South Africa this month is hosting the G20 summit in Johannesburg, an opportunity for the government of Cyril Ramaphosa to shift the focus from a steady drumbeat of news about the country's highly contentious relations with the US. We are very fortunate to be joined for this episode by prominent analyst of South Africa, Dr. Terence McNamee. Terence published this month in the Christian Science Monitor a cover story entitled “End of the Rainbow?,” a title that bluntly describes a country that he feels has dramatically lost its way. In this conversation we look at what has gone wrong in the Rainbow Nation and also what gives Terence hope about a land and people with such potential.

Based in Johannesburg, Terence is a fellow at the Montreal Institute for Global Security. Educated in his native Canada and the UK, he completed a doctorate at the London School of Economics on South Africa’s nuclear weapons program. For more than two decades he led research initiatives and shaped strategy sessions at leading think tanks on two continents – the Royal United Services Institute in London and The Brenthurst Foundation in Johannesburg – that drew presidents, generals, and global CEOs. From 2018-2024 he was a Global Fellow of The Wilson Center in Washington, DC. 

Articles and Books Mentioned in the Podcast

-"End of the Rainbow?" Christian Science Monitor

-"My Traitor's Heart" by Rian Malan

-"Born a Crime" by Trevor Noah