As protests intensify in Durban’s CBD and authorities vow a month-long crackdown, fears are growing that tensions could spiral into wider unrest. At the same time, civil society groups are pushing back—uniting to call for jobs, dialogue and an end to violence against foreign nationals.

Guest: Thamsanqa Ntuli - KwaZulu-Natal Premier

Africa in Focus with Advocate Sipho Mantula, Researcher: Thabo Mbeki African School of Public & International Affairs: Unisa

24 April 2026

1.    United Nations – Senegal/ Afrika
Senegal's former president, Macky Sall, urged peace and diplomacy during his bid to succeed United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres.
Macky Sall, one of the candidates for the top UN job, spoke to reporters after an informal dialogue this week.
Sall was endorsed by Burundi, but neither Senegal nor the African Union is backing his candidacy.

2.    South Afrika – Zambia 
A South African high court has blocked the repatriation of the remains of former Zambian president Edgar Lungu, halting fresh plans for a state funeral and deepening a dispute that has dragged on for nearly 10 months.
It marks the latest setback for President Hakainde Hichilema's government, which wants him buried in Zambia, against the family's preference for South Africa, where he died in hospital on June 5.

3.    South Afrika – SADC 
The Minister of International Relations and Cooperation, Mr Ronald Lamola, will deliver the closing remarks at the three-day High-Level Inter-Departmental SADC Workshop hosted by DIRCO today. 
The workshop aims to develop a strategy and identify priorities for South Africa’s SADC Chairship. 

4.    Tanzania – Dar es Salaam
Tanzania poll violence claimed 518 lives: government enquiry
Violence around Tanzania’s October general election left 518 people dead, a government-appointed commission said Thursday — a figure far below opposition estimates of thousands killed.
“The total number of deaths resulting from the general elections was 518, of whom 490 were male,” said commission chairman Mohamed Chande Othman.
He added that 21 children and 16 security officers were among the dead, and more than 2,000 people were injured.

5.    In our historical archives, it was on this day, 24 April 1993, when the former President of the African National Congress (ANC), Oliver “OR” Tambo, died in Gauteng after a long battle with illness. Tambo was born in the village of Bizana in the Eastern Cape, South Africa. He was the first black person to open a law firm in the country with Nelson Mandela.

The Global Brief: John C. Phelan’s departure from the US Navy signals fractures in American defence leadership during an active crisis. Russia’s possible return to the G20 highlights the growing ambiguity of global alliances. Meanwhile, the Strait of Malacca—now under sharper focus as pressure mounts on the Strait of Hormuz—underscores how exposed global trade routes have become.

Guest: Dr Joan Swart - Researcher in Military Science at the University of  Stellenbosch

Good Work Foundation is passionate about closing the digital divide through building a  holistic learning environment for learners and school leavers in Bushbuckridge, Mpumalanga. The organization has also worked in partnership with universities to upskill their staff and the broader community to become facilitators.

Guest: Gemma Thompson - Head of Development at the Good Work Foundation 

The residents of Ward 126 (Randpark Ridge and Weltevreden Park and surrounding areas), are voicing their collective outrage and exhaustion over the deliberate and sustained collapse of electricity supply that plunges thousands of households into darkness for days on end, recurring every week. What began as a national load-shedding crisis has now mutated into a local man-made disaster of gross negligence, maladministration and alleged corruption at the highest levels, with no end in sight 

Guest: Dorothy “Dot” Marx - Chairperson of Willow Tree Retirement Village. 

Guest: Ronnie Kasrils - Former Minister of State Security of South Africa 

Ratepayers associations under the Msunduzi Municipality are objecting to a tariff hike for the 2026/27 financial year, sighting poor service delivery. The municipality is proposing a 9.26% electricity hike, 13% for water, 1.2% for rates, 3.70 for waste removal and 13% for sanitation. The Msunduzi Association of Residents, Ratepayers and Civics say that the municipality is in financial crisis. Why should residents pay more?

Guest: Councillor Mzimkhulu Thebolla - Mayor Msunduzi Local Municipality 

Guest: Anthony Waldhausen - CEO of the Msunduzi Association of Residents, Ratepayers and Civics 

Guest: Ross Strachan - DA Caucus leader at the Msunduzi Municipality and sits on the Finance Committee

The Reality Check: Do commissions of inquiries make a difference?

Guest: Prof. Thuli Madonsela - Director of the Centre for Social Justice (CSJ) in the Faculty of Law at Stellenbosch University

The South African Communist Party will today have a media briefing on latest developments on elections and the question of dual membership, on the other hand, the ANC will also brief the media on the communique of special NEC following SACP resolution

Guest: Samkele Maseko - SABC Politics Reporter 

Major South African retailers Pick n Pay, Pepkor and The Foschini Group are taking action against suppliers linked to a sweatshop in Newcastle, KwaZulu-Natal. The investigation of the sweatshop uncovered workers enduring long hours, poor pay and unsafe condition raising fresh concerns about labour abuses and accountability in the country’s clothing supply chain.  

Guest: Fachmy Abrahams - National Collective Bargaining Officer at the South African Clothing & Textile Workers Union