Rise & Shine Women in Media Breakfast Series, 30 May 2025

bongiwe53
Jun 10
3 min read

On Friday, 30 May 2025, the fraymedia Foundation hosted the Rise & Shine Women in Media Breakfast Series at Hotel Sky in Sandton, Johannesburg. The featured speaker, Dr. Abba Omar, led the session under the theme "Trying to Make Sense of Troubled Times." Held during the month of May, the event commemorated both World Press Freedom Day (3 May) and Africa Day (25 May).

The Breakfast brought together 20 invited women from across the media and business sectors—including editors, managers, media owners, and women frequently featured or quoted in the news—for a strategic and reflective conversation on global affairs and their implications for media, entrepreneurship, and society at large.

Under the theme "Trying to Make Sense of Troubled Times," the session created a powerful space for dialogue among women leaders and media professionals. Participants engaged in deep discussions on the current geopolitical climate, examining South Africa’s position in global and continental dynamics, and exploring how to navigate complex challenges across sectors.

Topics ranged from societal contradictions and the democracy deficit to the role of developing nations on the world stage, including South Africa's positioning within BRICS. The conversation also addressed tensions between value-driven governance versus national interest, and various forms of political systems, such as autocracies, monarchies, and democracies.

Dr Omar identified the ways of understanding the moment humanity finds itself in, as the

Poly crisis, which is described (WEF, 2023), as “a cluster of related global risks with compounding effects, such that the overall impact exceeds the sum of each part”.

Further discussions examined the growing influence of Big Tech in politics and governance, the balance between authoritarianism and efficiency, and the evolving cycles of Government of National Unity (GNU). The dialogue also delved into the political economy at global, regional, and national levels, along with perspectives on investment, economic development, and the role of human rights, freedoms, and responsibilities in shaping future societies.

About Keynote Speaker: Dr Abba Omar, Director Operations, MISTRA

Dr Yacoob Abba Omar is Director Operations of the Mapungubwe Institute for Strategic Reflection (MISTRA). He was the head of strategy at the Banking Association South Africa (BASA) since January 2017 until December 2020. He served as South Africa’s Ambassador to Oman from 2003 to 2008 (where he was decorated by the Sultan with the highest award granted to foreign civilians) and then to the UAE from 2008 to 2013.

His stint in the public service began in 1993 when he was appointed to the management of Armscor, heading up Corporate Affairs. In 1998 he was appointed as deputy head of Government Communications (GCIS), which he helped establish with its head, Joel Netshitenzhe. He served the African National Congress in several capacities from 1983 to 1993 and was decorated for distinguished service by the Minister of Defence.

He completed his PhD through the Wits University Dept of Sociology in 2017. He is a Business Day columnist and currently serves on the Executive Committee of the Indlulamithi Scenarios Project, is a Commissioner on the National Planning Commission and member of the Advisory Committee of the Public Economy Project, Wits University.

The full presentation of Dr Omar can be viewed here.