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Bridging the unemployment gap and teaching young South African women key fundamental entrepreneurship skills. Mastercard has teamed up with Junior Achievement South Africa to help bridge the unemployment gap and teach young South African women key fundamental entrepreneurship skills to equip them in running, managing and maintaining successful businesses. It is no secret that the South African labour force has been struggling and has experienced more woes due to the negative impact of the Covid-19 pandemic. As it stands statistics show that the unemployment rate is currently 32,6% and 46,4% of the population referred to in this statistic are actually young people aged 15 –35. A serious cause for concern. Brent Lindeque is joined today by Kamini Redhi, who is the Marketing and Communications Director at Mastercard Southern Africa alongside Nelly Mofokeng, Managing Director at JASA to discuss how the two organisations have teamed up to be a force for good, helping young women entrepreneurs open and grow their small businesses.

Imagine being newly matriculated and going on a once-in-a-lifetime trip to Antarctica with world-renowned global explorer, Riaan Manser? For five matrics, this will become a reality in January. The 'Matrics in Antarctica' competition provided every single matric student in South Africa with the chance to enter to become one of the five lucky matriculants to go on a five-day scientific adventure to Antarctica. On entry, participants had to answer the question: “What will exploration of the Antarctic continent do to help us preserve a greener, more sustainable existence on our planet?” The study tour will be led by Manser and a distinguished team of professors from the University of Stellenbosch. Manser joins Brent Lindeque to talk about the exciting programme, what the participants can look forward to and how to apply next year.

Are they a real production company? No. Have they made a documentary before? No. Are they prepared to drive 2 Tuk-Tuks from the Equator to Cape Town?… Ummm, that would be a 'No' as well. Having spent time making videos in some of Kenya’s incredible wild spaces Robbie, Ivo, Jasper and Josh realised the people protecting these spaces were struggling. The Rangers. These heroes help maintain the balance between communities and wildlife but as the tourism industry has taken a hit due to the pandemic, so has their funding. Armed with only filming equipment and a microphone, how could they help? The answer was clear. Spend the last of their savings on two tuk-tuks, cover them in sponsorship stickers and make a documentary driving from Kenya to Cape Town in these ridiculous three-wheeled machines. This interview will leave you in stitches… and totally inspired.

Small businesses are the backbone of South Africa’s economy. They have an enormous impact, providing a livelihood for many while advancing financial inclusion to reduce poverty and boost prosperity. Covid-19 has had an adverse effect on small businesses and business owners have been left either having to shut down operations or adapt to the new normal. SME’s have been the hardest hit since the pandemic and have had to pivot their business approaches and adjust to the new normal, with many having to go digital. For many SME’s moving businesses operations online has been a lifeline to retaining staff and continuing to operate. Mastercard has teamed up with PayFast to launch a “shop local” campaign that aims to elevate SMEs and their ingenuity, inspiring South Africans to get behind local businesses through safe and convenient online shopping. And to discuss this today, Brent Lindeque is joined by Kamini Redhi, who is the Marketing and Communications Director at Mastercard Southern Africa, as well as Colleen Harrison who the Head of Marketing at PayFast.

Early Childhood Development remains a fundamental driver in improving the personal and interpersonal development of any child. In light of this, in just over a year, Builders and MySchool MyVillage MyPlanet partnered to help South Africans make their contribution towards the development of children. The partnership supports early learning by building and revamping school spaces, equipping classrooms and training teachers. To chat about this incredible campaign, Roshana Burnette from Builders and Helene Brand from MySchool MyVillage MyPlanet join Brent Lindeque to chat about how much South African shoppers have raised and donated to this cause.

You know we're all about the good things on this channel and you should also know that I am all about good TV and doccies. That is why this week I am bringing you front row seats - actually a more behind the scenes look at the newest streaming service that has landed on South African shores. Yup, Avid South African TV fans can now binge-watch the best of British programming all in one place as subscription video-on-demand service BritBox has launched locally as of 6 August, with new and exclusive titles such as Line of Duty season 6, Professor T and Wedding of the Century, plus thousands of hours of classic content and family favourites. After taking the United States, UK, Canada and Australia by storm and with over two million global subscriptions, BritBox is bringing local consumers a wide range of top-quality viewing, including the biggest collection of British box sets, courtesy of a joint venture between British television powerhouses BBC and ITV, responsible for some of TV’s most iconic moments. To chat about this incredible new streaming service, we’re joined by Neale Dennett - the New Markets Launch Director for BritBox International and Kent Gavin - a British photojournalist who met Princess Diana on numerous occasions and whose images have featured consistently on newspaper and magazine covers throughout the world.

We are well into Women’s Month, a time where we celebrate all the women who are at the forefront of making a difference in South Africa as well as organisations that are helping women to reach their full potential. Mastercard is one of these organisations that is deeply committed to gender equality and has been investing significantly in various initiatives – including women’s rugby. Now, I am a huge rugby fan and am really excited to talk about some of the challenges and opportunities for women, and how Mastercard is helping to advance the women’s game. Today, Brent is joined by Kamini Redhi, who is the Marketing and Communications Director at Mastercard Southern Africa, as well as Piwokuhle Nyanda - affectionately known as "Piwo," - who is a South African and Golden Lions Women’s Rugby player, as well as a Mastercard women’s rugby ambassador. Listen to the full show here.

When you give someone your word, do you truly mean it? "That is powerful, that you do what you say you're going to do," says radio & TV celebrity Psychologist, TV presenter Charissa Bloomberg - who is a renowned Integrity Leadership specialist, and an accredited Emotional Intelligence facilitator. She joins Brent Lindeque to discuss “raising the integrity meter” in South Africa. Charissa has a Masters in Psychology, as well as a Psychodrama and Group Dynamics qualification from Oxford University, and the Capetonian brings 20 years of extensive international experience into the Psychologist space.

Mastercard has launched a Priceless Cause that enables consumers to be a force for good, make a difference, and give back to those who need it most. With the need to support South African communities increasing daily due to COVID-19, it's important for organisations to take a stand and extend a helping hand, and Mastercard has made it easier than ever to assist. Each time a Mastercard cardholder “Taps to Pay” with their Mastercard contactless card or “Scans to Pay” with their Masterpass app or any other Masterpass-enabled Scan to Pay banking app, at the till point at any Shoprite or Checkers stores, Mastercard will donate R1 to the Gift of the Givers Foundation. Brent Lindeque finds out more from Kamini Redhi, Director of Marketing and Communications at Mastercard, South Africa and Dr Imtiaz Sooliman, Founder of Gift of the Givers Foundation.

It's been over two weeks since Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal faced devastating social unrest that brought both fear and more uncertainty. This at a time when the country's still battling a pandemic and trying to revive its battered economy. But at the same time, we saw the tide turning as South Africans did what they know best - joined hands to clean up and rebuild what had been destroyed by the unrest. Inspired by their spirit of generosity, Ubuntu, South Africans stood together against a force that threatened to destroy everything they stand for. A simple Facebook post created a beautiful idea that reverberated around the country and started a movement to Rebuild SA! We chat to the three co-founders of this incredible initiative - Emelda Masango, Mbali Ndhlovu and Natalie Church.

"We are going to sue the South African Government collectively. Did I get your attention? Well, it's time to make our government accountable for their crimes!" That was a post Brent put up in February 2020, and a little over a year later a group of passionate South Africans is doing just that. Herman Mashaba - president of ActionSA - and Advocate Gillian Benson join Brent to talk about action after the recent violence riots in parts of Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal.

It’s been over 440 days since the pandemic really took hold in South Africa. Yes, that’s how long it has been since the country went into the initial lockdown. Crazy just saying that out loud. But we have made massive strides and are now in the second phase of the vaccine program in South Africa. For me vaccinations are the next step in getting back to some sort of normal. But some are still quite sceptical, so I’ve invited Dr Saul Johnson to join us in a discussion about vaccines. Dr Johnson has a medical degree from the Wits, and a Master’s degree in Epidemiology from Columbia University in New York. He lectures extensively on epidemiology and research methodology and has worked as a doctor, epidemiologist, researcher and project manager in various African countries.