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Showing posts from August, 2022

WELCOME TO PODCAST AZANIA

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PODCAST AZANIA

SHINING A LIGHT ON AGRICULTURAL WRITERS SOUTH AFRICA

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By Sylvester Raraza Email: SylvesterRaraza@gmail.com Twitter: @Sylvester_tut The Tshwane University of Technology (TUT) in partnership with Agricultural Writers South Africa, hosted a workshop at TUT’s Department of Journalism – Soshanguve North Campus. Agricultural Writers South Africa is a non-profit organization (npo) that promotes the public image and standards of agriculture journalism in South Africa. The NPO was established in 1977 and it is a member and associate of the International Federation of Agricultural Journalists (IFAJ). Liza Bolmann, Chairperson Agricultural Writers SA Agricultural Writers South Africa, as an organization, represents agriculture journalists who work for agriculture magazines, newspapers, radio and television. It also allows qualified members to extend membership to people who are agriculture journalism friendly, meaning, people who want to grow the sphere of agriculture journalism, people who invest in the growth of activities that are associat

MAMELODI TAXI DRIVER TURNED SABC RADIO SENSATION

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By Sylvester Raraza Twitter: @Sylvester_tut Email: sylvesterraraza@gmail.com David Mashabela at a panel discussion | Image: David Mashabela via Instagram His is a story of a typical black child: he grew up in a township northeast of Pretoria in Apartheid South Africa, single parent home and living hand to mouth. David Mashabela remembers his childhood days in the 1980s. He is Pedi by birth – Bapedi are a Southern African ethnic group that speak Sepedi, but despite being brought up in a Bapedi household, his early learning years began at a Setswana-speaking Primary School in Mamelodi. So, he never got the chance to learn in his mother tongue because the only available school and the closest to his home, at the time, taught in Setswana. PW Botha (Prime Minister of South Africa from 1978 to 1984 and State President between 1984 to 1989), declared a countrywide state of emergency because of internal resistance to Apartheid and international pressure. David has vivid memories of seeing

SOUTH AFRICA’S RESERVE BANK AS WE KNOW IT

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By Sylvester Raraza Email: sylvesterraraza@gmail.com Twitter: @Sylvester_tut SARB building in Pretoria | Image: Moneyweb World War I caused global financial uncertainty, monetary conditions that were crippling world economies and it shrunk domestic and international wealth. These are consequences of wars. To try and cushion South Africa from the effects of World War I, the Colonial rulers of South Africa (Great Britain) at the time founded the central bank in 1921. 20 th century South Africa’s financial system comprised of banknotes that commercial banks issued to members of the public along with gold to back the notes up. South Africa has always been a minerals rich country, so when the price of gold in the United Kingdom climbed, revenue could be made by people who had capital by converting banknotes into gold in the country and sell the gold in London. But doing this meant that commercial banks in South Africa had to purchase gold for re-import at an even steeper prices from

NOT ENOUGH BLOOD AT THE BLOOD SERVICE

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by Sylvester Raraza Email: sylvesterraraza@gmail.com Twitter: @Sylvester_tut It should be of grave concern that in a population of about Sixty million (60 million) people, South Africa has low levels of blood donors. According to the South African National Blood Service (SANBS), “less than 1% of South Africans are active blood donors.” These are astoundingly low active blood donor figures, for an organization that was established in the early 2000s. South Africa is a low blood donor country, and this was worsened by the Covid-19 pandemic  and subsequent lockdown regulations (people’s movements were restricted). Fortunately,  there are now eased regulations under the ‘Disaster Management Act’, and these allow for  the free movement of South Africans, and it makes easy for blood donors to visit donor  centres. Blood donor centre | Picture: Jarryd Subroyen The South African National Blood Services (SANBS) made changes to the Covid-19 donor  deferral measures, allowing for people who have