President Cyril Ramaphosa is set to address South Africa in his 2025 State of the Nation Address (SONA) tomorrow evening, Thursday 6th February 2025. The event will be a big to-do in the South African political landscape, with all political parties of the GNU and others expected to converge at the event.
Where and when to watch SONA 2025:
Interested South Africans can check out the 2025 edition of SONA through a number of livestreams online and likely on all local news channels on SABC, eNCA, and others on DStv. The President is expected to begin addressing the nation at 19:00 though the event is usually a little late.
When the clock strikes 19:00 on Thursday, the first place to go check if you don’t have TV is the official SONA 2025 website where the livestream will be hosted. Additionally you can check the official SABC YouTube channel for the livestream and the official X account for the South African Presidency.
What will SONA 2025 be about:
Ramaphosa’s SONA comes amid a mixture of optimism for South Africa’s future and hesitance that the country will slink back into previous woes.
Now that a grand coalition governs the country, Eskom’s loadshedding is under control and the economy is showing green shoots, though tiny, of improvement, expect Ramaphosa to harp on many claims of successes the government has managed in the last year.
However, large storm clouds loom over the SONA, including that of the 14 SANDF soldiers that died in the DRC and South Africa’s controversial military action in the country. The other gathering storm is of an orange colour, with US President Donald Trump threatening to pull funding from South Africa due to a misunderstanding of the incoming land expropriation act likely spurred by fake news mongers on social media.
Officially, state media says that the “2025 SoNA will advance our national priorities by expanding on key programmes such as the Presidential Employment Stimulus, the Energy Action Plan and Infrastructure Investment Plan. These programmes are central to the country’s efforts to rebuild the economy and create a more sustainable and inclusive future.”
“This year’s SoNA is particularly significant as it coincides with the conclusion of our year-long commemoration of 30 Years of Freedom and Democracy, which has allowed us to reflect on how far we have come in building a society that works for all citizens.”
[Image – CC BY-ND 2.0 GovernmentZA on Flickr]
