The Daily Discourse

For our Citizens Corner this morning, we talk about the unemployment crisis in South Africa. Last week, Statistics South Africa announced that South Africa now possesses 8.4 million unemployed people. The number of unemployed people increased by 140 000 for the second quarter of 2025. A bigger concern is that 3.4 million discouraged job seekers who have stopped looking for economic opportunities i...

Personal Finance with Bryan Hirsch   Focus: As we commemorate Women’s Month, Bryan thought it would be valuable to highlight some key insights about women and their role in finance. To tell us more about this, we are joined by…   Guest: Bryan Hirsch, Chairperson of Bryan Hirsch, Colley & Associates (Pty) Limited ( www.bhca.co.za )

We speak now to Professor Pumela Msweli who is the Executive Dean and CEO of the UNISA Graduate School of Business Leadership. She has launched a new book on the Intra-Africa trade where she asks whether the agreement can unleash Africa’s Development Potential? For those who are interested in the future of the continent, this book goes beyond theory and offers strategic insight into how Afri...

Our next guest has written a new report that monitors local coalitions for the period 2023-2025, and South Africa’s national and provincial coalitions for the period 2024-2025 . The MISTRA Coalitions Barometer II, 2023–2025 records and assesses a historic period in South Africa’s transition from three decades of majoritarian and liberation movement rule to an era of growing coali...

When officially launching the National Dialogue on Friday, President Cyril Ramaphosa said that the conversation will allow people to be honest about their challenges while proposing solutions. Some of the major issues he highlighted were GBV, service delivery and inequality to name a few. Let's take a listen… Guest : Nonkululeko Mntambo – Member of the Convention Organising Committee...

We are coming to you live from the University of South Africa where the long-awaited National Dialogue is taking place. Just last week we saw how some of the legacy foundations walked out of it stating high budget and how the event is being rushed as one of the reasons. Over the weekend the Presidency announced that the budgetary processes regarding the convention are consistent with the Public Fi...

We continue getting the thoughts of the various people who are in attendance at the National Dialogue. What are the various people bringing to the table and how do we navigate comments about why we need to have a conversation as a nation? Let’s speak now to… Guest : Yolokazi Mfuto – Political Analyst Guest:  Prof Dirk Kotze – Political analyst

The Nkomazi Local Municipality is back in the news this time as workers are complaining about receiving half salaries. In June they took to the streets in protest as they say that they were told that the municipality is under severe financial constraint. Some of the other issues that have been raised by residents are to do with water and the state of roads. To talk about some of these issues and a...

Our next guest is the Deputy Minister of Defence and Military Veterans, General Bantu Holomisa. He joins us in studio talk about the state of our military and some of the reports that are in the media. This year also marks his first since he was appointed as deputy minister. Problems within the SANDF came to light when 14 of our soldiers were killed while on a peace mission in the DRC. All sorts o...

For our Citizens Corner this morning, we talk about public calls being made for the death penalty to return in South Africa.  Why is the call for the return of the death penalty question relevant now? Also as a country and the sort of past we come from, how should we approach the question of the death penalty? To help us navigate this issue, we are joined by… Guest (Telephone): Martin...

Hormones play a central role in a woman’s health, shaping physical development, reproductive capacity, emotional balance and long-term well-being. From a young girl’s first period to pregnancy and transition into menopause, hormonal changes shape every major stage in a woman’s life. Yet for many South African women, these transitions are often misunderstood, and too rarely discus...

We continue our series on the G20 with Lerato Tsebe, looking at how South Africa uses this opportunity of being at the helm for 2025 . Guest: Lerato Tsebe - Independent African Researcher

Our next guest is an economist and governance expert. He is one of the continent’s most respected voices on climate change, development, and international relations. With decades of experience at the United Nations and the African Union, he has been at the forefront of conversations about how Africa can not only adapt to global shifts — but actively shape them. In his recent article, &...

This morning, Bryan deals with this important question: How Often Should You Review Your Financial Plan?  He joins us in the studio now… Guest: Bryan Hirsch, Chairperson of Bryan Hirsch, Colley & Associates (Pty) Limited

Over the weekend, the nation celebrated the 69th commendation of 1956 Women's March. The day saw many political parties celebrating women around the country, reflecting the sacrifices of women in society and sharing messages to advance gender equality. Many leaders reflected on the challenges faced by women like safety, women's access to economic opportunities,  labour exploitation and other...

As you’ve heard throughout the weekend that seven legacy foundations pulled out of the National Dialogue with just less than five days to go. The Presidency on the other had is adamant the all will go as planned. Ever since the dialogue was announced, there has been a lot of scepticism around it especially the price tag and also criticism that it will not bring any meaningful change to the p...

The Council for the Built Environment is today hosting the Women in the Built Environment series of events as part of commemorating women’s month. They say that the intention for such engagements is to look at the role of the various built environment professions and women in those professions as it relates to infrastructure development. To give us an overall understanding as to why such ini...

We turn our attention now to the women who are in the built environment to talk about the challenges they are facing and how they can overcome them. We wrap up by talking about the sustainability of such initiatives and how the government and stakeholders can keep it running for as long as possible. We are joined by… Guest: Thembakazi Moya - Executive Head of the Council for the Built Envir...

Our next guest speaks to us on their lived experience in the Built Environment, shares her insights on business development in this sector over the years, and the importance of mentorship of a new generation of female professionals who want to be part of this industry. Guest: Snowy Makhudu - Council for Built Environment Council Member - A qualified climatologist and environmentalist

Our next guest hails from the Eastern Cape. He is launching his highly anticipated third studio album, Black Child. The album is rooted in the soul of South African jazz and imbued with urgent calls for reflection and healing. The album features some of South Africa's finest jazz musicians: Sisonke Xonti, Marcus Wyatt, Nhlanhla Mahlangu, Bokani Dyer, Sphelelo Mazibuko, Tlale Makhene, Spha Mdlalose...

Earlier this week, we received a call from a listener who raised an issue on the administration of the Municipal Employee Pension Fund. Many listeners have since reached out to raise the similiar issues. They are raising different issues they believe work against them since this company called Akani Asset Management took over their pension funds. Let's take a listen to what he had to say… G...

The newly established Digital News Transformation Fund has appointed its inaugural Board to steer R114 million in support for South Africa’s small-to-medium independent newsrooms. This new initiative is set to last three years and is designed to strengthen the digital sustainability of independent publishers. Our next guests speak to the importance of these interventions at a time where medi...

The Localisation Support Fund with the support of the Retail-Clothing, Textile, Footwear and Leather Masterplan has revealed that more than 34-thousand local jobs could be displaced due to e-commerce platforms. They says that if Temu and Shein continue to grow their market share in our country, then our local industry will be severely affected resulting in the job losses. To tell us more on this a...

For our Citizens Corner this morning we get to understand and breakdown the Mineral Resources Development Bill, known as the Mining Bill. It is currently open for public comment in an effort to transform the sector. As much as we are discussing the Bill, we are also using the opportunity to speak to communities that are affected by disasters that occure in mining areas. One recent example is the J...

We continue our series on the G20 with Lerato Tsebe, looking at how South Africa uses this opportunity of being at the helm for 2025 .