Football as an agent of change

World cup fever is all over South Africa – and the world – at the moment.  When it all comes to an end, what will be left? A group of people and organisations are working hard to ensure that some of the excitement of 2010 is transformed into a sustainable commitment to social development. Idasa is [...]

History of Haiti’s debt relief

- By Nancy Dubosse – A lot has been written about Haiti’s unserviceable debt, given its poverty.  I would like to turn the spotlight onto the reasons why debt relief has been given. When the G7 announced that it would be cancelling outstanding bilateral debt and urging the international financial institutions to do the same, [...]

Eskom – we need a public conversation

By Richard Calland and Gary Pienaar Picking holes in the governance of electricity supply, and energy policy more generally, is like shooting fish in a barrel. Whether it is the development and sequencing of key policy documents, the absence of proper stakeholder consultation, leadership failure, or the lack of clarity about intragovernmental roles and responsibilities, [...]

The winners eat and the losers don’t …

- By Stefan Gilbert – About an hour after the plane was scheduled to depart, we were told that the flight to Sierra Leone would be delayed by six hours. This, I was told, would make for an interesting night. The trick with Sierra Leone is that you must cross the peninsula to get to [...]

Helping Africa Save Itself

By Witney W. Schneidman originally published in Newsweek, June 2009 Dambisa Moyo, a Zambian-born economist, lays out a brash argument in her book, DEAD AID: that the more than $1 trillion in foreign assistance given to Africa over the past 50 years is the root cause of the continent’s enduring poverty, widespread corruption, civil wars, [...]

Poverty Causes Crime

A recent survey released by TNS Research Surveys indicates that South Africans believe that poverty is the root cause of crime.  Read the full article below, and share your opinions here …

Constitution must become a living reality for the poor

“It is all too easy to put the poor into a category, a mental ghetto of sorts, and leave them to eke out their existence, hoping that the government will make good on its promises to address the issues: lack of housing, hunger, denial of the basic rights to education and indeed to the hope [...]

Comparing SA and the US

By: Douglas Racionzer I note that my sending around the lecture from the Tukkies lecturer has received some response. I have subsequently sent a response to Stefan’s “balderdash!” personally which in light of the various comments made may be best shared with you all and might even help us to fashion a narrative around living, [...]