“Ultimate disruptor” was how Forbes Africa dubbed Covid-19 in June 2020 for its sweeping impact across global business and society. Yet, for South Africa, a far more threatening disruptor has long been tightening its grip: corruption. Corruption is once again under the spotlight. This time it’s for allegations made by Lieutenant General Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi, the […]
13 Jul, 2025 | Admin | No Comments
Africa’s freshwater fish crisis: 26% of species threatened with extinction
From the tiny galaxiids of South Africa to the 2m-long Nile perch, Africa’s extraordinary biodiversity of freshwater fish have evolved to thrive in the various habitats in the geographically, climatically and topographically diverse continent. They are found in sediment-rich rivers, shallow ponds, the great lakes, caves, canyons, mountain streams and forests. Yet they are often […]
13 Jul, 2025 | Admin | No Comments
Climate crisis puts older adults at high risk from extreme heat, Unep warns
Older people face increasing health risks from extreme heat as climate change intensifies, the United Nations Environment Programme (Unep) has warned. In the latest edition of its Frontiers Report, released this week, it said adults aged 65 and above are becoming an increasingly dominant part of societies worldwide, especially in the cities of low and […]
When my father died in September 2023, our family’s grief was hijacked first by bureaucracy, then by betrayal, and now by the court system. The first part of this story exposed how the Master’s Office in Mahikeng mishandled my father’s estate. It detailed how a will mysteriously surfaced months after a letter of authority had […]
Not long ago, the Western media was showing videos of people being ruthlessly killed. They were recordings of beheadings by jihadis of the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria. The first of them was posted online in 2014. More followed soon after. They were shown at every news cycle on almost every news channel. Naturally, […]
During a recent visit to Shanghai, China, to attend the Mobile World Congress — the world’s largest exhibition and conference for the mobile technology industry — I expected to see flying delivery drones, machines autonomously completing mundane tasks and robots that talk. It was not that futuristic but I saw technology being developed to pave […]
In the townships, billboards glamourise alcohol as a marker of success, style and independence, and it’s no accident who the adverts are speaking to — young, black and aspirational people. Across South Africa, teens to 35-year-old black people are being sold an identity that is tied to the bottle because they are a profitable market. […]
12 Jul, 2025 | Admin | No Comments
G20: South Africa needs the weight of the continent for progressive outcomes
With South Africa at the helm of the G20 and the African Union seated at the table, this year’s G20 processes represent a defining moment for African diplomacy. The AU must act with unity, urgency and strategic clarity to ensure that both its agenda and South Africa’s deliverables translate into meaningful outcomes. The AU was […]
Mining is still central to the South African economy. It employs roughly 480 000 people directly. With an estimated dependency ratio of 10 to one, the industry essentially supports close to five million people. That’s a twelfth of the country’s population. Demand for minerals and metals is not slowing down. But our gold mining sector will […]
It’s no secret that maths, programming and other logic-based subjects feel like a mountain climb for many students. Meanwhile, subjects like English and life orientation feel more like a gentle stroll. Why is that? Are some people just “not wired” for logic? Or is there something deeper — and fixable — at play? South Africa’s […]