On the side of a busy street in Khayelitsha, Simon runs an unexpectedly criminal enterprise: a black-market barbershop. My article in @groundup.org.za on the policing of informal businesses in South Africa. groundup.org.za/article/how-...

An article by @telegraphnews.bsky.social literally advocating tax evasion. Literally - how to pretend to run a commercial woodland to avoid inheritance tax. www.telegraph.co.uk/money/tax/in...

This is such important research on why unemployed South Africans leave or turn down work. We need to think beyond debates about mininum wage to think more expansively about what work with dignity can mean. theconversation.com/6-in-10-youn...

Here is a puzzle. People in sub-Saharan Africa tend to be *twice* as religious as the rest of the world, yet countries in the region provide *half* as much state support for religion. Why? Hint: It isn't about state capacity. #polrel

Are there any academics you read where you think 'woah, that's really good writing'? I'm having an odd time. I'm returning to books and articles that I remember as excellent. But when I read them closely, their wordwork is clumsy. Help. Who first came to mind when you read my question?

My third complete starter pack of 150 accounts that post about Africa-related topics, including journalists, policy analysts, economists, business leaders, entrepreneurs, civil society leaders, activists, historians and organizational accounts. go.bsky.app/JDTmcEq

Thought-provoking - moral language makes pro-immigration messages more effective. Some of these are really small tweaks: a "fairer and more decent" rather than "better and sounder" immigration policy. (And some are larger, like focusing on a country's values rather than economic benefits).

Politicians in South Africa use religious rhetoric, but still pursue secular and liberal policies like access to abortion and protecting same-sex partnerships. Why? theconversation.com/god-and-poli... @africa.theconversation.com #polrel (This is an older article, but as we migrate to Bluesky...)

Added! Minus the non-SA William Bird and @mbekezeli.bsky.social, who was on already. Thanks so much.

Here is a list of accounts that comment on politics in South Africa 👇. Very incomplete but getting better - please tag suggestions! go.bsky.app/vzDePD