The National Pulse

Despite producing enough food to feed its population, millions of South Africans continue to face hunger and malnutrition. Today we're joined by Dr Moyo from the Union Against Hunger to unpack whether South Africa's draft National Food and Nutrition Security Plan is bold enough to tackle food insecurity, rising food prices and the structural inequalities keeping nutritious food out of reach for ma...

On Wednesday this week, Pakistan police fired tear gas at supporters of jailed former Prime Minister, Imran Khan, in Rawalpindi, as they gathered to mark the third anniversary of his imprisonment, amid heightened security and clashes with authorities. GUEST: Naeem Jenah, Senior Researcher at the Mapungubwe Institute for Strategic Reflection (MISTRA)

The ANC National Executive Committee is meeting today at the Birchwood Hotel in Boksburg to deliberate on and adopt the party's manifesto for the upcoming local government elections. GUEST: Ntebo Mokobo, SABC News Politics Reporter

The Expropriation Act is back in court as the DA, AfriForum and Institute of Race Relations challenge its constitutionality, reigniting debate over land reform and property rights in South Africa.  GUEST: Bulelwa Mabasa - Director at Werksmans and serves as the Head of Land Reform Restitution & Tenure practice

The Portfolio Committee on Employment and Labour has begun considering the Employment Services Amendment Bill, which proposes major changes to how foreign nationals are employed in South Africa while strengthening labour law enforcement and protecting migrant workers. Committee Chairperson Boyce Maneli joins us now to unpack what the Bill means for employers, workers and the country's labour marke...

Merafong City Local Municipality is under fire after allegedly presenting a 2011 waste management plan as a new draft, raising serious questions about governance, accountability and service delivery. We unpack what this means for residents and whether municipalities are being held accountable for failures that directly affect communities. We are joined by… GUEST: Buti Elliot Mthembu –...

Nomsa Patricia Betty Shabangu, an interior designer who said she has known former defence minister and National Assembly Speaker, Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula, for about 22 years and considered her a sister, testified this week that she oversaw the renovations at Mapisa-Nqakula’s Bruma, Johannesburg, home between 2018 and 2020. Her evidence forms part of the State’s corruption and money lau...

KwaZulu-Natal police had an operation targeting undocumented foreign nationals and businesses employing undocumented foreigners today in Pietermaritzburg.  GUEST: Colonel David Netshiunda, KZN SAPS spokesperson

President Cyril Ramaphosa has noted the extensive recommendations and referrals detailed in the Second Interim Report of the Madlanga Commission. Submitted to the President on May 29, the second interim report marks a pivotal advancement in uncovering systemic corruption, following the initial interim report delivered on December 17.  GUEST: Dr. Shadi Maganoe, Senior Lecturer at the Wits Scho...

Earlier today, Parliament's impeachment committee recommended Advocate Thandazani Madonsela SC to lead the Phala Phala evidence against President Cyril Ramaphosa. National Coloured Congress MP, Fadiel Adams, was not part of today’s meeting of the Impeachment Committee due to being suspended from Parliament. GUEST: Lawson Naidoo, Executive Secretary of the Council for the Advancement of the S...

As children spend more time online, parents are facing new challenges in keeping them safe while teaching them to use technology responsibly. This week, Digify Africa's iLizwe Lam initiative is hosting a free webinar to help parents and guardians understand digital citizenship and the practical tools available to support their children online.  GUEST: Polly Sekwala - ILizwe Lam Project Manage...

South Africa is introducing new occupational qualifications to better prepare people for the world of work, but are colleges and skills training providers ready for the change? We unpack what this transition means for students, parents and workers, while also exploring how experienced artisans in the informal sector could finally have their skills formally recognised. GUEST: Japie Nel - Senior Man...

The Modimolle Regional Court in Limpopo heard oral closing arguments from both the State and the defence in the trial of Imanuwela David and the Joseph siblings (Floriana and Ndilinasho), who are accused of the February 2020 theft of $580,000 from President Cyril Ramaphosa’s farm. GUEST: Nsuku Shiluvana – SABC REPORTER

Applications for Grade 1 and 8 for the 2027 academic year have opened today, Wednesday, 5 August 2026 and will close Friday, 4 September 2026 at 00:00 (midnight).  GUEST: Onwabile Lubelwana – Spokesperson for Gauteng Education

Russian forces attacked the Ukrainian capital Kyiv with waves of ballistic missiles early this morning, killing one person, injuring 22 and severely damaging buildings in several districts of the city of 3 million people. For more on this, I am joined on the line by… GUEST: Dr Joan Swart, Researcher in Military Science at the University of Stellenbosch

SAFTU General Secretary, Zwelinzima Vavi, has sparked debate on social media platforms after a clip of an interview he did with a Nigerian radio station made rounds. GUEST: Zwelinzima Vavi, SAFTU General Secretary

A number of changes were announced yesterday by the MK Party. The most significant change sees Duduzane Zuma being propelled into the upper ranks of the party after his father, former President Jacob Zuma, appointed him as the party's first deputy president during a sweeping leadership overhaul. Let’s get a sense of what some of the changes may mean for the party with… GUEST: Professo...

The underrepresentation of African languages in AI, could soon be a thing of the past as a recent PhD study by North-West University has developed AI tools to detect misinformation in South African languages. Research by Dr Seani Rananga, a lecturer in the Department of Computer Science at the University of Pretoria, demonstrated that multilingual AI can identify misleading information across IsiZ...

Advocacy group Ground Work Collective seeks to recruit at least 7,000 citizens as volunteers to monitor the upcoming local government elections slated for November 2026. The group is set to launch its virtual "protect our democracy" programme in Johannesburg tomorrow where volunteers will be trained for nationwide deployment on election day. GUEST: Vincent Maake, Ground Work Collective Spokesperso...

Youth unemployment and inequality continue to hold back millions of young South Africans despite years of government, business and NGO interventions. Today we speak to Safe-Hub who believes that the solution is not another programme, but stronger long-term partnerships that connect young people to real opportunities, jobs and economic participation. GUEST: Robin Petersen - Director Business Develo...

The Department of Science, Technology and Innovation has published Draft Indigenous Knowledge Regulations that will shape how Indigenous Knowledge is recognised, protected, documented, accessed and governed in South Africa. However indigenous communities were excluded from the consultations and they are petitioning against the regulation… GUEST: Kekeletso Khena Isangoma - Indigenous Knowled...

Cape Town Mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis has formally declared an intergovernmental dispute with Acting Police Minister Firoz Cachalia over the devolution of policing powers, arguing that metro police need greater investigative authority to help tackle violent crime. But will devolving policing powers make communities safer, and what does this dispute mean for the fight against crime? GUEST: Eldred De K...

More than four years after the devastating KwaZulu-Natal floods, questions are being raised about what happens when temporary relief comes to an end but vulnerable families still have nowhere to go. We speak to the DA in EThekwini about the group of families left stranded after housing came to an end for the displaced families. GUEST:Thabani Mthethwa – DA eThekwini Caucus Leader

Zambia underwent its third transition of power in 2021, following democratic transitions from ruling to opposition parties in 1991 and 2011. The administration under President Hakainde Hichilema’s United Party for National Development inherited a country that had undergone a debt default in 2020, was characterised by rampant inflation, and appeared to be experiencing a broad breakdown of the...

Anti-illegal-immigration movement March and March says it has no plans to become a political party, announcing instead that it wants to establish itself as "an AfriForum for black South Africans" through a new legal advocacy forum and humanitarian foundation. Speaking during a media briefing in KwaZulu-Natal last night, March and March leader Jacinta Ngobese-Zuma said there was growing public pres...