THOUGHT LEADERSHIP - The African Mirror

Jun

30

2021

Anti-apartheid veteran Zuma casts long shadow over South Africa

THOUGHT LEADERSHIP

ALEXANDER WINNING WHEN Jacob Zuma finally caved to pressure to quit as South African president in 2018, he ranted to the state broadcaster for an hour about the ill-treatment he had received at the hands of the party he had served since his teenage years. Zuma, besieged by sleaze and graft scandals throughout his years in power from 2009 to 2018, said it was "unfair" the African National Congress (ANC) had told him to resign, mainly because his comrades had not followed proper party procedure. To South Africans who suffered economic stagnation and national embarrassment under Zuma, it was yet…

Apr

17

2021

By The African Mirror

Why I’m committing $500 million to entrepreneurship in Somaliland

THOUGHT LEADERSHIP

ISMAIL AHMED THE power of remittances, the funds migrants send ‘back home’ to family and friends, is at the centre of my story. It’s also the story of how Somaliland, my homeland - has overcome challenges to forge its own, entrepreneurial path; a path that challenges traditional models of aid, setting an example for other developing countries. Long before I founded WorldRemit in 2010, which is now one of the world’s largest cross-border payments companies, I saw how remittances have the power to change people’s lives. Members of my family – like many others across Somaliland – went to work…

Jun

29

2021

By The African Mirror

The ANC needs a genuine renewal and refocuses in order to achieve the socio-economic transformation of society

THOUGHT LEADERSHIP

THABO MBEKI AN outstanding African patriot and freedom fighter, our irreplaceable and beloved leader, Xhamela, Walter Sisulu, passed away on May 5, 2003 aged 91 years. Twelve days later, on 17 May, I was honoured to deliver the Funeral Oration as we were about to lay to rest his mortal remains at the end of a solemn and dignified Official Funeral. I began that Oration in these words: “Our country, and nature herself, have been in mourning since that fateful day, the 5th of May, when Walter Sisulu ceased to breathe. “While he lived, there were many in our country…

Apr

24

2021

By The African Mirror

Access Malawi – Mozambique-Malawi Route Diagnostic

THOUGHT LEADERSHIP

GREG MILLS, RICHARD HARPER and MIKE DU TOIT ‘YOU go to the police station,’ menaced Sergeant Silvestre, turning to point behind his back at a lime green building, explaining that the crime was ‘not wearing a mask in the car’. We were stopped in a queue of trucks and cars negotiating speedbumps, army, police, paramilitary, immigration agents and sellers of nuts, cooldrinks and much else at the bridge that spans the great Save River in Mozambique’s Inhambane Province, just north of the popular tourist destination of Vilanculos. We saw no tourists at all on the road to Malawi from Maputo,…

Jun

26

2021

By The African Mirror

Small towns are collapsing across South Africa. How it’s starting to affect farming

THOUGHT LEADERSHIP

FARMING and agribusiness play a crucial role in sustaining the economies of small towns and rural areas. There is a lot of evidence of this in the economic literature and in the popular media. This dependency has its inherent risks. WANDILE SIHLOBO, Visiting Research Fellow, Wits School of Governance, University of the Witwatersrand International literature tends to focus on the devastation of small towns in times of drought or when farming lobby groups argue for particular policies. In South Africa, a different pattern has emerged. This is when municipalities fail to provide basic services to their communities and businesses. These…

Jun

25

2021

By The African Mirror

An intellectual love letter to Bhekizizwe Peterson, a South African literary giant

THOUGHT LEADERSHIP

ISABEL HOFMEYR BHEKIZIZWE Peterson was one of South Africa’s foremost humanities scholars. Internationally renowned as an award-winning film writer and producer, he was a leading practitioner of community theatre, a literary and cultural critic and a public intellectual. His work straddled the academy and the community, foregrounding the knowledge of ordinary people. In a round table discussion on his award-winning and acclaimed film Zulu Love Letter, Peterson observed: It was created as a love letter to those who passed on and those still tasked with creating a better future for all. For him, black cultural production always stands athwart past…

Apr

23

2021

By The African Mirror

Precarious power tilts towards Ramaphosa in battle inside South Africa’s governing party

THOUGHT LEADERSHIP

IT appears, for the moment, that South African president Cyril Ramaphosa has won a key battle in the war for control of the governing African National Congress (ANC), of which he is also the head. SUSAN BOOYSEN, Research director at Mapungubwe Institute for Strategic Reflection (Mistra), Visiting Professor and Professor Emeritus, University of the Witwatersrand This became apparent after a highly charged recent meeting of the ANC’s national executive committee (NEC) – its highest decision-making body in between its five-yearly national conferences. The NEC brought a crucial tilt in the factional balance of power towards Ramaphosa. This matters because the…

Apr

21

2021

By The African Mirror

European Super League: why punishing the breakaway 12 could backfire badly

THOUGHT LEADERSHIP

THE football world has been rocked by the announcement of a breakaway European Super League (ESL). The majority think it a bad idea, from governing bodies Fifa and Uefa through to national bodies such as the FA and English Premier League. ADRIAN R BELL, Chair in the History of Finance and Research Dean, Prosperity and Resilience, Henley Business School, University of Reading ANDREW URQUHART, Associate Professor of Finance, ICMA Centre, Henley Business School, University of Reading CHRIS BROOKS, Professor of Finance, Henley Business School, University of Reading The same goes for the fan groups at the six English clubs that…

May

12

2021

By The African Mirror

Africa Goes Digital

THOUGHT LEADERSHIP

CRISTINA DUARTE IN rebuilding after COVID-19, policymakers must invest in innovative technology to leapfrog obstacles to inclusive development. Africa has enjoyed strong economic growth for most of the 21st century, mainly because of robust global demand for primary commodities. But the “Africa Rising” narrative that accompanied this growth is mostly a story of rising GDP, which is overly one-dimensional. In fact, Africa’s economic growth has failed to generate many good jobs—postponing, once again, the benefits of the demographic dividend of a large working-age population. Because there are fewer old and young people that require support than people of working age,…

Jun

24

2021

By The African Mirror

Mzilikazi Khumalo: iconic composer who defied apartheid odds to leave a rich legacy

THOUGHT LEADERSHIP

PROFESSOR James Steven Mzilikazi Khumalo (1932-2021), who has died at the age of 89, had a distinguished career as a linguist, which complemented a stellar career in music. THOMAS POOLEY, Associate Professor and Chair of Department: Art and Music, University of South Africa He was the leading composer and director of choral music to emerge from South Africa. His opera, Princess Magogo, was the first by a black South African. Today he is among the most widely performed of all South African composers. He achieved international recognition for performances of his major works in Europe and the US. This is…