Brace yourself for ‘water-shedding’
Olebogeng Molatlhwa Johannesburg will soon be struggling to maintain a reliable water supply to its more than 4 million residents. Durban will also face a water crisis in four about years.Water rationing – comparable to power utility Eskom’s load-shedding – might be enforced if Johannesburg people fail to act to forestall it. “We might find […]
Social expenditure tells more than size of GDP
By Itumeleng Mahabane WHILE South Africans were fretting about the result of Nigeria’s rebasing, the International Monetary Fund was downgrading our gross domestic product (GDP) growth forecast for this year to 2.3%. That is not very good news for our social fabric, which is emphatically being ripped apart at every loose seam. Read full article […]
Ending can only be bad for SA’s ‘good story’ on statistics
By Charles Meth POVERTY statistics are in the news again. Last week, the South African Multidimensional Poverty Index (Sampi), constructed from data in the 2001 and 2011 population censuses, was released by Statistics South Africa (Stats SA). Published so close to the election, the results are political dynamite because of the unwarranted contribution they make […]
Forthcoming attraction: A Ministry of Small Business
By Stephen Grootes – On Tuesday ANC Secretary General Gwede Mantashe announced that the party was very likely to create a Ministry of Small Business in Cabinet after the elections. While it’s been a long time coming, there are going to be endless questions about who is really in charge of economic policy, what the […]
Unemployment main driver of poverty, says Lehohla
By Staff Writer UNEMPLOYMENT is now the main driver of poverty in South Africa and the main driver of unemployment is poor-quality education, especially for black people, statistician-general Pali Lehohla has warned. Read full article here
Grant beneficiaries voting for opposition stealing from government
By SAPA KwaZulu-Natal agriculture MEC Meshack Radebe says those who receive social welfare grants but vote for opposition political parties are stealing from government, The Star reported on Wednesday. “Nxamalala [Zuma] has increased grants, but there are people who are stealing them by voting for opposition parties,” he was quoted as saying. “If you are […]
Stats reveal SA’s unemployed will find it increasingly hard to get work
Employed South Africans are highly likely to stay in their jobs, while the unemployed will find it increasingly hard to find work, Statistician General Pali Lehohla said on Wednesday. “In South Africa 93% of those [employed], which will be in the region of about 13 million [people], remain in employment,” Lehohla said while releasing the […]
ConCourt rules in favour of traders
Wiseman Khuzwayo “When women and men in government disregard the law, their conduct may very well cause much hardship for the vulnerable amongst us.” These are the opening words in the Constitutional Court (ConCourt) judgment delivered on Friday and penned by Acting Chief Justice Dikgang Moseneke, which set aside a high court order and allowed informal […]
Nigeria leapfrogs SA to become Africa’s biggest economy
According to the newest government calculations, Nigeria is now the biggest economy in Africa, surpassing South Africa and moving to be number 26th of the world’s largest economy. The new calculations take into account changes in production and consumption since the last time the exercise was carried out in 1990 and indicated that the economy […]
The bosses’ demand for 33.9% increase in mining profits
This was published in Business Report supplement today (for example in Sunday Independent). Pay the workers and stop promising too much, Mr Cutifani. Dick Forslund The strike in the platinum mines might go on for a month or more without any resolution. The workers are determined to hold on. Many of the workers have a […]
