Public Enterprises: Watch out for the “China Model”

Rather than getting on with a serious turnaround strategy and reforms, the ANC is fumbling on plans to manage the country’s failing state-owned enterprises. The latest plan is based on a “Chinese model", which is the result of a visit

Pretoria High School for Girls and the future of education in Gauteng

It has been over two weeks since Gauteng MEC of Education Matome Chiloane made a dramatic appearance at Pretoria High School for Girls. Accompanied by Charles Mdladlamba, the attorney he appointed to conduct an investigation into the alleged “culture of

Construction mafias are costing us billions

Chris Hattingh and Nicholas Lorimer discuss the costs of the construction mafia on SA’s economy. They also talk about Pretoria High School for Girls SGB taking the Gauteng education department to court. They also chat about SA’s presidency of the

Sweden bucks prohibitionist orthodoxy to become smoke-free

By going against the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control’s prohibitionism, Sweden has become the first country in Europe to become smoke-free. In 2021, the European Commission set a target for all its member countries to become “smoke-free” by 2040, in

SA’s water crisis: small towns dry up, too

National government, provincial governments and municipalities are not only fooling the public, they are also fooling themselves. While Gauteng’s water crisis – no longer looming as Johannesburg implements water restrictions – has the most coverage in South Africa’s media, small-town

EFF Crisis: Is Ndlozi the next to go?

Today's Daily Friend Show with Michael Morris and Nicholas Lorimer discuss the alleged banning of Mbuyiseni Ndlozi from attending the next EFF conference. They also talk about ANC squabbles over the Bela Bill, the Johannesburg civic center in collapse, and

The state of the navy

Some quasi-random thoughts (“from a South African perspective”) on an American election

“So, as a South African, what do you make of the American election?” asked a Canadian guy I’d known two decades ago during my time in Taiwan, and with whom I had a nodding reconnection over Facebook. I generally eschew