Latest news with #of20
TimesLIVE
28-06-2025
- Health
- TimesLIVE
Media must help reposition the promise of NHI
South Africa stands at the threshold of the most consequential health reform in its democratic history: national health insurance (NHI). Its promise? A society where healthcare is not a privilege of the wealthy but a guarantee for all. Yet, what dominates headlines and talk shows is not the vision of equity NHI represents but a stream of narratives steeped in distrust, dysfunction and fear. The phrase 'If it bleeds, it leads' has long held sway in media circles, and when applied to NHI, it has too often bled perspective dry. Coverage tends to centre on stories of mismanagement, fears of a collapsing private healthcare system, and projected costs. These deserve attention. But they cannot be the whole story. What is equally, if not more, newsworthy is this: millions of South Africans live without consistent access to primary care, quality hospitals or affordable medication. That inequity should lead to action, not fearmongering. NHI is not just a bureaucratic policy — it is a moral reckoning. It seeks to right the deep structural injustices in our health system, many of which still mirror apartheid-era geography and class divides. The child in Mthatha should have the same chance at survival as the child in Sandton. That is the essence of NHI. As we approach the Finance for Development Conference in Sevilla, Spain, this Monday and the Brics Leaders Summit in Brazil shortly after, there will be high expectations of our health financing narrative as the Group of 20 presidency. In the wake of the dramatic withdrawals in official development assistance, leading policymakers have emphasised the need to sustain the gains towards the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) 3 target — universal health coverage — through state-led health financing as guided by the evidence-based policies of normative bodies such as the World Bank and the World Health Organisation. The world will be looking to us to lead by example: not just rhetoric. NHI is not just a bureaucratic policy — it's a moral reckoning. It seeks to right the deep structural injustices in our health system, many of which still mirror apartheid-era geography and class divides. The child in Mthatha should have the same chance at survival as the child in Sandton. That is the essence of NHI. We are not naive about the challenges ahead — governance, financing and implementation must be watertight. But scepticism must not become sabotage. South Africa has defied the odds before. We built the world's largest HIV/Aids treatment programme when many said it could not be done. We led globally on Covid-19 vaccine equity. We know how to turn a national crisis into a national triumph — when the narrative fuels solutions, not cynicism. That is where the media comes in. You are not just storytellers. You are story shapers. You can hold policymakers accountable while also giving voice to the underserved, platforming progress, and illuminating the moral argument behind reform. You can ask: 'What's broken?' — but also, 'What's possible?' NHI will not succeed without the public's understanding and engagement. And the public cannot engage with what they do not hear or see. So, I invite you — editors, journalists, broadcasters, producers — to reposition and reclaim its role. Tell the truth, but tell the whole truth — frame narratives, which can either build trust or fuel scepticism, amplify voices, especially those often excluded — such as marginalised communities. In essence, your role isn't just to report on reforms like NHI — you can influence whether society embraces or resists them. In the end, what will define us is not how loudly we argue but how we see our common humanity — and whether we act on it.
Los Angeles Times
09-05-2025
- Politics
- Los Angeles Times
U.S. to accept white South African refugees while other programs remain paused
WASHINGTON — The Trump administration will welcome more than two dozen white South Africans to the United States as refugees next week, an unusual move because it has suspended most refugee resettlement operations, officials and documents said Friday. The first Afrikaner refugees are arriving Monday at Dulles International Airport outside Washington, according to a document obtained by the Associated Press. They are expected to be greeted by a government delegation, including the deputy secretary of state and officials from the Department of Health and Human Services, which has organized their resettlement under its Office for Refugee Resettlement. The flight will be the first of several in a 'much larger-scale relocation effort,' White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller told reporters. 'What's happening in South Africa fits the textbook definition of why the refugee program was created,' he said. 'This is persecution based on a protected characteristic — in this case, race. This is race-based persecution.' State Department refugee programs have been put on hold since President Trump ordered a review in February. While halting arrivals from Afghanistan, Iraq, most of sub-Saharan Africa and throughout Latin America, Trump also issued an executive order prioritizing the processing of white South Africans who claim racial discrimination in their home country. 'The U.S. Embassy in Pretoria has been conducting interviews and processing pursuant to President Trump's Executive Order on Addressing Egregious Actions of the Republic of South Africa,' the State Department said. 'The Department of State is prioritizing consideration for U.S. refugee resettlement of Afrikaners in South Africa who are victims of unjust racial discrimination.' The department said nothing about the imminent arrival of what officials said are believed to be more than two dozen white South Africans from roughly four families who had applied for resettlement in the U.S. Their arrival had originally been scheduled for early last week but was delayed for reasons that were not immediately clear. The Health department's refugee office was ready to offer them support, including with housing, furniture and other household items, and expenses like groceries, clothing, diapers and more, the document says. 'This effort is a stated priority of the Administration.' The Health department didn't respond to messages seeking comment. The Trump administration has taken an outspoken adversarial position in regard to South Africa, which is the homeland of close Trump advisor Elon Musk and also holds the rotating presidency of the Group of 20 developed and developing nations. Secretary of State Marco Rubio notably boycotted a G20 foreign ministers meeting in Johannesburg in March because its main agenda centered on diversity, inclusion and climate change. Rubio also expelled South Africa's ambassador to the U.S. in March for comments that the Trump administration interpreted as accusing the president of promoting white supremacy. Shortly thereafter, the State Department ended all engagement with the G20 during South Africa's presidency. The U.S. is due to host G20 meetings in 2026. South African President Cyril Ramaphosa's office said in a statement Friday that he had spoken with Trump late last month on issues including the U.S.' criticism of South Africa and the Trump administration's allegations that Afrikaners are being persecuted. Ramaphosa told Trump that the information the U.S. president had received 'was completely false,' the statement said. 'Therefore, our position is that there are no South African citizens that can be classified as refugees to any part of the world, including the U.S.,' the statement from Ramaphosa's office said. South African Deputy Foreign Minister Alvin Botes spoke with U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau on Friday about the refugees, the South African Foreign Ministry said. Landau is expected to lead the delegation to welcome the refugees Monday. The Foreign Ministry said South Africa had 'expressed concerns with the information conveyed that the United States has commenced with processing alleged refugees from South Africa and will begin resettling these citizens in the United States.' The Foreign Ministry said the allegations of discrimination against Afrikaners in South Africa 'are unfounded.' 'It is most regrettable that it appears that the resettlement of South Africans to the United States under the guise of being 'refugees' is entirely politically motivated and designed to question South Africa's constitutional democracy; a country which has in fact suffered true persecution under apartheid rule and has worked tirelessly to prevent such levels of discrimination from ever occurring again,' the Foreign Ministry said in a statement. The Foreign Ministry said it was challenging the U.S. assessments of 'alleged refugee status' but would not block anyone who wanted to leave the country as it respected their freedom of movement and choice. The Foreign Ministry said it was seeking information from the U.S. over the 'status' of the people leaving South Africa and if they were going to the U.S. as refugees, asylum seekers or 'ordinary citizens.' It said it wanted assurances that the people leaving had been properly vetted and did not have outstanding criminal cases against them in South Africa. It said South Africa was 'dedicated to constructive dialogue' with the U.S. South African Foreign Ministry spokesperson Chrispin Phiri told the Associated Press: 'Yes, we are told that there are people who are leaving. We are saying, 'What is their status? Are they leaving as asylum seekers, are they leaving as refugees, or are they leaving as South African citizens, and they are going on some free joyride?' It's a question we've put to them.' Lee and Santana write for the Associated Press. AP writers Michelle Gumede in Johannesburg, Gerald Imray in Cape Town, South Africa, and Seung Min Kim and Amanda Seitz in Washington contributed to this report.
Yahoo
09-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
US to accept white South African refugees while other programs remain paused
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Trump administration will welcome more than two dozen white South Africans to the United States as refugees next week, an unusual move because it has suspended most refugee resettlement operations, officials and documents said Friday. The first Afrikaner refugees are arriving Monday at Dulles International Airport outside Washington, according to a document obtained by The Associated Press. They are expected to be greeted by a government delegation, including the deputy secretary of state and officials from the Department of Health and Human Services, which has organized their resettlement under its Office for Refugee Resettlement. The flight will be the first of several in a 'much larger-scale relocation effort,' White House deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller told reporters. 'What's happening in South Africa fits the textbook definition of why the refugee program was created,' he said. 'This is persecution based on a protected characteristic — in this case, race. This is race-based persecution.' State Department refugee programs have been put on hold since President Donald Trump ordered a review in February. While halting arrivals from Afghanistan, Iraq, most of sub-Saharan Africa and throughout Latin America, Trump also issued an executive order prioritizing the processing of white South Africans who claim racial discrimination in their home country. 'The U.S. Embassy in Pretoria has been conducting interviews and processing pursuant to President Trump's Executive Order on Addressing Egregious Actions of the Republic of South Africa,' the State Department said. "The Department of State is prioritizing consideration for U.S. refugee resettlement of Afrikaners in South Africa who are victims of unjust racial discrimination.' The department said nothing about the imminent arrival of what officials said are believed to be more than two dozen white South Africans from roughly four families who had applied for resettlement in the U.S. Their arrival had originally been scheduled for early last week but was delayed for reasons that were not immediately clear. The HHS refugee office was ready to offer them support, including with housing, furniture and other household items, and expenses like groceries, clothing, diapers and more, the document says. 'This effort is a stated priority of the Administration." HHS didn't respond to messages seeking comment. The Trump administration has taken an outspoken adversarial position in regard to South Africa, which is the homeland of close Trump adviser Elon Musk and also holds the rotating presidency of the Group of 20 developed and developing nations. Secretary of State Marco Rubio notably boycotted a G20 foreign ministers meeting in Johannesburg in March because its main agenda centered on diversity, inclusion and climate change. Rubio also expelled South Africa's ambassador to the U.S. in March for comments that the Trump administration interpreted as accusing the president of promoting white supremacy. Shortly thereafter, the State Department ended all engagement with the G20 during South Africa's presidency. The U.S. is due to host G20 meetings in 2026. South African President Cyril Ramaphosa's office said in a statement Friday that he had spoken with Trump late last month on issues including the U.S.'s criticism of South Africa and the Trump administration's allegations that Afrikaners are being persecuted. Ramaphosa told Trump that the information the U.S. president had received 'was completely false,' the statement said. 'Therefore, our position is that there are no South African citizens that can be classified as refugees to any part of the world, including the U.S.,' the statement from Ramaphosa's office said. South African Deputy Foreign Minister Alvin Botes spoke with U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau on Friday about the refugees, the South African foreign ministry said. Landau is expected to lead the delegation to welcome the refugees Monday. The foreign ministry said South Africa had 'expressed concerns with the information conveyed that the United States has commenced with processing alleged refugees from South Africa and will begin resettling these citizens in the United States.' The foreign ministry said the allegations of discrimination against Afrikaners in South Africa 'are unfounded.' 'It is most regrettable that it appears that the resettlement of South Africans to the United States under the guise of being 'refugees' is entirely politically motivated and designed to question South Africa's constitutional democracy; a country which has in fact suffered true persecution under apartheid rule and has worked tirelessly to prevent such levels of discrimination from ever occurring again,' the foreign ministry said in a statement. The foreign ministry said it was challenging the U.S. assessments of 'alleged refugee status' but would not block anyone who wanted to leave the country as it respected their freedom of movement and choice. The foreign ministry said it was seeking information from the U.S. over the 'status' of the people leaving South Africa and if they were going to the U.S. as refugees, asylum seekers or 'ordinary citizens.' It said it wanted assurances that the people leaving had been properly vetted and did not have outstanding criminal cases against them in South Africa. It said South Africa was 'dedicated to constructive dialogue' with the U.S. South African foreign ministry spokesperson Chrispin Phiri told The Associated Press: 'Yes, we are told that there are people who are leaving. We are saying, 'what is their status? Are they leaving as asylum seekers, are they leaving as refugees, or are they leaving as South African citizens, and they are going on some free joy ride?' It's a question we've put to them.' ___ Associated Press writers Michelle Gumede in Johannesburg, Gerald Imray in Cape Town, South Africa, and Seung Min Kim and Amanda Seitz in Washington contributed to this report.
Winnipeg Free Press
09-05-2025
- Politics
- Winnipeg Free Press
US to accept white South African refugees while other programs remain paused
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Trump administration will welcome more than two dozen white South Africans to the United States as refugees next week, an unusual move because it has suspended most refugee resettlement operations, officials and documents said Friday. The first Afrikaner refugees are arriving Monday at Dulles International Airport outside Washington, according to a document obtained by The Associated Press. They are expected to be greeted by a government delegation, including the deputy secretary of state and officials from the Department of Health and Human Services, which has organized their resettlement under its Office for Refugee Resettlement. The flight will be the first of several in a 'much larger-scale relocation effort,' White House deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller told reporters. 'What's happening in South Africa fits the textbook definition of why the refugee program was created,' he said. 'This is persecution based on a protected characteristic — in this case, race. This is race-based persecution.' State Department refugee programs have been put on hold since President Donald Trump ordered a review in February. While halting arrivals from Afghanistan, Iraq, most of sub-Saharan Africa and throughout Latin America, Trump also issued an executive order prioritizing the processing of white South Africans who claim racial discrimination in their home country. 'The U.S. Embassy in Pretoria has been conducting interviews and processing pursuant to President Trump's Executive Order on Addressing Egregious Actions of the Republic of South Africa,' the State Department said. 'The Department of State is prioritizing consideration for U.S. refugee resettlement of Afrikaners in South Africa who are victims of unjust racial discrimination.' The department said nothing about the imminent arrival of what officials said are believed to be more than two dozen white South Africans from roughly four families who had applied for resettlement in the U.S. Their arrival had originally been scheduled for early last week but was delayed for reasons that were not immediately clear. The HHS refugee office was ready to offer them support, including with housing, furniture and other household items, and expenses like groceries, clothing, diapers and more, the document says. 'This effort is a stated priority of the Administration.' HHS didn't respond to messages seeking comment. The Trump administration has taken an outspoken adversarial position in regard to South Africa, which is the homeland of close Trump adviser Elon Musk and also holds the rotating presidency of the Group of 20 developed and developing nations. Secretary of State Marco Rubio notably boycotted a G20 foreign ministers meeting in Johannesburg in March because its main agenda centered on diversity, inclusion and climate change. Rubio also expelled South Africa's ambassador to the U.S. in March for comments that the Trump administration interpreted as accusing the president of promoting white supremacy. Shortly thereafter, the State Department ended all engagement with the G20 during South Africa's presidency. The U.S. is due to host G20 meetings in 2026. South African President Cyril Ramaphosa's office said in a statement Friday that he had spoken with Trump late last month on issues including the U.S.'s criticism of South Africa and the Trump administration's allegations that Afrikaners are being persecuted. Ramaphosa told Trump that the information the U.S. president had received 'was completely false,' the statement said. 'Therefore, our position is that there are no South African citizens that can be classified as refugees to any part of the world, including the U.S.,' the statement from Ramaphosa's office said. South African Deputy Foreign Minister Alvin Botes spoke with U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau on Friday about the refugees, the South African foreign ministry said. Landau is expected to lead the delegation to welcome the refugees Monday. The foreign ministry said South Africa had 'expressed concerns with the information conveyed that the United States has commenced with processing alleged refugees from South Africa and will begin resettling these citizens in the United States.' The foreign ministry said the allegations of discrimination against Afrikaners in South Africa 'are unfounded.' 'It is most regrettable that it appears that the resettlement of South Africans to the United States under the guise of being 'refugees' is entirely politically motivated and designed to question South Africa's constitutional democracy; a country which has in fact suffered true persecution under apartheid rule and has worked tirelessly to prevent such levels of discrimination from ever occurring again,' the foreign ministry said in a statement. The foreign ministry said it was challenging the U.S. assessments of 'alleged refugee status' but would not block anyone who wanted to leave the country as it respected their freedom of movement and choice. Winnipeg Jets Game Days On Winnipeg Jets game days, hockey writers Mike McIntyre and Ken Wiebe send news, notes and quotes from the morning skate, as well as injury updates and lineup decisions. Arrives a few hours prior to puck drop. The foreign ministry said it was seeking information from the U.S. over the 'status' of the people leaving South Africa and if they were going to the U.S. as refugees, asylum seekers or 'ordinary citizens.' It said it wanted assurances that the people leaving had been properly vetted and did not have outstanding criminal cases against them in South Africa. It said South Africa was 'dedicated to constructive dialogue' with the U.S. South African foreign ministry spokesperson Chrispin Phiri told The Associated Press: 'Yes, we are told that there are people who are leaving. We are saying, 'what is their status? Are they leaving as asylum seekers, are they leaving as refugees, or are they leaving as South African citizens, and they are going on some free joy ride?' It's a question we've put to them.' ___ Associated Press writers Michelle Gumede in Johannesburg, Gerald Imray in Cape Town, South Africa, and Seung Min Kim and Amanda Seitz in Washington contributed to this report.
Time of India
21-04-2025
- Business
- Time of India
There's a reason the world is a mess, and it's not Trump
GLOBAL ECONOMIC STAGNATION UNDERLIES TODAY'S DISARRAY. The world is a mess. As President Trump upends global trade through a punitive suite of tariffs and redraws America's alliances, world leaders are scrambling to respond. They are badly placed to deal with such disruption: Across the world, governments have been losing elections -- or barely holding on -- in the face of rising discontent. From the United States to Uruguay, Britain to India, an anti-incumbent wave swept through democracies in 2024. But not only democracies are in crisis. China, too, is grappling with social unrest and economic instability. Strife, these days, is global. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Join new Free to Play WWII MMO War Thunder War Thunder Play Now Undo There are many explanations for this sorry state of affairs. Some see rapid social change, especially around migration and gender identity, fueling a cultural backlash. Others argue that elites flubbed their pandemic responses or have grown detached from their populations, driving a surge in anti-establishment sentiment and support for strongmen. Another argument holds that algorithm-driven social media has made it easier for misinformation and conspiracy theories to spread, giving rise to greater volatility. There's something to each of these theories, to be sure. But there is a deeper force underlying today's disarray: economic stagnation. The world is experiencing a long-term slowdown in growth rates that began in the 1970s, worsened after the 2008 global financial crisis and shows no sign of improving. Stuck with low growth, waning productivity and an aging work force, the world economy is in a rut. This shared economic predicament lies behind the political and social conflicts the world over. Live Events The state of the Group of 20, a collection of the globe's biggest economies, tells us a lot about the world's economic health. The data is damning. Eight of them have grown by less than 10 percent since 2007, adjusted for inflation. An additional four are just above that bar. Some, such as India, Indonesia and Turkey, have maintained stronger growth rates, but most are experiencing prolonged economic malaise. In the past, G20 economies regularly grew 2 to 3 percent per year, doubling incomes every 25 to 35 years. Today, many growth rates are 0.5 to 1 percent, meaning incomes now take 70 to 100 years to double -- too slow for people to feel progress in their lifetimes. The significance of that change can't be overstated. Stagnation does not have to be absolute to collapse expectations: When people no longer assume their or their children's living standards will improve, trust in institutions erodes and discontent rises. So why has growth slowed so starkly? One reason is the global shift from manufacturing to services. This has stalled the primary engine of economic expansion: productivity growth. Productivity -- the output per hour worked -- can rise quickly in manufacturing. A car factory that installs robotic assembly lines, for example, can double production without hiring more workers, perhaps even firing some. But in services, efficiency is much harder to improve. A restaurant that gets busier usually needs more servers. A hospital treating more patients will require more doctors and nurses. In service-based economies, productivity is always slower to rise. This seismic shift, in the making for decades, has a name: deindustrialization. In America and Europe, we know what that looks like: lost manufacturing jobs, amid declining demand for industrial goods. But deindustrialization is not limited to wealthy economies. The move from manufacturing to services is happening across the G20, dragging down growth rates nearly everywhere. Today about 50 percent of the world's work force is employed in the service sector. There's another reason for global stagnation: slowing population growth. Birthrates surged after World War II, creating strong demand for housing and infrastructure construction and spurring the postwar boom. Demographers once assumed birthrates would stabilize at replacement level, around two children per family. Instead, fertility rates have tended to fall below this threshold. The trend, historically the result of families having fewer children but more recently of fewer people starting families, now affects Malaysia, Brazil, Turkey and even India. This is a big problem for the economy. Shrinking workforces mean smaller future markets, discouraging businesses from expanding -- especially in service-based economies, where, along with limited productivity gains, costs tend to rise. Investment falters. At the same time, a falling share of working-age people means fewer taxpayers supporting more retirees, driving up pension and health care costs and pressuring governments to raise taxes, increase debt or cut benefits. In this stagnant setting, businesses have shifted strategies. Instead of reinvesting profits into expansion, hiring and innovation, many companies now focus on stock buybacks and dividends, prioritizing financial payouts that boost share prices and managerial compensation. The result is a vicious cycle of rising inequality, damped demand and low growth. This is happening the world over. No wonder the International Monetary Fund warns of a "tepid 2020s" -- and that was before Mr. Trump started his trade war . What is to be done? For some, artificial intelligence is the way out of the stagnation trap. If A.I. could improve efficiency in labor-intensive service sectors like health care and education, the argument goes, it could revive growth. But the productivity gains of generative A.I., for all the hype, have been limited so far, and it's hard to see how the technology would translate into widespread improvements for core services. What's more, A.I. advancements appear to be slowing rather than accelerating. Robots aren't going to save the global economy. Others see reindustrialization, under strict tariff protections, as the way to restore economic dynamism. That's the wager, at least in theory, of the Trump administration. But here, too, there is cause for doubt. For one thing, the decline in manufacturing was not just about trade. Even manufacturing and export powerhouses like Germany and South Korea have seen industrial employment shrink. For another, the industries generally targeted for revival -- semiconductors, electric vehicles and renewable energy -- employ relatively few workers. The era when manufacturing could provide mass employment is over. If productivity growth rates can't be increased all that much, perhaps populations can. That's the thinking behind natalists urging people to have more kids. Yet even countries with generous family policies, such as Sweden and France, have seen birthrates decline. The other option is high immigration, which remains the most effective way to sustain economic growth in aging societies. The United States has maintained stronger growth than Japan or Germany in part thanks to higher immigration, which has expanded the American labor force. But in these anti-migrant times, with Mr. Trump as president, this solution feels almost fantastical. There are, however, two plausible ways to respond to stagnation. The first is for countries to spend more, making use of deficits. Much has been made of the relative strength of the American economy compared with Europe's. The key, if underappreciated, reason for this is straightforward: The United States has been running large budget deficits -- averaging more than 6 percent of G.D.P. since 2009 -- while Europe has maintained tighter fiscal discipline. Deficit spending can stimulate growth, particularly when directed at public investment. A major push toward a green transition, for example, could drive economic activity for years to come. Even in Europe, where fiscal restraint has historically been stronger, governments are now preparing for a wave of deficit spending modeled on the American approach -- though much of it is focused on national security and military expansion rather than economic renewal. The second approach is redistribution. In the past, the primary rationale for policies that enriched wealthy households was to stimulate growth from the top down, but this strategy has evidently failed. Instead, governments could place much higher taxes on the rich and redistribute income to the rest of society. That would be an uphill battle in the United States and elsewhere, admittedly, but it would bring big benefits, improving consumer demand and strengthening markets both domestically and internationally. The goal should be not just to raise income levels, which studies show are increasingly disconnected from happiness, but also to build more stable and equitable societies in a slower-growth world. That requires investing to improve people's lives: repairing ecosystems, rebuilding infrastructure and expanding housing. Doing so could also help create conditions for poorer nations to pursue export-led development on fairer and more predictable terms. That wouldn't automatically bring global stability, of course. New political conflicts would surely arise as this alternative future takes shape. But with the way things are going, it certainly seems worth a shot. This article originally appeared in The New York Times.
