JOURNEY ENDS & BEGINS

The scrapping of e-tolls became inevitable when there was massive civil disobedience, led by the well-organised civil society grouping initially know as Opposition to Urban Tolling Alliance, or... 

WATER WORRIES

With electricity loadshedding now a part of daily life in South Africa, there is growing anxiety about the prospect of water-shedding. Already several towns across the country are struggling either... 

PUNCH DRUNK

South African business has had a torrid 2022, with intense loadshedding, a freight-logistics strike and serious flooding all harming production and exports. Sadly, these electricity, transport and... 

DARK SPACE

Even the most determined proponent of State-owned companies and their supposed developmental role will have a hard time proving their case when it comes to Eskom and Transnet. The loadshedding... 

OLD HAT

There is limited room for any surprises as South Africa’s Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana, who is known for his many homburg hats, puts the final touches to his Medium-Term Budget Policy... 

NO JOY RIDE

As South Africans we are disconcertingly accustomed to major changes to the value of the rand. However, the US dollar’s rampant performance in September left many other currencies quite shaken,... 

TIPPING POINT:

As South Africans are forced to endure the worst-ever year for power cuts, questions continue to be asked about how we arrived at this confidence-sapping point. Even absent incompetence and... 

THE OTHER GREEN FINANCE

When medical cannabis-focused special purpose acquisition company Cilo Cybin Holdings debuts on the JSE later this year it will reportedly be Africa’s first such listing. The company will seek... 

SERIOUS THREAT

A recent Global Initiative Against Transnational Organised Crime report showed that at least 183 infrastructure and construction projects in South Africa worth more than R63-billion were disrupted... 

MISSING PIECE

South Africa has the solar, wind and land resources to make it one of the most competitive electricity market globally as countries transition from centralised, fossil-based power systems to... 

HEAT IS ON

Following deadly flooding in 2021, the latest Northern Hemisphere summer has been characterised by extreme heat waves, droughts and wild fires, which have definitely thrown a spotlight on climate... 

WATER WORRIES

The water stresses being experienced in Gqeberha, in the Eastern Cape, should serve as a wake-up call to the leaders and citizens of all cities and provinces. While some parts of the country are... 

TIGHT SPOT

It came as something of a shock when the South African Reserve Bank decided in July to increase interest rates by 75 basis points rather than the 50 basis points that had been anticipated. By doing... 

MANY HANDS

While much of President Cyril Ramaphosa’s plan to tackle load-shedding is focused on utility scale solutions, it also includes some space for micro-level action, mostly in the form of rooftop... 

COLD SHOULDER

South Africa has had several run-ins with the European Union (EU) over the past number of years with regard to the bloc’s trade rules governing citrus. The most recent dispute relates to a... 

CHOKE HOLD

The record fuel prices in South Africa, and in many other parts of the world, are squeezing businesses and citizens alike, with petrol and diesel used to produce and move nearly everything we... 

GRIEF TO ANGER

The implementation of Stage 6 load-shedding in late June and early July has moved many citizens from grudging resignation to intensifying anger. Visible action is needed and needed fast to start... 

TIME TO ACT

Just looking at the tower of Zondo Commission Reports, packaged into several parts and volumes, is exhausting enough. Now is not the time to rest, however. Now is the time to act firmly against the... 

HOME TO ROOST

The electricity crisis has been casting a confidence-sapping shadow over the South African economy for nearly 15 years. The chickens of Eskom debt, corruption and inefficiency, policy mixed... 

TIED DOWN

South Africa’s mining production plummeted by nearly 15% year-on-year in April, with gold production slumping 27.8%, platinum group metals output shrinking 22.6% and coal production falling 14.7%.... 

DEADLY & DEMORALISING

South Africans are dealing with many burdens currently: rising food and fuel prices; load-shedding; finding ways to recover from Covid disruptions professionally and personally; and a toxic... 

THROUGH THE ROOF

The outlook for food price inflation is deeply worrying, with Tiger Brands CEO Noel Doyle warning recently that the price of certain food items could “go through the roof”. Even more worrying are... 

BRIGHT SPARK

The City of Johannesburg’s Executive Mayor, Mpho Phalatse, has become something of a bright spark despite the ongoing load-shedding gloom. Phalatse has outlined a new vision for City Power and has... 

DARK DAYS

There is no question that South Africans are far better prepared for rotational power cuts than they were when the scourge first appeared some 14 years ago. Eskom has regular and brutally candid... 

COLD & DARK

Eskom has given its assurance that it will do what it can to limit rotational power cuts during the winter months. There are signs, however, that this winter could be both cold and dark. The... 

EXTREME PRESSURE

Recent developments in South Africa, especially the deadly July 2021 riots and the horrific KwaZulu-Natal floods, have seriously undermined confidence in the future. The negative effects of these... 

HANGING TOUGH

Consumer inflation nudged the upper end of South Africa’s 3% to 6% target band in March when it reached 5.9%, and it is expected to rise further. In a context of low growth and high unemployment,... 

SHAMEFUL GOVERNANCE

Chinese philosopher Confucius is said to have expressed the following about governance: “In a country well governed, poverty is something to be ashamed of. In a country badly governed, wealth is... 

WORRYING RISE

The Food and Agriculture Organisation’s gauge of global food prices rose at a record pace in March, fuelled by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, and the United Nations body has warned of further... 

SLOTS FOR SALE

State-owned freight logistics group Transnet is turning to the private sector in a bid to revive the fortunes of two underperforming rail corridors. The group’s rail unit has officially launched a... 

EXPLOSIVE SHACKLES

South Africa’s official unemployment rate rose to a record 35.3% in the fourth quarter of 2021. The Quarterly Labour Force Survey showed that the number of unemployed people increased by 278 000 to... 

HIKED TO HURT

While nothing even resembling the pain being experienced by Ukrainians living in towns and cities being attacked by the Russian military, South Africans are not immune from the economic hurt... 

INFLATION MONSTER

After a relatively long hibernation, the inflation monster is awake and ready to eat the income and wealth of all citizens, poor and rich alike. Initially awakened by uneven supply-chain recovery... 

SHAMEFUL

While it’s not difficult to point out the West’s hypocrisy in its response to Russia’s vicious invasion of Ukraine, South Africa’s own response has been shameful. The decision to abstain in a... 

CROSSING THE LINE

Russian President Vladimir Putin made the world a less safe place than it already was when he authorised the invasion of his democratic neighbour on February 24 on the false pretexts of... 

BREAKING POINT

Some of the crime statistics included in the report covering the third quarter of the 2021/22 fiscal year are beyond upsetting. South Africa recorded 6 859 murders in the three-month period, up... 

RED-TAPE ALERT

For several years, government has been promising to cut the unnecessary red tape undermining entrepreneurship and stifling investment. For this reason, President Cyril Ramaphosa’s appointment of... 

DEATHLY ROOTS

There is nothing startling in the report of the expert panel appointed to review government’s response to the July 2021 civil unrest. It confirms that factional politics is now having deadly... 

THE PPE WE NEED NOW

The final Special Investigating Unit report into fraud and corruption linked to the procurement of personal protective equipment (PPE), as well as other works and services purchased in response to... 

PRICE SHOCK

As expected, none of the non-Eskom stakeholders who made oral representations to the energy regulator on Eskom’s request for a 20.5% increase had any sympathy for such a hike. Doubly so given the...