August 16, 2023
South Africa: Bheki Cele Defends SAPS in Parliament While Assault Case Against Paul Mashatile's Protectors Continues
Commenting in Parliament on the case against the eight officers attached to Deputy President Paul Mashatile's protection unit, Police Minister Bheki Cele clarified that Mashatile… Read more »
August 15, 2023
South Africa: Seven Opposition Parties to Kick Off National Coalition Convention
Following weeks of discussions, seven opposition parties vying to take power after the 2024 elections are set to participate in a national coalition convention in Kempton Park. Who… Read more »
South Africa: SA Jobless Rate Dips Slightly in Q2, but Is Still Sky-High At 32.6 Percent
South Africa's unemployment rate fell slightly to 32.6% in the second quarter (Q2) of this year from 32.9% in Q1. The best that can be said is that at least the trend is going the… Read more »
August 14, 2023
South Africa: Western Cape Education Department Urges Learners to Go Back to Class After Taxi Strike
The Western Cape Education Department has called on parents to ensure their children go back to school after the taxi strike, which on one day saw 71% of learners miss classes. Read more »
South Africa: Experts Concerned Over Low Throughput Rate of Grade 10s to Matric
The National Advisory Council on Innovation has registered a concern over the Grade 10 throughput rate and warned that the government's target of 75% of university academic staff… Read more »
South Africa: Gift of the Givers Founder Recounts Chilling Phone Calls During 2012 Marikana Strike
Gift of the Givers' founder, Imtiaz Sooliman, delivered the fourth annual keynote address on Monday to commemorate the Marikana Massacre 11 years ago. The Givers were distributing… Read more »
South Africa: South Africa Still Arming Saudis and UAE Despite Humanitarian Crisis in Yemen
Arms worth hundreds of millions of rands continue to flow to the United Arab Emirates, while South African companies are helping Saudi Arabia to build its own weapons manufacturing… Read more »
South Africa: State Capture Prosecutor Andrew Chauke Faces Suspension and Inquiry Into Fitness to Hold Office
Johannesburg Director of Public Prosecutions Andrew Chauke was in the thick of the Zuma huddle at the NPA during peak State Capture. Read more »
South Africa: Re-Elected Opposition Leader in Gauteng Sets His Sights On Premier Candidacy
Now that he has been re-elected as the leader of the DA in Gauteng, Solly Msimanga is vying to become the party's candidate for premier in the 2024 elections. Read more »
South Africa: Absa's Investment in Other African Regions Shores Up Group After Dismal SA Performance
Absa's share price slid almost 3.5% on Monday as the bank took a proverbial punch to the gut on the back of increasing customer defaults. Read more »
South Africa: UN Representative Calls On SA to Move Beyond Harmful Apartheid Pesticide Laws
A special mission to South Africa by the United Nations Special Rapporteur on Toxics and Human Rights has expressed deep concern for the continuing legacy of environmental racism… Read more »
South Africa: How Rising Temperatures Threaten Farmworkers in Northern Cape, Country's Sunniest Province
With the El Niño event that is likely to see temperatures reach ever greater heights, scientists and experts are cautioning that the agricultural sector and its workers need… Read more »
South Africa: The Real Issue Around Remissions of Sentence Concerns Women and Children Behind Bars
We must, as a nation, contemplate a holistic strategy that emphasises presidential pardons and remissions of sentence initiatives tailored specifically to women and children. Read more »
South Africa: SA's Agricultural Interests in Brics Are Not At Expense of Existing Key Export Markets
As South Africa is likely to increase agricultural production in the coming years with additional land put into production, we will need other export markets. It is at this point… Read more »
South Africa: MTN Spends Billions of Rands to Escape the Pain of Blackouts
MTN South Africa, a division of MTN Group, is prepared to spend between R4bn and R5bn in the next six to 12 months to make its network more efficient and resilient during Eskom… Read more »
South Africa: Azikhwelwa! Apartheid History Shows the Way to Beat the Domineering Taxi Mafia
Apartheid segregation created the far-flung living areas that make commuting hell for most workers. The resistance to apartheid public transport may hold lessons for the problem of… Read more »
South Africa: Moving Makhanda High Court to Bhisho Is a Grave Strategic Injustice - Residents Will Resist
The decision to relocate the seat of the Makhanda High Court is not based on the will of the people. We therefore demand that the ANC government backs off and abandons this… Read more »
South Africa: Eskom Still Investigating R400m Tutuka Tender, 19 Months After Whistle-Blower Complaint
In January 2022, a whistle-blower expressed concerns over a R400-million tender to rehabilitate the Tutuka Power Station in Mpumalanga. Now 19 months later, Eskom's forensic and… Read more »
August 13, 2023
South Africa: 'Protecting the Economy' - Ramokgopa Defends Spending Billions On Emergency Diesel
Eskom has spent R12.4bn on diesel since April, a cost that Energy Minister Kgosientsho Ramokgopa has said is necessary to protect South Africa's economy. Read more »
South Africa: Three Ballot Papers Will Be a First for Democratic South Africa During Next Year's General Polls
The South African electorate is approaching its seventh democratic national election in 2024, one which is being touted as a watershed moment. This election is expected to be… Read more »
South Africa: SA's First Electric Taxi Is 'A Stepping Stone' for Lagging EV Industry
While South Africa's electric vehicle industry lags behind many other countries, a team from Stellenbosch University wants to push the sector forward - starting with minibus taxis. Read more »
South Africa: Remitting Zuma's Jail Sentence Was the Least Worst Option By Far
Jacob Zuma was saved from more prison time by an anomalous constitutional provision with historical roots in the powers of the British monarch. A closer look at the provision shows… Read more »
South Africa: SA-Russia Trade Is Minuscule Even Among Brics Members
Data show that Russia is an insignificant trade partner of South Africa. In terms of economic partnerships, it is a clapped-out Lada vehicle, a lemon with not much juice to be… Read more »
August 10, 2023
South Africa: Correctional Services Boss Set to Decide Whether Zuma Goes Back to Prison
Correctional Services Commissioner Makgothi Samuel Thobakgale is expected to announce on Thursday, 10 August whether former president Jacob Zuma must return to prison to complete… Read more »
Nigeria: 'A List to Bring Wonder' - 2023 Booker Prize Longlist Announced, Including Ayobami Adebayo and Tan Twan Eng
The 2023 Booker Prize longlist has been announced, offering 'startling portraits of the current'. Read more »