Middle class squeeze hits consumer confidence

‘I think the move to deals rather than rules is a really, really dangerous one because it becomes very transactional. It reduces predictability. It reduces trust. Everything becomes transactional,’ says Dominik Zaum, professor of governance, conflict and security at the University of Reading.

Can democracies survive the pressure? Leadership, legitimacy and the new governance reality, an international expert weighs in. Africa’s private capital powerhouses in one room to discuss investment opportunities. And despite a tough economy, companies still put R13bn into community support.

‘One of the MK Party members, who was sitting in the ad hoc committee, wrote to the speaker to indicate that he was abducted. He was forced by criminals to withdraw money, and his account was cleaned out,’ says parliamentary spokesperson, Moloto Mothapo

MP intimidation spike prompts parliament to call for public protection. Business closures surge, with 1 300 liquidations signalling a deepening SA corporate crisis. And SA misses disability targets as bias, barriers and broken systems persist.

‘China has built not only electricity generation capacity, but also ferrochrome production capacity. They've done it in a manner that actually has made their ferrochrome production much cheaper than ours, largely because of their electricity,’ says Mzila Mthenjane, CEO of the Minerals Council.