Mbeki reinvigorated the African Renaissance, Ramaphosa has Brics+6

[View in browser]( [Mail & Guardian]( M&G Mornings | Fri 25 Aug   [Ron Derby] What will be President Cyril Ramaphosa’s legacy? That is a heated question, whichever circle you are in, right? His biggest supporters who ushered in “Ramaphoria” when he ousted Jacob Zuma more than five years ago, shrug their shoulders. His detractors rub their hands in glee and argue that he hasn’t managed to stop the slide of the South African economic story. It’s been a hard five years: the Covid pandemic; electricity shortages; more, but not admittedly as grand corruption that were the hallmark of the Zuma presidency; factional battles in his party; missed deadlines on many of his plans to kickstart this bruised economy; and a still stubbornly high unemployment. Being a man of process, Ramaphosa has not done well against these many crises. People want to see folded shirt sleeves and sweat on the brow of their political leader, much like a US presidential candidate in a town hall meeting. He hasn’t delivered any such performance. As the ANC faces a difficult nine months ahead of the elections next year, we hope, the question is just what the legacy of Ramaphosa will be? This is especially true if his party dips below the 50% mark. This week, the expansion of Brics with the addition of six new countries — Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Ethiopia, Argentina, United Arab Emirates and Iran — may just be it. These new allegiances mark a realignment of geopolitical forces and institutional architecture as Mail & Guardian columnist Richard Calland says this week. There’ll always be question marks about Iran as sanctions suffocate its near 90 million populace. This is a huge win for Ramaphosa and may matter much more in 10, 20 years time. Growth in this global village will come from Asia, Latin America and Africa. Aligning the biggest players in these regions is critical to the future of our economy and the African continent. President Thabo Mbeki pushed the African Renaissance agenda, awakening the dreams of Kwame Nkrumah. That’s his legacy. Building the global south alliance may be Ramaphosa’s legacy. At the polls next year, this may not matter much for Ramaphosa and his party. But over the next two to three decades, there’s an alliance here that we should do well to exploit and not be blinded by the popularity of “nationalism” as the United Kingdom did when it exited the European Union seven years ago. Ron Derby | Editor-in-Chief [@Ronderby]( [PM_Modi _3388_DV]( [EXCLUSIVE: AU will be part of G20 during my presidency, says Nahendra Modi]( In a wide ranging interview with the Mail & Guardian, the Indian prime minister placed great importance on Africa’s position in geopolitics [// Read more]( [Graphic-TL-Brics2_page-0001]( [Deciding Brics’ purpose will determine its future]( Important questions remain but there is no doubting the effect of these new allegiances [// Read more]( [Brics leaders (1)]( [No Sandton showdown at Brics+6]( A drama-free summit reminds the opposition that Cyril is still running the show [// Read more]( Recommended Reads [Eskom hopes to ease load-shedding by the festive season]( Eskom expects units from Kusile and Tutuka power stations to be back online in November [// Read more]( [Brics: Global south is flexing its muscles]( After moving past the Putin will-he-won’t-he brouhaha, we can focus on the great impact Brics can have on member countries and the world [// Read more]( [Meyiwa trial: Defence wants forensic witness back in the stand]( Defence attorneys say there are discrepancies in the list of cases that officer Thabo Mosia attended to on the night the footballer was murdered [// Read more]( [Cryptic Crossword 393]( 7A. Murders king – left with troubles (4) [// Read more]( [Azana’s new album set to stand out]( Prepare to dance, to fall in love and even to weep to the second record from Azana out soon [// Read more]( Pic of the day [PM_Modi _3407_DV] M&G Editor-in-chief Ron Derby interviews India Prime Minister Narendra Modi. (Delwyn Verasamy/M&G) [Share]( [Share]( [Tweet]( [Tweet]( [Forward]( [Forward]( This email was sent to {EMAIL} [why did I get this?]( [unsubscribe from this list]( [update subscription preferences]( Mail & Guardian Media LTD · 25 Owl St · Braamfontein · Johannesburg, Gauteng 2001 · South Africa