\/sm_1765895170.478497.jpg\",\"width\":690,\"height\":389,\"caption\":\"Edward Kieswetter\u2019s R9.7 billion win\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/all-news\/edward-kieswetters-r9-7-billion-win#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Edward Kieswetter\u2019s R9.7 billion win\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/\",\"name\":\"South Africa\",\"description\":\"Just another Africa News Agency Sites site\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/#\/schema\/person\/068c7ab4e9634ae78ec5d54ec46598bb\",\"name\":\"cfeditoren\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/7417380fa9e23b5c57fdbfdaf3fdf92ee478f759a084addda5faa3732853e74a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/7417380fa9e23b5c57fdbfdaf3fdf92ee478f759a084addda5faa3732853e74a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"cfeditoren\"}}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Edward Kieswetter\u2019s R9.7 billion win - South Africa","description":"A boom in South Africa\u2019s counterfeit goods market over the past few years has led to billions being lost from the fiscus ...","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/all-news\/edward-kieswetters-r9-7-billion-win","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Edward Kieswetter\u2019s R9.7 billion win","og_description":"A boom in South Africa\u2019s counterfeit goods market over the past few years has led to billions being lost from the fiscus ...","og_url":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/all-news\/edward-kieswetters-r9-7-billion-win","og_site_name":"South Africa","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/AfricaPressTunisiaa","article_published_time":"2025-12-16T16:47:21+00:00","article_modified_time":"2025-12-16T17:58:06+00:00","og_image":[{"width":690,"height":389,"url":"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/sites\/31\/2025\/12\/sm_1765895170.478497.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"cfeditoren","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"cfeditoren","Est. reading time":"4 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/all-news\/edward-kieswetters-r9-7-billion-win#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/all-news\/edward-kieswetters-r9-7-billion-win"},"author":{"name":"cfeditoren","@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/#\/schema\/person\/068c7ab4e9634ae78ec5d54ec46598bb"},"headline":"Edward Kieswetter\u2019s R9.7 billion win","datePublished":"2025-12-16T16:47:21+00:00","dateModified":"2025-12-16T17:58:06+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/all-news\/edward-kieswetters-r9-7-billion-win"},"wordCount":702,"commentCount":0,"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/all-news\/edward-kieswetters-r9-7-billion-win#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/sites\/31\/2025\/12\/sm_1765895170.478497.jpg","keywords":["South-Africa"],"articleSection":["all news","economy"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/all-news\/edward-kieswetters-r9-7-billion-win#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/all-news\/edward-kieswetters-r9-7-billion-win","url":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/all-news\/edward-kieswetters-r9-7-billion-win","name":"Edward Kieswetter\u2019s R9.7 billion win - South Africa","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/all-news\/edward-kieswetters-r9-7-billion-win#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/all-news\/edward-kieswetters-r9-7-billion-win#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/sites\/31\/2025\/12\/sm_1765895170.478497.jpg","datePublished":"2025-12-16T16:47:21+00:00","dateModified":"2025-12-16T17:58:06+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/#\/schema\/person\/068c7ab4e9634ae78ec5d54ec46598bb"},"description":"A boom in South Africa\u2019s counterfeit goods market over the past few years has led to billions being lost from the fiscus ...","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/all-news\/edward-kieswetters-r9-7-billion-win#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/all-news\/edward-kieswetters-r9-7-billion-win"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/all-news\/edward-kieswetters-r9-7-billion-win#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/sites\/31\/2025\/12\/sm_1765895170.478497.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/sites\/31\/2025\/12\/sm_1765895170.478497.jpg","width":690,"height":389,"caption":"Edward Kieswetter\u2019s R9.7 billion win"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/all-news\/edward-kieswetters-r9-7-billion-win#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Edward Kieswetter\u2019s R9.7 billion win"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/","name":"South Africa","description":"Just another Africa News Agency Sites site","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/#\/schema\/person\/068c7ab4e9634ae78ec5d54ec46598bb","name":"cfeditoren","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/7417380fa9e23b5c57fdbfdaf3fdf92ee478f759a084addda5faa3732853e74a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/7417380fa9e23b5c57fdbfdaf3fdf92ee478f759a084addda5faa3732853e74a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"cfeditoren"}}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/94398","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/84"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=94398"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/94398\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/94396"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=94398"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=94398"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=94398"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}