THOUGHT LEADERSHIP - The African Mirror

Oct

16

2024

Ray McCauley, the bodybuilder turned pastor who introduced the prosperity gospel to a new South Africa

THOUGHT LEADERSHIP

NEWS of the passing of South African pastor Ray McCauley on 8 October was met by a flood of tributes from across the spectrum of society, from President Cyril Ramaphosa to everyday worshippers at the Rhema Bible Church. McCauley established the influential church in 1985. It has since attracted a vast and racially mixed profile of worshippers, even during apartheid, an era of white minority rule. https://www.youtube.com/embed/a0QCgz-TwAM McCauley would become a prominent public figure and his church a space where upwardly mobile South Africans congregated as Pentecostalism spread in the country and, along with it, the prosperity gospel. As a…

Oct

16

2024

By GABRIELLE LYNCH

Kenya’s presidents have a long history of falling out with their deputies – Rigathi Gachagua’s impeachment would be no surprise

THOUGHT LEADERSHIP

THE process of removing Kenya’s deputy president Rigathi Gachagua is part of a long history, dating back to independence, of fallouts between the president and his deputy. The difference this time around is the process. Historically, presidents have fired their deputies. But the adoption of a new constitution in 2010, saw the introduction of a process for impeachment – for both the president and the deputy – that’s run by the legislature. This is the first time it’s been used. On 8 October 2024, members of Kenya’s national assembly voted to impeach Gachagua on grounds that included corruption, insubordination and…

Oct

15

2024

By ROY HAVEMANN

Tito Mboweni: South African Minister and Reserve Bank governor who drove significant economic reforms

THOUGHT LEADERSHIP

TITO Mboweni, former South African Reserve Bank Governor, Minister of Finance, and Minister of Labour was arguably one of the country’s most consequential economic policymakers and drove several significant economic reforms. Mboweni passed away on 12 October 2024 after a short illness. Born on 16 March 1959, he received a Bachelor of Arts in Economic and Political Science from the National University of Lesotho in 1985. He had attended the University of the North between 1979 and 1980 but left South Africa to go into exile in his second year of studies. In 1987, he obtained a Master of Arts…

Oct

13

2024

By The African Mirror

Africa can assert its interests in shifting geopolitics

THOUGHT LEADERSHIP

THE organising philosophy of the Mapungubwe Institute revolves around two fundamental questions: how do nations succeed, and how do civilisations sustain themselves? The evolution of human society contains some answers to these questions. But if history were the only guide to future possibilities, we would not be assembled here. Our responsibility is to develop a systematic understanding of factors that influence the choices being made today and the determinants of future action. It is to examine, in a transdisciplinary manner, the circumstances that propel humanity to higher levels of social and technological progress. And it is also to appreciate the…

Oct

13

2024

By DR MMAKI JANTJIES

Africa must build its own AI-driven future, not dependence

THOUGHT LEADERSHIP

THIS week, the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences in Stockholm awarded the pioneers of machine learning a Nobel prize in physics. Geoffrey Hinton, fondly known as the ‘godfather of AI’, and John Hopfield were honoured for “foundational discoveries and inventions that enable machine learning with artificial neural networks”.The win, which fortuitously coincided with this week’s AI-themed Southern Africa Telecommunication Networks and Applications Conference (SATNAC), reinforces the global importance of AI as vital for the 21st century. It is encouraging that within this context, Africa is emerging as a key player in AI adoption.In South Africa, data shows more than 60%…

Oct

12

2024

By MOKY MAKURA

Why bother voting?

THOUGHT LEADERSHIP

YEARS ago, I was invited to speak to a group of young schoolgirls from a township inJohannesburg. A little way into the talk, I realised that they weren’t terribly engaged. It took me a moment to understand why. English wasn’t their first language and as a Nigerian woman, educated in England with a very British accent, I just wasn’t relatable to this young group of South Africans. It was clear, the organisers didn’t understand what their audience wanted. It’s the same with elections. Let me explain. Tunisia went to the polls on Sunday, October 6th and Mozambique on October 9.Botswana,…

Oct

10

2024

By SUSAN BOOYSEN

South Africa’s unity government is being tested – the toppling of a mayor in a key city exposes faultlines

THOUGHT LEADERSHIP

SOUTH Africa’s long-governing party, the African National Congress (ANC), performed disastrously in the country’s May 2024 elections. Its electoral fortunes are now tied to regaining support in Gauteng, the most populous and economically important province, which it had governed with outright majorities since 1994. In 2024 the ANC’s Gauteng result of 34.8%, along with its 17% in KwaZulu-Natal, sealed the party’s loss of its national outright majority. We asked political scientist Susan Booysen for her perspective on the ANC’s battle for Tshwane, a metropolitan municipality in Gauteng. It’s also the administrative seat of the national government, where the party used…

Oct

08

2024

By CYRIL RAMAPHOSA

‘The situation in the Middle East threatens to plunge the region into a war in which civilians will inevitably bear the greatest, most cruel brunt’

THOUGHT LEADERSHIP

OCTOBER 7 marks one year since the start of an onslaught against the Palestinian people that has thus far claimed more than 43,000 lives. The violence that has been committed by Israel against Palestinians over many decades intensified after an attack on Israel by Hamas and other Palestinian armed groups on 7 October last year. As South Africa, we have condemned the atrocities committed against civilians in Israel on 7 October 2023, as we have denounced the killing of civilians in any context. The majority of those killed over the past year are Palestinian civilians, largely women and children in…

Dec

06

2025

By RONALD LAMOLA

“We do not seek your approval for our path. Our path is our own, chosen by our people and guided by our sovereign laws”

THOUGHT LEADERSHIP

FROM the outset, let me extend congratulations to the United States on assuming the G20 Presidency. We offer our sincere wishes for a successful term, one that we hope will serve the cause of global unity and inclusive progress. Your words, however, compel me to speak - not merely as a representative of a government, but as a voice from a nation whose very existence is a testament to a profound truth: that the deepest divides can be bridged. Not through dictation, but through dialogue, not through power alone, but through unwavering principle, not through unilateral action but global solidarity.…

Oct

05

2024

By IRWIN LOY

Five trends to watch after UNGA

THOUGHT LEADERSHIP

This story was originally published by The New Humanitarian.By Irwin Loy THE pageantry of the UN General Assembly’s high-level week is over for another year. What happens next? Politicos and civil society floated solutions to long-standing problems. Countries promised to save multilateralism in a broad pact for the future. Gaza was conspicuously sparse on official agendas but cast a shadow as tensions escalated around Israel, Lebanon, Iran, and fears of an even wider war. Here are five trends, with humanitarian implications, that picked up steam at UNGA: Mia Mottley’s Bridgetown pitch The Barbados-led plan to overhaul global governance has been…