The government’s response to COVID-19 has laid bare a number of truths that existed prior to the start of the pandemic: high levels of inequality and high levels of unemployment (currently at 30% and projected to increase to 50%). One in six people work in the informal sector; these jobs are often precarious, fleeting and poorly paid. When lockdown commenced, the government announced various relief measures, which seemed like an impressive thumbs up to the plight of the poor. Yet… Read more

We are educators in the post-school education sector across South Africa. We have come together in various fora over the past month to discuss principles, practices and possibilities for learning and teaching in South Africa during and after the COVID-19 Global Disaster. We are committed to our students, to our institutions, our communities, to developing critical intellectual cultures and to equal education as an essential service.  Read more

Vodacom recently became the first mobile network operator to reach what has been described as a “historic settlement” with the Competition Commission, an independent statutory body established to regulate competition between firms in the market, following an inquiry into the data services market. MTN has since also reduced its own prices, with both operators including a basic package of access for low-income consumers. Read more