The View Point

Eligible voters are set to elect 10 461 councillors who will take seats in 257 different municipal councils comprising eight metros, 44 district councils and 205 local councils. The Electoral Commission of South Africa (IEC) officially launched its National Results Operations Centre (ROC) in Tshwane today. This Centre, at the Tshwane Events Centre, will serve as an important bastion from which the...

As World Teacher Month comes to a close, it is evident that the disruption of the COVID-19 pandemic is still having a lasting impact on the education sector. The move to online teaching has caused many local teachers to miss out on an important aspect of their professional development i.e. learning from their more experienced peers. Malcolm Mooi, founder of online professional learning community Z...

According to statistics, the urban population in Africa has swelled from 15% of the total population in 1960, to over 40% in 2010 and it is set to exceed 60% by 2050. It is anticipated that South Africa will follow suit. With our cities getting bigger and the development of more smart cities in South Africa, municipal payments play a vital role in creating cities of the future. We’re in conv...

We’re catching up on student wellness programmes, focusing on a meeting that was held between Higher Health and the University of Fort Hare. In terms of Covid-19, the university has partnered with the Eastern Cape provincial health department and established two outreach vaccination sites (and just over 600 students have been inoculated at these sites). Also, the university recently held the...

Our next guest is an experienced business leader and innovator who has worked with major brands including Unilever, Samsung, Nedbank and Vodacom. He successfully launched Product of the Year in South Africa, the world's largest consumer-voted award for product innovation. Since its launch in 2008, it has helped millions of consumers identify great innovation that adds value to their lives. He is p...

Last week Tuesday we had a conversation about the Oral History Conference which took place in the Free State province. We received a call from Cyril in Kokstad and he raised concerns about how the history of the Khoisan, the Nama and the Griqua people often goes untold. We subsequently received a call from Aiysha in Upington who promised us a list of grievances when we have this conversation. We h...

Covid-19 has negatively affected South Africa’s circumcision programme and far fewer men have been circumcised in the past year than in previous years. Health NGO Right to Care, says medical male circumcision has been a core component of South Africa’s HIV prevention strategy since 2010, but we seldom talk about the link between circumcision and cervical cancer. According to the Cancer...

    The Treasury’s protectionist policy has been hailed as a big win for the local cement industry, which has been battling for survival since 2014. Under SA’s preferential procurement policy framework, which has been in the making from as far back as 2007, the government can designate sectors for localisation, meaning that their products will be prioritised for purchasing by...

The  importance of Local Municipal Elections in improving Future Economic Outlook As local Municipal Elections approach, the Free State Black Business Chamber has stated that the upcoming municipal elections provide the best opportunity for the improved economic outlook of black businesses in the province. Municipalities in the Free State are on the verge of collapse, and this has had a profo...

The Department of Social Development has a programme called the Based Violence and Femicide (GBVF) ambassadors. This is in partnership with the Health and Welfare Sector Education and Training Authority (HWSETA) to train volunteers which will deal with GBVF cases around the country. Volunteers in communities working with Civil Society Organisationsin the country’s 30 GBV hotspots have been t...

The best way to describe Paul O’Sullivan is by ‘stealing from Marianne Thamm’s book ‘To Catch A Cop – The Paul O’Sullivan Story’, where she says … Paul O'Sullivan is no suave James Bond in a tuxedo, equipped with special equipment, downing his martini surrounded by a bevy of women. When dealing with criminals he can be abrasive, brusque and uncompro...

The Department of Sport, Arts, and Culture has been tasked by Cabinet to lead South Africa's National Oral History Programme. The program's objective is to generate information that will be added to the country's current archival collections. From tomorrow, the Oral History Association of South Africa (OHASA) will host a conference in collaboration with the Department of Sport, Arts, and Culture (...

Professor Zakes Mda has recently launched a book titled, AROLA. The book focuses on African history and draws parallels to what is being taught in schools. This book aims to correct false notions about African history and African civilization. . As the Prof Mda has said elsewhere, “It is important for the African child, both on the continent and in the diaspora, to internalize a new mindset...

Mark Boyens, an executive medical sales leader once said “Accountability is one of those golden concepts that no one can be against…However, its evocative powers make it also a very elusive concept because it can mean many different things to different people” Now on Friday, the health portfolio committee met to receive a briefing from Minister Joe Phaahla about the Special Inve...

This week marks the start of a significant effort to raise awareness, understanding, and appreciation for the critical role that teachers play in education and development around the world. The country honours another type of front-line hero as we mark Teacher Appreciation Week. Now the Covid-19 pandemic has brought a number of challenges to the education sector not only for students but also to e...

We’re in conversation with Dr. Katlego Mothudi, the managing director of the Board of Healthcare Funders (BHF), tracking the progress made by the the Let’s Vaccinate campaign which was launched by medical schemes in September. This was launched by the Board of Healthcare Funders (BHF) which is a representative body of medical schemes (representing medical schemes across eight African c...

We’re in conversation with the Coca-Cola Beverages South Africa and we talk about how they have reached the coveted status of being a Level 1 Broad-Based Black Economic Empowerment (B-BBEE) contributor in a five-year journey of transformation and economic empowerment. This status come with them having achieved an increase of 20% in Black shareholding of which all employees own 15.5%; spendin...

Following the lead of the successful 2019 USAf Higher Education, the 2021 conference will provide a platform for thought leadership, debates, deliberation and shared understanding among senior academics, researchers, executive leadership of public universities, government, business and civil society. Prospective attendees must note that this is a no-cost event. Taking place within a context of sig...

The Department of Social Development has launched Social Development Month under the theme, “Delivering DSD Services During COVID-19 in the Year of Charlotte Maxeke.” The Social Development Month campaign seeks to showcase the work of the Department and to put emphasise on the measures taken by the Department and its entities, South African Social Support Agency (SASSA) and National De...

On the 9th of October we will commemorate Hospice and Palliative Care Day. Palliative care is comprehensive care that should be availed from the time that a person is diagnosed with a life-threatening illness, however it is estimated that only 18% of South Africans are able to access this. As World Hospice and Palliative Care Day calls for the acceleration of access to care for all, the Hospice Pa...

Barend Uys is Head of Research and Development at AfriForum. He is no stranger to this show; having been interviewed by one of our former Takeover guest, Dirk Hermann is currently the CEO of the trade union Solidariteit. Barend believes that our future, as well as our history, is in our own hands and we must simply take up the responsibility if we want to build a prosperous future. Barend is an en...

While the majority of Swazi people live in Eswatini (also known as Swaziland), many have moved to urban areas within South Africa, especially around Johannesburg and to the towns of the Mpumalanga province. The Swazi people, part of the Nguni tribe, originated from east-central Africa in the late 15th century. While modernisation has happened over the years, tradition is still highly revered by th...

University of Cape Town’s  Vice‑Chancellor Professor Mamokgethi Phakeng will have the honour of becoming the University of Bristol’s (Bristol) first Bristol Illustrious Visiting Professor (BIVP) on the 20th of October 2021. The professorship will comprise a mix of virtual and in‑person activities, and Prof. Phakeng will pay Bristol an extended visit to engage with their researcher...

GEMS Medical Scheme has recently concluded a Fraud, Waste and Abuse (FWA) symposium, addressing how the industry is addressing the current challenges and plans to strengthen corruption-busting initiatives aimed at rooting out the scourge of corruption and misconduct. The private healthcare industry is increasingly compromised by irregular claims submitted by medical scheme members and healthcare s...