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BRAZIL

Migrant labour in the digital age exploited

Brazil and India are starting to win gains for ‘platform’ workers such as delivery riders. Unions in South African must support similar struggles

  • Richard Pithouse
8 min read
CLASSROOM

The classroom must adapt for Generation Alpha

Teachers must ensure mental health and create relevance for children of the digital age who know about identity diversity, global crises and an uncertain world

  • Dave Swart
3 min read
The Western Cape education department says it has filled 477 teacher posts despite announcing last year that 2 407 contract teachers would not be reappointed as a result of severe budget cuts.(Photo by Gallo Images / Sunday Times / Thuli Dlamini)
CLASSROOM

The classroom must adapt for Generation Alpha

Teachers must ensure mental health and create relevance for children of the digital age who know about identity diversity, global crises and an uncertain world

  • Dave Swart
3 min read
By addressing investment challenges, improving infrastructure, reforming regulations, and nurturing talent, we can unlock Africa’s digital potential. (Getty Images)
AFRICA

Unlocking Africa’s digital potential: Addressing challenges and charting a path forward

By addressing investment challenges, improving infrastructure, reforming regulations, and nurturing talent, we can unlock Africa’s digital potential

  • Chudi Okoye
4 min read
NAIROBI, KENYA – AUGUST 8: Police detain demonstrators during the protest against the government’s tax regulation in Nairobi, Kenya on August 8, 2024. (Photo by Gerald Anderson/Anadolu via Getty Images)
AFRICA

Kenya government’s digital tyranny is working – for now

With remarkable creativity, Kenyans used technology to organise nationwide protests. The state’s digital response has been equally remarkable, but for all the wrong reasons

  • The Continent
  • Odanga Madung
4 min read
More than 70% of adults surveyed in 25 countries perceive the spread of online misinformation, the global economy and terrorism as major threats in 2025, a new report from the Pew Research Centre shows.
AFRICA

Quantify news to ensure credibility in a disinformation age

Innovative solutions are needed to meet the rise and spread of fake news in Africa

  • Nnaemeka Ohamadike
6 min read
Parents want the Gauteng education department to create a system to monitor the content on the electronic devices. Photo: Getty Images
DIGITAL AGE

Busting the myths about online schooling

If only the zeal that went into fighting Covid-19 could be applied to drug-resistant bacteria which pose a major threat on the continent

  • M Anderson
6 min read
CLIMATE CHANGE

London’s changed – including the climate

The local shops have been replaced by chain stores, the skyline has new features, the digital age stops communication and the green parks are dry and brown

  • Charmain Naidoo
7 min read
Smoke, soot and sweat: Egyptians labour in appalling conditions for very little money at a charcoal ‘factory’ in Inshas village north of the Cairo. (Mohamed el-Shahed/AFP)
BIOSPHERE

Achille Mbembe: The universal right to breathe

‘Modernity has been an interminable war on life. And it is far from over.’ We need to start anew; reclaim the oxygen that belongs to all on Earth

  • Achille Mbembe
10 min read
Multisensory: Hip-hop artist ByLwansta is a story-telling musician who paints pictures with words. (Paige Furness)
BILL WITHER

The Portfolio: ByLwansta

Hip-hop artist ByLwansta adopts a multidisciplinary approach to story-telling by making use of visual cues to reinforce the ideas that he puts forward sonically

  • ByLwantsa
2 min read
Head of content at Superbalist Kelly Fung says, “Ease [of] producing content has led to the misconception that the craft of journalism is anyone’s game”. (David Harrison)
COUNTRY

Journalism in the era of influencers

The proliferation of sponsored content is streamlining ethics on social media platforms

  • Zaza Hlalethwa
8 min read
Digital storytelling, particularly via social media, helps indigenous communities preserve and share their knowledge and histories, fostering decolonisation
DIGITAL AGE

France passes law taxing digital giants in defiance of US anger

The new law aims at plugging a taxation gap that has seen some internet heavyweights paying next to nothing in countries where they make huge profits.

  • Hazel Ward
3 min read
An employee fixes part of a web server inside the Facebook Prineville Data Center. A plan by the OECD to determine how to tax the digital economy will affect all multinationals operating in the tech space. (Meg Roussos/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
DIGITAL AGE

Prepare for tax in digital economy

Foreign digital services and products have skirted taxation in SA — but that’s all about to change

  • Michael Hewson
6 min read
The website Africa Is a Country is making its content freely available because its founder, Sean Jacobs, believes everyone should have access to African perspectives about the continent. (Nasa)
APARTHEID

Online site a new model for journalism

The Africa Is a Country website offers a rich mix of news, comment and analysis about the continent

  • Sean Jacobs
4 min read
En garde! Paris Saint-Germain’s forward, Kylian Mbappé, has a certain style, and has the makings of a ruthless Messi or Ronaldo. (Franck Fife/AFP/Getty Images)
CONNECTIONS

What does blue-ticking mean for building trust?

How has our digital communication affected our relationship to the concept of seeing each other’s humanity?

  • Milisuthando Bongela
5 min read
Mighty memes: By deconstructing the notion of art
A VERY COOL TIME

Soundscapes of a war zone

Multimedia internet artist centres black, queer and trans youth in our post-apartheid imagination

  • Zane Lelo Meslani
8 min read
Social media has become a breading ground for racism and other harmful behaviour.
BHEKISISA TEAM

Black? A woman? Read why you’re more likely to be a victim of online trolls

Are social media algorithms designed to prey the mental health of women and people of colour?

  • Bhekisisa Team
25 min read
Bitcoin ‘whales’ pulling cryptocurrency
AFRICA

Ramaphosa floats the idea of an ‘African bitcoin’

President Cyril Ramaphosa says he fully supports calls for a single African currency— and that maybe it should be digital

  • Simon Allison
2 min read
Remote work schedules, YouTube tutorials and livestreaming have turned lockdown into “business as usual” for the more fortunate among us. For most young South Africans, however, the shutdown of schools, universities and businesses has put the brakes on their ability to grow and learn — at a time when they could and should be growing and learning as much as they can. Lindokuhle, a 21-year-old from Langa who is part of the Youth Capital network says: “Connectivity is a problem. Like most young people, I rely on internet cafes, as they have standard prices, to do my CV, apply for jobs and do my school work. Covid-19 has dramatically decreased our productivity and is threatening our possible livelihood.” After an inquiry launched in 2017 — based on complaints from the public about the high cost of data — in December 2019 the Competition Commission confirmed that the country’s data prices were too high, especially for mobile prepaid data, and recommended that mobile networks reduce the price of bundles below one gigabyte. The commission also recommended that networks agree on an industry-wide approach to zero-rating public benefit and educational institution websites. Just days after the first case of coronavirus was confirmed in South Africa, Vodacom announced it was cutting the price of its 1GB bundle by 34%; MTN followed suit, announcing a reduction in the price of its monthly 1GB bundles and below by between 25% and 50%. And the day before national lockdown was put into place, the government publicised Telkom’s decision to make government and education sites access-free on their network. Vodacom and MTN have also since zero-rated many learning sites, with Vodacom offering a zero-rated e-school portal with content for grades R to 12. In addition to Free Basics, CellC also announced a lifeline package for prepaid customers and access to zero-rated content on selected public-benefit and government websites. Although these price revisions and the zero-rating of educational content are a step in the right direction, we still have a long way to go if we want to ensure more equitable access to relevant content that could help those who need it most, now and post Covid-19. Telkom, Vodacom and MTN have each established their own zero-rated portals, with free access to network-curated content on education, jobs, health, news and government websites ­— CellC is adding content to its existing platform, including government sites. This content is limited and accessible for free if you belong to their network. Upskilling content for out-of-school youth is not prioritised in any of the zero-rated platforms. And this is cause for serious concern. “We have seen a drastic reduction in the jobs available for the youth; young people should use this time to focus on learning a new skill and develop soft skills to increase the chance of finding employment post social distancing,” says Jaryd Raizon, CEO of graduate recruitment platform Trusted Interns. Twenty-eight-year-old Tumi from Johannesburg echoes Jaryd’s views: “As young people, we need to prepare ourselves for the loss of jobs and economic impact of Covid-19. Upskilling now could ensure you stand out from the crowd when things return to normal, but with the current data costs and lack of internet infrastructure in poor areas, that’s just not the case.” With 56% of South Africans living on less than R41 a day, data doesn’t fall into the core basket of affordable essentials for the majority of households. Even with price reductions, data prices remain high for the average South African. Moreover, the process so far has focused on negotiations with individual mobile network operators, and not a co-ordinated, industry-wide approach towards securing universal access to information and services to all South Africans, regardless of the colour of their SIM cards. Lindokuhle comments that not everyone can afford a gig of data because they have other needs. In South Africa, looking for work is unaffordable for most young job-seekers, who spend an average of R550 a month job hunting, with data being one of the biggest contributors to this hefty sum. Many young people in the Youth Capital network admit they can look for work only when they have the money to do so. And with eight million young people (aged 15 to 35) unemployed and not in education, employment or training (NEET), we simply cannot afford for our young people not to have the means to look for work. Recognising that price reduction on its own will not have a sufficient effect, the Competition Commission urged network operators to deliver a lifeline package of daily free data to all users to allow uninterrupted data access, regardless of income levels, while leveraging the increasing smartphone penetration. But the response received so far will not assist young people use this time productively. A unified approach to zero-rating has the potential to unlock access to digital opportunities and information. A much-needed solution is freeing up all the education and upskilling content produced by public benefit organisations rather than a selection of content that is network-specific. This requires alignment and co-operation between the government and network operators, as a true example of social compacts in response to sudden changes in our society. If the Covid-19 pandemic has shown us anything, it’s the power of technology to connect, educate and empower — but in South Africa, your access to digital resources still depends on which cell phone service provider you’re linked to and how much data you can afford. Let’s take the lesson and push for universal access, including for a generation of young people who are stuck at home and hungry to learn.
DIGITAL AGE

How kids in a low-income country use laptop —lessons from Madagascar

Laptops have introduced the children of Nosy Komba in Madagascar to previously inaccessible tools

  • Sandra Nogry
4 min read
Using AI without critical reflection widens the gap between relevance and convenience.
DIGITAL AGE

African governments leave women out of digital revolution

Despite governments having collected over $400-million to provide universal connectivity, women remain unconnected from the internet.

  • Gemma Ritchie
  • Mashadi Kekana
3 min read