President Jacob Zuma |

Ex-South Africa President Zuma Linked to New Bribes Scandal

JOHANNESBURG (Capital Markets in Africa) – Jacob Zuma, who quit as South African president last year after being implicated in a string of scandals, is facing fresh allegations that he took bribes from services company Bosasa to shield it from prosecution and advance its business interests. Angelo Agrizzi, Bosasa’s chief operating officer from 1999 to 2016, told a judicial inquiry that’s probing graft during Zuma’s rule how the company agreed to pay 300,000 rand ($22,000)…

Zuma’s Defiance Hampers Ramaphosa Bid to Reform South Africa

Posted on by The Editorial Team

JOHANNESBURG (Capital Markets in Africa) – Pressured to resign as the nation’s president in February, Zuma retains significant influence in the ruling African National Congress, and his successor, Cyril Ramaphosa, has been forced to keep some of the former leader’s allies in the cabinet. That’s hampered the new president’s bid to unify the party, fight corruption and implement policies to restore confidence in the economy. Zuma, 76, still attends ANC events, including at least one…

The Legal Cases Ensnaring Prominent South African Officials

Posted on by The Editorial Team

JOHANNESBURG (Capital Markets in Africa) – A slew of legal cases involving South African politicians and officials, including former President Jacob Zuma, are working their way through the courts, with some prominent public figures at risk of being jailed or losing their jobs. This is the state of play of some of the most high-profile lawsuits: Zuma’s graft trial Zuma, who the ruling party forced to resign in February after a scandal-tainted tenure lasting almost nine…

South African Business Leaders Upbeat as Ramaphosa Rings Changes

Posted on by The Editorial Team

JOHANNESBURG (Capital Markets in Africa) – South African President Cyril Ramaphosa has been a hit with business leaders and investors during his first three weeks in office. Since succeeding Jacob Zuma, who was immersed in scandal during his nine-year tenure, Ramaphosa has fired several ineffective ministers, taken a stand against graft and ordered a review of draft rules that deterred investment in the mining industry. Improved confidence may boost weak economic growth and investment and could help stave…

Some of South Africa’s Economic Rebound Started Under Zuma

Posted on by The Editorial Team

JOHANNESBURG (Capital Markets in Africa) – South Africa’s new president, Cyril Ramaphosa, is credited with boosting confidence in the economy, but some of that rebound started under his predecessor, Jacob Zuma. The economy expanded 1.3 percent last year, exceeding the National Treasury’s forecast. The annualized growth in the three months through December was the most since the second quarter of 2016 and fixed capital formation expanded after three quarters of contraction. This “suggests that confidence was returning…

Zuma’s Exit Sparks Shifting Political Alliances in South Africa

Posted on by The Editorial Team

JOHANNESBURG (Capital Markets in Africa) – Jacob Zuma’s forced resignation as South Africa’s president did more than revive confidence in the ruling African National Congress. It’s deepened divisions between the two main opposition parties, threatening their control of the nation’s key cities. Together with the ANC’s shift to support expropriation of land without compensation, Zuma’s replacement by Cyril Ramaphosa has thawed its relations with the Economic Freedom Fighters. The party hounded Zuma over allegations of graft and…

Zuma’s Protracted Exit Tests Ramaphosa’s Power in South Africa

Posted on by The Editorial Team

JOHANNESBURG (Capital Markets in Africa) – Less than two months after taking over the leadership of South Africa’s ruling party, Cyril Ramaphosa is facing a key test of his authority: President Jacob Zuma just won’t go away. Zuma initially defied a decision by top leaders of the African National Congress that he should quit, but his exit seemed imminent when parliament on Tuesday postponed the annual state-of-the-nation address just two days before he was due to deliver it. On…

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