What a difference a year makes. South Africa's recently appointed minister of finance Tito Mboweni was in great form this morning addressing a packed press conference where he fielded questions around taxpayers' R23bn a year capital injection into Eskom (Tito doesn't like it being called a "bailout"); what would happen if Moody's were to downgrade SA; the need for some South Africans to shed their Soviet Union mindset; why he'd prefer to put money into railways and taxis rather than SAA and the SABC; the troubles at the PIC; and a whole lot more. Have a listen - it's fun and serious, focused and rambling. But without doubt a masterclass in communications from the South African cabinet's most active user of Twitter (that gets a mention too). - Alec Hogg    

LONDON — South Africa is high up on the list of the heavy weights in the world when it comes to obesity. Our diet of ‘slap chips’, ‘pap and sheba’ and increasing reliance on fast foods at outlets where you do not even have to get out of the car to get your burger or fried chicken, is taking its toll. Some studies find that South Africa's obesity figures is the highest in Sub-Saharan Africa, others indicate that 69% of women and 41% of men are overweight and even though some of these figures can be disputed, it is undeniable that we have a heavy problem. South Africa has joined other countries trying to curb the use of excess sugar with a sugar tax, but a report by the medical journal, the Lancet says these measures are not enough to address obesity and are calling for a treaty against junk food similar to the anti-tobacco and climate change campaigns. – Linda van Tilburg

LONDON — The Venezuelan people are bearing the brunt of the socialist policies of their President Nicholas Maduro. Images of people looking for food in the rubbish and telling the world of their plight can be seen daily on news outlets all over the world. But Maduro is blocking aid to the country to his starving nation saying that his people aren’t beggars and he doesn’t trust the United States. The Trump administration supported by some Western nations including the United Kingdom has recognised opposition leader Juan Guaido as the interim President of Venezuela in what some political commentators see as a ‘soft coup’. But Russia, China and Turkey are backing Maduro and South Africa has insisted that Maduro is the duly elected leader. In an interview with the former chief of the CIA’s worldwide operations, Jack Devine, who now heads the Arkin Group told Bloomberg that the Americans’ backing of Maduro could be seen as another proxy war with Russia. - Linda van Tilburg

JOHANNESBURG — The recent announcement by energy company TOTAL that it had discovered a major oil and gas find off of South Africa's southern coast sparked a lot of excitement recently. There's been talk that the find contains up to 1 billion barrels and economists have already started calculating the potential economic benefit to the country. But while the discovery is exciting and there's the further prospect of more oil and gas being found in that part of the ocean, it could still take almost a decade before any production starts. This is according to Adelwale Fayemi, who is the MD of Exploration & Production in SA for energy company TOTAL. In an interview with us at BizNews, Fayemi explained what exactly the find could entail in years to come. - Gareth van Zyl

LONDON — If anybody doubted the seriousness of Eskom's crisis, there was another dark reminder in the form of Stage 4  load shedding. President Cyril Ramaphosa announced a range of measure that he is considering to switch on  the lights; more details will be in the budget speech. To get the overseas perspective on the state owned entity’s prospects, we spoke to the Managing Editor of Debtwire CEEMEA, Chris Haffenden on the measures that Eskom could take to shed its debt load. He suggests that foreign investors may be interested in investing in transmission and distribution, if Eskom is split in three pieces. – Linda van Tilburg

JOHANNESBURG — Well known South African comedian and director Kagiso Lediga is starting to carve out a seriously successful film career. Coming hot on the heels of his Netflix debut 'Catching Feelings' (another must-watch SA film), he's now involved with the smash box office hit Matwetwe, a movie that puts Breaking Bad-type twist on selling marijuana in South Africa. Beautifully shot and cleverly scripted, the film is getting rave reviews and has been apportioned more theatre space across the country. In this interview, Lediga tells us the backstory to his latest success. - Gareth van Zyl

CAPE TOWN — Unless Eskom gets the tariff hike they’re asking for, the power utility will have to ask government for another R83bn in three to five years’ time, says its new CFO, Calib Cassim. In the most revealing interview yet, Cassim admits to Chris Yelland, one of the country’s top energy journalists, that Eskom is currently “using one credit card to pay off another –unsustainable under any circumstances.” Municipal arrear debt amounts to R18bn, growing at about R450m per month, while Soweto arrear debt adds a further R17bn, growing at about R50m per month. In total, arrear debt is growing by R500m per month. From the horse’s mouth, these numbers. Here’s a Cassim quote that could either have you fast-tracking or cancelling your immigration plans, depending on the lenses you wear. “If we go down, we bring down the sovereign and the economy. For me, the best thing that has ever happened is the presidential task team, and the fact that we have the ear of the president who understands the urgency. He used the words “financial crisis” in his state-of-the-nation address, and this is the best way to describe where we are, hand-in-hand with our operational challenges.” - Chris Bateman

LONDON — It has been a tough year for Snap, maker of the photo messaging app, Snapchat as it lost users to competitors like Instagram. It didn’t help when a Kardashian influencer tweeted that she did not open Snapchat anymore. The company managed to stem the flow by the three months to end December with the latest results beating Wall Street estimates. Losses were curtailed to $192m on revenue of $390m. This compared favourably with a loss of $360m on revenue of $286m a year before. Forecasts of Snap’s premature demise were obviously overdone, and shares jumped 25% on the numbers. Technology columnist Shira Ovide explained to Bloomberg’s Lisa Abramowiscz and Paul Sweeney why Snap managed to turn it around… - Linda van Tilburg

JOHANNESBURG — The recent passing away of John Bogle, the low-cost investing pioneer and founder of Vanguard, put into sharp focus the continuing downward pressure on fees in the investment industry. It's a trend that - along with the increasing adoption of technology - will gather pace in 2019, according to Wealthport CEO Eugene Maree. In this interview, Maree gives an insider's insight into the forces that will shape the investment landscape in 2019. - Gareth van Zyl

JOHANNESBURG — There's surging demand from South Africans for the United States' EB-5 immigrant investor programme. This is according to Stuart Ferguson who is the CEO of American Dream - a business that helps secure US visas for families from countries such as South Africa and even the United Arab Emirates. It's no surprise that many South Africans are looking for a plan B. Daily revelations of corruption and concerns over the South African economy have generally sparked an exodus among many locals. In this interview then, Ferguson explains the ins and outs of the EB-5 immigrant investor programme. - Gareth van Zyl

JOHANNESBURG — It's well known that Africa has serious challenges when it comes to sufficient infrastructure. In fact, it presents both a challenge to the continent's growing economies as well as an opportunity to leapfrog the rest of the world. To date, African nations have relied overwhelmingly on public funding to build their current infrastructure layer. But if Africa ever hopes to bridge its massive infrastructure gap, it needs to let in more private investment. This is the view of RMB Africa Analyst Celeste Fauconnier in this interview on RMB's latest 'Where to invest in Africa' report. - Gareth van Zyl

JOHANNESBURG — President Cyril Ramaphosa is set to have a state visit to India on 25-26 January. The visit will present another opportunity for Ramaphosa to drum up further investment for South Africa, following a major summit that he held late last year. India is increasingly becoming a key nation in global politics and business with the country set to become the fifth largest economy this year. Ramaphosa's visit to the country, therefore, will be among his most important to date. One major South African company that already has strong ties to India is interestingly that of Rand Merchant Bank (RMB). And in this interview, RMB CEO James Formby explains why SA businesses have to start taking a closer look at the Indian market. - Gareth van Zyl

JOHANNESBURG — There's some good news and bad news for Saffers when it comes to the latest Global Talent Competitiveness Index released at Davos this week. For starters, South Africa as a country has been slipping dramatically in recent years when it comes to attracting and creating competitive human resources. (SA this year ranks 71, sliding from its position in the 50s in years gone by.) But there are some rays of hope including local companies ranking high in terms of upskilling staff as well as Joburg and Cape Town making the top global 114 cities when it comes to talent competitiveness. The only problem here is that both cities rank on the lower end of this particular table - Joburg (107), Cape Town (112). And as the co-author of the index Bruno Lanvin explains in this interview, SA as a whole can rank much better if it undergoes serious labour reforms. - Gareth van Zyl

The annual Brand South Africa dinner in Davos was so heavily oversubscribed this year that I only got a seat because of some late cancellations. A huge difference to recent years where there were always plenty of no-shows – such was the decline in the nation’s appeal while Jacob Zuma ruled the roost. Last year in Davos Cyril Ramaphosa led the delegation, even though still the deputy president.  His impromptu speech, which I recorded on my iPhone, went viral with tens of thousands of South Africans encourage by his message. He took the mike again tonight, and once more delivered an uplifting message without referring to a single note – or that politician’s crutch, the autocue. And once again he delivered as inspiring a message as you’re likely to hear in the Alpine resort. It was also under half the length of last year’s. Once again my trusty iPhone did the recording so apologies for the less than broadcast quality. And to give you a better feel of the mood, the recording starts as SA’s president takes the microphone – bantering with his Finance Minister Tito Mboweni, with whom the rumour mill said there was friction after his late arrival at the pre-Davos breakfast last week. Pic: Greg Beadle  

JOHANNESBURG — Olivier Gremillion - who is in Davos this week for the World Economic Forum - spent 7 years at Airbnb before joining global travel bookings website Booking.com. Now, he's heading up Booking.com's non-hotel business, providing a competitive alternative to that of Airbnb. Olivier has a good knowledge of the African travel market, including that of South Africa. And in this interview, he explains why he's more upbeat than in previous years about the African travel market. - Gareth van Zyl

Getting into the swing of things here in Davos and here's an awesome interview with Dame Linda Partridge who tackles one of the hottest subjects of our time - ageing. We know that the process is far more maleable than previously imagined, but the multi award winning Dame Partridge's work takes the subject to a new level. If you've wanted to how how to live a long and healthy old age, and how to improve your chances of not being hit by the twin medical monsters of Alzheimer's and Parkinson's, you'll find what this gifted scientist has to say absolutely riveting. I did.

There's always a lot of meat in PWC's annual CEO survey which is released in Davos on the eve of the start of the annual meeting. The 22nd edition, released on Monday night, was no different. Of the two key issues to emerge, one you might well have expected, but not the other. The super confidence that CEOs globally exhibited last year has been tempered by the trade war and political tensions. So whereas last year's survey was super bullish, this one almost depressive with six times more CEOs expecting a drop in economic growth. But the bright spot comes from an unlikely source. Kevin Ellis, PWC's head of Europe, Middle East and Africa, says the survey shows British CEOs are backing themselves to flourish after Brexit. A contrarian view, but as Ellis unpacks the issues, it's one that makes lots of sense.

Romaney Pinnock is in Davos this year looking for R10m to fulfil a dream. In her mid-30s, her love affair with football furned into an unusual project called Badgers Academy where 80 women now get together regularly to play a sport which is transforming lives of vulnerable women living in high risk areas of the Cape. Romaney says she has been inspired by the way playing football has helped women overcome major issues - and believes her Philippi project provides a template that can be used to transform lives everywhere. Here's what she is going to be pitching to Davos's rich and powerful.

For the past eight years, head of Africa for the World Economic Forum, Tanzanian Elsie Kanza has ensured the often forgotten continent enjoys the attention its billion people deserve. As she geared up for her busiest week of the year, I tapped her for some thoughts on the Africa agenda of Davos 2019. Appropriately, we kicked off with the WEF’s annual Global Risks report, released this week, which highlights how climate change has taken a firm grip – with these rising temperatures have been playing havoc with Africa’s opportunities to leapfrog.

JOHANNESBURG — Just before his pre-Davos press briefing this week, President Cyril Ramaphosa meet with an Eskom task team to try deal with the headache that is our country's state-owned power utility. Eskom has been terribly run for years and after it asked for another massive price hike from regulator Nersa, it's set to continue to entrench itself as the most disliked company South Africa has probably ever had. Eskom is also an outdated machine, relying heavily on dirty coal to provide what electricity is left in the country. But strong alternatives are emerging in the solar space and if regulations were relaxed a lot more, especially amid ever-improving battery technology, the ability of solar to provide SA's energy needs could become more significant in years to come, according to Manie de Waal, the CEO of Energy Partners Solar. Here is what he has to say. - Gareth van Zyl

JOHANNESBURG — President Cyril Ramaphosa at a pre-WEF briefing in Johannesburg on Wednesday morning spent a good 15 minutes addressing some sharp issues relating to the controversy surrounding expropriation of land without compensation, the independence of the Reserve Bank and what appears to be the unresolved child-visa disaster (which is reportedly still a major hindrance for travellers to South Africa, despite assurances from Ramaphosa that this wouldn't be the case any longer). In many ways, Ramaphosa, once again, tried to ease markets by saying that land EWC will just involve clarification of what already exists in the Consitution. The problem here is that the process is largely in the hands now of ANC and EFF MPs, who have shown themselves to be unpredictable. Ramaphosa also promised that the independent mandate of the Reserve Bank won't change despite calls of nationalisation from the ANC. And then he addressed those pesky child visas. Take a listen... - Gareth van Zyl

JOHANNESBURG — President Cyril Ramaphosa addressed the now-annual pre-WEF briefing that happens each year before our politicians fly over to Davos. This year's pre-WEF meet was a very different one to the one I attended last year. For starters, the venue was different. Last year, it was held in one of the big ballrooms in the Hilton Hotel in downtown Sandton - this time it was held in a much smaller venue in the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Rosebank. I was told that Ramaphosa prefers the Crowne Plaza as it's closer to his home in Hyde Park (I don't know how true this is as I imagine he's equidistance between both hotels). Nevertheless, another major difference was that this time last year we still had Malusi Gigababa as FinMin. These days, we have Tito Mboweni who slipped in late to the pre-WEF briefing in Rosebank on Wednesday and quietly sat in the back, unassuming. But lastly, the major difference that I observed was that Ramaphosa this year looked much more tired - last year he had a skip in his step amid Ramaphoria. Regardless, he's still a good speaker and very much provides the rational perspective on things. - Gareth van Zyl

JOHANNESBURG — Local baby carrier business Ubuntu Baba has been in the headlines the last few days after Woolworths was exposed for copying its products. It all started with a blog post that Ubuntu Baba founder, Shannon McLaughlin, wrote on 7 January in which she explained, in-depth, as to how Woolworths had started stocking products strikingly similar in design and concept to hers. That post struck a nerve on social media amid Woolworths having been previously exposed for displaying similar copycat behaviour in the past with the likes of Frankies as well as another hummingbird design fiasco. Despite the challenging situation that McLaughlin has faced in the last few weeks, Woolworths has been forced to back down and engage in discussions with her. In this interview, McLaughlin gives us the latest update as well as the backstory to what happened. - Gareth van Zyl

In this interview, BizNews editor and publisher Alec Hogg asks the Head of EMEA Credit Research at Debtwire, Nicholas Smith-Saville, about the company's perspective on Eskom's debt woes. Debtwire is well-known for its analysis of debt markets worldwide and in-depth credit analysis. As a result, Smith-Saville provides a much needed global perspective on Eskom's financial conundrum. Interestingly, Smith-Saville says it's not all bad news for as long as Eskom can start to get itself on the right trajectory and avoid becoming a target for political exploitation. - Gareth van Zyl

JOHANNESBURG — Forensics for Justice has published a statement and affidavit indicating why it believes that Andile Ramaphosa (President Cyril Ramaphosa's son) is not guilty of corruption with regard to alleged kickback payments from the company formerly known as 'Bosasa' (now 'African Global Operations'). In this interview, investigative sleuth Paul O'Sullivan explains in detail why Forensics for Justice is adamant that there's no wrongdoing on the part of Andile and why Cyril is untainted as well. Of course, the situation is not exactly black and white as Bosasa still comes off poorly amid rather dubious payments it's made to the likes of ANC MP Vincent Smith. Take a listen. - Gareth van Zyl