FEROCIOUS FLOODS SHOW OUR SYSTEMS’ BETRAYAL OF THE MOST VULNERABLE
![Flooding in the Kruger National Park, which straddles Limpopo and Mpumalanga. [Image: Inside Metros]](https://gsmn.co.za/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/flooding-.jpg)
We are just barely concluding the first month of the New Year, yet the magnitude of devastation that’s unfolded could span a lifetime. In a mere ten days, parts of South Africa, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, and Eswatini have been ravaged by an entire year’s worth of rain. The severe flooding has been merciless, killing over 100 […]
HERE TO STAY: MOTHER TONGUE BILINGUAL LEARNING REINFORCED AS A SILVER BULLET TO SOLVE SA’S DIRE LITERACY CRISIS
2025 has been a watershed year for South Africa’s Mother Tongue-based Bilingual Education (MTbBE) “equaliser” policy. It has also been the year that confirmed the country’s severe literacy crisis. Casting a shadow on South Africa’s ability to achieve its 2030 goal that all 10-year-olds will be able to read for meaning, last week’s release of […]
“FLUENT IN EVERYTHING BUT OURSELVES” – THE SILENT EXTINCTION OF AFRICAN LANGUAGES
Every year, hundreds of African languages move closer to extinction, not because they are forgotten, but because they are systematically erased. Across our continent, languages that once carried our wisdom, history, humour, and heritages are disappearing. They are being replaced — not by natural evolution, but by a system that rewards foreign tongues and punishes […]
NYDA EXECUTIVE CHAIRPERSON AT 80TH SESSION OF THE UNITED NATIONS GENERAL ASSEMBLY
As the National Youth Development Agency (NYDA), we were honoured to form part of the South African delegation to the 80th Session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) High-Level Week. During this historic gathering, we participated in the high-level plenary meeting commemorating the 30th anniversary of the World Programme of Action for Youth, reaffirming […]
WHY PRIDE MONTH IS STILL A PROTEST, NOT A CELEBRATION
In South Africa, the month of June is not only Youth Month, it is also the international Pride Month. This is a commemorative month-long observance dedicated to the celebration of LGBTQ+ pride, celebrating the contributions of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer people in local and international cultures and communities. South Africa is not only […]
THE PRESERVATION OF WHITE PRIVILEGE IS ANTITHESIS TO THE NATION’S DREAM TO BE FREE
This year marks the 49th anniversary of June 16, 1976. It is almost half a century of memory with which we are dealing. Through the dialogue held in Soweto this week, we engaged in a struggle against forgetting. In South Africa, June 16, 1976 was the bravest action undertaken, only 16 years after the Sharpeville Massacre […]
JUNE 16, 1976: THE DAY THE CHILDREN ROARED
“History is not a burden on the memory but an illumination of the soul.” Each year, as June 16 approaches, our nation stirs with memory, pain, and a yearning to understand. The date, etched in blood and fire, is more than a memorial. It is a mirror—of what was, what is, and what still must […]
HUMAN RIGHTS VIOLATIONS AGAINST CHILDREN BLATANTLY DISHONOUR OUR CONSTITUTION
This past week, massive protests erupted across the nation following the harrowing sexual assault of a Grade 1 learner, seven-year-old Cwecwe, at Bergview College, a private school in Matatiele, Eastern Cape. The incident, which reportedly resulted in the drugging and rape of the young child, allegedly occurred in October of 2024. Despite reports that the mother reported […]
MCDONALD’S CONTROVERSIAL DESKS: THE ART OF OBTAINING RESOURCES WHILE AVOIDING COPORATE EXPLOITATION
This past week, the Basic Education Minister Siviwe Gwarube has doubled-down on her decision to dole out McDonald’s branded foldable desks to two schools in Cape Town. The dual-purpose foldable desks, which double as wheelie backpacks, have been pioneered by MiDesk Global and donated by McDonalds, were unveiled at the end of February in partnership […]
IMMEDIATE SUSPENSION OF FOOD SALES ON SCHOOL PREMISES TO PROTECT LEARNERS
The Gauteng Department of Education (GDE) has instructed all schools to suspend the sale of food within and around school premises until further notice. This decision is informed by the recent and alarming increase in incidents of foodborne illnesses affecting learners across various schools in the province. The Department is deeply concerned by how these […]