May 22, 2023
South Africa: Behind UCT Council Chair Babalwa Ngonyama's Resignation
UCT Council Chair Babalwa Ngonyama announced in an email on Monday that she is resigning from her role, citing her concerns about a panel tasked by the council with investigating… Read more »
South Africa: SA Reserve Bank Set to Hike Rates Again to Contain Rand Meltdown and Fresh Inflation Pressures
The South African Reserve Bank looks set to hike rates for a 10th consecutive time when its Monetary Policy Committee wraps up its three-day meeting this week on Thursday. The… Read more »
May 21, 2023
South Africa: Grain SA CEO - Poorly Regulated Coal Mining Is a Threat to Food Security
South Africa's coal mining sector, much of it opaque and shabbily regulated, is not just an environmental hazard. It is also a serious threat to food security as it mangles… Read more »
South Africa: Health Minister Calls for Vigilance After Two Cases of Contagious Diphtheria Confirmed
The Minister of Health, Dr Joe Phaahla, has called for vigilance after two cases of an uncommon but highly contagious and potentially life-threatening bacterial infection,… Read more »
South Africa: Cholera in Hammanskraal - SA Government Must Pay and Be Accountable
The South African government and the City of Tshwane must face a class action for the cholera outbreak in Hammanskraal and surrounds, which is the result of a decade-long water… Read more »
South Africa: City of Tshwane Awaits Tests From NICD After Outbreak of Diarrhoeal Disease in Hammanskraal
The National Institute for Communicable Diseases (NICD) is said to be investigating the source of the 'diarrhoeal disease' outbreak in the City of Tshwane's Region 2, which… Read more »
South Africa: Is U.S. Ambassador Reuben Brigety a Loose Cannon - Or a Consummate Professional?
The loose cannon theory seems unlikely. For one thing, Brigety has not retracted anything he said last week. Or not publicly. If he apologised, it would seem he was doing so for… Read more »
South Africa: Proteas Netball Squad Announced As First Home World Cup Beckons
Bongiwe Msomi will lead an experienced Proteas squad at the Netball World Cup in Cape Town, starting on 26 July. Read more »
South Africa: A Proposal to Upskill the 81 Percent of Grade 4 Children in South Africa Who Can't Read
We propose that the Treasury provides an additional conditional grant to enable provincial education departments to ensure that improving reading skills is adequately and equitably… Read more »
May 20, 2023
South Africa: SA's Light Bulb Moment - Eskom Syndicates - Same Names, Different Sectors, Same Failures
It has become overwhelmingly clear that criminal syndicates thrive because they have deep ties to influential political figures, and they do not have to fear the members of a… Read more »
South Africa: Journey Into the Hearts of Darkness - the ANC, Eskom and the Past
This week DM168 delves into the politics of the power struggle, both past and present, that have led us to Stage 7 and 8 blackouts. And as a teaser for Daily Maverick's Earth… Read more »
May 18, 2023
South Africa: Washington Sours On the ANC, Threatening Trade & Aid
South Africa's ambassador to Washington, Nomaindia Mfeketo, has been missing in action for more than two months through this crisis. She is on sick leave. And the view in… Read more »
Kenya: Criminal Syndicates Launder Hundreds of Millions From Stolen U.S. Covid-19 Funds
The case exposes weaknesses in Kenya's investigation and prosecution of illicit financial flows, especially in the real estate sector. Read more »
South Africa: Public Enterprises Minister Lashes Former Eskom CEO for 'Messianic and Hero Figure' Tendencies
Public Enterprises Minister Pravin Gordhan hit back at former Eskom boss André de Ruyter, who has claimed that senior politicians were involved in corruption at the state… Read more »
South Africa: Lady R Saga Reveals a Ship of State Foundering in a Sea of Uncertainty and Ineptitude
Wherever the truth lies in this sorry saga, what we have is a fundamental lack of transparency and trust between a government and its citizenry. We simply cannot believe what… Read more »
South Africa: 'There Is No Zuma Law,' Says Judge Warning Mpofu Over Wasting Time
A high court judge has cautioned former president Jacob Zuma and his legal team against accusing the court of treating him differently by applying 'Zuma law'. Judge Lebogang Modiba… Read more »
South Africa: South African Consumers Hit the Brakes On Retail Expenditure
Stats SA's latest retail sales data show a 6.6% reduction in spending on food, beverages and tobacco. Read more »
Namibia: LGBTIQ+ Victory in Namibia a Reminder That Africa Is Not a Country
Earlier this week the Namibian Supreme Court ruled that the government's refusal to recognise the validity of same-sex marriages concluded outside Namibia for the purpose of… Read more »
Africa: Russia-Ukraine Conflict 'Far From Being Ripe for Mediation' As African Delegation Heads to Europe, Say Experts
Mediation experts say the Russia-Ukraine war is 'far from being ripe for mediation', as President Cyril Ramaphosa and five other African leaders prepare to undertake a peace… Read more »
May 17, 2023
South Africa: Ever-Closer Ties With Russia Jeopardise Annual Exports to U.S. Under AGOA Deal
South Africa exports an enormous amount of goods to the US annually - including vehicles, aluminium, chemicals, fruit, wine, ferroalloys, and even ice cream and edible ice. But now… Read more »
South Africa: NPA Won't Get Involved in Ramaphosa and Zuma Legal Squabble, High Court Hears
The two-day hearing to listen to arguments between lawyers for President Cyril Ramaphosa and former president Jacob Zuma began in court on Wednesday. Read more »
Africa: Climate Disaster Is Reshaping the World - Africa Must Respond Decisively to Make Its Mark
As global economic, security and climate crises coalesce, will Africa fall deeper into victimhood or turn the continent around? Read more »
South Africa: Extreme Weather Warnings Renewed for Eastern Cape As Efforts to Help Flood Victims Continue
As dam levels rise in the drought-stricken Eastern Cape, the South African Weather Office has issued a second warning for disruptive rain this week for the Nelson Mandela Bay Metro… Read more »
South Africa: PIRLS Findings Point to a Lame-Duck Minister of Education and a Generational Catastrophe
The Pirls results from 2016 showed that 78% of Grade 4 children couldn't read in any language. This week we learnt that that number had escalated to 81% in 2021, wiping out a… Read more »
South Africa: Judges Tell Laywer to Watch His Language in Heated Ramaphosa Vs Zuma Courtroom Exchange
Arguing in the Gauteng Division of the High Court in Johannesburg, Mpofu vociferously criticised the National Prosecuting Authority's support of prosecutor Billy Downer, calling it… Read more »