Bheki Mahlobo discusses the people who shaped his views around economics, and why it is important to make economic analysis relatable to ordinary South Africans.
March 5, 2026
Bheki Mahlobo discusses the people who shaped his views around economics, and why it is important to make economic analysis relatable to ordinary South Africans.
1 day ago
5 min
Dr James Myburgh breaks down the different fallacies that a Sixty Minutes documentary broadcast on CBS used to diminish the issue. He explains the misleading data they use, the false equivalence they draw, and how the issue has become politicised.
2 days ago
10 min
Frans Cronje unpacks the most important parts of the latest South African budget and explains how it serves as a massive wealth redistribution machine - shifting money from those who earn it to those who don't.
3 days ago
10 min
Helen Zille explains the implications of Herman Mashaba running for mayor of Johannesburg given his previous flirtations with the EFF.
4 days ago
6 min
The Makin Sense panel discusses whether Patrice Motsepe would be able to govern effectively if he were to become president of the ANC. The panel debates whether he could control the party’s internal structures, and whether he could be ruthless enough to implement changes capable of reforming South Africa's economy.
6 days ago
12 min
In this clip from Makin Sense Dr Frans Cronje, Simon Lincoln Reader, and Dr James Myburgh discuss Marco Rubio's speech at the Munich Security conference.
6 days ago
7 min
In this clip from Talking Sense, Executive Mayor of Cape Town, Geordin Hill-Lewis explains what he thinks is the recipe to grow South Africa's economy at a faster rate.
7 days ago
7 min
Bheki Mahlobo, Economics Editor at the The Common Sense, lays out the trends of South Africa's rate of fixed investment over time and explains what is needed in order to raise it to match our emerging market peers.
8 days ago
7 min
In this clip from Makin Sense Dr Frans Cronje discusses whether Patrice Motsepe is gearing up to run for the presidency of the ANC.
11 days ago
10 min
Richard Tren and colleagues explain why South Africans should not pin their hopes on the Republicans losing the US midterms as President Donald Trump’s foreign policy powers remain largely insulated from Congressional shifts.
12 days ago
8 min
With every vote mattering in the next local government election, Helen Zille discusses how she can win Johannesburg outright.
14 days ago
5 min
In this hard-hitting conversation, Rob and Frans Cronje unpack the real strategic equation facing South Africa. Beyond the headlines and doom narratives, we examine voter psychology, ANC decline, MK and EFF momentum, fixed investment rates, electricity myths, deindustrialisation, corruption, and whether real reform is actually possible.
15 days ago
1h 2m
Moeletsi Mbeki explores who really took power in 1994 and the effects and the consequences this had had for the country.
16 days ago
5 min
The panel argues that both as a moral imperative and for SA to survive as a free society its government needs to start burning heaps of coal.
17 days ago
8 min
China has struck a promising trade framework agreement with South Africa. Frans Cronje explains the implications and why the pact could be very good for South Africa.
18 days ago
4 min
John Steenhuisen's departure leaves the DA at a crossroads. Frans talks about the challenges the next leader of the DA may face and the negative chain of events that could see the party losing ground.
20 days ago
4 min
Richard Tren, whose sisters attended Roedean, sheds light on the Roedean-King David scandal.
21 days ago
5 min
With John Steenhuisen going, the GNU loses one of its key stabilising figures. The panel debates whether the next DA leader should draw firmer lines against the ANC within the GNU.
22 days ago
5 min
Moeletsi Mbeki discusses the origins of BEE and who benefits the most from it today.
23 days ago
5 min
Frans Cronje and colleagues explain why Namibia could emerge as one of Africa's and the world's most important countries and economies.
24 days ago
5 min
This is a recording of a telephone conversation between senior staffers at Rodean and King David Linksfield schools. See our exclusive on The Common Sense.
25 days ago
6 min
In this clip from Talking Sense Moeletsi Mbeki talks about the route that the DA could take to become the largest political party in South Africa.
25 days ago
3 min
John Steenhuisen takes Gabriel Makin through the history of FMD in SA, the challenges it has brought, and his plans going forward to beat it.
28 days ago
8 min
Should the DA stay in the GNU or walk away. John Steenhuisen explains what’s really at stake if that decision is made.
February 3, 2026
3 min
Ron Richman, CEO of InsureAI, breaks down how AI systems like ChatGPT work and why they appear so intelligent.
February 3, 2026
8 min
John Steenhuisen talks about the challenges to his leadership and explains that he feels confident that he could win another term as leader of the party.
February 2, 2026
7 min
In this clip from Makin Sense, Dr Frans Cronje explains why the rand has strengthened significantly and what forces are driving the devaluation of the dollar.
January 31, 2026
11 min
In this clip from Makin Sense, Simon Lincoln Reader provides insights into the latest WEF meeting and muses on whether this is the beginning of the end of its relevance.
January 30, 2026
12 min
Bonsai Shongwe comments on how South Africa is a hybrid culture between the West and Africa.
January 27, 2026
6 min
In this clip from Makin Sense, Dr James Myburgh provides comment on the history and political capture of South Africa's National Prosecuting Authority.
January 26, 2026
9 min
In this clip from Makin Sense, Drs James Myburgh Frans Cronje provide comments on Helen Zille's history in the DA and her current popularity
January 26, 2026
12 min
In this clip from Makin Sense, Dr Frans Cronje provides context as to why Greenland is strategically important for the United States
January 24, 2026
9 min
In this clip from Makin Sense, Reine Opperman explains how South Africa can get caught in the crossfire between Iran and America.
January 23, 2026
9 min
Bonsai Shongwe explains that there are many unintended consequences of Black Economic Empowerment policies.
January 22, 2026
12 min
In this clip from Makin Sense, Dr James Myburgh provides the context to what is happening with ICE in Minnesota.
January 21, 2026
7 min
Mike Sham discusses the transition from the old South Africa to the new, highlighting the initial openness of dialogue in the early '90s, which gradually diminished during the Mandela and Mbeki years. He also discusses the economic opportunities that were missed during the Mandela era.
January 18, 2026
9 min
Mike Sham @sonacoza dropped in to have a broad discussion about the New Media landscape, his fight with the DA and South African politics.
January 17, 2026
53 min
In this clip from Makin Sense, Simon Reader and James Myburgh delve into the complexities of censorship and disinformation in the digital age.
January 16, 2026
11 min
In this clip of Morning Sense, Warwick Grey takes us through today’s top five stories.
January 14, 2026
2 min
In this clip from Makin Sense, James Myburgh explores the impact of censorship and racial politics on young white men in academia and media in America, drawing parallels between their experiences and historical contexts in South Africa. It discusses how generational perspectives have shifted, particularly in relation to the ANC and the experiences of Afrikaners.
January 13, 2026
7 min
In this clip from Makin Sense, Dr Frans Cronje explains the series of events that led up to the arrest of Nicolas Maduro by the Americans and how the ANC should learn from them. He demonstrates that the Americans had engaged in a slow ratcheting up of tensions that eventually led to the arrest and he argues that there are parallels to the way the Americans will deal with the ANC.
January 13, 2026
9 min
In this clip of Morning Sense, Warwick Grey takes us through today’s top five stories.
January 13, 2026
2 min
In this clip from Makin Sense, Dr Frans Cronje shares whether he thinks the arrest of Venezuelan president, Nicolas Maduro, was justified.
January 9, 2026
4 min
In this clip from Makin Sense the panel discusses the rise of right wing populist pied pipers, the role of Venezuela in destabilising the US, and why the UK economy may come right in the longer term.
January 8, 2026
5 min
In this clip from Makin Sense Dr Frans Cronje provides his view on the economic future of South Africa. He says that as far as emerging markets go, South Africa is one in which it is worth going long on, provided that you also hedge yourself to make sure that you can deal with the instability that the country is prone to.
January 5, 2026
4 min
In this clip from Makin Sense, Dr Frans Cronje discusses the significance of Bill Gates shifting his view on how severe the climate change issue is. He argues that this creates an opening for Western governments to step back from an economically damaging green agenda that has been pursued with little regard for trade offs and growth. Fellow Makin Sense regular Dr James Myburgh, Director of the Bremen Centre for Democratic Research (BRE DE RE) then asks whether this shift has changed how Western diplomats approach South Africa and their continued attempts to push green policies onto the country. Frans responds that many European governments remain committed to these policies, while failing to reckon with the downstream effect of slowing growth and keeping millions of poor South Africans trapped in poverty.
January 5, 2026
9 min
In this clip from Makin Sense Frans Cronje says that the broad acceptance of a turn away from BEE policy was one of the most significant developments of 2026. James Myburgh says that the pressure Trump placed on South Africa caught the ANC largely off guard and was so at odds with how Western nations had traditionally dealt with South Africa that it served as a very useful means of moderating that party's revolutionary ideas. Richard Tren follows up to say that Trump has on a range of issues been very effective saying "the emperor as no clothes".
January 3, 2026
8 min
In this clip from Makin Sense, Frans Cronje and James Myburgh discuss the most important South African news stories of 2025. To Frans the most important story is the acceptance of the GNU within the ANC. He points out that the coalition between the ANC, DA, and IFP in KwaZulu-Natal held firm following the failed Motion of No Confidence that was brought against the provincial government and how that bodes well for the dynamics inside of the GNU. James then goes on to discuss how the ANC started the year by aggressively pursuing a few of its populist policies, but after receiving significant internal and external pressure they have had to back off on these policy positions and have ended the year acting far more moderately than how they began the year.
December 31, 2025
9 min
In this clip from Makin Sense Mike Sham, host of the State of the Nation Podcast holds nothing back as a goes after John Steenhuisen and the DA leadership. Frans Cronje responds by urging caution before making any rash decisions.
December 24, 2025
9 min
In this clip from Makin Sense, Frans Cronje, James Myburgh, and Mike Sham discuss the Russia-Ukraine war. Frans begins by saying that the chance of peace in Europe has certainly increased. However, he argues that for that peace to hold, the Russians would need guarantees that Ukraine will not join NATO. Mike counters by asking whether the Ukrainians are biding their time and may launch another counter-offensive early in the new year. Frans responds that he does not believe the Ukrainians have the necessary manpower or the finances to drive the Russians out of their territory. He emphasises that Putin should be taken seriously when he says, "Europe will run out of Poles before we run out of Russians."
December 24, 2025
9 min
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