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Peacekeeping: New Marching Orders Needed for Embattled SA National Defence Force

Thu, 27 Feb 2025 09:21:00 GMT

The mortal remains of 14 SANDF members who lost their lives in the eastern DRC were laid to rest at different places across South Africa. The SANDF is a shadow of its former self. With inadequate capacity, funding and weaponry, the South African contingent is unlikely to wage an effective military operation against rebel groups in the DRC, says the writer.

Navigating a New Era: Tough Road Ahead for New AU Commission Chief

Mon, 24 Feb 2025 11:20:00 GMT

New African Union Commission chairperson Mahamoud Ali Youssouf (R) talks to a delegate ahead of the 38th African Union (AU) Summit in Addis Ababa on February 15, 2025. As the African Union embraces a new chapter with its incoming Commission chair, an unprecedented opportunity exists to reshape Africa’s future, says the writer.

Silencing The Guns: A Daunting Task for AU Commission’s Youssouf

Thu, 20 Feb 2025 12:50:00 GMT

The newly elected chairperson of the Africa Union Commission Mahmoud Ali Youssouf (C) smiles after election results during the 38th African Union (AU) Summit, at the AU Headquarters in Addis Ababa on February 15, 2025. To take the Continent out of the gully of war and instability and into the glory of peace and security will be a daunting task for Youssouf, says the writer.

SACP Opposes Neo-Liberal Austerity Agenda, Advocates for Wealth Tax

Tue, 18 Feb 2025 09:26:00 GMT

Protesters demonstrating against proposed budget and social funding cuts ahead of Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana's budget speech in Cape Town on February 21, 2024. Instead of increasing VAT and entrenching austerity measures – marked by budget cuts and negative average medium-term expenditure growth affecting critical developmental priorities – the SACP calls for a budget that facilitates large-scale employment creation, says Alex Mashilo.

A Decade of #RhodesMustFall: The Long Road To Higher Education Transformation

Tue, 18 Feb 2025 09:15:00 GMT

University of Cape Town students celebrate the removal of Cecil John Rhodes statue on April 9, 2015. The statue was removed after a month of rolling protests. The 10th anniversary of the Rhodes Must Fall movement offers us an opportunity to reflect on the significant contributions of this movement both in South Africa and in the global South, says the writer.

Decoding the Impact of Trump 2.0 on BRICS and the Global South

Mon, 17 Feb 2025 07:25:00 GMT

Then BRICS Chairperson President Cyril Ramaphosa flanked (from left) President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, President Xi Jinping, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, announcing the outcomes of the XV BRICS Summit in Sandton, South Africa on August 24, 2023. Picture: GCISAshraf PatelA CRISIS opens up many opportunities as the famous saying goes.

Building Social Cohesion: National Dialogue Should Not Repeat TRC Mistakes

Sun, 16 Feb 2025 09:01:00 GMT

President Nelson Mandela (L) receives five volumes of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission's final report from Archbishop Desmond Tutu, in Pretoria on October 29, 1998. Drawing lessons from the failures of the TRC, the proposed National Dialogue should be honest, sincere, inclusive, thorough, and realistic to be impactful, says the writer.

SONA exposes politics driving ANC’s class collaboration

Sun, 16 Feb 2025 08:45:00 GMT

President Cyril Ramaphosa in discussion with Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana before replying to the SONA debate in the Cape Town City Hall on February 13, 2025. Picture: GCISDr. Trevor NgwaneSOUTH Africa has not been immune to Donald Trump’s rampage like a bull in a china shop through economic, political and legal institutions which successive governments in the USA and the world had relied upon to carry out their daily business as usual.

Poor Leadership at the Centre of SA’s National Security Crisis

Sat, 15 Feb 2025 05:09:00 GMT

FLEEING residents from Sake, Eastern DRC alongside SANDF peacekeepers on February 7, 2024. Until recently, South Africa claimed a proud record of peace-making and peacekeeping on the African continent. The current DRC imbroglio is the latest in a series of political and security sector failures, says the writer.

Right-wing’s false narrative ‘harmful to building social cohesion’

Sat, 15 Feb 2025 04:26:00 GMT

African National Congress (ANC) President Nelson Mandela smiles broadly as he casts his historic vote on April 27, 1994 in Ohlange, outside Durban, during South Africa’s first democratic election. The ANC and other liberation forces displayed tremendous magnanimity in their reconciliation efforts during the negotiations, says the writer.

No Easy Fix As The DRC’s Humanitarian Crisis Escalates

Thu, 13 Feb 2025 10:34:00 GMT

A member of the M23 armed group walk alongside residents through a street of the Keshero neighborhood in Goma, on January 27, 2025. The grand project of de-escalating conflict in the DRC is unlikely to be a quick-fix or easy victory, given the complexity and contours of the conflict, says the writer.

SONA 2025: Promises of quality service delivery a litmus test for GNU

Sat, 08 Feb 2025 07:43:00 GMT

President Cyril Ramaphosa delivering his State of the Nation Address in the Cape Town City Hall on February 6, 2025. Whilst the President noted the need to address competency levels in municipalities, he did not highlight government’s poor responsiveness, lack of transparency and poor consequence management found across our country, says the writer.

Proxies and plunder: The ongoing crisis in the DRC

Fri, 07 Feb 2025 05:56:00 GMT

Child labour at a gold mine in South Kivu, DRC Congo. The battle for the Eastern DRC is intrinsically linked to the West's unquenchable yearning for the region's vast resources, says the writer. Picture: AFPBy Kim HellerTHE thirst of the West for the mineral wealth of Africa has not abated in the post-colonial era.

Trump's Re-Election: A New Era of Re-Awakening for Africa?

Thu, 06 Feb 2025 07:41:00 GMT

Members of the African Union (AU) Executive Council at its 45th Ordinary Session meeting held on July 18-19, 2024 in Accra, Ghana. The time is now for Africa to awaken from its slumber and for the leadership to rise to the occasion and harness African energies to promote genuine governance that brings and sustains livelihoods for posterity, says the writer.

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SONA 2025: Bickering GNU Must Step Up With Decisive Leadership

Mon, 03 Feb 2025 12:52:00 GMT

PRESIDENT Cyril Ramaphosa at the playing of the national anthem before delivering his Opening of Parliament Address (OPA) for the Seventh Administration on July 18, 2024. The upcoming SONA presents a critical opportunity for President Ramaphosa to outline a comprehensive strategy that responds decisively to the core challenges afflicting the nation.

Navigating Diplomatic, Military Tightrope Key To DRC’s Peace, Stability Roadmap

Mon, 03 Feb 2025 05:03:00 GMT

SOUTH African President Cyril Ramaphosa (left), President of Zimbabwe and SADC Chairperson Emmerson Mnangagwa and SADC Executive Secretary Elias Magosi at the Southern African Development Community (SADC) extraordinary summit in Harare on January 31, 2025. The resolution of the crisis in the DRC will require a delicate balance of military and diplomatic efforts based on an honest assessment of the root causes of the conflict, says the writer.

Discontent over Expropriation Act ‘a self-created mini-crisis’

Mon, 03 Feb 2025 04:43:00 GMT

President Cyril Ramaphosa with the Government of National Unity leaders at a dinner hosted by the President in Cape Town on September 11, 2024. If the GNU delivers what the ANC has failed to deliver, this will serve as proof that Africans cannot govern well unless they are subjected to white supervision, says the writer.

Decoding The DRC Crisis: The M23 Rebellion And Its Historical Roots

Fri, 31 Jan 2025 05:05:00 GMT

A MEMBER of the M23 armed group greets a civilian on a street in Goma on January 29, 2025. President Tshisekedi’s position that he would never talk to the M23 is no longer sustainable considering the balance of forces on the battlefield. Without the M23 at the negotiation table, the war will continue, says the writer.

Africa's Future In Peril: The Plight of Children in Conflict Zones

Thu, 30 Jan 2025 08:34:00 GMT

Sudanese women and children fleeing the al-Jazira state stand next to their belongings near the eastern city of Gedaref on November 2, 2024. For the Children of Africa, languishing in a seemingly endless loop of war, violence and displacement, the bliss and beauty of childhood has been lost, says the writer.

SADC’s Regional Logistics Depot: A Vital Initiative for Crisis Response in Southern Africa

Wed, 29 Jan 2025 08:13:00 GMT

A member of the M23 armed group walk alongside residents through a street of the Keshero neighborhood in Goma, on January 27, 2025. Since their deployment, several peacekeepers from SAMIDRC have been killed or injured by hostile armed groups in the unstable eastern DRC. These casualties have been linked partially to SAMIDRC’s insufficient logistics and equipment, says the writer.

SADC’s ‘Old Boys Club’ An Impediment To Democracy, Peace and Stability.

Mon, 27 Jan 2025 08:02:00 GMT

The 44th Ordinary Summit of SADC Heads of State and Government was held in Harare, Zimbabwe on August 17, 2024 where Zimbabwean President Emmerson Mnangagwa assumed its leadership. Claims abound that the SADC is simply an old boys’ club where solidarity and propping each other’s regimes trump holding each other accountable, says the writer.

What Trump's second term means for South Africa and global politics

Mon, 27 Jan 2025 07:39:00 GMT

US Trade Representative Katherine Tai delivers her closing remarks at the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) Forum at the Nasrec Expo Centre on November 4, 2023. South Africa and Africa, as with his first term, will not be in Donald Trump’s purview because Trump has one agenda only: to make America great again, says the writer.

Mine Owners Culpability In Illegal Mining Needs More Interrogation

Sun, 26 Jan 2025 04:20:00 GMT

President of the General Industries Workers Union of South Africa (GIWUSA) Mametlwe Sebei (centre)) leads community members and workers in a protest during the rescue operation to retrieve illegal miners from an abandoned gold mine in Stilfontein on January 14, 2025. Mine owners extract various minerals from underground and leave mines unsealed once they are done, with no consequences from the government, says the writer.

Weaponised' Banks Complicit In Enabling Political Agendas

Sat, 25 Jan 2025 06:37:00 GMT

‘An Extinction Rebellion activist is detained by South African Police Services (SAPS) officers during a protest calling for the end of fossil fuel financing by Standard Bank in Rosebank, Johannesburg on September 21, 2023. Closing bank accounts belonging to individuals and organisations is often weaponised to silence dissent against the status quo, says the writer.

GNU, Unions On A Collision Course Over Privitisation Path

Sat, 25 Jan 2025 05:22:00 GMT

Minister of Electricity and Energy Dr Kgosientsho Ramokgopa engaging with business leaders in Komani, Eastern Cape regarding South Africa’s implementation of the Energy Action Plan on August 11, 2023. The culture of entitlement in South Africa is a serious threat to Eskom, says the writer. Picture: GCIS Prof.

African Leaders Must Prioritise Continental Interests In The Era Of Trump

Thu, 23 Jan 2025 05:53:00 GMT

MEMBERS of social organizations in defence of migrants participate in a demonstration against U. S. President Donald Trump's deportation policy outside the U. S. Embassy in Mexico City, Mexico, on January 20, 2025. Picture: Luis Barron/ Eyepix / NurPhoto / NurPhoto via AFPKim HellerEMBOLDENED by an overwhelming electoral victory on 5 November 2024, Donald Trump’s second coming as US President is likely to be turbocharged.

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A Ceasefire Must Be The First Step In The Quest For Justice

Tue, 21 Jan 2025 09:29:00 GMT

PALESTINIANS pose with a dilapidated Israeli army tank in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip, on January 20, 2025, as residents return following a ceasefire deal a day earlier between Israel and Hamas. While the ceasefire agreement represents a vital first step toward de-escalation, it should mark the beginning of a broader quest for justice, says the writer.

Daniel Chapo's Challenge: Uniting A Nation Amid Civil Strife

Thu, 16 Jan 2025 03:57:00 GMT

Incoming President of Moçambique Daniel Chapo at his inauguration at the Independence Square in Maputo on January 15, 2025. Chapo will need to calm and soothe citizens after months of protests that raged through the nation in an alarming surge of electoral contestation and conflict since October 2024, says the writer.

Expanded BRICS Takes on a Brave New World Amidst the Rise of a Trump, Musk Agenda

Wed, 15 Jan 2025 05:36:00 GMT

People’s Republic of China President Xi Jinping and President Cyril Ramaphosa at the welcome ceremony of the State Visit at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on September 2, 2024. As the world enters a Dystopian phase, the BRICS Plus nations will shape and guide an inclusive world order, says the writer.

Lessons from India’s G20 Presidency for South Africa’s Upcoming Summit

Thu, 19 Dec 2024 09:04:00 GMT

(From left) President of the World Bank, Mr Ajay Banga, President of Brazil Lula da Silva, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, South African President Cyril Ramaphosa and US President Joe Biden at the G20 Leaders’ Summit held at the Bharat Mandapam International Exhibition Convention Centre in New Delhi, India on September 9, 2023.