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        <title>Polity.org.za | Other Opinions</title>
        <description><![CDATA[Polity.org.za offers a unique take on news, with a focus on political, legal, economic and social issues in South Africa and Africa, as well as international affairs. Polity strives to provide our readers reliable and objective reporting on important issues that drive our society.]]></description>
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            <title>Diffused accountability is often fertile ground for rent-seeking </title>
            <link>https://www.polity.org.za/article/diffused-accountability-is-often-fertile-ground-for-rent-seeking-2026-08-19</link>
            <description><![CDATA[At the constitutional and governance level, the Presidency cannot simply treat Eskom as an autonomous private corporation. The national energy system, economic growth, fiscal risk, and electricity security are all issues of national public policy. The President and Cabinet therefore have a legitimate interest in Eskom's strategic direction. The crucial question is how that influence is exercised, through which institutions, and in whose interests. The deeper question posed by the current governance crisis is whether formal governance structures remain in place while effective decision-making is dispersed and contested due to the frequent intervention of executives, boards, ministers, political actors, regulators, and private market participants.]]></description>
            <author>Creamer Media Reporter  </author>
            <category>Other Opinions</category>
            <pubDate>Wed, 19 Aug 2026 11:19:00 +0200</pubDate>
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        <editor>Creamer Media Reporter  </editor>
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            <title>A proven solution to South Africa’s high school STEAM gaps is already reaching 2 050 learners</title>
            <link>https://www.polity.org.za/article/a-proven-solution-to-south-africas-high-school-steam-gaps-is-already-reaching-2-050-learners-2026-08-18</link>
            <description><![CDATA[South Africa’s Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Mathematics (STEAM) teacher shortage has dominated the conversation, but the focus has mostly stayed on the crisis. A parliamentary response from the Department of Basic Education revealed that 464 public schools do not offer Mathematics, with shortages of qualified Mathematics teachers among the reasons cited while the most recent published national infrastructure data showed that 82.4% of public schools had no laboratories and 74% had ...]]></description>
            <author>Creamer Media Reporter  </author>
            <category>Other Opinions</category>
            <pubDate>Tue, 18 Aug 2026 00:00:00 +0200</pubDate>
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        <editor>Creamer Media Reporter  </editor>
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            <title>Illegal mining impact on infrastructure and the economy</title>
            <link>https://www.polity.org.za/article/illegal-mining-impact-on-infrastructure-and-the-economy-2026-08-14</link>
            <description><![CDATA[In South Africa, policy formulation is often based on inaccurate questions. The policy question of addressing illegal mining needs to be approached differently from the usual "Illegal mining is a crime; therefore, suppress it” framework. South Africa has a historical precedent: a largely agrarian economy was once converted into an industrial economy through mineral extraction. A significant portion of the current informal/illegal mining sector operates outside of that industrial structure, which presents a current difficulty. Therefore, the policy question is not whether illicit mining should continue to be illegal – it shouldn't – but rather how to integrate small-scale and genuine artisanal mining into the formal economy while actively combating organised criminal mining. That distinction is significant.]]></description>
            <author>Creamer Media Reporter  </author>
            <category>Other Opinions</category>
            <pubDate>Fri, 14 Aug 2026 11:22:00 +0200</pubDate>
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        <updated>1786709926</updated>
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        <editor>Creamer Media Reporter  </editor>
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            <title>Future disconnect: The digital divide in SA’s energy minerals boom</title>
            <link>https://www.polity.org.za/article/future-disconnect-the-digital-divide-in-sas-energy-minerals-boom-2026-08-12</link>
            <description><![CDATA[The minerals that keep the world’s digital infrastructure running are extracted from communities where many young people still struggle to access reliable internet. Sakhile Dube investigates. For many young people in the mining towns of North West province, employment opportunities via internet access remain out of reach. Yet these are the places where the minerals needed to power every search query, artificial intelligence (AI) prompt and cloud upload are extracted.]]></description>
            <author>Creamer Media Reporter  </author>
            <category>Other Opinions</category>
            <pubDate>Wed, 12 Aug 2026 11:32:00 +0200</pubDate>
        <a_id>727643</a_id>
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        <editor>Creamer Media Reporter  </editor>
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        <image_title>Open Access Data Centres in Isando, east of Johannesburg, stands in contrast to mining communities like Marikana and Kroondal, where the platinum group metals powering the digital economy are extracted but many residents remain excluded from its benefits due to limited internet access</image_title>
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            <title>On Satellites, South Africa and Starlink</title>
            <link>https://www.polity.org.za/article/on-satellites-south-africa-and-starlink-2026-07-28</link>
            <description><![CDATA[In 2019, Elon Musk launched the first 60 Starlink satellites. This was the start of a new satellite internet network. Starlink uses low-earth-orbit satellites, usually called LEO satellites. They travel around the Earth at an altitude of about 550 kilometres. By late 2021, Starlink had about 1 500 satellites in orbit and was able to offer a full commercial service, the service being a high quality internet connection via satellite reaching remote and isolated areas. Today Starlink has more than 10 000 satellites serving more than 150 countries and territories.]]></description>
            <author>Creamer Media Reporter  </author>
            <category>Other Opinions</category>
            <pubDate>Tue, 28 Jul 2026 09:00:00 +0200</pubDate>
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        <editor>Creamer Media Reporter  </editor>
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        <image_title>JP Landman</image_title>
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            <title>South Africa's economy is adversely affected by corruption and instability in the justice system</title>
            <link>https://www.polity.org.za/article/south-africas-economy-is-adversely-affected-by-corruption-and-instability-in-the-justice-system-2026-07-27</link>
            <description><![CDATA[South Africa's long-term economic growth is constrained by corruption and instability in the justice system. Their impact increases the cost of doing business, undermines investor confidence, undermines the state's ability to provide infrastructure and public services, and lowers investor confidence. Combined, they reduce productivity, investment, employment, and fiscal sustainability. Legal and regulatory frameworks must be stable for both domestic and foreign investors. Investors seek higher ...]]></description>
            <author>Creamer Media Reporter  </author>
            <category>Other Opinions</category>
            <pubDate>Mon, 27 Jul 2026 11:36:00 +0200</pubDate>
        <a_id>726505</a_id>
        <updated>1785146062</updated>
        <published>1785144960</published>
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        <editor>Creamer Media Reporter  </editor>
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            <title>Parallel financial systems are reinventing Africa’s financial landscape</title>
            <link>https://www.polity.org.za/article/parallel-financial-systems-are-reinventing-africas-financial-landscape-2026-07-23</link>
            <description><![CDATA[The digital revolution has enabled African countries to broaden access to financial services for the benefit of all Africans. Smart phones have been central to this transformation. With new methods of purchasing goods and obtaining loans, African countries are also better positioned to address the challenge of national financial sovereignty. Economists are concerned that international banking systems and lending institutions, on which African nations have long depended, represent a form of ...]]></description>
            <author>Creamer Media Reporter  </author>
            <category>Other Opinions</category>
            <pubDate>Thu, 23 Jul 2026 11:50:00 +0200</pubDate>
        <a_id>726309</a_id>
        <updated>1784800573</updated>
        <published>1784800200</published>
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        <editor>Creamer Media Reporter  </editor>
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            <title>South Africans deserve answers on who advises Home Affairs on immigration and who is holding ...</title>
            <link>https://www.polity.org.za/article/south-africans-deserve-answers-on-who-advises-home-affairs-on-immigration-and-who-is-holding-government-accountable-2026-07-23</link>
            <description><![CDATA[I have said it before, and I will say it again: “I don’t have a plan for Africa, I have a plan for South Africa.” This statement has never been about turning our backs on the African continent. It is about recognising the fundamental responsibility of any South African government: to put the interests of South Africans first, to secure our borders, to protect our economy, to create jobs and to ensure that our laws are enforced.]]></description>
            <author>Thabi  Shomolekae</author>
            <category>Other Opinions</category>
            <pubDate>Thu, 23 Jul 2026 09:27:00 +0200</pubDate>
        <a_id>726285</a_id>
        <updated>1784792349</updated>
        <published>1784791620</published>
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        <editor>Creamer Media Reporter  </editor>
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        <image_title>ActionSA President Herman Mashaba</image_title>
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            <title>Transforming South Africa’s power grid, virtually</title>
            <link>https://www.polity.org.za/article/transforming-south-africas-power-grid-virtually-2026-07-22</link>
            <description><![CDATA[As South Africa’s rooftop solar and battery boom creates millions of connected energy assets, Virtual Power Plants could transform homes into a flexible power network. Thabo Molelekwa investigates if regulation can keep up with innovation. When rolling blackouts started nearly two decades ago, South Africans started investing billions of rands in rooftop solar panels, batteries and backup power, but few imagined those household systems could one day function as a single power station.]]></description>
            <author>Creamer Media Reporter  </author>
            <category>Other Opinions</category>
            <pubDate>Wed, 22 Jul 2026 09:08:00 +0200</pubDate>
        <a_id>726169</a_id>
        <updated>1784704475</updated>
        <published>1784704080</published>
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        <editor>Creamer Media Reporter  </editor>
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            <title>International migrants, jobs and crime in South Africa: What do the numbers show? </title>
            <link>https://www.polity.org.za/article/international-migrants-jobs-and-crime-in-south-africa-what-do-the-numbers-show-2026-07-21</link>
            <description><![CDATA[Amid rising hostility towards international migrants, anti-migrant protests have spread across South Africa in 2026. Some have involved intimidation, the denial of access to public services and fatal violence.  False information has flourished in this climate, and Africa Check has been tracking it live. ]]></description>
            <author>Africa  Check</author>
            <category>Other Opinions</category>
            <pubDate>Tue, 21 Jul 2026 12:43:00 +0200</pubDate>
        <a_id>726123</a_id>
        <updated>1784630825</updated>
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        <editor>Africa  Check</editor>
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