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Mail & Guardian
11 hours ago
- Politics
- Mail & Guardian
Editorial: The GNU survives a year
There has been nothing remarkable about the government of national unity's first year in office, but the steadying of the ship has been invaluable. Photo: GCIS It was with great curiosity that we read ActionSA's GNU One Year Assessment this week. The project, a not-so-subtle rip-off of the Mail & Guardian's cabinet report cards, rated the government of national unity's key performance metrics on a scale of A to F. (As you might expect, most leaned towards the latter). These are not objective scores, of course — as you well know. Still, the marketing effort gets a passing mark for its creativity and contribution to democratic discourse. The GNU's actual performance over the past year is not neatly measurable. The uninspired leadership is easy to scrutinise. With the exception of some flickers of business optimism, the government of the last year has largely carried on the legacy of President Cyril Ramaphosa's first term. That is to say, a dispensation that strangled hopes of Ramaphoria early on. There is little immediate effect on people's lives — South Africa remains deeply divided and faces economic uncertainty. There is an argument, however, that the steadying of the ship has been invaluable. Democratic Alliance leader John Steenhuisen is always quick to point out that his party slipped under the sheets of leadership with the ANC to prevent a doomsday scenario. Although we have been critical of such party-first rhetoric, the rivals he has warned about have done well to prove his point. It has not been a good year for the Economic Freedom Fighters. A poor electoral performance has led to discord and a subsequent hollowing-out of key members (some might say that a purge of rivals is a more appropriate framing). Their once-upon-a-time role as disruptors of a stale political system is now buried. One of those leaders, Floyd Shivambu, has occupied the headlines this week as his falling-out with the uMkhonto weSizwe party continues to play out publicly. The episode is consistent with a turbulent organisation that has failed to distinguish itself from a cult of personality. By contrast, the GNU has miraculously remained intact. The budget debacle has threatened, differing ideologies have simmered, but clear heads have always prevailed. That was desperately needed at the infamous White House meeting last month — a notable success in retrospect. The uncomfortable obsequiousness of our leaders notwithstanding, the co-ordinated message on key issues such as crime allowed South Africa to ride out its fevered moment under the international spotlight. As uncertainty grips the world, it is imperative that we continue to walk with a unified purpose. But stability will only take us so far. The GNU must now begin to think more creatively on how it will solve the country's social ills. Failure to do so will earn it an F on anybody's report card next year.
IOL News
05-06-2025
- Business
- IOL News
The challenges facing South Africa's property market amid global uncertainty
Last week's repo rate cut will help boost the South African property sector a little bit. Image: Picture: Ayanda Ndamane/African News Agency (ANA) The property sector struggles when there is much international and local uncertainty such as that seen in the first quarter of this year. The first quarter gross domestic product (GDP) number is bad at only 0.1% growth, said Professor Waldo Krugell, an economist within the School of Economic Sciences at North West University (NWU). He said the property sector is captured under gross fixed capital formation which saw contractions in residential buildings (-5.8% and contributing -0.6 of a percentage point) as well as construction works (-2.8% and contributing -0.5 of a percentage point). Going forward, Krugell said last week's repo rate cut will help a little bit. However, he said that what is needed is more government of national unity (GNU) reform momentum and some tangible results from implementation. South African bond yields dropped sharply by the end of trade on Wednesday after Parliament passed the National Budget, boosting market confidence in Treasury's ability to tighten control over fiscal management, while the SARB's support for a lower inflation target promotes inflation control and stability, said Bianca Botes, the Director at Citadel Global. She said that markets remain cautious ahead of key US data due to be released on Friday, which could offer fresh direction. 'Recent figures show a slight slowdown in US economic activity, suggesting that tariffs and ongoing uncertainty are weighing on US growth. 'Nonetheless, global equities hit a record high on Wednesday, as investors bet that the volatility sparked by President Trump's 'Liberation Day' declaration might be behind them,' Botes said. Krugell noted with interest, reports of the commercial property sector doing much better in the Western Cape than elsewhere in the country, simply because the economy there is doing much better. 'The need for reform and better service delivery has a distinct spatial character. It underscores the importance of the work of Operation Vulindlela 2.0,' he said. Correlating strongly with City of Cape Town reports of a record-breaking summer tourism season, international property buyers have invested in record numbers in the city's hotspots, according to the Seeff Property Group. Propstats data shows that sales worth almost R2.5 billion were concluded in the first five months of this year, the highest in the last half-a-decade. The total value for the whole of 2024 amounted to R3.4 billion, and it was similar in the prior year, 2023. Sales to international buyers were said to have reached a record R600 million in February, and R700 million in April across the whole city. More than two thirds (67%) of the total value were generated by sales across the Atlantic Seaboard and City Bowl. Ross Levin, licensee for Seeff Atlantic Seaboard, said sales activity has been up quite notably this year. For the Atlantic Seaboard alone, he said sales to international buyers amount to about R530 million for April. Overall, there were sales in just about all of the suburbs. The highest values recorded are in Camps Bay and Bantry Bay, and the highest volumes in Sea Point (27) and the CBD (32). Buyers from more than 40 countries invested in property across the Cape this year. The highest volume was attributable to buyers from Germany, followed by the UK, Netherlands, Switzerland, and other European countries. There has also been a notable uptick in sales to American buyers who bought predominantly in Sea Point, Bantry Bay, Mouille Point and in the City Bowl. Buyers from other African countries have also made a welcome return, including some 12 countries, being Angola, Cameroon, Congo, Eswatini, Gabon, Ghana, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, Nigeria, Tanzania, and Zambia, with Nigeria being the stand-out in terms of the volume of sales. Levin said the whole market across the Atlantic Seaboard and City Bowl has been very active and there was a shortage of stock, thus presenting good opportunities for sellers right now. Notable recent Seeff sales to foreign buyers include two sales to German buyers at R21 million in Camps Bay and R29 million at the Waterfront as well as a R29.5 million sale at the Waterfront to a buyer from Eswatini. Other areas where international buyers have been active include Constantia and Bishopscourt in the Southern Suburbs, False Bay areas such as Muizenberg and Fish Hoek, Southern Peninsula suburbs such as Kommetjie and Scarborough, Hout Bay, and Blouberg, where Marlene Picksley, an agent with Seeff Blouberg concluded a record sale of R16.5 million at Sunset Beach to a buyer from the US. Hout Bay has seen particularly strong demand from international buyers, with as much as 37 sales to buyers from a number of different countries, especially Germany, Netherlands, UK, Denmark, and other European buyers, and the US. According to Stephan Cross, manager for Seeff Hout Bay and Llandudno, the buyers spent between R5 million to R25 million. He said the Hout Bay market has been particularly hot this year with high sales activity and a shortage of stock, thus presenting good opportunities for sellers.
The Herald
03-06-2025
- Business
- The Herald
Economy barely grows in first quarter
South Africa's economy stagnated in the first quarter, eking out quarter-on-quarter growth of just 0.1% as contractions in sectors such as mining and manufacturing offset a strong performance by agriculture. Africa's biggest economy has struggled to build momentum since the 2008-2009 global financial crisis, with annual growth averaging less than 1% over the past decade. Business and consumer confidence has picked up since the formation of a government of national unity (GNU) last year, but that is yet to translate into higher levels of output. Tuesday's data was marginally better than expected, as economists polled by Reuters had predicted GDP would be unchanged from the previous quarter in seasonally adjusted terms. Analysts and the country's top statistics official said the weak growth was worrying. 'Our economy is not growing sufficiently, and at this state, it is easy for it to slide into the negative,' statistician-general Risenga Maluleke told a press conference.
TimesLIVE
29-05-2025
- Politics
- TimesLIVE
Libya's eastern-based government 'may announce force majeure' on oil fields, ports
Libya's eastern-based government said on Wednesday it may announce a force majeure on oil fields and ports citing 'repeated assaults on the National Oil Corporation (NOC)'. The government in Benghazi is not internationally recognised, but most oilfields in the major oil producing country are under the control of eastern Libyan military leader Khalifa Haftar. The government said it may also temporarily relocate the NOC's headquarters to one of the "safe cities" such as Ras Lanuf and Brega, both of which are controlled by the eastern-based government. The NOC is currently located in Tripoli under the control of the internationally recognised government of national unity (GNU). The NOC denied in an earlier statement that the corporation's headquarters was stormed deeming it as 'completely false'. It also emphasised it is operating normally 'and continuing to perform its vital duties without interruption'.
TimesLIVE
14-05-2025
- Politics
- TimesLIVE
Libya clashes point to growing power of Turkey-allied PM Dbeibah
By The killing of a powerful militia leader in the Libyan capital on Monday night sparked hours of intense clashes that drove his group from its main stronghold and may prompt a consolidation of power among armed factions aligned with the Tripoli government. The death of Abdulghani Kikli, a militia leader who had controlled swathes of Tripoli for years, could also have repercussions for the stability of the wider region. Major energy exporter Libya, long split between rival eastern and western factions, is a jumping off point for migrants crossing the Mediterranean and a battleground for rival regional powers, drawing in Russia, Turkey, Egypt and the United Arab Emirates. Following Kikli's death, the government of national unity (GNU) announced the completion of a security operation against what Prime Minister Abdulhamid al-Dbeibah called irregular armed groups. Gunmen loyal to Kikli, widely known by his nickname Ghaniwa, ran prisons and occupied government ministries and financial institutions. "Ghaniwa was de facto king of Tripoli. His henchmen controlled the internal security agency. Other henchmen controlled the distribution of cash transfers from the central bank. They controlled numerous public companies and ministries," said Tarek Megerisi of the European Council on Foreign Relations. Consolidation of power in Tripoli would strengthen Turkish ally Dbeibah and the GNU after repeated attempts to replace him by force over recent years while bolstering his position in an overarching rivalry with eastern Libya factions. Late on Monday, after rising tension between armed factions, pictures circulated online showing Kikli's blood-smeared body with a handgun lying by his hand. Reuters could not verify the circumstances of Kikli's death or confirm the veracity of the pictures showing his body, but his face was widely recognised and fighting erupted across Tripoli soon after they circulated. Factions under Dbeibah's GNU rapidly seized territory and bases long held by Kikli's Security Stabilisation Apparatus (SSA) group, including the Abu Salim district, its old powerbase. With Kikli's downfall, factions that come under the Defence Ministry and are aligned with Dbeibah, principally the 444 Brigade under Mahmoud Hamza, the 111 Brigade and the Joint Force from Misrata, may gain a bigger role. Consolidation by Dbeibah allies could result in Western Libya starting to more closely resemble the east, where commander Khalifa Haftar seized control a decade ago after eliminating rivals and forcing other groups under his sway. "This paves the way for unprecedented levels of territorial consolidation in Tripoli and an increasingly smaller number of groups," said Emad Badi, a senior fellow with the Atlantic Council. Fragmentation Libya's energy facilities are mostly located in areas controlled by Haftar and Monday night's clashes seem unlikely to impact output. Tripoli was calm on Tuesday, witnesses said, while fighters from the 444 and 111 Brigades were visible on Tuesday morning around the city centre and at the SSA's former Abu Salim headquarters, where its insignia had been erased. Fighters from a group allied to the SSA had meanwhile disappeared from the area around the Central Bank of Libya, which they had controlled security access to since last year. Libya has had little peace since a 2011 uprising against long-time autocrat Muammar Gaddafi and it split in 2014 between warring eastern and western factions. While Haftar unified groups in the east, control in Tripoli in the west remained splintered among rival armed groups. Dbeibah was installed as prime minister in 2021 as part of a U.N.-backed process aimed at holding elections later that year. But the election process collapsed and he remains in power, though challenged by an eastern-based parliament. Several efforts to replace him by force failed after clashes in Tripoli, and two years ago groups aligned with him ousted another major armed group, the Nawasi militia. "Dbeibah has been a frustrated leader who had to cohabit with challengers inside Tripoli. He's sending a message he's not going anywhere and Haftar should respect him," said Jalel Harchaoui of the Royal United Services Institute. The main remaining Tripoli armed faction seen as not closely aligned with Dbeibah is the Security Deterrence Force, widely known as Rada, which controls the main Mitiga Airport and other parts of the city centre. Kikli was a baker in 2011 when the Arab Spring sparked the uprising against Gaddafi and he rallied neighbours in his Abu Salim district to take over a local army barracks. As Libya fragmented, Kikli and his expanding group emerged as one of the most powerful of the country's warring armed factions, holding strategically valuable positions around Tripoli and seizing state institutions.
