The pageantry of a National Convention is a spectacle of modern democracy. But beneath the carefully choreographed display of unity and optimism, a National Convention at its best is something far more profound. It is a stage for tough questions. But it can also be a stage for tragicomedy.
In a speech on the First Day of Convention on August 15, 2025, President Cyril Ramaphosa posed a question that left many South Africans baffled. “We need to ask ourselves why so many people live in abject poverty and so few live lives of opulence,” he said.
One would be forgiven for thinking that the President only landed in South Africa a few months ago. Perhaps it explains why the president’s response to any significant matters is to appoint a commission of inquiry. Our billionaire president is simply out of touch.
The expectation is often that when a country is in a crisis’ such as poverty and inequality, the current reality in South Africa, it is the President who is the first to act. To rise above the crisis, call for policy reform and offer practical solutions to the problem, closing the gaps, rather than asking about the symptoms of this much bigger problem.
The question is rhetorical, deflecting from his government’s role in these long standing and ongoing economic disparities which begs the question, if it is the President asking this question, then who is to answer?
For too long, the national conversation has been about symptoms and not the underlying sickness which is the corruption and mishandling of state funds by those in power and appointed by him. Therefore, it was not his place to ask this question; instead, his place is to come into the gathering with solutions.
The National Dialogue is the opportunity for the President and his cabinet to account for how it is that more that 30 years into democracy, the issue of poverty and inequality in South Africa is still front and centre in and outside of the National Dialogue spaces.
In South Africa, as of 2024 approximately 55.5% of the population lives below the National upper poverty line. This means that more than half of the population struggles to afford necessities, highlighting significant economic inequality.
Abject poverty in South Africa is a daily struggle fought in informal settlements and overcrowded townships, the family that shares a single room, children who go to bed hungry and the parents who are unemployed. It is the lack of clean water, the failing sanitation and the constant fear of crime. The numbers in this category represent much of our population.
When democracy arrived, the hope was that this system would be dismantled. While legal segregation ended, the infrastructure of inequality remains in place, a stubborn architect of our current reality. The question that remains with ordinary South Africans is why has equality not been achieved more than 30 years later?
President Ramaphosa’s question is a diagnosis of what has and continues to be the consequence of the rot that he has power over in government. To answer his own question would require a great sense of accountability for his contribution to the problem. The President posing the question without tangible solutions, inspires debate but offers little practical direction.
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Zanele S. Maduma, 2025 Wits Vuvuzela Journalist. Photo: File/Paul Botes
Telecommunication companies like Vodacom including state owned entities such as the education and health services sector, are not fast enough in including South African languages in their AI services offerings, hindering digital transformation and economic growth for non-English speakers.
The dominance of English in AI and tech development in South Africa creates a language barrier, excluding 92% of the population who primarily speak indigenous languages
Incorporating all 12 official South African languages into AI and technology could lead to greater inclusion, social cohesion and open up a significant market among young individuals.
There’s a risk of “language death and marginalisation” if indigenous South African languages are not incorporated into new technological developments and AI.
Quote on issues of tech and AI in African languages, IMAGE: Zanele S. Maduma
South Africa is a country that is pursuing digital transformation in modernising government services and driving economic growth yet the results aren’t showing as yet.
The Minister of Communications and Digital Technologies, Mr. Solly Malatsi, this year launched the Roadmap for Digital Transformation of the South African government. This comes as the government’s commitment to inclusive growth, efficient service delivery and ensuring that government services are accessible to all South Africans.
But the dominance of English in AI and tech development excludes 92% of the population who primarily speak indigenous languages in South Africa, limiting access to digital tools, education, and economic opportunities for the youth.
This is a big issue in a country with 12 official languages. Only 8% of South Africans speak English at home, according to Stats SA. Yet most online services offered in AI, such as online banking and mobile phone bot operated customer services on platforms like WhatsApp, are in English and this creates a language barrier for many people.
Dr. Lindiwe Tshuma, a language advisor at Wits University, says “Before we talk about AI we need to ask whether or not everybody has reputable access (to mobile a phone) and does everybody have digital literacy?
“We are not expecting everybody to produce content in all the 12 official languages of the country, but we expect it to at least pick a few,” said Dr. Tshuma.
Tech giants like Google and Microsoft have translation tools on their website, but the problem is not just about translating websites, it is also about how AI understands and responds to indigenous South African languages.
In a multilingual country such as South Africa, there are non-English languages that are more widely spoken such as IsiZulu and Xhosa, but no language is bigger or more important than another and therefore should be all represented in the tech and AI space.
“Our technology enables more people to engage in the digital economy using various languages,” says Partnership Associate at Botlhale AI Solutions, Amogelang Tsetse.
“Customers of different languages who don’t necessarily fully understand English also understand what is happening digitally,” Tsetse added.
The lack of South African languages in AI has a bigger impact, such as access to education and economic opportunities for the youth, particularly in a country striving for both linguistic diversity, social cohesion and inclusion.
Dr. Tshuma warns of language death and marginalisation should tech and AI companies and language experts not make any strides.
Tech and AI language is a problem in multilingual South Africa, IMAGE: Zanele S. Maduma
“We need to be looking at the readiness of our African languages to be incorporated into AI. Some of our languages are not yet fully developed but this does not mean that they must not be incorporated into the technological advances taking place, otherwise we are contributing to language death and marginalisation” she says.
There is a huge opportunity for companies that embrace local languages. There is a widespread mobile device ownership in South Africa among younger, tech-savvy individuals aged 15–34, according to South African News Agency. This is a massive market.
“Our team is made up of 50% engineers who understand that technology exists to help people understand things in their own language,” said Tsetse.
South Africa has a rich linguistic heritage and incorporating all the 12 languages into tech and AI developments and advances ensures the inclusion and social cohesion the government says it is aiming for in its digitisation projections.
FEATURED IMAGE: AI image with quote on African Languages and tech. Photo: Zanele S. Maduma
The effects of hunger among students need sensitivity and cannot be ignored.
The continued struggle of access to food for students in South Africa is a cause for concern and an urgent matter that needs to be addressed. Government feeding schemes are designed to help alleviate hunger among learners from primary school to high school level. Yet, even with these measures in place the problem of food insecurity persists.
Food insecurity refers to the physical unavailability of food where people are undernourished due to their lack of social or economic access to adequate food. It is worth emphasizing that food insecurity is not only the lack of food, but also a lack of access to nutritious and nourishing food.
Empty refrigerator with few consumable items. Photo: Simphiwe Maduma
Students without food or those who can only afford one meal a day are forced to attend classes on an empty stomach while waiting for lunchtime to receive their meal for the day. This poses serious implications in learning and concentration capacity and ability, therefore affecting students’ academic performance.
There is also the social well-being aspect of this problem for students such as difficulty in socializing. These students feel the need to hide their hunger and need for food to avoid being ostracized by their peers. This also affects their enthusiasm and ability to partake in campus life which forms part of socializing and engaging in new experiences.
The proportion of households in South Africa that experienced moderate to severe food insecurity was estimated at 19,7% in 2023. For students who come from such households, learning can be a nightmare.
FEATURED IMAGE: Small size empty takeaway container. PHOTO: Zanele S. Maduma
In this episode, we explore the first principle of the Freedom Charter: “The people shall govern,” and ask what it means in modern South Africa. Through the voice of Thoriso Mogoru, a student who voted in the 2024 national elections and the insights of political analyst Prof. Daryl Glaser, we look at the gap between […]
