The Brenthurst Foundation Podcast

In today’s episode, Marie-Noelle and Gareth Newham tackle the reason for the decline of South Africa’s crime and justice system. South Africa has persistently failed to adequately build the rule of law since the birth of democracy in 1994, and it shows. 

Gareth brings us into his world and shares those better choices that will improve policing and reverse the decline in public safety that started in 2012.

In our episode this week, Marie-Noelle speaks with Andrew Murray, one of the authors of The Brenthurst Foundation’s latest book titled ‘Better Choices: Ensuring South Africa’s Future’. 

Here, they discuss all things related to service delivery within South Africa, particularly health and education services, exploring actions and ideas which actually make a difference.

Since the Russian invasion began on the 24th February 2022, amongst many other atrocities, Ukraine and its people have been the victims of countless war crimes. Human rights activists such as Oleksandra Matviichuk have been bravely documenting these atrocities and working to defend the human rights of individuals who have been victims of these crimes. 

Listen this week as Marie-Noelle speaks to Oleksandra of the Kyiv-based Civic Organisation Centre for Civil Liberties on the importance of accountability and justice within the conflict with Russia.

In our episode this week, Marie-Noelle speaks with Andrew Donaldson, Senior Research Associate at the Southern Africa Labour and Development Research Unit at the University of Cape Town as well as one of the authors of The Brenthurst Foundation’s latest book titled ‘Better Choices: Ensuring South Africa’s Future’. Here, they discuss current social insurance institutions which exist within South Africa, as well as considering the ways in which these could be improved and developed.

Parliament is the cornerstone of any functioning democracy. A centre of legislation and debate, its role is clearly defined during times of peace. But what happens when you’re at war?

Today's episode is a masterclass on strategic communication in warfare with Ukraine's Deputy Chairman for the Centre for Defence Studies and ex-Deputy Minister of Defence, Alina Frolova. Join Marie-Noelle Nwokolo for a one-in-a-lifetime chat.

On the show this week, Marie-Noelle Nwokolo and pro-democracy activist Jeffrey Smith interrogate the role and relevance of election observer missions in light of Kenya’s recent election. Listen in on a candid conversation complementing processes in the quest to build substantive democracies.

Voter apathy is a growing problem among South Africa’s youth. While the reasons behind this are often emotive, they are understandable.

To better grasp how and where people have agency, Marie-Noelle spoke to Siviwe Gwarube, the Deputy Chief Whip and National Spokesperson for the Democratic Alliance, to learn about her political journey and how parliament can become more relevant to the average voter.

The impact of COVID-19 in South Africa, by existing data, has been the most severe on the African continent. South Africa, which accounted for 38.1% of total COVID-19 infections in Africa as of March 2022, is home to approximately 2.9 to 4.2 million migrants, the highest in intra-Africa migration. However, most of the interventions instituted by government to mitigate the socio-economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic excluded or were not accessible to non-nationals. This defeats the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) mantra of “leaving no one behind” and the fact that “nobody is safe until everyone is safe”, as emphasised by the World Health Organisation (WHO). Besides the exclusion of non-nationals in pandemic related interventions, the socio-economic impact of the pandemic and difficulties in building back better has led to increasing social tensions over scarce resources, depleting opportunities and deteriorating living standards for many.

In today’s episode chat with Henry Telli and James Dzansi of the International Growth Centre (IGC) about how IT systems can be potentially transformative tools to increase local tax capacities. The speakers also generously engage on the topic of “Is decentralisation good for development? Listen in to find out the fascinating takes from James and Henry.

In today’s episode, Marie-Noelle speaks with Ambassador Dr Kipyego Cheluget about his diplomatic career and the lessons that a regional economic community, COMESA, can teach us as we roll out the AfCFTA.

Is China’s presence in Africa a positive one? What more can Africa do to increase the benefits received from a China-Africa relationship? Has Africa’s relationship with China changed over time? This podcast answers all these questions, and many more, giving us a different viewpoint on the relationship which the Asian super-power has with the African Continent.

On 26 January 2022, President Hakainde Hichilema addressed a broad audience of policymakers, past presidents, ambassadors and curious minds at the launch of the Brenthurst Foundation’s latest book, Expensive Poverty. The book explores the trillion-dollar question of why aid has been so poorly used in Africa. President Hichilema shares his journey and experience and the imperative to get Africa on the right track for development.

According to Afrobaromter, Africans want more democracy than they are getting. Why is democracy so important? What does more democracy entail? How can we deepen the democratic project?

Ever wondered why Africa misses the mark attracting FDI?

Summits, targets, and envoys are a good start to attracting much needed FDI to Africa, but they will not be enough. We need a more active and targeted approach by governments that decide to get their acts together.

Over the past couple of years, Zambia has been in the news but not for flattering reasons: mounting debt and increasing mismanagement of the country's macroeconomic indicators. Today, the narrative has turned as many see a different future with newly-elected President Hakainde Hichilema. In this episode, he sits with The Brenthurst Foundation to discuss Zambia's current economic situation and his aspirations for making Zambia a better place to do business.

Young people across the world are well adept to 21st Century life and issues which come with it, making them well-equipped to take positions of power. However, when it comes to Africa, do the young of today lack the initiative to uptake these positions? Why are its populations so young yet its leaders so old? 

What’s it like meeting those in power? How are they really when the camera’s are turned off? What does it taketo become a top African journalist?

This week, Marie-Noelle speaks to Daniel Makokera, a veteran newscaster who, for the last two decades, has travelled the continent asking questions to some of the most powerful leaders across Africa.

Daniel has learnt a lot during his career, about the continent, about leadership, about human nature. Here, he shares some of that, as well as his top tips for young journalists wanting to tell the African story.

South Africa’s Department of International Relations and Cooperation (Dirco) recognises that it needs to focus more on economic diplomacy, including upskilling its diplomats to promote trade and investment.

But this work needs to go further if South Africa is to pursue a foreign policy fit for economic growth and prosperity. There is a broad consensus that it needs to better coordinate the different elements - including business - which have a role to play in economic diplomacy, broadly defined.

Between 2001 and 2019, two million men and women from abroad served in Afghanistan, and more than $2 trillion was expended, an extraordinary, once-in-a-generation commitment of resources to a poor country, a staggering opportunity cost.

The Western withdrawal from Afghanistan, set to be complete by September 11 2021, has gone hand-in-hand with a narrative of defeat, repeated so often it’s in danger of becoming a self-fulfilling prophecy, one damaging to Western moral authority and the value of its alliance.

The recent unrest that took hold across parts of South Africa, following the arrest of former president Jacob Zuma, put inequality back in the spotlight. While some put the blame squarely on the Zuma faction within the ruling ANC, it is clear that, out on the streets, there was a boiling resentment fed by the government's failure to deliver basic public services.

The Ease of Doing Business indicator is a system that ranks the regulatory environment of countries around the world. Over time, the ranking, collated by the World Bank, has amassed considerable influence over business regulation as countries have sought to improve their score to attract investment.

The US foreign policy approach to Africa has remained remarkably consistent since the Clinton administration. As President Biden’s State Department begins to take shape, analysts have started to wonder which direction his government might take.

Diaspora communities play an integral role in the economic, cultural and developmental growth of their countries of origin. 

However, research suggests that, too often, governments lack the expertise and capacity to effectively engage them.

Industries without smokestacks – tradable services like tourism and transport – could hold the key to future meaningful employment for millions across Africa.

Automation. Artificial intelligence. Remote working. These are just some of the terms and phrases often deployed in conversations around the ‘fourth industrial revolution’ and the future of work.

Africa’s growing population will necessitate the creation of new jobs and industries to accommodate the millions more than will enter the job market over the next few decades. Covid-19 hasn’t changed that, it’s accelerated it.

According to the IMF, Africa was home to the world's five fastest growing economies prior to the pandemic. Much has been written of the continent's looming population boom, and the levels of economic growth that will be required to sustain such change. 

While COVID has changed a lot, the need for rapid economic growth remains. Only now it’s even greater.

Africa’s cities are growing. Fast. Some 500 million people live in one of the continent’s already burgeoning metropolises. Another 800 million are set to join them by 2050.

Unless action is taken, Africa will have to deal with a demographic crisis the scale of which has never been seen before. But how bad could it really get? And what does the right action look like?

Technology - how can we leverage its power to improve lives and equip the youth of today with the right skills for a digital world of tomorrow?

We’re taking a break from the podcast this week, but fear not, we’ve got a load of great new content lined up that will be coming out shortly.

Crisis planning is critical to the success of any government. But how can you plan for the unknown?

Philanthropy has played a significant role in the lives of many through charitable donations, funding businesses and stop gap public good provisions. But can it be more? 

Increasing pressure is being put on African nations to get Covid-19 outbreaks under control, but how easy is it to prioritise Covid-19 when you're facing a whole host of other domestic issues such as Islamic extremism, water shortages and food insecurity. 

The potential benefits of the AfCFTA are endless and many have called it a 'game changer', 'revolutionary and 'Africa's next biggest break'. 

Marie-Noelle Nwokolo presents the final episode of this mini-series on agriculture and green development. 

Hear Prof David Henley, author Joe Studwell and South African politician Mmusi Maimane explore the role of agriculture in both the Asian and African development story, while Ethiopia’s former prime minister Hailemariam Desalegn discusses the possibility of ‘green’ development, and the work currently being undertaken in Ethiopia to strive towards it.

While some African governments have sought to crush corruption, almost all have failed in preventing it from enveloping the continent.  An accountability deficit has bred poor governance. But how do you tackle this?

This week the MDC’s Tendai Biti and Nelson Chamisa explain what has gone wrong in Zimbabwe, while Prof Kingsley Moghalu attempts to rationalise why African leaders seem to be full of great ideas yet lack the skill of implementation.

Join the conversation on: Twitter - @BrenthurstF / Facebook - @BrenthurstFoundation / Instagram - @brenthurstfoundation

Is there an Asian or an African mindset? Are there cultural variations that help explain the differing development trajectories of these continents?

With the help of Dr David Monyae, co-director of the Confucius Institute at the University of Johannesburg and Prof Edmund Tayao from the Ateneo de Manila University in the Philippines, this episode delves into the role of culture in Africa’s development journey.

Join the conversation on: Twitter - @BrenthurstF / Facebook - @BrenthurstFoundation / Instagram - @brenthurstfoundation

How vital is policy continuation in promoting development? Are regional success stories important in showing the way for others? What can Asia’s development story teach Africa? These are just some of the questions we seek to answer this week with the help of Prof Tang Xiaoyang, deputy director at the Carnegie-Tsinghua Center for Global Policy; Shu Zhan, the former Chinese ambassador to Rwanda and Eritrea; Souleymane Coulibaly, lead economist for Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines and Thailand at the World Bank; and Moeketsi Majoro, the prime minister of Lesotho.

Following on from The Asian Aspiration podcast launched earlier this year, The Brenthurst Foundation presents a new seven-part podcast series: Reflections on The Asian Aspiration.

Each week Marie-Noelle Nwokolo brings you insights from some of the greatest minds from Africa, Asia, North America, and Europe on a number of issues, from globalisation to green development, aid to accountability.

This week we discuss whether foreign aid is a help or hindrance with former President of Sierra Leone Ernest Bai Koroma and The Carter Centre's Former Vice President of Peace Programs Jordan Ryan.

Join the conversation on: Twitter - @BrenthurstF / Facebook - @BrenthurstFoundation / Instagram - @brenthurstfoundation

What can be done to fix Zimbabwe and how should South Africa approach its wayward neighbour? Join host Greg Mills as he talks to Lindiwe Zulu, the head of the ANC study group on international relations and Tendai Biti, an opposition leader with the MDC.

Can South Africa's opposition find more in common than what separates them and join together to unseat the ruling ANC?

Listen to Herman Mashaba and John Steenhuisen discuss the future of coalitions and the challenges facing the opposition.

What are the lessons for the opposition in other Southern African countries? Greg Mills talked to one of the region’s most courageous opposition leaders, Zambia’s Hakainde Hichilema, about what lessons he learned from the Malawian opposition victory.

Listen to Professor Haroon Bhorat, Tim Cohen, Greg Mills and Henning Suhr on the state of the economy after lockdown. 

On 19 June 2020, Greg Mills hosted Lazarus Chakwera, leader of the Malawi Congress Party, Dr Boniface Dulani of the Institute of Public Research and Henning Suhr of the Konrad Adenauer Stiftung, to discuss the forthcoming election in Malawi.