The trend worldwide is for wealthier countries to have large governments. South Africa has a government larger than expected and still growing steadily. The international trend for poorer countries is to have many State Owned Enterprises (SOEs), and government investment a larger fraction of the total. South Africa has more SOEs and government investment than is normal for a country at our level of development.
A recent assessment reported no fewer than 717 SOEs in South Africa with total assets of R1 trillion, or 27% of GDP, and government investment amounting to more than 30% of our total investment.
As can be seen from South Africa’s Tax Freedom Day*, which this year falls on May 25, same as last year but six weeks later than in 1994 and a full 2 months later than 1972, SOEs are a substantial burden on the taxpayer and economy.
Orthodox economics says that return on investment in government is lower than in the private sector because, in an SOE, the incentives of stakeholders and the associated bureaucracy, as well as the lack of competition, do not encourage efficiency or innovation. Our government has admitted as much. In its report on SOEs, it stated that, over the five years up to 2014/15, the return on investment in SOEs had declined to a low 2.9%.  Shifting resource allocation from private enterprise to government slows down growth which, long term, adversely affects welfare.  A 2%, rather than a 1%, per capita growth rate, over 70 years, would result in double the relative welfare
Some SOEs are so inefficient that they make large and/or persistent losses. An obvious example is SAA, which has cost treasury more than R35-billion in bailouts since 2007. Government says it has no plans to get rid of or to privatise SAA even though there is no good reason to keep it. The purpose of an SOE is not to create jobs, but to supply a valued public service. Employing almost as many people, private companies competing for air routes and customers could supply a far better service without making a loss (at least not one for tax payers to bear). The same applies to all of the other SOEs.
Bad as it is, SAA is not nearly the largest loss maker among South Africa’s SOEs. In 2014/2015, five SOEs managed to lose R20.6-billion or 2% of government revenue. It may not sound like much, but it would have been enough to roughly double the rate of housing delivery – not to mention the thousands of building jobs that this would entail.
No matter whether SOEs are profitable or not, they create a direct drag on the rest of the economy through being protected from competition, and an indirect drag by being a large, wasteful fraction of the economy. Protecting inefficient enterprises, or shoring them up, slows the growth of productivity and reduces the number of sustainable jobs that would result from a growing economy.
To sum up, SOEs are unnecessary for welfare and employment; inefficient or downright wasteful enterprises; a drag on the economy; create major opportunity costs; expose the treasury to significant risk and the country to bad investment ratings.
Another area where the South African government underperforms is in keeping peace and providing justice and good governance, i.e. rule of law.  Government has no business doing anything unless it has provided for adequate rule of law.  Providing a sound justice system is costly and there is a tight relationship between government consumption and good law indices.  Nevertheless governments do vary in how much they spend to provide a given level of rule of law.  By international standards, and the current level of government consumption, rule of law in South Africa falls short by 26-27%.  Alternatively, given our current state of rule of law, government consumption is 26-27% too high, and, arguably, we need a much better justice system than is being provided for.
By any reasonable standard, South Africa has far too many of SOEs and far too little rule of law.  To invest in better rule of law without increasing the tax load to higher growth sapping levels, we need to end wasteful and unnecessary SOEs.
* Tax Freedom Day (TFD) is the day after which South Africans have worked enough days to pay their taxes. Tax Freedom Day is calculated by dividing general government revenue by GDP for a calendar year, applying this fraction to the number of days in a year, and adding a day. TFD 2017 falls on May 25.
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Author: Garth Zietsman is a statistician and consultant.

Op-Ed: South Africa sacrifices peace, justice, and good governance to SOEs

It’s time for African innovators to not just think about solutions to problems, but to consider their philosophy around innovation. We can’t just be thinking of the ‘what’ without also thinking of the ‘how’ – how do we want to innovate?
Let me show you from history what it is I mean. Technological innovation is something rather new to the African continent. Silicon Valley has had almost 80 years of it, while China’s first foray into the field began in the 80’s, thanks to the efforts of a researcher in the Chinese Physics Institute of the Academy of Sciences, Chen Chunxian. Chunxian was inspired, actually, by Silicon Valley when visiting there in 1980 and sought to create something similar back home.
The U.S. story starts at the tail end of the Great Depression, with international affairs going awry and war looming. Frederick Terman, a Stanford professor, has his eye on two bright kids at the university who he is mentoring, David Packard and William Hewlett. He has encouraged them to start an electronics company in their garage — the garage that would later inspire millions of entrepreneurs and geeks even today and be dubbed &#8220;the Birthplace of Silicon Valley.&#8221; Their company is called Hewlett-Packard. No doubt you’ve heard of them. During World War II they built radar, nautical, aviation, radio and sonar devices. It eventually grew into the world’s biggest producer of measurement and electronic devices and became a major producer of calculators, personal computers, laptops, printers, and other items.
Terman fostered close relationships with his students and wanted to transform the culture at Stanford where it would become a technological hub, where smart young geeks could be close together and dream together and exchange ideas, and where they could be tied to industry with the university identifying ways in which their ideas could find their way into industry. Years later, Stanford is the place that has produced Larry Page and Sergey Brian (founders of Google) and many other innovators which I don’t have the space to cover here. Silicon Valley has firmly entrenched itself into the U.S. culture and the world’s culture, and today its presence is felt when you wake up, go to sleep, and in your pocket all day with your phone.
Later in China, Chunxian believed that there was just as much talent in the town of Zhongguancun as there was at Stanford. Zhongguancun also benefits from having academies and universities close by and has a similar kind of buzz of community and the exchange of ideas. So he set out to start building a community there, and today it&#8217;s a fantastic city full of innovation and innovators. Meanwhile, Deng Xiaoping, China’s leader in 1979, had plans for the small fishing village of Shenzen, and decided it would be named a “special economic zone” – meaning that it would be developed extensively. As it was developed the city grew exponentially (from 300,000 people to 10 million in one generation, apparently). Shenzen is today China’s ‘Silicon Valley of hardware’ &#8211; where Apple has had its factories and where so many things are made today. What really gave it the reputation it has today was the rate and speed at which it could manufacture anything, which is just what companies like Apple were looking for.
Giants like Huawei and Tencent are found here. The thing about Chinese innovation is that it is very open-source. In fact, its approach to open-source is precisely what gives it a reputation for ‘cloning’ and ‘copying’ other products. The approach is to build on what is working (even to the detriment of patents), to innovate quickly, to experiment and release these experimental products to the market, and get feedback quickly, and produce quickly. And this is what has set China apart. It’s why companies like Huawei have moved from being just copyists to now mega leaders in their field. It’s kind of an opposite approach to the U.S. approach, but it’s really working.
Both of these superpowers have had a tremendous amount of time to get things going for them, and they – up until this day – have had certain individuals who have really stirred things on. What I find interesting is how differently the stories have progressed. What we can’t do is copy what they’ve done and get things to work instantly. Instead, we have to learn from them and adjust for our own context. Which leads me back to Africa. Because while the China approach has very little regard for patent, and the U.S. arguably has too much of a regard for it, we can learn from the central idea that has formed their ‘silicon valleys’: to put people together, to experiment, to connect innovators with industry, to create buzz around it, create community, to exchange ideas and work on each others’ innovations. We have to start talking with each other and seeing how innovations can fit together, and we have to start connecting these to industry.
In short, we have to go open-source, our way.
What kind of philosophical approach to innovation will distinguish us going into the future? We have to also form the how we’re going to innovate – a how framed by who we are. And we have to trust our instinct in this and just go for it.

Op-Ed: A case for open source African innovation

The city of Durban became Africa’s Davos last week as it hosted WEF Africa 2017, from the 3rd to the 5th of May. Sihle Zikalala‚ MEC for Economic Development‚ Tourism and Environmental Affairs in Kwazulu-Natal‚ had lobbied for the event to occur in Durban. It was estimated that the direct impact of hosting the event would be at least R64-million with a total impact of over R155-million.
With the majority of delegates arriving in Durban via OR Tambo airport, the city would have benefited more if it could have offered more direct flights.
The event was a great opportunity for Durban to rebrand itself after it was stripped of the hosting rights for the 2022 Commonwealth Games. It has acquired a new image, like a fresh coat of paint. It has also learned that mega events such as the Olympic Games and the Commonwealth Games are expensive to host, and divert spending from pressing social needs such as housing, healthcare, while demanding the building of additional infrastructure and superstructure.
In addition, the host country would be liable for cost overruns, which is a perennial reality of hosting mega event. South Africa had also learnt its lesson from the 2010 FIFA World Cup. The government has a high debt ratio, which was party impacted on by the huge expenditure to fund the 2010 FIFA World Cup.
The ratings agencies had expressed concern about the high debt that the state is carrying, which was one of the reasons that it downgraded South Africa. The legacy of the World Cup is evident in better roads infrastructure and world class stadia.
Besides using the 2010 World Cup as a marketing tool for investment and tourism, South Africa did not think carefully about what it sought to benefit from the event. These lessons are now part of our collective memory, which made it prudent for Durban to accept the decision to the stripped of the 2022 Commonwealth Games. South Africa was not about to give the Commonwealth a blank cheque.
The WEF Durban was hosted using existing infrastructure and it was a more sustainable event that the 2022 Commonwealth Games. The benefit came in the form of thousands of visitors who descended on the city, while the city was able to have a conversation about its investment opportunities.
In addition, the state and private sector had an opportunity to engage after the Cabinet reshuffle. The Cabinet reshuffle has hardened attitudes. It has accelerated what was dinner talk to the boardroom, raising the issue of corporate South Africa potentially having to disinvest from SA Inc. under the disguise of diversification.
The lack of trust and suspicion between the two has become a reality of the day. There is the allegation that the private sector would rather sit on R700 billion in their bank accounts that invest in their economy.
Labour instability in the post Marikana era has dampened investment, as labour unions have been reckless in demanding salaries that they don’t deserve. This led to retrenchments, but it is alleged that the union leadership couldn’t care less as they live a life of opulence and abundance.
The retrenchments have thrown millions of South Africans into a sea of poverty, unemployment and inequality. The state has failed to manage labour instability, and crime is too high – forcing businesses to spend a disproportionate amount of money on security, which should be the responsibility of the state.
Today, capital is concerned about the direction of our country, ranging from state capture to threats about property rights. The state is failing to address these issues, and instead the political rhetoric has taken a racist tone in the epithet White Monopoly Capital.
Those leading the rhetoric do not have the R700 billion to create thousands of jobs, that money is held within the private sector. Capital is a motive force that must be engaged to invest in our economy to create jobs and prosperity.
With jobs, our citizens would be able to fend for themselves and depend less on the state which has more than 17 million social grant dependents. Poverty is not a nice thing – it is a form of lifetime apartheid that deprives the human spirit of its huge potential.
I will only believe Radical Economic Transformation if it achieves what Dudley Seers wrote in The Meaning of Development: “The questions to ask about a country’s development are therefore: What is happening to poverty? What has been happening to unemployment? What has been happening to inequality? If all three of these have declined from high levels, then beyond doubt this has been a period of development’’.
Radical economic transformation must never result in radical economic irresponsibility. Restoring human dignity with jobs and a growing economy is the ultimate act of patriotism that must be dividend of democracy.
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Unathi Sonwabile Henama teaches tourism at the Tshwane University of Technology and writes in his personal capacity.

Op-Ed: On Durban, WEF Africa, and Radical Economic Transformation

Africans in the diaspora want to contribute and we need their input. So why don’t we look for ways to connect?
Many of those in the African diaspora are longing to make a difference for our continent, but they often don’t know exactly how they can do it without physically being here. I think we need to think better about this and find better solutions for them, and for us.
In my continued journey with promoting African innovation, including recently having gone on a tour connecting with innovators, I’ve noticed an interesting trend. It seems to me that foreign innovators who have identified an issue on our continent and discovered a solution, and come here to implement the solution, tend to garner a bit more respect than many of our home-grown innovators. This respect comes in the form of general perception, how we speak about them, and how we fund them. Home-grown innovators tend to need to work a little bit harder to get the same sort of response and respect from us.
<h3>Home-grown innovators</h3>
Perhaps some say that there aren’t enough credible home-grown innovators on the continent, which may be true in some instances but not in all. Plus innovation, at least of the kind we’re seeing across the world today, is relatively new for us. But I think part of why we give foreign innovators the respect we do is because they come from a background of experience and knowledge, whereas we’re still trying to find out way through things.
But we can use this general trend in a positive way to tap into the diaspora, because in many instances they are garnering the background knowledge and experience overseas that we seem to respect so highly. So why not make use of that? The diaspora can contribute so much to the development of our continent and within innovation &#8211; but the problem is we are sometimes just not creating opportunity, or talking to them, or finding them and feeding them the knowledge they need to see how exciting Africa has become, and the potential. In general, we don’t seem to include those in the diaspora as part of our narrative, as part of the change.
I think many diaspora Africans would love to participate in creating a new narrative for Africa, and in innovation more specifically. Some probably think that the only way they can do that is to move here, take a massive risk, set up shop, and get involved. But I don’t think so. I think what’s lacking is other alternatives. We have to think more remotely. For example, why not invite those who are working for Facebook or Amazon to work on something we are doing even while they are there? With the Internet, they don’t always have to be here. It doesn’t even have to be some high-level person, but even a simple coder in the diaspora could contribute to an innovation we are working on here.
We ought to be head-hunting them and creating opportunities for them to participate in our ecosystem &#8211; opportunities where they don’t need to necessarily move back (but may in the long run). We ought to be finding them, educating them, and showing them what our innovators are doing. And then asking them: Well, how do you think you can contribute to these innovations? How do you think the experience you’ve gained can help us here?
<h3>Brain drain is a real problem</h3>
The ‘brain drain’ is a very real problem and instead of just lamenting it we have to work at reversing it or even taking advantage of it by tapping into those garnering experience overseas. Most people who are part of the ‘brain drain’ assume they don’t really have options — especially if they specialise in something niche or have a unique skillset. But this does not need to be so.
I myself know the tugging at the heart that occurs when you’re out there. I spent ten years in Australia creating jobs. One day it suddenly dawned on me that if I could do that in Australia why couldn’t I do it at home? That made me finally begin to work out my own views of Africa, to where I am today where I believe our innovation can really change everything about our continent in a hugely positive way. So I came back.
But when you’re not on our shores there is a sense that you have to figure out life for yourself, and you end up living in something of a bubble. I found this same sense with many of my African friends in the diaspora. Without being involved in the community that is Africa we lose not only a sense of our own identity, but that connectedness we need to see how we form part of our story &#8211; past, present and future. And we don’t pass our story down to the next generation, creating a disconnectedness from who we actually are.
That’s why we need to find ways to connect our fellow Africans all over the world to us, and in today’s connected world there are so many new ways of doing this. What we need to do is just change our mindset about how the diaspora can contribute, and I’m sure we’ll then begin to find ways to include Africans everywhere to participate.

Op-Ed: Including the diaspora in African innovation

On the 12th of April 2017, the nation celebrated the birthday of President Jacob Zuma. It was also the day that the opposition parties launched a national day of action, calling on citizens to converge at Church Square in Pretoria and then march to the Union Buildings.
South Africa is a country that has institutionalised marches. It began in the early 2000s with service delivery strikes in municipalities, and grew to crime-led xenophobic attacks all over the country. The new trend is increasingly violent political marches. Vuwani caught the national attention, when a municipal demarcation dispute led to the destruction of several schools, which is deeply regrettable.
The past two years have been dominated by #FeesMustFall, which captured international attention. On the 2nd of November 2016, the DA and EFF marched against the charges that were brought by the National Prosecuting Authority against the then Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan. They marched from Church Square to the Pretoria Magistrates Court.
The #ZumaMustFall protest will be represented by citizens across racial and political lines and it will be a mass mobilisation strategy to send a message to the ANC to recall President Jacob Zuma, for a plethora of reasons.
Pretoria is the seat of the Executive and the head office of the majority of government departments and State Owned Enterprises (SOEs), hence the protests come to Pretoria. There is growing trend of marches that culminate at the Union Buildings. Remember the Million Man March in 2008 against crime, and the 2011 economic freedom march of the ANC Youth League, led by Julius Malema.
The #FeesMustFall movement led their struggles to the Union Buildings, where a concession by the government for a 0% increase in fees was achieved. And after the downgrading of South Africa’s sovereign credit rating to junk status, a march led by Save SA also ended at the Union Buildings.
Marches were staged in several other cities, including Cape Town, Port Elizabeth and Durban. The groundswell of support for President Jacob to be recalled has become a national talking point.
What is of concern is that the mass mobilisation that always descends on Pretoria has a detrimental impact on certain businesses that are forced close their doors because of these marches, which are sometimes hijacked by criminals that break into and loot shops.
Business prospects for growth diminish when several days in the year are lost to strikes in Pretoria. Bus companies also did not operate into Pretoria on the 12TH April 2017, even Gautrain buses, depriving many employees of their means to get to work. Those with cars, would not dare drive into town, and the Pretoria CBD would be a no-go area.
The deepening of political contestation will mean that rolling mass action will become the order of the day, the rule rather than the exception. We live in a globalised world, where at the click of a button, any image is shared all over the world. All these strikes, marches and protests are broadcast all over the world, and they create an image of a country that is about to implode.
This does little to restore investor confidence in our country. The downgrade can be likened to the descent of prime evil onto our wallets, heralding tough times and the increase of poverty. Society will rebel as they see their standard of living decrease, and cost of living rise. Citizens are already highly indebted, with the lowest household savings rate as a percentage of GDP. Worse, the majority of Blacks have no assets. They will experience the worst impacts of the downgrade.
The reputation of South Africa as an investment destination will continue to decrease and have a negative effect on tourism arrivals. Tourists want to travel to destinations that are safe and South Africa has consistently scored low on personal safety and security according to the World Economic Forum Travel and Tourism Competitiveness Report.
Tourism, the one sector that has been the perennial good news maker, will now suffer from fallout of our political challenges. Tourism has been called the ‘’new gold’’ as it attracts more foreign exchange and creates more employment than gold mining. But reputation is everything and we must be conscious that reputation is regarded as the truth.
We must seek ways to protect our tourism industry from our political contestation because peace is a pre-requisite for tourism growth. Growth in this sector creates jobs. For every eight international tourists one permanent job is created.
Unathi Sonwabile Henama teaches tourism at the Tshwane University of Technology and writes in his personal capacity.

South African tourism: Negative effects of marches and protests

Democracy has allowed the proliferation of small political parties on the African continent. Is this a retrogressive development to the very democracy we want to see thrive? Asks Teresa Chirwa-Ndanga, of The Global Communiqué.
It is encouraging that virtually all African countries have embraced democratic systems over the years. What used to hang in the balance was a ruling party’s ‘inability’ to lose elections and step down as a result. In recent years, we have seen more incumbent governments step down after losing elections. Recall: Nigeria, The Gambia, Ghana and Malawi were good examples. However, democracies have allowed the proliferation of small parties, which I argue, are failing to make a significant mark on the political scene. These ‘small’ parties offer no ideological difference and I contend that the proliferation of such political parties is a retrogressive development to the very democracy we want to see thrive.
<h3>Malawi as a Case Study </h3>
Malawi currently has close to 60 registered political parties – this is against a population of about 17 million people with approximately 7.5 million registered voters (according to the 2014 voter register). Of the 60 political parties, none actually articulates a particular ideology for which they stand.  Most of the parties are only formed after some disgruntled individual leaves a bigger political party. They are mostly formed to satisfy someone’s ego as a result of someone’s quest for power. Political parties have become a vehicle for power rather than a means to achieve political activism for the betterment of society.
With respect to Malawi’s most recent general election, in 2014, there were 11 presidential candidates. Ten of them participated in a first ever presidential debate that ended up to be a platform for them to articulate what they would do once in office, none of their views strikingly differed to each other. That begged the question: upon what basis does an electorate make a decision for whom to vote for? It appears political parties sell individual personalities.
The result in the 2014 Malawi presidential election was a clear indication that some of these small parties are better completely off the political scene or rather consolidated together. There were four major political parties: the now ruling Democratic Progressive Party, the Major Opposition Malawi Congress Party, the then ruling People’s Party,  and the United Democratic Front. The four main political parties did relatively well. There were, however, seven other political parties that got no more than one percent of the vote – of the seven only one of them managed to get a seat in parliament, with many of the presidential candidates who had also contested at parliamentary level even failing to make it to parliament. This was a clear demonstration that many of the voters did not have confidence in them.
I submit that the multiplicity of small parties defeats the whole purpose of political party pluralism; which I agree that democracies should embrace. Many of the small political parties only become active during election season; upon which time, they often times do not win any political seat.
<h3>Should Small Political Parties Be Deregistered? </h3>
I argue for ‘political discipline’. Political discipline refers to the process of deregistration of political parties when such a party does not win any seat in an election and thereafter does not engage in any political activism (before or after the election season), which is therefore of no benefit to the country to keep such a political party active. A requirement that a party should win a seat in parliament or local council would motivate political parties to invest in political activities. Parties will invest in political activism outside election cycle years.
We need to begin to question the motivation of registering a new political party that has no noticeable difference in ideologies with the already existent political parties. Malawian researchers Nixon Khembo and Eric Mcheka observed in their study that “It is easy for parties in Malawi to emerge, merge, disintegrate or form alliances and coalitions. The cost of party formation and access to electoral contest is low and the legal threshold for political parties is liberal.”
The registrar of political parties in Malawi registers parties that have shown evidence that they have 100 members who are Malawians and are of the voting age. When they meet this requirement, all they need to provide would be the party name, two copies each of the constitution, rules and manifesto of the party, the address of its office, a list of names and addresses of party leaders and office bearers signed by each, a list of names and addresses of 100 party members signed by each.
<h3>Conclusion </h3>
There may be a number of issues that need to be changed to achieve rationality in the political arena, these include: the increase in the number of members one needs to be able to register a political party, this will ensure party leaders invest in securing as many signatories as possible. There may also be a need to introduce some party registration fee (this has been controversial in other country contexts). This would show a commitment to follow through with the roles of a political party. Emphasis should also be put on the manifesto which should talk of the ideologies that particular parties wish to represent. This will ultimately ensure a competitive political party pluralist system for the benefit of the nation and electorate.
<h5>This post first appeared on <a href="http://www.theglobalcommunique.com/2017/04/malawi-caught-up-in-unhealthy-political-party-pluralism/">The Global Communiqué</a>. </h5>

Is political pluralism a threat to Malawi?

AIMS’ new centre in Rwanda offers a model many of our organisations, and many entrepreneurs, can follow. It’s an exciting endeavour creating a quantum leap for the continent. But it should also make us ask hard questions about what we deem important and what we talk about.
As soon as I touched down at Kigali International Airport, Rwanda, I could feel something phenomenal was in the air. Perhaps it was because people kept telling me that Kigali is a true African city, or perhaps it was the sheer amount of beauty of Rwanda — an African nation with its own, unique African identity — or perhaps it was the amazing innovation and technology I encountered from touchdown (free Wi-Fi on the bus, MTN tap-and-go payments, and more) right to where I was going: The African Institute of Mathematical Sciences (AIMS).
After having received an invite to attend the launch of the new AIMS in Rwanda, I was pretty excited, and I must say it is truly impressive. And best of all, it’s truly Pan-African. It inspired me in ways I didn’t imagine, but also made me ask some hard questions of what it is we prioritise in our media conversations. I left asking: why on earth are we not talking more about this sort of thing?
AIMS has done amazing work across Africa and is at the forefront of our scientific and mathematics development. Yes, we actually have a vibrant scientific side, to the surprise of too many. President Paul Kagame of Rwanda summed it up nicely when he said, “We have to move ‘beyond potential’ and create a workforce that will lead [a] real transformation for Africa. It will only be done through innovative scientific training, technical advances and breakthrough discoveries. And there is not going to be a short cut.” AIMS contributes to this by having created a network across the continent via its various centres in South Africa (initially founded in Cape Town in 2003), Senegal, Ghana, Cameroon, Tanzania, and now Rwanda. It not only educates but it also actively promotes mathematics and science in Africa in various effective ways, some of which we will cover below. It is essentially creating a pool of excellent African mathematicians and scientists who will (in turn) apply solutions to our continent’s challenges. Yes, many of them actually stay here.
It’s doing this in such unique ways that I think can speak to just about every business, entrepreneur, and organisation in Africa. It is actively addressing challenges such as the brain drain, gender equality, cost barriers, and creating ecosystems. Let me elaborate:
<ol>
<li>It has a huge focus on gender equality. Maths and science are notoriously well known for having a small female workforce. But up to 30 percent of AIMS’ graduates are now female. It truly makes an effort. For example, if a woman is pregnant, AIMS has a saying that her body may be pregnant but her brain isn’t, meaning she can continue studying and working. They make sure that she is well supported, provided antenatal care, and they even set up homes on the campus for family members to help take care of the baby while she is still studying. In line with its high focus on gender equality, AIMS has also just elected its first female research chair, Dr Gisele Mophou. It’s amazing to see a female mathematician and scientist at this level.</li>
</ol>
<ol start="2">
<li>Its Next-Einstein Initiative keeps our brains here. It plans to see 15 research centres established in Africa (it currently has three). In addition to Mophou, the research chairs include the likes of Prof. Mouhamed Moustapha Fall, whose credentials and work has been internationally recognised (some years ago he was being dubbed the ‘next Einstein’ in popular, international media. I wrote about him in my book Disrupting Africa where he is using mathematics to help curb over-fishing). He forms part of the Next-Einstein Forum (NEF) fellows, which is doing groundbreaking work in the field of maths and science here in Africa. The Next-Einstein Initiative, however, also plugs the brain drain by partnering with the Canadian government, the German government, and the U.K. as well as other institutions, so that the research initiatives have access to resources that keeps them on the continent.</li>
</ol>
Typically, what happens with people like Fall is they are quickly snapped up by the likes of Harvard and Oxford, and to be honest, with few opportunities in Africa where you can grow in the mathematics and science fields, what else would you do? However, AIMS’ model keeps them here and even helps integrate scientists and mathematicians into other forms of work, where you might not expect to find these sorts of people (more on that below). It’s not just about funding them in terms of a salary but it gives them access to resources, provides collaboration between universities across the world, creates an international network of people in similar fields, and keeps the research thriving.
Dr. Rosita Yocgo, Research Manager at AIMS, says this means their graduates and research chairs get to interact with the best across the world and don’t really feel the barrier between being overseas and being here. “The more research chairs we can create the more we will be able to attract researchers that have already gone and are working in the diaspora, and be able to convince them to come back to Africa because they will have the same opportunities,” she says.
This last point is key. Not only are they looking to plug the brain drain, but also reverse it. I think that is hugely exciting.
<ol start="3">
<li>It is focusing on the future &#8211; quantum science. The Rwanda launch coincided with the launch of AIMS’ Quantum Leap Africa Initiative, where it will (for the first time) create an environment that focuses on quantum science, bringing a new dimension to the ecosystem it has been developing for quite some time.</li>
</ol>
<ol start="4">
<li>It finds creative ways to stimulate a new ecosystem. I’ve spoken a great deal about a new technological ecosystem for Africa, and AIMS seems to have a very similar vision through what it’s doing. This launch in Rwanda is the first time AIMS is formalising the ecosystem it has been developing &#8211; an ecosystem within the science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) fields. By putting learners from all these fields together in one network, they share resources, ideas, and creativity. In times past many of these fields worked in isolation but it’s becoming increasingly clear that these fields now intersect, and so the people working within them and studying them should too. At the launch, I could feel the excitement in the air that this was a ground-breaking event; a paradigm shift of sorts with regards to where the future is going.</li>
</ol>
<ol start="5">
<li>It has a 24-hour learning environment. Lecturers and learners stay on campus, even eating together. This model is producing amazing fruit. It’s not just data that people are dealing with but the establishment of relationships is key, and immersing people in the world 24/7 has a way of making it truly alive rather than just something in a textbook. It’s worth adding that the lecturers at AIMS have come from the likes of Oxford, Harvard, and other amazing institutions across the world &#8211; meaning students have easy, relational access to these bright minds who have pioneered in their fields.</li>
</ol>
<ol start="6">
<li>It actively creates unique opportunity and work for learners. Rather than giving them tuition and them sending them off into the sunset, AIMS actively works at placing learners in key positions. “We’ve done this really well,” says Mimi Kalinda, Director of Communications at AIMS. “Usually, students doing PhD’s and Masters in the fields of science and mathematics end up in academia. But we believe the mathematical sciences are applicable to industry and policy-making. Mathematics can be applied to agriculture, energy, food shortage, and so on. So we have a focused programme where we find opportunities for our graduates in industries and/or policy-making, so that not all of them end up in academia. Some obviously do but through this initiative, we want to ensure that we can open up their options and viewpoints on how they contribute to the continent.”</li>
</ol>
<ol start="7">
<li>Its tuition is free. This blew my mind. Students go through an 18-month programme that is free. “If you’re a really bright student you don’t need to have cost as a barrier,” says Mimi Kalinda. “It’s obviously a stringent and rigorous process to get in, but once you’re in you get your Masters degree for free.” Accommodation is also free.</li>
</ol>
As I was boarding the plane heading back to South Africa, I got the feeling that AIMS presents a very tangible and viable business model that other organisations and entrepreneurs should model. Think of what we could do if we created ecosystems in various fields and innovation like AIMS has done. Think what we could do if we could find ways to address the cost barriers more effectively. Think about what we could do if we could create environments where people have easy access to experts and people who are pioneering in their field. Think what we could achieve if we all, like AIMS, thought Pan-African from the beginning, making that a central focus.
But I also had a lingering feeling that something else needs to be stated, primarily in the form of questions:
Firstly, why is the media not talking about this amazing work, and showcasing the research and amazing students coming out of this institution all over Africa? Why is it that we’re just so silent?
Secondly, why is there not more partnering going on? My own work in innovation highlights that there is a tremendous amount to be gained by partnering via funding and expertise and networking. Surely there should be more of this sort of thing going on?
AIMS is truly shaping the future of our continent &#8211; and in ways I never expected. It’s making a huge impact and I, for one, am excited. But I think we all have a lot of work to do &#8211; and much of it starts with our thinking.

AIMS takes Africa on a quantum leap into science

After being in draft format for nearly two years, the National Greenhouse Gas Reporting Regulations were published by the Minister of Environmental Affairs on the 3rd of April 2017. This briefing document provides a short summary of part of the regulations and highlights what we believe to be some of the key issues for business.
The full regulations can be downloaded at the following link: <a href="http://www.gov.za/sites/www.gov.za/files/40762_gen275.pdf">www.gov.za/sites/www.gov.za/files/40762_gen275.pdf</a>
South Africa is undoubtedly moving to some form of carbon pricing regime. The timing and format (carbon tax, carbon budget or a combination thereof) are still unknown, but the greenhouse gas (GHG) data reported to the government as part of these regulations will form the basis for this carbon pricing regime. Companies impacted by the legislation therefore need to make sure their data is accurate and complete as it will have financial implications.
Few changes have been made to the final regulations so there should be no major surprises. But for companies that have not been following the draft regulations, there are some important considerations that are outlined below.
<h3>Important considerations</h3>
<ul>
<li>Reporting Boundaries. Companies must define their reporting boundaries based on operational control, defined by the regulations as “the full authority to introduce and implement its operating policies at the company”. For companies that have been using the GHG Protocol Corporate Accounting and Reporting Standard for reporting of their GHG emissions historically and have adopted a slightly different approach, either financial control or equity share, this will need to be addressed.</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li>Inclusion / exclusion of certain emissions. The regulations require companies to exclude emissions from mobile combustion (emissions from vehicles) as well as emissions from purchased electricity and refrigerants. Emissions from waste and waste-water treatment are included (provided you exceed the threshold – see the point below on thresholds). If your current GHG emissions inventory is not set up to include or exclude these sources, you may well end up over or under-reporting your emissions.</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li>Emission factors and methodology. The regulations refer to the “Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Guidelines for National Greenhouse Gas Inventories (2006)” as the basis for calculating emissions. These guidelines have been translated for South African companies into a slightly easier format by the Technical Guidelines for Monitoring, Reporting, Verification and Validation of Greenhouse Gas Emissions by Industry (hereafter referred to as the Technical Guidelines). To understand the reporting requirements properly, the regulations and the Technical Guidelines must be read together. The most important methodological considerations are:</li>
</ul>
o   The emission factors to be used must be in line with the IPPC requirements and are mostly provided in the Technical Guidelines. For companies that previously relied on the UK Government’s DEFRA as a source of emission factors, this will need to change. There are also South African specific emission factors for certain fuels, such as diesel and petrol, which companies must be aware of.
o   Companies must report their GHG emissions for carbon dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4) and Nitrous Oxide (N2O) separately. Global Warming Potentials (GWP), which are a measure of how much a GHG contributes to global warming relative to CO2 for these gasses, are also specified in the regulations and must be sourced from the IPCC 3rd Assessment Report.
o   The IPCC Guidelines divide emissions into four main categories, termed sectors (which are Energy, Industrial Processes and Product Use (IPPU), Waste and Agriculture, Forestry and Land-use (AFOLU)), which are further divided into several sub-sectors. Companies will need to determine which sector and sub-sector their emissions fall into.
o   The IPCC Guidelines provide several options for calculating the emissions, described as tiers. There are three levels of tiers: 1, 2 and 3. Each tier has an associated increasing level of detail and accuracy, with the tier 3 method requiring the most accurate approach. The regulations specify which tier to use, usually either tier 2 or 3.
<ul>
<li>Thresholds per source category. The regulations provide thresholds per emission source, above which companies are required to report. In the Energy sector, this is typically 10MW for the energy sources and varies for other categories (e.g. 5 tonnes of waste per day for waste disposal sites and 4 million bricks per month in the brick manufacturing sector). For most companies, the most important part of this is that the 10MW refers to the design capacity and not how much fuel you consumed. In addition, it is not linked to one piece of equipment larger than 10MW. The regulations provide an example of 6 2MW boilers, equating to 12MW, that would then exceed the threshold. Interestingly, this approach may require a company with a number of sites with backup generators to trigger the 10MW threshold, even if no diesel was consumed for that year in those generators.</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li>Calendar year. Reporting needs to be done on a calendar year basis. For companies whose financial year does not end in December, this will require a good system to cater for this requirement.</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li>Timing. The regulations don’t explicitly state this but it is expected that companies will need to report their 2017 data by March 2018. As an aside, the Department of Environmental Affairs is asking companies, through their industry associations, to provide historical data so that the National GHG Inventory is more complete.</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li>Registration. Companies will need to register their company and the facilities that exceed the threshold on the South African National Atmospheric Emission Inventory System (NAEIS) which will serve as the reporting portal for GHG data. Note that the GHG module on the NAEIS is not functioning yet but it is understood that this will be ready by March 2018. The regulations require facilities to register within 30 days of publication of the regulations. Although companies are required to register the facilities that exceed the threshold, it is our understanding that because reporting is done per IPCC category, facility-level reporting is not mandatory. This allows for companies with multiple sites to consolidate their data. For example, the 6 sites with 2MW boilers could then report emissions from coal (assuming they are all coal-fired boilers) collectively under a single line item in the NAEIS.</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li>Validation and verification. The regulations don’t require verified data, but if the competent authority deems the data to not be transparent, complete or correct they may undertake on-site verification and validation which the company will be responsible for paying for.</li>
</ul>
<h3>What actions should you take?</h3>
Companies must register and familiarize themselves with the NAEIS and ensure they are ready to report by March 2018. Many companies have been reporting their GHG emissions data for a number of years so the transition to mandatory reporting should be relatively straightforward. However, it is important that your GHG inventory is set up to allow for:
<ol>
<li>Clarity on your boundary approach, focussed on operational control for mandatory reporting.</li>
<li>Disaggregation of emission sources (e.g. mobile and stationary combustion) per facility.</li>
<li>Transparency on emission factors and GWPs and the ability to easily change these. The IPCC Guidelines and the Technical Guidelines must be consulted in this regard.</li>
<li>Ability to easily include or exclude emission sources (e.g. exclusion of emission from electricity for mandatory reporting but inclusion for voluntary reporting).</li>
<li>Clarity around design capacities of fuel combustion equipment.</li>
<li>Monthly data capture and reporting, particularly for companies with financial year ends that are not in December.</li>
<li>Verification of your GHG data. It is recommended that this is conducted by an organisation that understands the requirements of the IPCC Guideline.</li>
</ol>

Look out for new greenhouse gas regulations

Germany&#8217;s Development Minister urges Europe for more support to millions affected by the current drought in Ethiopia
ADDIS ABABA &#8211; With the words of former German President, Horst Kohler, spoken at his inauguration a decade ago used as inspiration, Germany has opened up a new bold and a pioneering engagement with a new plan for Africa.
With this soon to be finalized plan, Chancellor Angela Merkel and her officials are keen to bolster the economies of Africa, create jobs and slow the flow of migrants from the continent to Europe.
Named ‘A Marshall Plan’ for Africa– some are even drawing a direct parallel with the huge U.S. investment program that kick-started the ravaged German economy after World War Two.
Germany’s Minister of Economic Cooperation and Development Germany Gerd Muller said it is an “expression of our will and our optimism that we can truly find a path to peace and development in our cooperation between Europe and Africa”.
German officials are anxious to stop growing numbers of migrants risking their lives crossing the Mediterranean Sea, are pushing for increased public and private investment in Africa.
Minister Muller was on a two-day visit to Ethiopia, where he launched the &#8220;Marshal Plan&#8221; for Africa.
The plan has 10 principles, including a new equal relationship with the continent, the creation of African solutions to Africa&#8217;s problem, job creation for the youth, focus on entrepreneurship instead of aid, the avoidance of exploitation of African resources without real benefit, among others.
&#8220;Human dignity shall be inviolable,” the plan reinstates.
The minister pinpointed the need to invest in the youth and Germany’s commitment to invest and help create employment. He reflected on Ethiopia&#8217;s industrial parks as great examples in this regard.
He hoped the Ethiopian textile industry, with the right combination of investment, will help create the jobs of the future.
&#8220;The textile industry of Ethiopia has 50,000 people working in it today and maybe in five years, 5 million can and will work in the industry,&#8221; he reflected.
During his visit, the minister was accompanied by the president of the Somali region and officials of the UN children agency, UNICEF and the Head of OCHA (Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, part of the United Nations Secretariat.
At the end of his visit, he spoke of the need for Europe and the rest of the world to be involved and help in the historic drought that has so far destroyed animals and displaced many people.

Germany encourages aid for drought-striken Ethiopia

Intellectual property theft, like a diamond, has many faces. It could be the turn of a phrase in poetry or the meticulous duplication of a catchy riff in a song; the thing that makes you think, “I’ve heard this somewhere before. It is the same but different.” 
A lot of the time it isn’t even that adroit. It is the product of someone’s talent, plagiarized completely by another with all the subtlety of a plane crash. And then there’s piracy, best practiced in the infamous stalls of Lagos’ Alaba market, bursting with CDs and DVDs that come from everywhere but the hands that made the content they hold. The creative’s profits delivered into the pocket of another aided by a computer with a disc drive. 
They are brave in the face of the law. As the rapper Vector tha Viper mused to CNBC Africa, “I’ve always wondered why the Nigerian government has not found a way to merge with them (Alaba Market). It’s the only way to truly measure the sales of what the industry produces.” It would not be far-fetched to say that if there is anything that stands in the way of Nigeria’s soon to be $8 billion entertainment industry according to PWC, it is the people who laugh in the face of the country’s inability to enforce its copyright laws. 
“The Nigerian Copyright Act is one of the best in the world.” Said Obafemi Agaba, a partner at Jackson, Etti, and Edun, a firm that’s thought to be one of the best in the country when it comes to intellectual property. An expert in his field, he isn’t wrong. The law has been amended twice since 1938, a detail that seems unremarkable until you consider that Nigeria’s Trademark law is exactly as it was nearly 80 years ago, a relic from 1938. And there’s a digital sized update on the way. Agaba was a member of the technical working group that drafted the new copyright bill. In an interview with CNBC Africa he said, “The important thing about the new bill is that it provides for what you call the technology era. The present law does not take care of things that happen in the digital space. The new bill has been able to address this.”
Some members of the Nigeria’s entertainment industry believe that the problem lies not with the law but with    people’s knowledge of it, and their faith in the legal system’s ability to defend it. Femi Oke, the Head of Commercial at the Temple Management Company said, “It’s down to the individual and individual awareness. It’s down to respecting individual creativity and not overstepping the bounds.” He later said, “People disregard these laws and feel that not much can be done if they take someone else’s work and only change a word or two.” However, this perception seems to be changing.
Last week, local newspapers were awash with reports about a film called Okafor’s Law. Its premiere screening was cancelled because of a pending claim in court that the movie’s script had been stolen from a Nigerian writer in Canada without compensation or accreditation. The claim was ultimately unsuccessful in blocking the film’s release but it signalled a previously unseen willingness from the affected to seek legal action in cases where they believed their rights infringed. As a result, the much-uttered phrase, see you in court, has gained more weight than it had before.
However, there is a degree of unwillingness from artists to deal with such incidents personally. The Afropop star, Patoranking, said, “All I want to do is go to the studio record, jump on stage, perform, talk to fans on social media, and take selfies with the girls. The fun part. So we need people to be in charge of the business part because you can’t do everything.” Obi Asika, the founder of Cabal entertainment agrees. He said, “A lot of artistes in Nigeria say they can do it on their own, and they use Jay Z as an example. But I say have you been to the Roc Nation building? There is 75 staff there, working in a serious 9-5 to get things done.”
For Obafemi Agaba, the informal nature of the industry is to blame. He said, “I’ve seen a lot of script writers come to me after they’ve got their fingers burnt and I have had to resolve the problem behind the scenes instead of the scriptwriter or creative player negotiating from a point of strength right from the beginning. So many are just operating on a friendly basis. They say, “Oh he’s my pal, let me just give him this story.” But things happen!”
To deal with the pirates of the entertainment industry, Nigerian creatives have all but turned their backs on making physical copies of their work. Yoruba pop music sensation, Olamide said, “Right now. It’s online.” Phyno, who hails from Nigeria’s east provided more detail. When speaking about selling physical records he said, “It isn’t what it’s supposed to be. Mediums like iTunes, Spotify, tidal, and amazon, pay.” He too blamed the culture saying, “It’s an educational process. We need to make people understand that music is not free.” Dare Olaitan, the writer and director of the critically acclaimed new film, Ojukokoro, has no plans to release his movie on DVD when it leaves the cinema. He said, “The plan is to follow the other avenues of distribution. Video on Demand (VOD), airlines, paid television, and then terrestrial tv. In that order. I have no plans to release DVDs.” When I asked him why not, he was curt. “The others are forms of release in which we can have security in getting returns on our investment.” 
As bleak as the situation seems, there is some light at the end of the tunnel. The Copyright Society of Nigeria was set up at the turn of the new millennium to promote and protect the copyright of players in Nigeria’s music industry. The body has tackled intellectual property theft with a sea of lawyers and a storm of litigation, slapping telecommunications giants MTN and Etisalat with lawsuits worth N16 billion and N12 billion respectively. Their crusade is one Vector is glad for. He said, ‘I have to shout out to COSON because I’ve gotten royalty checks and they were quite impressive. At one point I thought, “you want to give me a check for Royalties, um, why?’ Because it’s never happened before.’
Obi Asika has called for artistes to join the copyright crusade. He said, “We need to get the artistes now, when they are young and hot, to promote the importance of copyright, because when they’re older and they don’t have any hit records, it may be the residual income from publishing or royalties that’s keeping them going.” 
Players in the industry look to Nigeria’s government for help. In the words of the President of the Association of Nollywood core producers, Alex Enyeho, “What we expect from the government is to create an enabling environment for us to practice our trade.”

How piracy threatens Nigeria’s entertainment industry

S&amp;P delivers a pre-emptive strike on SA&#8217;s credit ratings, downgrading hard currency rating to sub-investment grade and local currency to the last notch of investment grade.
<ul>
<li>Last night Standard &amp; Poor&#8217;s (S&amp;P) acted on the negative outlook it had previously placed on SA&#8217;s sovereign debt, dropping SA’s long-term foreign currency credit rating to BB+ (from BBB-), and the long-term local currency rating to BBB- (from BBB).</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li>In addition, with a negative outlook placed on both ratings, S&amp;P signalled further downgrades were far from over, stating &#8220;political risks will remain elevated this year, and … policy shifts are likely, which could undermine fiscal and economic growth outcomes more than we currently project.”</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li>Having lost its S&amp;P headline country investment grade rating, SA is now at greatly increased risk of losing its S&amp;P local currency investment grade rating (as it is now BBB- with a negative outlook), and so at risk of a much more difficult path of fiscal consolidation.</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li>While rand-denominated issuance is around 90% and hard currency 10%, the downgrades will raise borrowing costs, undermine investor confidence, likely reduce the attractiveness of SA bonds at auction, and so negatively impact SA&#8217;s ease of funding. This, in turn, will have a negative impact on SA’s government finances.</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li>S&amp;P added “The downgrade reflects our view that the divisions in the ANC-led government that have led to changes in the executive leadership, including the finance minister, have put policy continuity at risk. This has increased the likelihood that economic growth and fiscal outcomes could suffer. “</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li>Higher borrowing costs increase the cost of repaying government debt, and without a substantial, and sustainable curtailment in government expenditure and rise in revenue,  increase the chance of further credit downgrades. Upwards pressure is placed on interest rates (weaker economic growth) and rand weakness (as investors lose confidence and sell SA portfolio assets) which exacerbates the situation, reducing further government&#8217;s capacity for expenditure, including existing social welfare grants.</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li>S&amp;P identifies that “Internal government and party divisions could, we believe, delay fiscal and structural reforms, and potentially erode the trust that had been established between business leaders and labor representatives (including in the critical mining sector). … We think that ongoing tensions and the potential for further event risk could weigh on investor confidence and exchange rates, and potentially drive increases in real interest rates.”</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li>SA&#8217;s net debt has risen from 22% of GDP in 2008/09 to 46.0% of GDP in 2016/17, and is scheduled to rise to 48% of GDP in 2019/20. If government ignores the trend and fails to reign in mounting debt and return it closer to 40% of GDP then the rating agencies perceived creditworthiness of SA debt (SA&#8217;s sovereign credit ratings) will likely fall further. It will likely take several years for South Africa to regain its investment grade country rating from S&amp;P.</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li>Borrowing to pay current expenditure (including debt service costs) risks a debt trap developing,  and such a downward spiral risks ultimate debt default, whether it’s an individual or sovereign.  Such sovereign bankruptcy risk (failed state) is exacerbated by credit rating downgrades clearly,  as credit rating downgrades increase the cost of servicing debt.</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li>S&amp;P has also warned that “(t)he rating action also reflects our view that contingent liabilities to the state, particularly in the energy sector, are on the rise, and that previous plans to improve the underlying financial position of Eskom may not be implemented in a comprehensive and timely manner. In our view, higher risks of budgetary slippage will also put upward pressure on South Africa&#8217;s cost of capital, further dampening already-modest growth.”</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li>S&amp;P’s downgrades have occurred outside the scheduled country review calendar. However, such has been the perceived severity of the recent political events that the agency has acted now between reviews on “the heightened political and institutional uncertainties that have arisen from the recent changes in executive leadership”. Moody’s has signalled it could also move sooner on a downgrade than its planned 7th April. Fitch tends to be aligned with S&amp;P, and so could also provide a sub investment country credit rating for South Africa this year.</li>
</ul>

S&P signals further credit ratings downgrades for S.A are far from over

There has been speculation for a while of a possible cabinet reshuffle. Key ministries that would be targeted by this impending reshuffle would include National Treasury. These rumours have now been confirmed, with Minister Pravin Gordhan and his deputy, Mcebisi Jonas, being removed from their positions. Of course there were other changes &#8211; affecting almost a third of our cabinet &#8211; but these are less relevant to financial markets, albeit not necessarily for our country over the long term. This time there was no façade of a possible alternative position at the BRICS bank, so this was in effect not a “re-deployment”. The message was not subtle and there were no nuances. The message was clear &#8211; the President simply wanted them gone.
Discussing politics or making decisions based on the outcomes of politics, is however, a mug’s game, so let’s focus on what is important.
At Glacier, we prefer to avoid the noise and rather focus on fundamentals, as opposed to debating politics too much, even if we do have very strong views and opinions on this.
Politics does have an impact on financial markets, however these are mostly short term. People get spooked and they sell out of risky investments, take their money offshore and prefer to invest in US- domiciled equities, managed by overlord Trump, or UK-domiciled equities, currently going through Brexit. Bond yields may spike, financials might get sold off and our currency will weaken.
Over a longer term, however, fundamentals tend to drive markets. Our currency tends to be driven by commodity prices, equity markets tend to be driven by earnings and bond markets by interest rates and inflation expectations. As an investor with a long-term investment horizon, these are some of the things you should be concerned about. Let’s look at our currency first:
<h4>The Rand (ZAR):</h4>
 <img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignnone wp-image-116369 size-full" src="http://cnbc.africa/wp-content/uploads/2017/03/Sanlam-reshuffle-graph-1-march-2017.jpg" alt="" width="1920" height="1026" />
 
Clearly the relationship is very clear. I will concede that politics does have an impact (look at December 2015), but the longer-term relationship with commodity prices is far more explanatory.
<h4>The JSE:</h4>
Next we shall turn our attention to the JSE. It is clear that short-term political events had a benign impact on the market. The market has been going sideways, but based on poor local fundamental conditions. One could argue that this is due to a climate very much influenced and created by politics, but these are longer-term structural impacts.
<h4>Bonds:</h4>
What about bond markets? This is probably the one asset class where politics can have a bigger and more persistent impact than the other asset classes in the form of a higher risk premium (this higher risk premium is also present in the other asset classes, however, the effect is more nuanced and not as direct). Luckily this was already priced into a certain extent. Since Nenegate, bond markets have become increasingly wary of political risk. So while we can expect bonds to be sold off, the effect might not be as severe as previously. This time it is slightly different, it is not as unexpected as was the case with Minister Nene, if we are perfectly honest.
<img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignnone wp-image-116381 size-full" src="http://cnbc.africa/wp-content/uploads/2017/03/Sanlam-graph-reshuffle-2.jpg" alt="" width="1920" height="1026" />
<h4>What about opportunities?</h4>
Some opportunistic investors will use this time to seek out buying opportunities as was the case in December 2015. Those investors who kept a cool head and used December 2015 as a buying opportunity were handsomely rewarded, leading to bonds being the best performing asset class of 2016.
As always, if you have a well thought-through portfolio that is well diversified, with good quality managers you should stick to your portfolio. If your risk profile or goals have not changed, now is not the time to overreact.
In time we might look back at these events and might realise that they were the catalyst for good change to come. However, we simply do not know and prefer not to speculate too much. What is, however, certain is that the longer you stay invested, the more you increase your chances of benefiting from risk premium, market inefficiencies and behavioural reactions, but even more importantly &#8211; compounding. Therefore, let us all keep cool heads and not overreact to short-term news, but rather focus on our longer-term financial goals.

Cabinet reshuffle: Let’s focus on what’s important

On Tuesday, March 28, former First Lady Simone Gbagbo was acquitted of war crimes and crimes against humanity. 
The decision was unexpected: there is some pressure on Ivoirian courts, and President Alassane Ouattara’s government might have been expected to want the court to confirm its version of the end of the post-election conflict in 2011. 
Ultimately the court case was flawed, and the prosecution was unable to prove that Mrs Gbagbo had given instructions to the men fighting for her husband’s cause who killed civilians in Abidjan in the final days of President Laurent Gbagbo’s presidency. 
The main accusation was that she had personally ordered the firing of mortars into Abobo Market and had personally organised attacks led by her husband’s partisans.
Reactions to the court decision give some illustration of important political fault lines in Ivory Coast and abroad. 
Mrs Gbagbo’s advocate, of course, saluted the “courage” of the judges and juries for coming to their decision “in an environment where politics often weighs on the judiciary,” although he criticised the court’s unwillingness to call “the real actors, notably some political figures in the current government.” 
Mr Gbagbo’s Ivoirian Popular Front (FPI) was happy: its leader Pascal Affi N’Guessan called the decision “a willingness to move towards reconciliation” and called on the government to free another 150 prisoners he calls “political prisoners.”
The Ivoirian Human Rights League (Lidho) said the verdict “leaves a bitter taste for victims and is the reflection of an Ivoirian justice system at bay.” 
The International Federation of Human Rights Leagues (FIDH) called the trial a “fiasco” for its many weaknesses, and went even further in presuming Mrs Gbagbo’s guilt, saying that it was “unfortunately” not possible to establish her personal responsibility for the civilian deaths. 
Issiaka Diaby, representative of an association for justice for victims of the crisis, called on the International Criminal Court (ICC) to try Mrs Gbagbo; Mr Gbagbo is on trial there, although the case against him, too, is very weak. 
The public prosecutor has 60 days to appeal the ruling; he says he will shortly communicate his decision. 
There are several ways to interpret the verdict. 
We think the court based its decision on the available evidence, which was insufficient to convict Mrs Gbagbo. 
Mr Ouattara’s government probably left the court to do this in order to avoid the sight of a 67-year-old woman being sentenced to hard labour, which would have been unpopular (she is anyway already serving a 20-year sentence for “endangering the State”). 
Mr Ouattara has promised not to send any more Ivoirians to The Hague, to reassure some of his partisans (who are guilty of more deaths than his adversary’s) that they are not so exposed. 
And it is a small gesture of reconciliation to the FPI, the way Mr Affi saw it, and so a slight positive as the social mood in the Ivory Coast remains morose.

Ivory Coast – Simone Gbagbo’s acquittal shows up some fault lines

&nbsp;
It’s certainly a brave new world we’re living in these days. Back in 2016, Donald Trump set off a barge-full of booming red, white and blue fireworks all over the U.S. and won the White House to everyone’s surprise. Including his own. Not to mention, the GOP won control of both houses of Congress, 33 governorships and 32 state legislatures as well.
But the Republicans shouldn’t get too comfortable. Because irrespective of Trump’s victory, they need to remember one small detail. He was not their Plan A. He wasn’t even their Plan B or C. Plan A, the usual assortment of stiff blue suits with frozen smiles failed miserably as Trump plowed through candidate after candidate like Godzilla demolishing Tokyo in one of those old 1960’s Japanese movies. And, in the end, after disposing of Hillary Clinton, he slipped in through the back door of the White House and became President of the United States while both the Democrats and Republicans slept soundly in their beds.
But Trump’s election, irrespective of appearances, is not necessarily the beginning of a trend or movement as you’ve probably been reading. Rather, it is quite possibly the end of one. The last gasp of the aging, Eurocentric, predominantly white, hierarchy in America. His message resonated loudly in 2016 for sure within the present makeup of the electorate. But that’s all changing. And looking out a few election cycles from now, there are two very powerful demographic forces coming together that are forming, as mariners say, the “perfect storm”. The passing of the generational torch from the Baby Boomers to the Millennials and the ongoing influx of immigrants from Latin America, Asia and elsewhere. When combined, this new demographic will ultimately tilt the balance of power to the Democrats for the foreseeable future &#8211; or maybe longer. And the Republicans are sailing right into its monstrous waves with no plan to defend against it.
In the U.S., the Baby Boomers, <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2016/11/08/us/politics/election-exit-polls.html?_r=0">53% of which supported Trump and the Republicans</a>, are starting to cede control to the Millennials as they continue to age and their numbers begin to decrease through natural attrition. <a href="https://www.census.gov/prod/2014pubs/p25-1141.pdf">Approximately eight to ten million Boomers are expected to die by the presidential election in 2028 and roughly another eight million by the following election in 2032</a>. That’s nearly 25% of the Baby Boomer generation in the next 15 years. This will ultimately prove to be insurmountable for the Republicans. Although the Democrats will suffer proportionate losses as well, the more liberal Millennials will fill their ranks as they are more in line ideologically with their parents. Already, they are tied with the Boomers as the largest generation in the U.S. and will easily surpass them by the next election. And if you want to look out further, according to Pew Research, by 2050 the Millennials will account for roughly 80% of the electorate.
So, for Republicans, these statistics should give them real cause for concern. As the number of Republican Baby Boomers shrink, it cannot be assumed that they will automatically be replaced on a one-to-one basis by younger Republican voters. Because their children, many of which are Millennials, have very different and more liberal views of race, gender issues, gay rights, foreign relations and the role of government in their lives than their more conservative parents did. They are not traditional Republicans and are breaking with the Party’s political machine. Accordingly, as time goes on, many of their votes will start to shift to the left. In addition, the ranks of the Democrats and Independents are still growing due to the influx of Millennial age immigrants, many of which will ultimately be granted citizenship and thus the ability to vote. And these new citizens are spreading out across the U.S. as well which, in time, will alter the Electoral College map. So as the base number of Democrats continues to build and the number of Republicans decline, a broad ideological shift will start to unfold and change U.S. politics for decades to come. America will transform itself from the traditional center-right ideology of the Baby Boomers to the center-left politics of the Millennials.
None of this was lost on Barack Obama who pushed for increased immigration for years. He understood the impact that immigrants would have on the country’s profile &#8211; and politics – beyond his presidency. So much so that the U.S. granted over <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2016/11/08/us/politics/election-exit-polls.html?_r=0">5,000,000 immigrants new citizenship</a> during Obama’s presidency. And while not every citizen in the U.S. actually votes, historically, most new citizens tend to vote Democratic as they typically lean on large government programs and entitlements that the Democrats support.
So, to the Republicans, I ask you this: what’s your plan to stay relevant as the country around you changes? What is your message to these more ethnically diverse, liberal voters? Make no mistake, the message that got Donald Trump elected won’t work for much longer. Certainly, not with these younger voters. Much of the Republican platform is rooted in an ideology based on ideas from generations gone by.
So how progressive are they willing to become in order to have a chance at running the country in the years ahead? It seems clear to me that, to start with, they will need to dramatically broaden their philosophical tent from the standpoint of race, gender and age diversity. Positions on issues like immigration and international relations will need to mirror the shifting views of these new voters. And they will need to field younger, more diverse candidates who will appeal to these more culturally and socially diverse Americans.
I’m not looking to write the Republican Party’s eulogy prematurely. But Trump was a product of a moment in time. He was the exception, not the rule. And just as the Democrats had an extremely rude wake-up call when Trump won the White House, the alarm clock is about to go off for the Republicans too. I just hope that this time around, they don’t sleep through it as they did when Trump hoodwinked the entire Republican Party and became the nominee. Because if they do, they will be on the outside looking in for decades to come.
And Donald Trump could well be the last Republican president the U.S. has for a very, very long time.
Or, quite possibly, forever.

The Republicans’ last gasp. A contrarian view.

South African President, Jacob Zuma, has decided to remove the Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan and his deputy, Mcebisi Jonas, from their posts. Minister Malusi Gigaba, who led the home affairs ministry has been appointed as the new Finance Minister with Sifiso Buthelezi, a member of parliament, as his deputy. While the two officials are not strangers to public office, they have not served at the National Treasury before.
The new Minister of Finance becomes the fourth official to lead Treasury in just under two years. In that period, South Africa has seen three Finance Ministers come and go: the respected Nhlanhla Nene got fired and replaced by Des van Rooyen who was, in turn, hastily removed from office to pave way for Pravin Gordhan’s return to Treasury after his earlier tenure. These changes to the economic management cluster of the South African government are the most rapid and unprecedented since the dawn of democracy.
Given such instability at the helm of the National Treasury, financial markets have already responded negatively with the rand selling off sharply. Market participants were aware of the risk that Pravin Gordhan would be removed as Minister of Finance. Even though bond markets became more volatile recently, expressing a heightened sensitivity to developments in the political sphere, we do not see evidence suggesting this risk was fully priced in (see figure 1).
Our view, therefore, is that markets are very likely to react adversely now that the risk has materialised and investors should expect significant volatility in the midst of uncertainty, especially when one considers the factors highlighted below.
Figure 1: Evolution of SA benchmark 10-year government bond yield 
<div id="attachment_116264" style="width: 746px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-116264" class="wp-image-116264 size-full" src="http://cnbc.africa/wp-content/uploads/2017/03/Investment-Solutions-graph-31-March-2017.jpg" alt="" width="736" height="394" />Source: Thomson/Reuters Datastream and Investment Solutions</div>
Capital flows
Business confidence has been depressed domestically and foreign investors have begun to sell South African assets. The cumulative outflow in equities in 2016 was around US$9 billion. Although we saw net inflows into South African bonds, on aggregate, there have been portfolio outflows from South Africa. As it is, the Institute of International Finance, a Washington-based global association of financial institutions, has warned that should protectionist policies get implemented in the US by the Trump administration, capital flows (both foreign direct investment and portfolio flows) would face a turbulent time &#8211; with countries such as Mexico and South Africa hardest hit.
Need to reaffirm South Africa’s policy position 
Investor confidence has been substantially dented by the rapid changes that have taken place at National Treasury. Given such volatility and uncertainty, the new authorities need to communicate that South African institutions remain intact. The independence of the South African Reserve Bank and the judiciary needs to be affirmed. They will also need to demonstrate that fiscal policy will not take a materially different direction from what has been established since 1994. The biggest fear held by investors is whether more populist fiscal policies will be embraced or not.
Credit ratings 
Rating agencies have warned repeatedly of the likelihood of downgrading South Africa to non-investment grade should the volatility of the political environment deepen. Although much of the decision will be heavily dependent on what the new Minister of Finance says about fiscal policy and its trajectory, markets are likely to fully price South African debt as junk. After much positive ground gained last year under the leadership of Pravin Gordhan &#8211; especially after the relentless effort by business, labour and government, which made such a positive contribution &#8211; that work could easily be wiped out should the new authorities exhibit a major deviation from the policy construct put forward at the February 2017/18 National Budget.
Lower returns 
Data from Credit Suisse Global Investment Returns Yearbook shows that South Africa has experienced the best after-inflation return in the world of 7.2% for 116 years from 1900-2016. This was better than the 6.8% achieved by Australia, 6.4% by the US, 6.2% by New Zealand and 5.9% by Sweden. Indeed, such a stellar performance is unlikely to be sustained going forward. Given the possible challenges around global capital flows &#8211; especially foreign direct investment, which has some positive correlation to equity market returns, combined with the fact that valuations at the Johannesburg Stock Exchange are still above long-term averages &#8211; future returns are likely to remain much lower than the lofty gains seen in the past seven years.
Need for diversification 
It’s in times like these that investors need to hold on to a diversified and long-term investment strategy. Even as a political storm is once again battering South Africa, history has shown that, in the long-term, markets have the ability to return to fundamentals even when short-term noise, especially from the political sphere, creates much angst.

A new era for South Africa’s Treasury

The Economic Commission for Africa (ECA) launched the second generation of its country profiles at African Development Week. This year 21 reports were produced, on top of last year’s 20 reports, bringing the total to 41. The reports offer a snapshot of economic and social development in each of the countries profiled and provide recommendations to decision-makers from national and regional institutions to address the challenges they face.
Giovanie Biha, Deputy Executive Secretary for Knowledge Delivery, UNECA says: “The country profiles allow us to build a bridge between the work that we do on continental level, at a sub-regional and then at a country level. The focus of the analysis is on social and economic transformation.”
While acting as a diagnostic tool, the profiles provide a vehicle for the ECA to engage with member states on critical issues of economic development that drive structural transformation.
Overall, the ECA worked with the African Centre of Statistics, with specific contributions being provided by the Macroeconomic Policy Division, the Regional Integration and Trade Division as well as the Social Development and Policy Division. There was also close cooperation with the African Union Commission and the African Development Bank, on issue of continental integration.
The South African profile, for example, was completed with input from Statistics South Africa, the National Treasury and the South African Reserve Bank. For the Nigerian profile, a significant contribution was made by Joe Amoako-Tuffour, Senior Advisor and Director of Research at the African Centre for Economic Transformation. Data provided by the Bank of Central African States contributed to the profile on the Central African Republic.
Sources of data and statistics
“The sources of data and statistics used for all indicators are national, so that the ECA can work with them to identify gaps – whether they are systemic, institutional or infrastructural. This also gives the country involved the opportunity to own the narrative developed in the profile,” explains Biha. “The profiles also enable the ECA to evaluate a country’s commitment to integration and to assess the extent to which it meets its commitments.”
The core of the analysis in the country profiles is to look at policy challenges related to structural and economic transformation.
“The issue of structural and economic transformation is complex, difficult and long-term issue. A number of countries are really committed to long-term development and planning. There are very clear objectives for low income countries to become middle income countries,” Biha elaborates.
While a number of countries have achieved high growth rates, this was mainly through commodities, and the growth rates had no impact on inclusivity, or economic transformation and diversification.
The matter of demographic dividend was also widely discussed at the conference. “Across the countries that we have looked at, not many of them have crossed the path of demographic transition. I think there are only about three or four countries that can really talk about demographic transition,” Biha says.
Many voices bring change
Youth unemployment cuts across all 41 countries that were analysed for the profiles. “The issues are not new. What we are really pushing through this analysis is for the right policies and ensuring that there is a dialogue around those policies, and that those policies are being implemented. And that we are not the only voice. Many voices actually bring the change.”
Biha says the country profiles has strengthened the evidence-based policy engagement and dialogue between the ECA and its member states, and are “easy to read and accessible to a large group of ECA’s constituencies.”
The first set of 20 profiles were originally designed in 2015 in accordance with Resolution 917 of the Conference of African Ministers of Finance, Planning and Economic Development (meeting in Abuja in 2014), with the aim to provide African decision-makers with an independent analysis of their countries’ economic and social development including the progress made to achieve regional integration.
Innovations in reporting
They include various innovations such as: the African Social Development Index (ASDI), which measures human exclusion in six key dimensions of wellbeing throughout the life cycle (survival, health, education, employment, means of subsistence and the capacity to live a decent life after the age of 60), the African Gender and Development Index (AGDI) and the African Regional Integration Index based on the five pillars of regional integration – trade integration, regional infrastructure, productive integration, free movement of people &amp; financial and macroeconomic integration.
The countries covered in the 2016 Country Profiles are Algeria, Angola, Burundi, Cabo Verde, Chad, Central African Republic, Djibouti, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, The Gambia, Ghana, Madagascar, Malawi, Mauritania, Mauritius, Mozambique, Nigeria, Somalia, South Africa, Swaziland and Tunisia.
Angola needs economic diversification 
The overview in the report for Angola for example, explains that the pace of economic growth remained subdued in 2016, with a projected rate of 3.0 per cent as it was strongly affected by low oil prices in the world markets.
“Diversification of the economy is a crucial step to ensure sustainable growth,” the overview concludes. “The country’s efforts to bring structural transformation currently focus on modernizing and constructing infrastructure, spanning from transport networks, energy and water facilities to telecommunications. Ensuring sustainable funding, attracting investor and raising competitiveness are among the greatest challenges of the State. Simultaneously, guaranteeing positive social spill-overs should be another focus area of the policy makers.”
Mix of energy sources recommended for Nigeria
The profile on Nigeria places emphasis on the power crisis that has been plaguing the country for the past two decades, restraining structural transformation of the economy. It is crucial to scale up both public and private investment in the electricity sector.
This depends on strong input from the government, including a clear regulatory framework, investment in human capacity through the National Power Training Institute of Nigeria, and the development of public private partnerships.
The report recommends that Nigeria should reinforce its effort to establish a market-oriented policy aimed at promoting a secure, competitive and reasonably priced energy supply and policies that enhance the reliability and sustainability of the power system and encourage equipment and technology acquisition.
The country will also benefit from investment in a diversified mix of energy sources through incentive policies.
Major policy challenges for South Africa
South Africa faces high unemployment, and has to overcome the challenge of deep inequality to sustain socio-economic gains achieved since 1994. The richest 10 per cent of household controls over half of the national income.
The Gini coefficient shows inequality increased from 0.64 in 1995 to 0.69 in 2005 and then decreased again to 0.63 in 2011. The gender equality index was 0.461 in 2013 and the multidimensional poverty index was 0.041 in 2012 – one of the lowest in the sub region. The country ranks fourth in the sub-region in the human development index, falling in the medium human development category with a score of 0.658 in 2013 (UNDP, 2014).
Globally, South Africa was ranked 118th out of 187 countries in the same period. It is important for the country to strengthen its efforts at building social cohesion.

African Development Week: Country profiles to inform high level decision-making

A platform to promote inclusive markets on the continent was the topic of discussion at a side event at African Development Week. The African Inclusive Markets Excellence Centre (AIMEC) is set to become the premier pan-African regional platform for thought leadership and action on inclusive business and inclusive markets.
Inclusive business will improve the lives of millions of people in Africa and help to implement the provisions of the African Union’s Agenda 2063 and the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals, said Anthony Mothae Maruping, Commissioner for Economic Affairs, ACU, as he introduced the session.
The Centre would promote growth by encouraging transformative inclusive regional value chains, which in turn would lead to income generation and poverty alleviation across the continent.
“The Centre will need active participation from established business. It will target clients in the public and private sectors, including SMMEs,” Maruping said. “It will need the efforts and support of all stakeholders.”
According to studies, economic inequality remains a big problem in Africa. Some African countries have a Gini coefficient of 65% compared to an average of 42% in other developing countries. (A Gini coefficient of zero expresses perfect equality, where for example, everyone has the same income. A coefficient of 1 – or 100% – expresses maximal inequality where only one person has all the income or consumption, and all others have none.)
The AIMEC centre will respond to that challenge.
Inclusive business includes the poor as clients and customers as well as employees, producers and business owners at various points in the value chain. Inclusive businesses build bridges between the established business sector and the poor, for mutual benefit.
“’During our research, we found that technology has supported inclusion in many ways. One of the big cases of inclusion in Africa is the mobile banking network M-Pesa in Kenya. They have 25 million Kenyans now who have access to finance through their cell phones,” says Tomas Sales, Special Advisor, Private Sector, Inclusive Growth, and Sustainable Development Cluster, UNDP Regional Service Centre for Africa.
“Picture that in other sectors. For instance, the government of Rwanda has supported a business which uses drones to give access to health care products in remote rural areas. So, inclusion can be promoted through technology. It is actually a powerful driver for it,” he says.
<h3>The heart of an NGO and the brain of business </h3>
Based in Senegal, Bonergie is a social business providing solar energy to people living in poverty. Its founder and Managing Director is Gabriele Schwarz. She says: “The inclusive market has a lot of potential for economic growth of African countries because we involve the bottom of the pyramid. We look at people we call poor as customers, as employees, as market players, and this is quite a new approach.”
“There are many opportunities for Africa to establish a wide range of inclusive businesses because the old structures like we have in Europe or the Western world are not so strong here, so here you could really start something new,” she continues.
Most such initiatives have taken place in English-speaking Africa in the areas of mobile banking, energy and agriculture. “I am sure there are many more examples which we don’t know of, that is why it is so interesting to be together and to have a platform and meeting and look at what is working and what is not. Because if you focus on things that are not working, you lose a lot of time, energy and also money. And that is why it is so important to replicate the things that are working,” Schwarz says.
She describes inclusive business as a mix of NGO and business, which is very attractive to young people who are trying to open new businesses because they’re looking for a meaningful way to do business. The collaboration it fosters is ideal to address issues like eliminating poverty.
<h3>Need for new funding infrastructure</h3>
Finding funding for inclusive business is difficult at the moment as it is a new sector. Traditional funders of NGOs don’t fund the private sector. Traditional investors don’t fund inclusive business because poor customers are not seen as bankable. “So, we really have to set up a new funding infrastructure as well, like impact investors,” says Schwarz. “Some people call this patient money. There are already some good initiatives on the market, and impact investing is also for the financial business a growing market.”
Nana Oumou Toure-Sy, Coordinator, UNDP Regional Service Centre for Africa, West &amp; Central Africa Sub-Regional Platform, describes AIMEC as a flagship for UNDP’s work in Africa. The UNDP’s 2013 report on inclusive business recommended the establishment of such a centre as it would support innovative private sector development.
Tomas explains: “One of the main ideas is to bring the different stakeholders together – big companies, small companies, government, academics, civil society – and the point is to review what is happening in the sector, what are the needs, what are the opportunities. Make no mistake, regulation and incentives are a critical part of this.”
Asked what the objective is at this stage, he replies: “Actually we came to Dakar to get an approval from the Ministers on the idea of the creation of the centre. As you know, the meetings couldn’t proceed as envisaged, I just talked to the African Union counterpart in they told us there is a plan to still organise the meeting somewhere in April. If that happens, we’re going to proceed with the original plan, which is: The centre is approved by the African ministers of economic development and finance, the heads of state approve and then we get into the process of identifying the host country and implementing it. We hope it can still be done this year because the needs are huge.”

Jill De Villiers

Op-Ed: South Africa sacrifices peace, justice, and good governance to SOEs

Op-Ed: A case for open source African innovation

Op-Ed: On Durban, WEF Africa, and Radical Economic Transformation

Op-Ed: Including the diaspora in African innovation

South African tourism: Negative effects of marches and protests

Is political pluralism a threat to Malawi?

AIMS takes Africa on a quantum leap into science

Look out for new greenhouse gas regulations

Germany encourages aid for drought-striken Ethiopia

How piracy threatens Nigeria’s entertainment industry

S&P signals further credit ratings downgrades for S.A are far from over

Cabinet reshuffle: Let’s focus on what’s important

Ivory Coast – Simone Gbagbo’s acquittal shows up some fault lines

The Republicans’ last gasp. A contrarian view.

A new era for South Africa’s Treasury

African Development Week: Country profiles to inform high level decision-making

Africa Development Week: AIMEC, a platform for inclusive business in Africa will address inequality

News Tips

Advertise With Us

Jill De Villiers

Op-Ed: South Africa sacrifices peace, justice, and good governance to SOEs

Op-Ed: A case for open source African innovation

Op-Ed: On Durban, WEF Africa, and Radical Economic Transformation

Op-Ed: Including the diaspora in African innovation

South African tourism: Negative effects of marches and protests

Is political pluralism a threat to Malawi?

AIMS takes Africa on a quantum leap into science

Look out for new greenhouse gas regulations

Germany encourages aid for drought-striken Ethiopia

How piracy threatens Nigeria’s entertainment industry

S&P signals further credit ratings downgrades for S.A are far from over

Cabinet reshuffle: Let’s focus on what’s important

Ivory Coast – Simone Gbagbo’s acquittal shows up some fault lines

The Republicans’ last gasp. A contrarian view.

A new era for South Africa’s Treasury

African Development Week: Country profiles to inform high level decision-making

Africa Development Week: AIMEC, a platform for inclusive business in Africa will address inequality

News Tips

Advertise With Us

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