SPECIAL FEATURES - The African Mirror

Mar

18

2023

South Africa’s bailout of Eskom won’t end power cuts: splitting up the utility can, as other countries have shown

SPECIAL FEATURES: ANALYSIS

THE announcement by the South African finance minister, Enoch Godongwana, of debt relief for the country’s troubled power utility, Eskom, is a step forward. It will fix one problem: Eskom has too much debt. But the plan won’t end power cuts which have worsened in recent years. The international experience is that one way to end electricity shortages is to allow competitively-priced privately-funded generation at scale. This requires a reorganisation of South Africa’s electricity market along the lines announced by the Department of Public Enterprises nearly four years ago. The crux of the plan was to split Eskom into three…

Mar

12

2023

By The African Mirror

South Africa’s power crisis: going off the grid works for the wealthy – but could deepen injustice for the poor

SPECIAL FEATURES: ANALYSIS

SOUTH Africa’s current electricity crisis has been described as “a perfect storm”. A number of factors have converged to reach this point: an ageing and inadequately maintained fleet of coal power stations, delays in upgrading the Koeberg nuclear power station and significant failures at the recently built Medupi and Kusile coal power stations. Authors CHRISTINA CULWICK FATTI, Senior researcher, urban sustainability transitions, environmental governance and resilience, Gauteng City-Region Observatory SAMKELISIWE KHANYILE, Researcher, Gauteng City-Region Observatory Since the beginning of 2022, power utility Eskom’s inability to meet the country’s electricity demand has resulted in unprecedented load-shedding (scheduled power cuts). In 2022,…

Feb

18

2023

By The African Mirror

What is Mondiacult? 6 take-aways from the world’s biggest cultural policy gathering

SPECIAL FEATURES: ANALYSIS

CULTURE’S status in global society got a major boost in 2022 when it was recommended to become its own sustainable development goal. This happened at the Unesco World Conference on Cultural Policies and Sustainable Development – called Mondiacult. The world’s most important cultural policy gathering took place in Mexico City 40 years after its first edition in the same city. The 2022 meeting gathered 2,600 participants including 135 government ministers, 83 non-governmental organisations, 32 intergovernmental organisations and nine UN agencies. Author RIBIO NZEZA BUNKETI BUSE, Associate Professor, University of Kinshasa Mondiacult is important because it’s a decision-making meeting that helps…

Feb

16

2023

By The African Mirror

Analysis: Tunisia arrests raise opposition fears of wider crackdown

SPECIAL FEATURES: ANALYSIS

ANGUS MCDOWALL and TAREK AMARA COORDINATED arrests of political and media figures represent a new phase in Tunisian President Kais Saied's struggle with a fragmented but emboldened opposition, raising fears of a wider campaign to quell dissent. Since Saied shut down parliament 18 months ago, moving to rule by decree before rewriting the constitution, security forces had moved only sporadically against opponents who accuse him of an undemocratic coup. Saied has denied a coup, saying his actions were legal and necessary to save Tunisia from chaos. He promised to uphold the rights and freedoms won in the 2011 revolution that…

Mar

12

2023

By The African Mirror

South Africa’s power crisis: going off the grid works for the wealthy – but could deepen injustice for the poor

SPECIAL FEATURES: ANALYSIS

SOUTH Africa’s current electricity crisis has been described as “a perfect storm”. A number of factors have converged to reach this point: an ageing and inadequately maintained fleet of coal power stations, delays in upgrading the Koeberg nuclear power station and significant failures at the recently built Medupi and Kusile coal power stations. Authors CHRISTINA CULWICK FATTI, Senior researcher, urban sustainability transitions, environmental governance and resilience, Gauteng City-Region Observatory SAMKELISIWE KHANYILE, Researcher, Gauteng City-Region Observatory Since the beginning of 2022, power utility Eskom’s inability to meet the country’s electricity demand has resulted in unprecedented load-shedding (scheduled power cuts). In 2022,…

Feb

16

2023

By The African Mirror

South Sudan’s oil and water give it bargaining power – but will it benefit the people?

SPECIAL FEATURES: ANALYSIS

SOUTH Sudan has long been one of east Africa’s most unstable states. But surging external interest in its resources and the diplomatic agility of its rulers are again underlining how pivotal the country remains to regional energy and water politics. Much of Africa has spent 2022 facing sharp increases in the costs of energy and food driven by the Russia-Ukraine conflict and the strengthening of the US dollar. Authors HARRY VERHOEVEN, Senior Research Scholar at the Center on Global Energy Policy, Columbia University FRANCOIS SENNESAEL, DPhil Candidate, Department of Politics and International Relations, University of Oxford For states that have…

Mar

09

2023

By The African Mirror

Car of the year “Motor Enthusiast” public competition encourages motorists to stay safe on SA roads

MOTORING NEWS

OLD Mutual Insure has launched the exciting new ‘Motor Enthusiast’ public competition as part of the Car of the Year (COTY) competition, giving motor enthusiasts across the country the opportunity to win one of five defensive driving vouchers, with the training offered by leading driver training organisation, MasterDrive. All hopeful entrants have to do is vote for their favourite Old Mutual Insure SA Car of the Year (COTY) competition finalist to stand a chance to win one of the vouchers, by voting on the competition microsite, www.ominsurecoty.co.za, before midnight on Monday, 22 May 2023. The competition is open to South African…

Feb

12

2023

By The African Mirror

Fords’ 11th Trends Report finds growing consumer optimism

MOTORING NEWS

Ford Motor Company has released its 11th annual Trends Report. The major insight from the survey reveals that the global population has a positive ‘Every cloud has a silver lining’ sentiment, even amidst national and global instability. The findings from the Ford Trends 2023 survey are generated from 16 120 online interviews in 16 countries across the world. The survey is open to diverse opinions and curious about the consumers’ thought process. It analyses consumer preferences and behaviours influenced by external factors across a range of themes. The survey attempts to look into the future through an analysis of the findings. A…

Feb

12

2023

By The African Mirror

Audi South Africa reveals 43 additional EV charging stations

MOTORING NEWS

AUDI South Africa, in partnership with Rubicon, has brought 43 additional electric vehicle (EV) charging stations online across the country. These chargers can accommodate a total of 57 EV cars simultaneously, at varying capacities, regardless of model or brand ownership. This is in addition to the brand’s contribution of 70 EV charging connection points nationwide a year ago, when Audi was the first to bring ultra-fast chargers to South Africa.The latest rollout includes the very first DC 200kW ultra-fast charger in South Africa, which is installed at the largest shopping mall ever built in a single phase – Mall of Africa…

Feb

12

2023

By The African Mirror

Mitsubishi kicks off 2023 with the new Eclipse Cross GLS Exceed

MOTORING

With excitement building for 2023 and as a continuation of Mitsubishi’s ongoing product offensive, Mitsubishi have added the Eclipse Cross GLS Exceed to the range. The Eclipse Cross GLS Exceed will take up the flagship position of the Eclipse Cross range and features several model year updates and cosmetic refinements. Mitsubishi understand that our customers have an ambition to explore and we are therefore continually striving to offer them vehicles that empower them to do so in the best way possible. “We strive to always offer our customers products that are modern and speak to their needs and the refinements…