Talking Point
20.10.2018 02:23 pm
South African policies need to recognise the diversity of informal economies
Informal employment makes up roughly a third or 5 million of total non-agricultural employment in South Africa’s workforce.
South Africa is currently mulling over ideas and agreements that recently came out of a two-day jobs summit. The country is losing the battle against high joblessness. The latest figures show unemployment stood at 27.2% during the second quarter of this year. The number is much higher, close to 40%, when discouraged work seekers are included. This is very high by international standards since the average global unemployment rate is 7.6% while the same figure for African countries is 8.8%.
South African policies need to recognise the diversity of informal economies
Informal employment makes up roughly a third or 5 million of total non-agricultural employment in South Africa’s workforce.
Africa
Why Mnangagwa has wooed Zimbabwe’s white sports heroes
Zimbabwe’s president may have pulled of a masterstroke by roping in Kirsty Coventry and Bruce Grobbelaar.
Opinion
Ramaphosa has the edge over Zuma faction when it comes to economic policy
However, it’s clear that power in the ANC remains finely balanced.
Africa
Will Kgalema Motlanthe’s Zimbabwe killings inquiry be credible?
Critics fear Mnangagwa’s aim is to pin the blame for election-related violence on opposition leaders.
Talking Point
Victim surveys show that crime in SA may be dropping, yet fear is rising
Data from victim and crime perception surveys help make sense of crime statistics.
Talking Point
‘Timetables have become decorations on the Metrorail boards’
An open letter to Prasa and the department of transport about the steady decline of urban train services.
Talking Point
SA’s white right, the alt-right and the alternative
The pressure group AfriForum and its allies want to be the only voices speaking on behalf of Afrikaners.
South Africa
Cosatu is no longer the ANC’s elections trump card
The labour federation used to ensure millions of votes for the governing party – that is now far from guaranteed.
Talking Point
Dagga ruling is a blow against decades of racism
The Constitutional Court has taken a big step towards freeing cannabis from its colonial and apartheid past.
Talking Point
If Twitter decided elections, the EFF would be the ruling party
Ironically, this is probably the precise reason why it isn’t a good idea to take everything that happens on Twitter all that seriously.
Talking Point
Is it time for Africa to teach Europe what democracy and passive racism are?
Long read: The ‘White Man’s Burden’ racist attitude that drives this passively racist approach couldn’t be provided.
Talking Point
The dagga ruling, while a step forward, isn’t very practical
The Concourt has left questions about legal interpretations unanswered, meaning the line between ‘public criminals’ and ‘private users’ is blurred.
Talking Point
The British Council’s Mandela exhibition: history or corporate whitewash?
Anglo American continues to shamelessly sanitise its image in relation to apartheid, with the British government playing along.
Talking Point
Zondo needs to move faster because Zuma is trying to ‘fight back’
The state capture commission of inquiry doesn’t have the luxury of time, though its chairperson seems to think so.
Talking Point
Why is Steve Biko’s remarkable legacy often overlooked?
Four decades after his death in police custody on September 12 1977, Biko deserves to be recognised as one of the towering heroes of the anti-apartheid struggle.
Talking Point
Putting Nigerian neuroscience research under the microscope
Most of our understanding of the brain comes from the global North, with only minor contributions from places like Africa.
Talking Point
What Brexit queen Theresa was really up to with Africa visit
May’s ‘new approach’ to the continent is essentially the same old selfish Britain wrapped up in new packaging.
Talking Point
Trump’s comment about SA is a reminder that race still matters
For a brief moment last week, US President Donald Trump served a useful purpose.
Talking Point
What to look out for in South Africa’s imminent new energy plan
South Africa will be looking for a new energy plan that leads the way into the new global energy landscape.
Talking Point
Ghana is looking to launch into outer space
Rapid advances in space technology mean that space is no longer just a stargazer’s paradise. Ghana wants in on the action, but it first has to overcome some legal obstacles.
Talking Point
Trevor Noah is right. People can be both French and African
It is important to understand that the African diaspora constitutes complex and multiplicitous identities.
Talking Point
Three approaches to land expropriation. Which one will SA pick?
Somewhere there will need to be compromise and a meeting of minds among those affected.
Talking Point
How renaming a London street after Mandela was a 1980s act of resistance
There were many objections, but the city followed through.
Talking Point
DA: We believe in black empowerment, just not of the ANC kind
The DA has been criticised for opposing the ANC’s policy of broad-based black economic empowerment. Chairperson James Selfe responds.
South Africa
Ramaphosa’s possible clever strategy on land expropriation
The president is being forced to change the constitution by Zuma supporters hoping to embarrass him. He may still have the last laugh.
Talking Point
The term ‘fake news’ is doing great harm. ‘Bullsh*t’ is better
We’d actually all be better off if we stopped using the label entirely and just got back to using tried-and-tested language.
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