NIGHT FALL

Maybe you knew it was coming; maybe you were trying to save your marriage or ignore the problems, or hold out for some miraculous shift. Or maybe you had absolutely no idea the sh*t was about to hit the fan.

Guest on the line: Dr. Mashudu David Mbedzi, marriage counsellor and author of the book titled “Married but Intimately Divorced”

We are moving to create the enabling conditions for the sector to grow. The Department of Agriculture Land Reform and Rural Development and the Department of Health will address existing conditions for the cultivation of hemp and cannabis to allow outdoor cultivation and collection of harvests from traditional farmers.

Guest on the line: Ras Garreth Prince, Legal Professional, Dagga Lawyer and Chairperson of the Cannabis Development Council of South Africa.

Tonight‘s Conversation is with Chinese Culture Centre i.c.w. Amandla Omnotho. We've partnered with them entrepreneurially. We do exchange a lot of things, economic activity, culture and education. They even have 100 bursaries for RSA students to study in China this year.

Guest : Gugulethu G. Xaba -Chairman Adamo Holdings (Pty) Ltd / Amandla Omnotho

Guest : Jiacheng Lu (Known as JC) – from the Chinese Culture Centre

While sex is still a taboo subject for some people, it's a basic human need that is important to talk about. Your body reflects your physiological and sexual needs through a set of symptoms that reflect your desires for sexual contact and exciting new experiences. The lack of sex has physical and emotional effects, regardless of whether or not

Guests on the line: Norma Mzizi, a qualified life coach & Sexpert… Owner of Norma’s Touch wellness which focuses on holistic healing.

The National Joint Operational and Intelligence Structure (Natjoints) says officers are on high alert to ensure that there are no disruptions or criminal elements occur during this year’s State of the Nation Address (SONA).

Natjoints - which includes the South African Police Service (SAPS), SA National Defence Force and the State Security Agency (SSA) - said on Tuesday that integrated and joint law enforcement operations were under way to ensure that SONA takes place in a secure environment.

Guest on the line: Thembisa Fakude | Senior Research Fellow and Director at Africa Asia Dialogues (Afrasid)

While sex is still a taboo subject for some people, it's a basic human need that is important to talk about.Your body reflects your physiological and sexual needs through a set of symptoms that reflect your desires for sexual contact and exciting new experiences.

The lack of sex has physical and emotional effects, regardless of whether or not you are aware of them. This basic human need is much deeper than the pleasure it generates. It also plays an important role in your health and wellbeing.

Guests on the line: Norma Mzizi, a qualified life coach & Sexpert… Owner of Norma’s Touch wellness which focuses on holistic healing.

The COVID-19 pandemic has led to a question that would have been unthinkable a few years ago: do we really need to be in the office all the time?

At the height of the pandemic, working remotely was viewed as a safeguard, protecting employees from the spread of infections. Over time a consensus has developed that working remotely has had benefits but has also raised health concerns.

To provide some answers to the question, I did research on the experience of working remotely from the perspective of 23 female middle managers working in the South African public service.

It was clear that remote work had positive and negative aspects.

Guest 1 on the line: Prof Tafadzwa Chinyamurindi -Professor within the Department of Business Management at the University of Fort Hare.

Closet conversations: Widows and widowers navigating stigma and discrimination?

Around the world, a large number of vulnerable women have been left widowed by the pandemic, with the virus disproportionately killing men as well as people from black, Asian and minority ethnic backgrounds. Their loss will be compounded by the unjust and discriminatory treatment many experience in parts of Asia and Africa, where it is not unusual for widows to be blamed for a man’s death. Many face being cast out by families and communities, condemning their future and their children’s. Even widows living in countries with fewer stigmas often struggle financially for many years.

Guest on line: Matseleng Mogodi who - a Life and Executive Coach and founder of I Get It Now.

Social conversations: China’s demand for Africa’s donkeys is rising. Why it’s time to control the trade

In recent years, there’s been a huge, rising demand for donkey hides in China, where they are used to make an ancient health-related product called ejiao. Ejiao is made from collagen that’s been extracted from donkey hides mixed with herbs and other ingredients to create medicinal and health consumer products. It’s believed to have properties that strengthen the blood, stop bleeding and improve the quality of both vital fluids and sleep.

Ejiao sells for about US$783 per kilo and the Chinese market for it has increased from about US$3.2 billion in 2013 to about US$7.8 billion in 2020. This recent rise in demand is driven by several factors, including rising incomes, popularisation of the product via a television series, and an ageing population (age is a key demographic driving demand). In addition, ejiao is sometimes prescribed by doctors and the cost can newly be covered by health insurance.

The demand for ejiao has led to a shortage of donkeys in China and increasingly worldwide. Countries in Africa have been particularly affected.

Africa is home to the highest number of donkeys in the world: about two-thirds of the estimated global population of 53 million donkeys in 2020. Exact figures on how many hides are exported to China aren’t available due to a growing illicit trade, but there are indications. A study of South Africa’s donkey population, for instance, suggests that it went from 210,000 in 1996 to about 146,000 in 2019. This was attributed to the export of donkey hides.

Guest 1 on the line:  Dr Johnston is concurrently an Associate Professor at the China Studies Centre, University of Sydney.

Dream Interpretation: What Do Dreams Mean?

Guest on the line: Mntwan'eNkosi -(Siphiwe Zungu)