Thought

Russia's President Vladimir Putin and China's President Xi Jinping arrive to attend the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan on September 1, 2026. China’s underlying bet is that the international order is already moving toward multipolarity and that institutions will either adapt to that reality or lose legitimacy, says the writer.

China is building the machinery of a post-Western order

Beijing’s Global Governance Initiative is testing whether a more multipolar world can produce a more functional global order, says the writer.

  • Ladislav Zemánek
7 min read
Cosatu president Zingiswa Losi argues that South Africa’s workers’ movement helped shape the country’s constitutional democracy and must remain central to efforts to reduce inequality and build an inclusive economy.
COSATU

Cosatu: Workers’ struggles remain central to South Africa’s democracy

Cosatu president Zingiswa Losi argues that South Africa’s workers’ movement helped shape the country’s constitutional democracy and must…

  • Zingiswa Losi
6 min read
Zimbabwe’s Climate Adaptation Water and Energy Programme offers lessons on combining resilient water infrastructure, renewable energy and community-led development—but its impact claims require clearer evidence and attribution.
ENERGY

How Zimbabwe’s CAWEP programme is building climate resilience through water and energy

Zimbabwe’s Climate Adaptation Water and Energy Programme offers lessons on combining resilient water infrastructure, renewable energy and community-led development—but its impact…

  • Pali Lehohla
5 min read
Municipal workers affiliated with the South African Municipal Workers Union (SAMWU), protested outside the Johannesburg High Court over the Democratic Alliance (DA) court application to have a R10 billion salary agreement between municipal workers and the City of Johannesburg set aside on March 26. A financially dysfunctional municipality, administratively hollowed out and incapable of delivering services, ultimately threatens both communities and municipal workers themselves, says the writer.

Labour's power is pivotal to building an ethical, developmental state

Trade unions must defend workers’ rights while also supporting professional, ethical and capable municipal institutions, argues Zamikhaya Maseti.

  • Zamikhaya Maseti
6 min read
US President Donald Trump addresses the 81st United Nations General Assembly at the United Nations Headquarters in New York, on September 22, 2026.
MARKETS ON MONDAY

Week of drama ahead for financial markets

Markets shrugged off last week’s Iran shock – but the next few days could put that resilience to the test.

  • Chris Harmse
4 min read
Outgoing UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres delivering his final address to the 81st United Nations General Assembly at the United Nations Headquarters in New York, on September 22, 2026. When the UN was founded, most of Africa was still under colonial rule. Today, Africa still has no permanent representation on the Council. A 21st-century Security Council without permanent African seats is unjust and indefensible, says the writer.

Repositioning the United Nations in a fractured global order

UN Secretary-General António Guterres says war, inequality, climate change and artificial intelligence are reshaping global power — and calls for stronger international…

  • António Guterres
7 min read
Namibia’s President Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah meeting United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres in New York, United States, on September 21, 2026. Namibia now ranks fourth out of 145 economies in the 2026 Global Gender Gap Index, says the writer.

Africa leads the way in breaking gender barriers

Namibia ranks ahead of Britain, Germany, Sweden and Australia to become the world’s fourth most gender‑equal economy, as African states log their strongest decade of women’s…

  • Seth Onyango
7 min read
More often, employees leave because of workplace experiences that make them feel undervalued, overlooked or disconnected from the business.
BUSINESS PARTNERS LIMITED

Leadership mistakes that quietly drive talent away from SMEs

More often, employees leave because of workplace experiences that make them feel undervalued, overlooked or disconnected from the business.

  • Jeremy Lang
4 min read
The SACP's Solly Mapaila (left) and EFF leader Julius Malema on the opening day of The Conference of the Left held in Boksburg on May 29.

ANC blunders pave way for left-wing parties

The ANC’s candidate-registration problems and tensions with alliance partners could create opportunities for the EFF, SACP and MK Party—but cooperation may prove harder than…

  • Prof. Bheki Mngomezulu
4 min read
KwaZulu-Natal Police Commissioner Lieutenant-General Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi 's explosive press briefing on July 6, 2025 resulted in President Cyril Ramaphosa appointing the Judicial Commission Of Inquiry Into Criminality, Political Interference And Corruption In The Criminal Justice System. The Commission, chaired by Justice Mbuyiseli Madlanga, will deliver its final report in January 2027.

Long road ahead for reforming SA's criminal justice system

Political upheaval, resignation, and a reckoning - the Madlanga Commission’s year-long journey has catalysed significant shifts in South Africa’s fight against corruption. As the…

  • Prof. Dirk Kotzé
7 min read
Afrikaners wave the apartheid-era flag during a concert held at a school in Roodepoort on the outskirts of Johannesburg, 08 March 2007. When right-wing voices attempt to bring racial hierarchy back into public discussion or to call for external pressure to be applied to democratic institutions, the proper course of action is to publicly reinforce the principle of a non-racial society., says the writer.

Afrikaner puppets waging Trump's war on SA's democracy

At a time when racial discussions are being resurrected in political discourse, it is imperative for citizens of South Africa to uphold the principles of a non-racial society.…

  • Dr. Reneva Fourie
5 min read
Two residents look on as a South African National Defence Force (SANDF) soldier stands guard during a stop-and-search patrol as part of Operation Prosper in Retreat, near Cape Town, on April 10. The SANDF plays a supporting role to the South African Police Service(SAPS) in crime prevention operations.

Building a new culture of trust to safeguard communities

As South Africa grapples with a relentless tide of gender-based violence, calls for a transformative approach to community safety and governance grow louder. Discover how local…

  • Dr. Michael Sutcliffe
  • Sue Bannister
  • Andrea McGahey
6 min read
A Nigerien Soldier walks outside France's state-owned nuclear giant Areva's uranium mine on September 26, 2010 in Arlit. The pursuit of decolonisation and sovereignty does not always mean disconnection from the global economy, says the writer.

US uranium deal a conundrum for Niger's decolonisation drive

This article unpacks Niger's complex relationship with foreign investment, exploring how the recently approved uranium deal might evolve beyond profit extraction into a…

  • Kim Heller
5 min read
Protesters outside Durban's Magistrate's Court where a alleged serial rapist is facing 16 charges of sexual assault including rape 0n September 21.

Breaking the cycle: Stop blaming women for men's violence

South Africa’s response to gender-based violence must move beyond marches, pledges and safety advice for women, argue three HSRC researchers. Prevention should be judged by…

  • Dr Zaynab Essack
  • Dr Mpumi Zungu
  • Prof Khangelani Zuma
7 min read
Columnist Vusi Vokwana, founder of Kasi Catalyst, which helps drive and facilitate outside big investment in the townships.
KASI BRIEF

Title, credit, table: What dismantling economic exclusion actually looks like

What does it take to break an economic system designed to keep people out?

  • Vusi Vokwana
5 min read
Women gather at the scene where the body of the ninth woman was discovered in Dawn Park, Boksburg, Ekurhuleni, earlier this month.
HERITAGE DAY

What we inherit, and what we lose: Heritage Day, Ekurhuleni

Nine women killed. GBVF a national disaster. What do we inherit, and what should we make sure we do not pass on?

  • The National Team
10 min read
Energy efficiency could help Africa meet rising demand, extend the value of existing power supplies and support wider electricity access while new infrastructure is built.
ENERGY COSTS IN SOUTH AFRICA

How Africa’s ‘hidden’ resources can change the energy equation

Energy efficiency could help Africa meet rising demand, extend the value of existing power supplies and support wider electricity access while new infrastructure is built.

  • Ayman Essam
6 min read
Cultural heritage and traditional knowledge can help South Africa build a fairer, climate-resilient economy. This article examines why heritage should be integrated into the country’s just transition and protected from climate and development pressures.
HERITAGE CONSERVATION

Heritage and just transition – Affirming the role of traditional knowledge systems

Cultural heritage and traditional knowledge can help South Africa build a fairer, climate-resilient economy. This article examines why heritage should be integrated into the…

  • Blessing Manale
4 min read
South Africa has the cables, data centres and renewable-energy potential to become a continental AI hub. But the country must address electricity, water, ownership and data sovereignty before that ambition becomes meaningful.
AI ADOPTION

South Africa wants to become Africa’s AI capital, but who pays for the electricity and water?

South Africa needs a few things to be fixed before this ambition becomes meaningful.

  • Luvo Grey
6 min read
Content creators are moving from peripheral media figures to influential participants in culture, commerce and brand strategy — but the industry still faces questions about income, trust and platform power.
INFLUENCER

The rise of the content creator economy

Content creators are moving from peripheral media figures to influential participants in culture, commerce and brand strategy — but the industry still faces questions about…

  • Wesley Diphoko
4 min read