Jobs! Jobs? Yes, Jobs!

 The Western Cape provincial government, led by the Democratic Alliance, has gone to great lengths to foster an investment friendly environment. Jobs, jobs, jobs! Premier Alan Winder and Cape Town Mayor Geordin Lewis have been at the frontlines of encouraging small to medium size enterprises and larger firms. After years of a majority domination, and despite receiving little to no national support, the WC has managed to drop the unemployment rate in the province to around 20%. To international readers, this may seem high but compared to the national 32% its pretty damn good. 

https://www.statssa.gov.za/publications/P0211/P02114thQuarter2023.pdf

South Africa - Inflation

Its a major problem. Particularly if you live in the Western Cape where the percentage is often higher than the rest of the country. Hopefully employers take this into account when calculating increases. Often they will not and will focus on the national average. 

https://lrs.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Inflation-Monitor-February-2024.pdf

Inhumane Rights Day in Mzansi

South Africa commemorates Human Rights Day today, March 21. The day in 1960 when police opened fired on protesters in Sharpeville killing 69 people. The event was a major turning point in black South Africa's struggle for equality. Some 64 years later we sit, here in a sweltering and calm Cape Town, and ponder on the meaning of the day. For me, and I imagine for many normal South Africans, the memory of the 'dark old days' has faded and been replaced with more pressing issues. 

We have a government, a black-dominated government, which continues to fail us all. The list of its scandals has become a popular meme on South Africa's social media.

How is it that this ANC government has managed to ... excuse the French ... screw over so many people. And even after a massive State Capture Commission which fingered so many cadres in dodgy deals, do we still have a near zero conviction rate? Indeed, despite the ANC's own 'step aside' rule, the ANC's May 29 election list includes scores of persons implicated in graft. 

South Africans will face a test on May 29. Will they vote to keep the corrupted in play or will they choose a new path. Either a centrist liberal DA or perhaps a radical leftist MK or EFF. Time will tell and hopefully, registered voters will make the right choice.

South Africa - Water, Where Art Thou?

 Water. What would we be without it? Securing clean water for consumption and commercial activities is critical for the health and economy of a nation. So why is South Africa failing?

The Department of Water and Sanitation's latest Blue Drop Report provides a startling warning of what the state needs to do to ensure that safe drinking water is available for all the people of South Africa. 

The outcomes of the report paint a grim picture, particularly for those living outside of the major metros. Rural and small town South Africa have been neglected over the past 10 years with unsafe drinking water posing a direct risk. In addition, many municipalities have failed to even communicate to residents when water quality dips. This goes beyond negligence. 

In what is a cruel twist of fate, the DWS has recently signed an agreement with... ZIMBABWE...to pump treated water to Musina, Limpopo, which has been struggling with water shortages. How far South Africa has fallen.

https://www.sanews.gov.za/south-africa/south-africa-and-zimbabwe-enter-landmark-water-sharing-deal

Nigeria's Troubled North

Conflicts define humanity to a degree. No age goes without some major catastrophe that sees blood letting that shocks the senses. Gaza is one. This week the UN warned of a potential famine in northern Gaza due to food shortages caused by the ongoing delay in food aid to the besieged territory. 

In a no less shocking development, a new Human Rights Watch report has shone the light on insecurity in Nigeria. Criminal bands continue to ravage central and northern parts of the country in an ongoing campaign of conflict over scarce resources enflamed by religious and ethnic hatred. The Islamist extremist group, Boko Haram, kidnapped approximately 200 school children in Ngala Local Government Area of Borno State in late February. On March 7, bandits kidnapped 287 schoolchildren in Kaduna State. Another 15 were kidnapped in Sokoto State on March 9. The motive? Ransom most likely. A demand has been reported by bandits related to the Kaduna issue. For the militants, the motive could be financial, religious or practical. Children make good recruits or servants. 

Nigeria's security problems run deep and are one of several plaguing the Sahel region. Coups, insurgencies, communal violence, and foreign interference mesh with conflict over resources to produce a volatile and violent playground. Little to no protests or international attention on these battles. TIA. 

HRW report https://www.hrw.org/news/2024/03/18/armed-groups-kidnap-hundreds-across-northern-nigeria

SA Elections - GGA Report - Western Cape takes the lead

 The latest Good Governance Africa report is out https://gga.org/governance-performance-index-south-africa-2024/ and no surprises where the best run regions are. The DA-run Western Cape dominates with some outliers in ANC-controlled locations. The bulk of poor performing regions are ANC-run. Trust the data.

South Africa Elections - May 29

 Over the past two weeks, I've shared various data points about governance, performance and service delivery. The picture I have painted shows, clearly, that areas where the Democratic Alliance (DA) governs, it governs well. Cape Town and the Western Cape have had DA-led governments for over two terms allowing the party to build and establish excellent governance records. Similiar building efforts are underway in Tshwane. Given the opportunity and time, the DA is the most likely to move South Africa forward in terms of several metrics including:

Good governance
Financial responsibility
Service delivery
Economic development
Education
Waste Removal
Electricity 

And much much more. Love or hate them, they've done the job. Isn't it time to stop voting for the African National Congress (ANC) or some other half-witted, two-person party that pops up and lean on the DA for a while? The answer is obvious if you care about the data.

SA Elections - Race

Black Twitter jumps on 'white racism' regularly while conveniently overlooking significant black racism. If a referendum came out today asking blacks to vote on whether to curtail the rights of whites, what would the result be?

In the early 1990s, the ruling white NP asked white South Africans to vote in a referendum which essentially, if passed, would lead to the end of Apartheid ie the end of white South Africa's privileged position. Thankfully, the majority voted YES. Notice the Cape's overwhelming response. This is telling and speaks to the region's incredibly liberal outlook compared to the Afrikaner nationalism that has deep roots in the north, inland part of the country.

SA Elections - Governance

 One clue to who runs what. The DA runs the bottom southwestern area. The ANC runs pretty much everything else.

SA Elections - Poverty

 The ANC has done tremendously to provide basic services to its people. Why then has it failed to move people out of poverty? And why is the opposition-held Western Cape doing so well. The obvious answer is the ANC is corrupt as hell and basically doesn't care. The DA, for its part, accused of racism and classism comes out top. 

SA Elections - The Land Question

 The EFF and ANC, two far left wing political parties in South Africa, will have you believe that land is the most critical issue facing South Africans still battling to overcome the legacy of Apartheid. Yet, poll after poll will show that jobs, crime, education, and healthcare are consistently more important. 

These two militant and populist groups will also have us believe that 'Whites' dominate land ownership when in fact the state and the Zulu's Ingonyama Trust own the bulk of land in South Africa. 

The DA is also regularly positioned by these groupings as a proxy of White Monopoly Capital and the evil West. It begs the question then why in the DA-controlled Western Cape Land Redistribution has been the most successful. It flies in the face of the propaganda spouted by the radicals.

https://www.gov.za/news/media-statements/western-cape-agriculture-land-reform-report-04-dec-2023

SA Elections - Provinces

 Why are ANC-run provinces failing on almost every metric? One can't blame Apartheid forever.

SA Elections - Provincial Achievements

 I'll just leave this here.

SA Elections - Education

The government has done one thing right (with the help of universities) there are more blacks enrolling than ever before. This is great for the long term trajectory of our country. 

SA Elections - Piped Water Access

 After 27 years you'd think the ANC socialists would've got piped water right at least. Well...no.

SA Elections - Water Supply

 You need food and water. If water is switched off there are serious health concerns. So which province has the fewest outages? Trust the data. GHS 2021.

Foreign Aid & South Africa

The US is often portrayed by the ANC, EFF and its China-loving supporters to be quite an evil imperial state. Yet, every year it receives millions of dollars in aid from this same Great Satan. To anyone with commonsense, it seems that all these haters should keep quiet and tip the hat. 

https://www.foreignassistance.gov/cd/south%20africa/ 

SA Elections - Service Delivery - Bucket Toilets & Sanitation

 

The ruling party has done well in getting sanitation up to scratch. But its the Western Cape that still leads overall. Top graph from the GHS 2021. Bottom from StatSA 2019.

Why after 25 years were bucket toilets still a thing in so many ANC-led municipalities. Why is it that bucket toilets aren't such a major thing in the Western Cape? 

SA Elections - Stats - Internet access

 Access to the internet is key, globally. In poverty-stricken locations even more so. Access to the internet is access to communication, assistance, and employment. So where in South Africa is it best? The opposition-led Western Cape does it again. 

SA Elections - Stats - Waste removal

 Its not as sexy as a good race-war but for most South Africans having one's rubbish removed is an essential touch point with your government. So which region fares best? The Western Cape does it again. From the GHS 2021.

SA Elections - Stats - Where does the money come from?

 

From StatSA's General Household Survey. In the opposition-held Western Cape salaried income is highest. Grant payout tied lowest with Gauteng. Social grants - handouts essentially - are highest in the ruling parties' provinces. Socialism, it seems, doesn't mean prosperity for all.

South Africa's General Elections 2024

 South Africans go to the polls May 29 to select a new national (National Assembly which elects the president) and provincial leadership. The contest couldn't be tighter. In the run-up to the poll I'll be posting a few statistics which could help you decide. So keep an eye on the blog in the coming weeks.