Media

[Opinion] South Africa’s demographic opportunity a key driver to unlocking population potential

South Africa’s young, growing population presents a substantive opportunity for the country’s future; a skilled workforce, a growing middle class with aspirations, and an expectation for satisfactory government and private sector services and offerings.

[Opinion] The GNU at 100

Taking the date on which President Cyril Ramaphosa announced his latest cabinet – 30 June 2024 – 8 October marks 100 days of the Government of National Unity (GNU).

[Opinion] Don’t allow it to be just a sugar high

On 31 August Springboks (and a few All Blacks) fans took newly cleaned PRASA trains from Park Station to Ellis Park stadium (now Emirates Airline Park). The preceding Sunday, Minister of Transport Barbara Creecy also took the trip, as part of an initiative to increase awareness of the work being done by PRASA to get its train fleet back up and running. Positive stories of the experience filled social media; the home team rewarded those fans who attended with a 31-27 victory.

[Opinion] Can South Africa seize its construction opportunity?

Both President Cyril Ramaphosa and Public Works and Infrastructure Minister Dean Macpherson have expressed their desire to ‘turn South Africa into a construction site.’ To unlock the level of GDP growth rate the country needs – between 4% – 6% per annum – one of the economic sectors to get right is that of construction.

[Opinion] Avoiding the easiest of own goals

According to the National Treasury, South Africa’s GDP growth has averaged 0.8% per year since 2012. As CHRIS HATTINGH reports, most of the major causes behind this severe underperformance are well-documented: electricity shortfalls, onerous bureaucratic systems and inflexible labour markets, corruption from national to municipal levels, and numerous logistics inefficiencies.

[Opinion] Where to for Venezuela?

An economic crisis that began under Hugo Chávez has accelerated under Nicolás Maduro.

[Opinion] AGOA: The renewal signs are positive

THE recent trip by Trade, Industry and Competition Minister Parks Tau, and Deputy Minister Andrew Whitfield to the Africa Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) Forum in Washington, DC, US, has turned out quite well.

[Letter] Avoid tariff-subsidies route

The IMF’s July World Economic Outlook highlights the risks posed by “trade tariffs, alongside a scaling up of industrial policies worldwide”, generating “damaging cross‐border spillovers, as well as trigger retaliation, resulting in a costly race to the bottom”.