Business has identified three clear priority areas and initiatives to get things off the ground. These areas are energy, railways, ports, roads and corruption and crime.
Adrian Gore writes that he has a deep belief in the potential of our country and it is clear to him that this is not a time for pessimism, despair and inaction. He argues that, on the contrary, we are in desperate need of optimism, hope and action.
Right now, times are tough for every South African. Every person I speak to is concerned and despairing; there is a deep sense of futility. The power crisis, combined with the physical decay and widespread corruption, has eroded hope and replaced it with despondence, and one thing seems to follow another. Against this backdrop, I`m often asked questions along the following lines:
As an optimist, what do you think now? Have your views changed?
The answer is no let me explain why.
I want to be clear upfront that my position has never been about blind optimism, but rather about potential. I believe strongly that our country has unique capability and promise, not to mention people who are warm, resourceful, and adaptable, and share incredible goodwill and humour. My views are not based on opinion or emotion, but on data.
There is a unique resilience to South Africa: despite the estimated cost of load shedding, a 2% to 3% loss in economic growth, our economy performed well in 2022. The Economist recently published a list of 34 mostly rich OECD economies, ranking their economic performance over the year based on five key variables (GDP growth, consumer prices, inflation breadth, net government debt changes, and stock market performance). Had South Africa been included in this analysis, it would have ranked 15th (or 16th, had the methodology included the muted performance of the last quarter of 2022). While the economy is under pressure now, imagine how it could grow if we solve our energy crisis and other challenges and work collectively to realise our economy`s potential.
Recognising potential is critical. We know from behavioural science that we are more compelled to act if we believe we have something to lose. If we lose sight of our country`s sophistication, scale, and beauty, we lose sight of the fact that there is something precious worth fighting for. This creates a negative feedback cycle that is causal and destructive: if we see our country as a lost cause, why dream, build or invest? On the other hand, if we see what we stand to lose, we evoke the activism and innovation needed to drive progress and growth and overcome decline.
Consider that SA comprises 75% of the pension fund assets in Africa (as per the latest available data); has a domestic airline route, Cape Town to Johannesburg, that is within the 20 busiest in the world (2021); and has globally recognised universities that lead the way on many frontiers of global innovation, as per the continent`s scientific response to Covid-19. The fact is, the only way to alleviate the tragic levels of poverty and unemployment is to realise our potential.
But to realise potential, you need optimism. Not blind optimism the naive faith that everything is good or can get better on the current trajectory but real, durable optimism. To quote Hannah Ritchie in her article An End to Doomerism:
Optimism is seeing problems as challenges that are solvable; it’s having the confidence that there are things we can do to make a difference.
Pessimism seems smart, but it isn`t. There is an `optimism stigma`, especially in South Africa. I think I know why. People believe that if they are pessimistic, they are prudent and thinking critically, and will somehow call out decline and failure. If optimistic, they believe they will somehow tolerate the unacceptable. This is not the case. Seeing potential makes you more enraged by failure. You find the Eskom situation more unacceptable, not less how can this happen in a country as sophisticated as ours? Blind pessimism, and not optimism, is detrimental to progress: its passive commentary breaks down sentiment and capacity to act, as opposed to building it, and does so more quickly. Actions and solutions stall. It is the optimist who declares: `Not on my watch! and liberates potential through action.
So, what can we do to realise potential and address failings? I make my comments here from the perspective of business. Strategy follows an understanding of context, and the context, in my view, is a state with many constructive policies, but one that is currently moving

way too slowly and ineffectively to achieve these policy objectives, together with a considerable breakdown in the capability of the public sector.
When capability breaks down, incompetence and corruption creep in. In this light, we must not underestimate the capability and agility of the private sector, which has adapted and grown to fill gaps just look at how quickly a renewable-energy sector is forming to counter Eskom`s incapacity.
In addition, research shows that business is one of the most trusted social partners. As per the latest Edelman Trust Barometer (2022), business is perceived as being able to both lead in responding to societal problems and to get results. If you accept this, then business must constructively engage and assist to realise the country`s potential by working with the government and other social partners.
There is a strong precedent for this. The Covid-19 vaccination programme was initially late in its implementation, with doomsday predictions that South Africa would not successfully execute on the vaccine rollout, especially given that the Pfizer vaccine required a complex cold-storage chain of delivery. However, with the exceptional work done by both the public and private sector, the country developed the capacity to vaccinate at scale and in line with global best practice.
With the Covid-19 pandemic and the vaccine rollout, the problem was unequivocal and present, with limited alternatives enabling focus and intensity. Now, with the country deep in an energy crisis amid other difficulties, we need the same urgency and focus across a broader range of issues.
Business has identified three clear priority areas and, within them, a limited set of initiatives. If implemented, these will turn the flywheel in the next 12 months, creating powerful momentum for change. The priority areas include:
• Energy: Stabilising energy supply by significantly accelerating the role of the private sector in supporting the implementation of the President’s Energy Action Plan, including improving the performance and availability of key power stations, expanding and strengthening generation and grid infrastructure, and unlocking municipal wheeling and trading of electricity.
• Railways, ports and roads: Improving logistics infrastructure by fast-tracking agreement on the private sector participation framework for the operation and maintenance of our railways, ports and roads.
• Crime and corruption: Supporting our key law enforcement agencies by providing resources and expertise, on an arms-length basis, to improve investigative and prosecutorial capabilities.
I know that business is ready: we have the skills and resources and the determination to assist the state. We need to work together with government urgently to get this done, and we can. The effect will be a point of inflection for our country in both substance and narrative, changing our collective futures. This progress is what is needed to create jobs and to generate the tax revenues needed for a comprehensive social security net for the poor.
Individual citizens can also engage and assist, both attitudinally and practically. On the first, if we are to address poverty and job creation, we can`t allow the pessimists to corrupt our outlook on the country`s potential or convince us that we are already in or are heading towards becoming an irreversibly failed state. On the second, the `broken windows` theory in criminology states that visible signs of decay and civil disorder create an environment that allows further destructive behaviour to flourish.
We need to take a stand for excellence and against corruption and decline keeping public spaces, streets, and pavements well maintained and clean, and always resisting bribes and kickbacks. This not only elevates the collective mood but also provides us with a sense of individual agency over our future the very thing that has seemingly been taken from us.
In conclusion, I have a deep conviction in the potential of our country and it is clear to me that this is not a time for pessimism, despair and inaction. On the contrary, we are in desperate need of optimism, hope and action. Now. V.4759

One of the highlighted topics: Critical Skills Visa.

- Key Insight: Is your profession on the Critical Skills List? This visa is your fast track to working in South Afr...
- This matter relates to critical skills visa and its broader implications.
- Individuals are advised to seek professional guidance.

Is your profession on the Critical Skills List? This visa is your fast trac V.6139
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One of the applicants, Phindile Mazibuko, became a victim of identity theft in 2012 when fraudulent transactions occurred, using her personal details.

-The Pretoria High Court found that the department of home affairs had violated constitutional rights without due process.
-Only half of Lawyers for Human Rights` test group has been unblocked, while 385 000 identities remain blocked nationwide.
-LHR appeals extension, urges affected people to seek help now.

Lawyers for Human Rights (LHR) are intensifying pressure on the department of home affairs over the national ID-blocking crisis, accusing the state of acting too slowly to unblock qualifying individuals despite a landmark court ruling.

In January last year, the Pretoria High Court found that the department`s practice of blocking IDs without due process was unlawful and unconstitutional. One of the applicants, Phindile Mazibuko, a Swati citizen and South African permanent resident since 1998, fell victim to identity theft in 2012 when fraudsters used her personal details.

 V.6133
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The Border Management Authority (BMA) has doubled its staff at Airports in South Africa , including immigration officers.

What does this mean for travelers? V.6128
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The Border Management Authority (BMA) has doubled its staff at Airports in South Africa , including immigration officers.

What does this mean for travelers? V.6129
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A Washington state mother and her 6-year-old son have been released after spending more than three weeks in US immigration detention due to a brief trip to Canada and a small paperwork mistake, her attorney told CNN on Saturday.

Sarah Shaw, a New Zealand citizen who has lived legally in the US since she arrived in 2021, was detained at the Blaine, Washington, Customs and Border Protection checkpoint when returning home after dropping her two oldest children off at the Vancouver airport for a flight to visit their grandparents in New Zealand. Shaw, 33, chose the flight out of Vancouver because it was direct and she didn`t want her children to have to navigate a layover alone, her attorney Minda Thorward, told CNN.

 V.6130
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On 22 July 2025, the Gauteng High Court dismissed Sitrusrand Boerdery`s review of the Department of Employment and Labour`s refusal to issue a Working Conditions and Salary Benchmarking Certificate, an essential precondition for obtaining corporate visas under the Immigration Act.

Acting Judge Kekana AJ held that the Department`s decision was lawful, rational and procedurally fair. This judgment illustrates how businesses can - and must - structure their corporate visa applications to meet statutory requirements, and how legal practitioners should prepare robust review challenges when administrative authorities decline to recommend foreign-work permits.

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The United States could forfeit an estimated 9.4 billion dollars in visitor spending over the next three years following the introduction of a new 250 dollars `visa integrity fee,` according to industry groups, who warn the policy risks undermining tourism and costing thousands of jobs.
The United States’ decision to introduce a 250 dollars `visa integrity fee` on international visitors has triggered sharp criticism from the global tourism industry, with officials warning that the measure could deter millions of travellers and cost the U.S. economy billions.
The 250dollar `visa integrity fee,` part of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act signed on July 4, 2025, will take effect later this year. According to immigration law firm Envoy Global, it applies to all nonimmigrant visa holders which include students, tourists, temporary workers, and business visitors particularly from African countries. V.6132
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The Border Management Authority (BMA) has doubled its staff at Airports in South Africa , including immigration officers.

What does this mean for travelers? V.6127
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1. Right to Legal Representation•You have the right to consult with a legal representative.•Contact an immigration practitioner, legal aid clinic, or attorney urgently.•Do not sign any documents without understanding them fully. 2. Section 34 of the Immigration Act•You must be brought to court with 48 hours to confirm arrest but you can remain locked up very long as courts figure out what to do with you •If you`re found to be illegally in South Africa, you may be detained for up to 30 days (extendable by a magistrate) pending deportation.•BUT this cannot happen arbitrarily. You must be informed of your rights, and Home Affairs must follow due process.- becomes a nightmare , you could lose your job , business , place to stay V.6121
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Driving for Bolt, Uber, Mr D, or Checkers Sixty60?If you`re undocumented, you`re risking more than just your income.The Risks if You`re Not Legal: - Vehicle impoundment - Heavy fines - Arrest & deportation - Permanent bans from working in SA V.6122
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