Trade, Spending and Schools: South Africa Faces Hard Questions on Priorities and Equity

WhatsApps to the editor

South Africa must proactively deal with the paradox of their economic relationship with China. Both countries have a strong partnership, elevated to an All-Round Strategic Cooperative Partnership in the New Era in 2024. China is South Africa's largest trading partner, with bilateral trade reaching $60.3 billion in 2014 and growing to R614 billion in 2022. South Africa exports mainly raw materials like iron ore, while importing manufactured goods like motor vehicles flooding our land from China.Their co-operation doesn't create jobs in South Africa because China uses cheap labour to produce. South Africa has progressive labour laws and promotes fair labour practices while they embrace China and therefore become complicit in the exploitation of workers. Our own industries are shutting down because of "finished" cheaper products flooding our markets. | San

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Our city is pleading poverty but yet we can spend millions on statues. There's no logic. | Joe

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Foreign pupils are also filling up private schools. I was fortunate to attend two private school events in the last 3 years in Westville where we were introduced to a few kids from Palestine who could not communicate in English. Private schools are only interested in profits, so they enrol anyone. The powers that be must investigate urgently because there are also foreign teachers creeping in. | Anonymous

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