Share Sounds. presented by Juliette Foster related to Economics

This is Conversations From Africa with Chris Bishop, Managing Editor of Forbes Africa Magazine. Today, he and Share Radio's Patrick Jones discuss President Jacob Zuma being convicted by a high court in South Africa for failing to uphold the constitution, electricity giant Eskom increasing it's rates despite an outcry and Mozambique's economy being downgraded from a poor d2 to an even worse d3, by Moody's Ratings Agency.

The Weeks Update: In the wake of the killings in Brussels a number of people were arrested, although on Monday a man charged with direct involvement, was released due to a lack of evidence. The challenge now is to track down other militants and break up existing IS cells before they strike again. That won't be easy since the exact number isn't known and - as Brussels illustrated - there will always be terrorist suspects who evade the intelligence gathering net, especially if sections of that net are already weak. Joining Investment Perspectives host Juliette Foster with more analysis is Sir David Omand, the former Director General of the government intelligence organisation GCHQ, and Professor John Weeks, Share Radio's regular economics commentator.

April marks the first anniversary of the Nepalese earthquake, which killed over eight thousand people and injured more than twenty one thousand others. After the disaster the International Monetary Fund told the Nepalese authorities they would have to pay back the $3.5 billion of debt the country owes to its creditors. The IMF said the money can't be written off because Nepal doesn't qualify for relief from a special fund for countries hit by natural disasters. That decision outraged anti debt campaigners who claim that wealthy states are often responsible for the financial problems of poorer countries. For example Mozambique's debt, which is priced in currencies like the Dollar, has ballooned because of the weak exchange rate, forcing the government to use 13% of its revenue to pay back what it owes. So is it time for the creditors to ease up on the indebted? Tim Jones, of the "Jubilee Debt Campaign", joins Juliette Foster in the studio along with Professor John Weeks, Share Radio's regular economics commentator.

Conversations From Africa: Chris Bishop, Managing Editor of Forbes Africa Magazine joins Share Radio's Patrick Jones for more news from the continent in our weekly segment dedicated to all things African. This week he discusses more woes for the South African economy with talks of a downgrade to junk status, 'Guptagate', the huge mining court-case 'Once empowered always empowered' and more.

The House of Lords will consider a series of amendments to the government's controversial Trade Union Bill when it goes before peers on Wednesday. Condemned by critics as "undemocratic", the bill would only allow workers to go on strike if more than 50% of them voted for industrial action. Employers would also have the authority to hire agency staff to cover the jobs of workers who go on strike. However the greatest outrage has arisen from proposals to change the way that union members pay their dues, which according to Labour, could lose the party up to £8 million a year. Joining Investment Perspectives host Juliette Foster for more analysis of that story is Matt Wrack, Head of the Fire Brigades Union, and Professor John Weeks, Share Radio's regular economics commentator.

Share Radio's Patrick Jones speaks with Chris Bishop, Managing Editor of Forbes Africa Magazine. This week topics include: Jacob Zumas recent state-visit to Nigeria and the reasons for this, Aliko Dangote (Africas richest man) says Nigerias economic crisis is exaggerated, the Zimbabwean Government is weighing up whether to give compensation to white farmers & a huge court case for mining in South Africa this week.

Next week the Chancellor George Osborne will unveil his spring budget to the House of Commons as speculation grows over whether he's likely to make any cutbacks or if he's course to pay down the nation's debts. Mr Osborne is saying nothing although he's dropped plans to end or alter tax relief on pension contributions in a move which campaigners believe is a missed opportunity to help the low paid. Yet regardless of what the Chancellor does on Wednesday, his calculations will have been influenced by an econimic model that critics claim is flawed and past its sell by date. Neo-classical economics may be Treasury's guding light, but has it done more harm than good? Is it time to look at the alternatives? Juliette Foster was joined in the studio by Professor John Weeks, Share Radio's regular economics commentator, and Professor Steve Keen of Kingston University London. Steve is also the author of the best-selling book "Debunking Economics".

Professor John Weeks, Share Radio's regular economics commentator, joins Juliette Foster in the studio to give his take on recent challenging times for Western economies - who are operating in an environment of weak growth, falling interest rates and lower than normal levels of inflation.

This week Forbes Africa's Chris Bishop and Share Radio's Robert Van Egghen discussed the fall-out from South Africa's budget - did they do enough to avoid a downgrade to junk status? More student protests and the burning down of a university, South Africa's new property expropriation bill which is concerning investors, civil war in Mozambique fuelled by anger at unequal distribution of oil and gas riches and more.

A few weeks ago, Investment Perspectives spoke to the former investment banker and Conservative Party politican Howard Flight about the Enterprise Investment Scheme, otherwise known as EIS, with regards to how entrepreneurs are using it to grow their businesses. We return to the subject as Juliette is joined in the studio by David Mott, Managing Partner of Oxford Capital Partners, and Eren Ozagir, founder and CEO of the online GP appointment service "Push Doctor”, which allows you to see your doctor digitally from your phone or laptop. For more information, check out www.PushDoctor.co.uk.