With results of South Africa’s watershed election now baked in, political scientist Dr Frans Cronje says the country faces a one-off, historic opportunity to catapult ahead. Whether or not it happens depends entirely on which way a badly bruised ANC jumps. The High Road lies in an ANC which opts to embrace a working partnership with the DA, IFP and others. The alternative  is what he calls “the Chernobyl option” when it retains political power in the short-term through a coalition with MK and the EFF - but thereby sows the seeds of its own destruction. The SRF chairman spoke to BizNews ed ..read more

South Africa is entering a phase of “necessary uncertainty” following the ruling African National Congress’ (ANC) poor performance in the elections and the surge of former President Jacob Zuma’s new MK party. So says Dr Ina Gouws of the Department of Political Studies and Governance at the University of the Free State. “I understand that South Africans are even afraid of what's to come, a bit uncertain of what's to come. But I think it's a necessary phase for the country to go in.” She says it is now up to South Africans to insist on political leaders being mature and pragmatic to make sure th ..read more

The Election’24 collapse of a once-impregnable ANC has thrown up numerous options for South Africa - and politicians entrusted by the electorate to turn around a country that has been sliding for over a decade. The longest serving Member of South Africa’s Parliament, Dr Corne’ Mulder of FF+, explains the options being presented to the newly elected lawmakers - and their parties - in the coming fortnight. With apologies to Winston Churchill, never before, in the young democracy, has so much depended on the actions of so few. Dr Mulder spoke to BizNews editor Alec Hogg ..read more

Among the major stories of Election’24 is a surging Patriotic Alliance, the ten year old political party which will now be sending its first MPs to the National Assembly - and also filling a significant number of seats in provincial parliaments. The PA’s strategist Charles Cilliers speaks to us from the Results Operating Centre in Gauteng, sharing insights into the major features of South Africa’s surprise-filled National and Provincial Elections. He reckons the over-riding conclusion is that this has been a triumph for SA’s young democracy. He spoke to BizNews editor Alec Hogg ..read more

An “astonishing” performance by former President Jacob Zuma’s MK party means the ruling African National Congress (ANC) might lose its majority in KZN - and fail to reach a national majority. In this interview with BizNews, Ray Hartley of the Brenthurst Foundation says that - with about 13% of votes counted - the ANC is probably going to come in below 50%. “I think the ANC is taking a beating. It's losing hand over fist in KwaZulu-Natal and that's a very populous province. So that's going to play into the national results. It's going to have to improve its position substantially elsewhere to m ..read more

With around a fifth of the votes counted, Free Market Foundation CEO David Ansara offers some early conclusions on South Africa’s historic Election’24. With the ANC set to lose 60 of its 230 seats (of 400 in total), Jacob Zuma’s well funded MK and to a lesser extent the breakout Patriotic Alliance parties disrupting the status quo, the country well on the road to coalition politics. Ansara offers some thoughts on who the partners might be - and explains why Stateproofing is an even more appropriate strategy given the political turbulence which awaits. He spoke to BizNews editor Alec Hogg ..read more

President Cyril Ramaphosa enacted the NHI law during the election campaign, representing the biggest shake-up in South Africa’s healthcare system since the dawn of democracy. Critics have warned that the scheme is hugely expensive and could fuel corruption, with opposition parties describing it as a "death warrant" for healthcare in South Africa. Group International Director of Sable International, Andrew Rissik, told BizNews that the policy has raised concerns among healthcare workers and those considering retirement, leading many to explore international options for alternative healthcare sy ..read more

President Cyril Ramaphosa enacted the NHI law during the election campaign, representing the biggest shake-up in South Africa’s healthcare system since the dawn of democracy. Critics have warned that the scheme is hugely expensive and could fuel corruption, with opposition parties describing it as a "death warrant" for healthcare in South Africa. Group International Director of Sable International, Andrew Rissik, told Biznews in an interview that the policy has raised concerns among healthcare workers and those considering retirement, leading many to explore international options for alternati ..read more

A 21% jump in Special Votes and near trebling of the out-of-country votes provides clear evidence of a surge in interest around Election’24. In this special broadcast, we hear from two Smart Alecs - the Financial Times’s foreign editor Alec Russell and his namesake, BizNews editor Alec Hogg. The FT looks at the global relevance while BizNews looks at the math via data drawn from the 2019 and 2021 election to conclude that surprises aplenty are in store when the results are counted ..read more

We have passed 50 days without load shedding in South Africa, even as the cold of winter begins to bite when electricity demand normally increases. The CEO of the Energy Council, James McKay, told BizNews in an interview that the lack of load shedding is due to a partnership that the government formed with the business sector. While business “is not lifting the spanners” at Eskom, their involvement in capacity mobilisation, strategic planning, and accountability discussions has been instrumental, he said. McKay highlighted a significant shift from previous political resistance to private secto ..read more