Earlylands in Conversation - Ep. 22 - Standard Bank’s Simon Freemantle on Growing Signs That South Africa’s Recovery Is Underway

Thousands of people are descending on Cape Town this week for the annual Mining Indaba, one of the industry’s largest annual global gatherings. I doubt any of them would arguewith the assertion that politics, whether it be geopolitics or national level issues, is one of the driving forces impacting the industry. And, while playing host to the Indaba, South Africa is also one country where politics and mining have been deeply intertwined for nearly a century and a half.

We are joined today by Simon Freemantle, who is one of the most respected commentators on South Africa’s political economy. In his role as Standard Bank’s Senior Political Economist, Simon’s weekly newsletters are a must read among the investor and political analyst community. Simon has been ranked by Financial Mail as South Africa’s toppolitical analyst for ten consecutive years and he is a frequent speaker at institutions like Oxford and NYU Stern and he is a regular presence in South African and international media.  

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Books mentioned in the episode -

-The full catalog of Jonny Steinberg

-Jeff Wicks, The Shadow State: Why Babita Deokaran Had to Die