The So What?
The So What? is a South African podcast featuring in-depth conversations about issues affecting the country. Veteran journalist Ruda Landman speaks with political and trend analyst J P Landman, who uses data and facts to challenge hearsay, conspiracies and misinformation. Episodes cover topics such as load shedding, corruption, politics, economics and foreign policy. The aim is to help listeners make informed decisions and form their own opinions about the state of the nation.
Episodes
On Satellites, South Africa and Starlink
In this episode JP looks at the players in the low-earth-orbit satellite industry; who is operating in South Africa, where Starlink fits in, and what the possibilities are for the future.For more about JP, and to read his newsletter, please visit his website.
US, China, South Africa: Quo Vadis?
In this episode we look at the big picture, especially the shifting trade relations between SA, China and the US.For more about JP, and to read his newsletter, please visit his website.
A Story of African Innovation
In this episode we tell the story of a young entrepreneur from Pretoria, whose award-winning innovation can change the delivery of medicine all over Africa.For more about JP, and to read his newsletter, please visit his website.
The Achilles Heel of South Africa: Local Government
In this episode JP discusses what is being done to change our municipal system in order to safeguard funds for maintenance and capital investment, as well as instituting a framework for running coalitions.For more about JP, and to read his newsletter, please visit his website.
NHI: Where Are We Now?
After the Department of Health’s presentation to parliament three weeks ago and the medium-term budget statement last week, NHI is back in the headlines. Let’s see if we can come to grips with where we’re at. It’s a complex topic, so we’re spending a little bit more time on it than usual. For more about JP, and to read his newsletter, please visit his website.
Project Vulindlela
In this episode, JP makes a case for his belief that South Africa has over the last five years shifted from being – or trying to be – a developmental state, to being a partnership state, where government and the private sector work together to build the country’s systems and structures. It is co-ordinated from the Presidency by what is called Project Vulindlela, which translates as “open the way”.
Getting a Grip on the Informal Sector
In a speech a few weeks ago, the outgoing CEO of Capitec cast doubt on the accuracy of the country’s recognition of the informal sector, and therefore the unemployment rate. In this episode, we look at how StatsSA arrive at their figures, and how that compares with international best practice. For more about JP, and to read his newsletter, please visit his website.
Budgets and Tariffs: So Where Are We Now?
Both South Africa's budget and the president's visit to the White House got a lot of air time recently. After the dust has settled, where do we stand? For more about JP, and to read his newsletter, please visit his website.
Budget 3.0 A Moment of Decision
Up to now, South Africa’s parliament could only vote yes or no to a budget prepared by Treasury. They had no say over the nitty gritty. This time round, that has changed. It’s all in their hands. Which way will they decide: cut the expenditure cloak to fit the cloth of diminished income, or borrow more and incur a heavier debt burden? For more about JP, and to read his newsletter, please visit his
Of Budgets and Tariffs
We look at two momentous developments on the same day: the passing of the fiscal framework with a paper-thin majority, and Donald Trump's trade tariffs against friend and foe. For more about JP, and to read his newsletter, please visit his website.
South Africa's Water Crisis and the Reform Agenda
South Africa faces a deepening water crisis as water boards go unpaid and supply to customers is interrupted. This episode discusses how the system works, where it breaks down and what is being done about it. The good news: a lot is happening and has happened to secure the bulk supply. Municipalities remain the weakest link, but there too things are shifting. For more about JP, and to read his new
40 Days That Changed the World
In just 40 days in office, Donald Trump has change the world order fundamentally – for the worse. What does this mean for South Africa, and what is the best response? For more about JP, and to read his newsletter, please visit his website.
AMSA: The Sound and Fury of a Partial Closing
AMSA’s closure of its long steel operations has caused a furore. It fits into a global picture a decade or more in the making, and it illuminates a hard policy choice for our government, like all governments: protect an industry and make the product more expensive, or let the industry find its way and define a different focus for your industrial policy. For more about JP, and to read his newslette
Investment: Pulling It All Together
Turning South Africa into one big construction site is the expressed ideal of ministers from both the ANC and the DA. What is the state of play and what are the prospects? For more about JP, and to read his newsletter, please visit his website.
Some You Win, Some You Lose
After an exceptionally busy two weeks in politics and policy, we discuss continued progress with structural reform, supported by government-business co-operation; and also the local and national implications of instability in Gauteng metro governments. Some you win, some you lose. For more about JP, and to read his newsletter, please visit his website.
So Far, So Good
Two-and-a-half months after the election, the Government of National Unity is holding. In this episode, we look at what is keeping it together, the benefits of that unity, and what may threaten it in future. For more about JP, and to read his newsletter, please visit his website.
Elections: A Historic Shift to the Middle
This episode looks at the very important things that did NOT happen in this election season, as well as exploring the possibilities of the brand new coalition territory we’re entering into. For more about JP, and to read his newsletter, please visit his website.
Elections Update
52 days before the election we look at the impact of the formation of Jacob Zuma’s MK Party, and reflect on possible developments after the elections, which may prove more important than what happens before 29 May 2024.For more about JP, and to read his newsletter, please visit his website.
Elections 2024
On the eve of the national elections, this episode outlines the broad patterns that can be discerned from poll numbers, and considers possible coalitions if the ANC were to lose their ruling majority. In light of speculation about policy uncertainty and populism, we also look at trends in the 2024 budget.So what? Expectations that we will have “a new national government” are unrealistic. Nationall
2024 - Electricity, Once Again!
This episode unpacks the Integrated Resource Plan 2023, recently published for public comment in order to replace the previous version from 2019. It is a deeply disappointing document, visionless and without urgency.So what? Eskom will not get us out of the our energy crisis. The utility’s energy availability factor keeps falling, sketching a relentless downward trend. Fortunately, regulatory refo
Thoughts After a Visit to China
In this episode, JP reflects on his impressions after a short study visit to China. In just 45 years, they have lifted themselves out of poverty. It is an astonishing achievement. So what? The hallmark of the Chinese growth story is pragmatism and pursuing what works. They will determine their own destiny, regardless of the actions of outsiders. For more about JP, and to read his newsletter, plea
Neither a One-Day, Nor a One-Person Job
This episode provides a bit of a twist on our annual overview of the fight against corruption. Research on countering corruption in America around the turn of the 20th century finds that a) it can be done, but b) it is not easy or linear, and depends to a large extent on building institutional capacity. Against that background, we look at (relatively) new institutions in South Africa, like the SIU
Coalitions – Important Shifts
Three months after our first episodes discussing coalitions, we look at three important developments: the IFP-DA agreement in KZN, the intervention of the ANC Veterans’ League, and a meeting on coalitions convened by Deputy President Paul Mashatile. We also discuss the multi-party pact and the possibility of minimum thresholds for participating in government. So what? To deal with chaos at local g
Integrating Economics and Foreign Policy
In this episode we look at the pressing need to integrate economics and foreign policy in a way that will advance the interests of the country. So what? South Africa’s stance on the war in Ukraine and our interactions with Russia and China have hurt us economically. On the other hand, we have legitimate foreign policy concerns which can and must be accommodated. Brazil and India have managed the s
Electricity Distribution: a Glimpse of What the Future Could Be
This episode brings the listener something very different: a real-life story from the ground up, providing a practical example of how electricity distribution in SA will change over the near future. It is the story of a family and of a business, starting out in Hammanskraal in the 1990s with a baby in the bakkie as Dad climbed a ladder while Mum held a flashlight, to a distribution company in Mafu
Coalitions
A year before the term of the current parliament comes to an end, we look at what the numbers tell us about possible election results in 2024. Against the background of the chaos in municipalities governed by coalitions, what can happen if the ANC loses their national majority? We look at what different parties have said and done to indicate where they stand on governing as part of coalitions. So
Electricity and Load Shedding
This episode makes the point that Eskom is dying and cannot be saved in its current condition. Electricity provision, however, is not dying. We unpack the generation deficit causing load shedding and outline the likely path out of the conumdrum. So what? Load shedding will be with us for the next two years. There are no quick fixes, but it is not impossible either. For more about JP, and to read h
COP27 and South Africa
After the annual UN climate change conference in Sharm el-Sheikh, we discuss the implications of South Africa’s undertaking (following COP21 in Paris in 2015) to reduce our carbon emissions by about 17% by 2030. We are the 13th largest emitter in the world, because most of our electricity comes from coal, contributing more than half of the country’s emissions. The rest is mainly caused by transpor
Corruption and Consequences
In this episode we give our annual update on the fight against corruption. We cover arrests in state capture cases, as well as monies reclaimed from individuals and companies like Bain, McKinsey and ABB. Markus Jooste and family lost assets to the Reserve Bank. So what? High-flyers, companies as well as individuals, have been charged. That is progress, even though it does not yet guarantee convict
Electricity - Green is the New Gold Pt. 2
This is part 2 of a 2-part episode. Part 1 available here. In the midst of constant load shedding, this episode sketches a possible new future as Eskom’s 100-year monopoly is broken, the country moves from coal to renewables, and a whole new industry is born with enormous investment possibilities. We also address Eskom’s debt and the question of when load shedding will end. So what? South Africa’s
Electricity - Green is the New Gold Pt. 1
This is part 1 of a 2-part episode. In the midst of constant load shedding, this episode sketches a possible new future as Eskom’s 100-year monopoly is broken, the country moves from coal to renewables, and a whole new industry is born with enormous investment possibilities. We also address Eskom’s debt and the question of when load shedding will end. So what? South Africa’s biggest crisis current
Connecting the Dots
In this episode, we connect the dots on government’s economic policy since 2018. Daily headlines can be confusing, so we focus on what has actually happened, not what was promised or planned. Areas we touch on include the macro-economic framework, spectrum release, energy reform, and structural changes in railways and harbours. So what? More space is being made for the private sector. This signals
Introducing: The So What? With Ruda Landman and JP Landman
Hosted Ruda Landman, The So What podcast is a series of chats with political-economic analyst JP Landman. Each episode takes a deep dive into a South African issue - load shedding, corruption, politics, economics, foreign policy or anything in between. This is the podcast where you can learn the facts and discover insights about the complex South African socio-political landscape.
