Tag: poverty alleviation

South Africa has experienced severe load shedding (i.e. controlled/scheduled power cuts), almost daily, since September 2022. This recent spike and high frequency of load shedding can be largely attributed to a significant drop in Energy Availability Factor of the coal fleet that has not been optimally maintained due to several  factors.

From better healthcare access to improved food security, machine learning could tackle a wide range of challenges in developing countries. In 2020, a study published in Nature showed that Google’s machine learning artificial intelligence programme, DeepMind AI, outperformed radiologists in detecting breast cancer.

Youth unemployment is not a problem to be solved; it is an opportunity to maximise. Reframing one of South Africa’s single biggest socio-economic challenges sets the us apart from most skills development providers.

Globally, the perennial battle to alleviate poverty is an enduring one and in this respect South Africa is no exception. According to Statistics SA almost half of the adult population in our country is living below the upper-bound poverty line.

As we reflect on Women’s Month in South Africa, it is essential to acknowledge women’s contribution to society, the economy and unpaid care work – raising children, families and communities. Despite their massive contribution, women continue to face considerable challenges.

The chance of a century to end poverty, and how we can seize it. Africa does not need handouts, but positive impulses. It is therefore high time for a paradigm shift: now Europe must invest instead of help, especially since the low interest rates offer the opportunity to make a big difference with a modest investment.

As we navigate the turmoil and disruption caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, all eyes are on keeping each other safe while preparing for a post-pandemic world. The custodians of this post-pandemic future are young people – and when one considers that the official unemployment rate for people under 35 in South Africa is 46.3%, the urgency of meaningful and sustained youth empowerment cannot be understated.

South Africa’s retirement outcomes will improve radically if all retirement funding contributions are kept invested when fund members change jobs. Other quick wins include increasing the minimum government pension; delaying the government retirement age beyond 60 years; and refocusing the industry from saving a lump sum at retirement to providing a sustainable income in retirement.

The ‘potential’ of recent gas finds has given rise to false claims that gas will generate economic prosperity for the country. The reality is that it will be at least a decade, possibly two, before we see any significant impact. In the meantime, the climate impacts will be huge, and we will lock ourselves in to a new fossil fuel system, which is expensive and unnecessary.

Parliament has been warned of the risk of billions of Rands of capital investment leaving the country unless local investment incentives like those under Section 12J of the Income Tax Act are permitted to continue. Our presentation was made during the Select Committee of Finance’s public hearings on the TLAB, TALAB and Rates Bills.