CoviID: new app to avoid future lockdowns
27 March, 2020

As South Africans commence a 21-day lockdown, a group of researchers from the University of Cape Town (UCT) is working tirelessly on a smartphone app that could play an important role in managing future outbreaks of COVID-19 and economic recovery.

Governments around the globe are currently taking measures to contain the spread of the deadly coronavirus; in time infection rates should start to stabilise and, eventually, decrease.

Once this happens, being able to verify that you’ve either already had the virus or recently undergone testing will be of the utmost importance for public health. Further down the line, it will also become crucial to verify that you have been vaccinated.

“The problem with a lockdown is it works, but only for a short period of time,” explains Associate Professor Co-Pierre Georg, convenor of UCT’s sought-after master’s in financial technology.

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Panic buying underscores South Africa's inequalities
23 March, 2020

Many authors have covered the reasons for panic buying and all behaviourists would agree that this is not a new or unexpected phenomenon. But the way it plays out in a country as economically unequal as South Africa accentuates the gap between the haves and have-nots.

Who wins and who loses from panic buying?

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Calls for fair pay and fair conditions in the gig economy
20 March, 2020

The Fairwork Project has highlighted the precarious nature of work in the gig economy in South Africa, shown by its ratings for digital platforms such as Uber and OrderIn. The release of a set of scores has come at a time that has also exposed the risks faced by South African gig workers with the onset of the coronavirus (COVID-19).

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