How opposition’s voices were harmonised into a Multi-Party Charter – Zanele Morrison 

South Africa is often held up as an example of how opposing political forces can come together despite hate, mistrust, and profound differences in their views on governing the country. However, for many, the concept of South Africa as the "rainbow nation," as coined by Archbishop Desmond Tutu, is now seen as a relic of the past. Divisions are again deep, and even political parties that in principle agree on how the country should be governed have been at loggerheads, publicly airing their disagreements through the media. The prospect of cohesive action to challenge the ANC, which has held power since 1994, seemed remote. But seven opposition parties—the country's main opposition, the Democratic Alliance, the Inkatha Freedom Party, the Freedom Front Plus, Action SA, ISANCO, the UIM, and the SNP—managed to overcome the mistrust and agree on a Multi-party Charter for the 2024 elections. Freedom Front Leader Dr Pieter Groenewald told Biznews that the independence of the chair, Prof. William Gumede, and Zanele Morrison, who was brought in as a leadership facilitator, turned the summit into something more than a political meeting. He said their neutrality was valued during the discussions. Morrison shared with Biznews how she guided the political leaders and about her approach to working with business executives. She said that the leadership tools required to lead have fundamentally changed from 10 years or more ago. - Linda van Tilburg