JP Landman

Political & Trend Analyst

The Long View

Getting Beyond the Drama of South Africa's Headlines

By JP Landman

Is South Africa going to make it?
Are we going to become a modern society
Are we going to be OK?
Or are our worst fears going to become reality? That despite being a wonderful country, geographically and culturally, we're headed one way?

That's the question South Africans fret about continually. That's the question I would like to answer in this book. My answer is not a thumb-suck or knee-jerk reaction. It is not optimistic or pessimistic. I am an analyst. That means I let the facts speak. I call it the Long View.

The Long View is information that you can hold on to. It gives you the trend lines rather than the headlines. You can disagree with me if you like. But that is how I see things. Next time you're standing around a braai or sitting around the dinner table and someone starts gaaning aan about the latest drama, you don't need to go into a tailspin. Answer him with the facts. Then carry on making the most of your meal. And of this country. - JP Landman


JP Landman is an analyst, renowned for his talks on South Africa. He has studied economics at Harvard and has an MPhil in future studies from Stellenbosch. He is a visiting professor at Free State University. In 2013, he was selected as a Public Policy Fellow at the Woodrow Wilson International Centre for Scholars in Washington DC.