Tuesday, 18 August 2026

Consumers earning more than R50,000 a month now need 103% of their income to service debt, with Debt Busters blaming post-COVID borrowing, inflation and high interest rates.

Personal loans are averaging 19.6% a year, while 63% of new debt-counselling applicants now have one-month loans, signalling acute cash-flow pressure and growing reliance on small, expensive credit.

The DBSA said Africa’s energy and infrastructure plans are held back less by money than by weak project preparation, slow permitting and fragmented regulation; it wants standardised processes and stronger local partnerships.

Food safety was framed as a coordination failure, not a science failure: responsibilities are split across departments and municipalities, leaving no clear end-to-end accountability after the 2024 poisoning cases.

Premium brands were said to have a distinction problem, not a quality problem: consumers now demand clear value, consistency and a brand experience that still stands out when the logo is removed.