A bizarre story has recently come out of Zimbabwe. Grace Mugabe, the politically powerful wife of the ageing president Robert Mugabe, has come up with a plan to settle a debt to China with 35 young elephants, eight lions, 12 hyenas and a giraffe. The debt was incurred in 1998 when Zimbabwe sent troops and […]

If you put anything on the Internet these days, it lives forever and sometimes gets accidentally revived annually on social media when the same month in which it was originally released comes around again. Two years ago, in January, this hip hop version of ‘Ys Ys Baba’ was posted. This month it’s going viral again […]

The Cape Town Minstrel Carnival also known as ‘Tweede Nuwe Jaar’ is celebrated annually on 2 January. The colourful costumes, face paint, music and comical dancing bring this unique Cape Town event to life. Many thousands of people perform in the parade in one of the South African city’s biggest tourist attractions. The face painting process […]

As new and ongoing fires continued to burn late Wednesday night in the Western Cape, Vergelegen Wines has stressed that it’s business as usual at the prestigious Estate which attracts around 100,000 visitors annually, half of whom are overseas tourists. Reports had indicated that Vergelegen suffered devastating damage in the Somerset West fire – over 40% of […]

GAUTENG: South African Police Services (SAPS) are today mourning yet another murder of one of their own. A 35-year old policeman, Sergeant Peter Modiegi Mogotlane, was shot and killed at Winterveld Mohlambe Stand, Mabopane, north of Pretoria at around 20:00 last night. According to statistics released by SAPS in June this year, a police officer is murdered […]

Yes, I am inherently a racist… I’ve been travelling outside of South Africa since 2011 and since then I’ve learnt a lot about the topic, not just from my point of view but from others too, writes REZEEN DANIELS. Let’s start with the term ‘coloured’. I’ve come to hate this term and have openly shared […]

A South African fine arts lecturer, Gabi Ngcobo, has been selected to curate the 10th Berlin Biennale for Contemporary Art in Germany. It takes place during that country’s summer in 2018. Ngcobo has worked extensively locally and internationally. Gabi Ngcobo had been involved in collaborative artistic, curatorial and educational projects in South Africa and globally […]

For those South Africans living abroad, especially if you’re shivering in the cold in the Northern Hemisphere… this is what you missed in SA on Christmas Day. Pull up a towel and enjoy, if only vicariously! The stunning video footage, taken in the Western Cape on 25 December 2016, was uploaded by ‘Cape Town Guy’. […]

South African expat and YouTube sensation Caspar Lee is used to hanging out with international superstars like Justin Timberlake, but nobody has blown him away more than a young guy – living with HIV – in a township in the Western Cape. Caspar, who is based in London, was recently invited back home to meet […]

Senior citizens in the Western Cape have been surprised and delighted to discover Santa Claus HAS come to visit them this year… thanks to an amazing initiative – the Senior Santa Shoebox Project. The ‘angel’ behind the project is local photographer (and regular SAPeople contributor) Angela Gorman. “It has been such a heartwarming project, and […]

Touched by seeing children going to bed hungry and the people around her lacking sources of good nutrition, Marian Dube started growing and selling vegetables from her backyard. The 42-year-old widow and mother of three, who grew up in a family of subsistence farmers in Mberengwa, south east of Zimbabwe, says, “I came to South […]

As the first refugees arrive from Aleppo, a South African non-governmental organisation – Gift of the Givers – has been helping set up refugee camps and distribute blankets, mattresses, food, milk powder and diapers in the Idlib region in the north west of Syria. The tragedy in Eastern Aleppo has meant an increased need for […]

The consumption of sugar and its effects on health has been in the headlines in many countries around the world again as countries from the UK to South Africa debate a sugar tax. The Conversation Africa’s health editor Candice Bailey asks Sundeep Ruder to explain how we process sugar and why too much is bad […]

The South African Revenue Service (SARS) has warned taxpayers and corporate organisations to be on the lookout for scams and fraudulent activities over the festive period. “The South African Revenue Service has noted several scams, including the issuing of fake third party appointment (AA88) notices to companies, the unauthorised use of its logo as well […]

We were having a late lunch at Montego Resort in Xai-Xai, Mozambique, when the manager turned to us and asked: “Have you been to the haunted hotel?” I could see the mix of excitement and hesitation in the eyes of every person on our team. Who doesn’t like a good ghost story… and to have the […]

The difference between celebrating Christmas the UK or South African way is massive when you’re used to the other. Watch two bloggers from the UK and SA compare the differences they have found… (See the video below.) Even though we share so many traditions from decorating Christmas trees to singing Christmas carols… the experience of a cosy indoor […]

Conflict on campuses, hint of justice for miners, a heated election, our most successful Olympics, and other stories on GroundUp this year Accusations against police are commonplace in South Africa. Police work under stressful conditions for mediocre pay. Accusations of brutality are often too glibly made. However a description of officers assaulting a homeless man and […]

Bloemfontein, situated in the middle of the bucolic countryside of the Free State in South Africa, was originally a British outpost in an area of turbulent warfare. The history of Bloemfontein is inexorably linked to the complex history of the now-named Free State province of Africa. And the history of the Free State in the […]

Trade and Industry Minister Rob Davies has welcomed the R150-million Chinese investment at the Dube Trade Port which will build local capacity in the manufacturing of fibre optic cables and generate employment opportunities for locals. Yangtze Optics Africa Cable  is a R150-million investment to set up and operate a modern optical fibre cable manufacturing plant […]

A lot of people will have already made up their mind about whether humans need dairy in their diet and will be thinking that the answer is obviously “yes” or obviously “no”. But nutrition is based on science not opinion – so, here’s the latest research on the matter. Milk is an interesting foodstuff. The […]

Johannesburg resident David Shields has posted a story that’s going viral about true go-getter Sibusiso Nkosi who humbly asked him for help in getting an internship, after he had spent six years studying against all odds to attain a Communications Degree. David – co-founder of the awesome GEM project (a mobile payments platform which rewards volunteer […]

Thuli Madonsela’s successor The Public Protector, Advocate Busisiwe Mkhwebane, paid a courtesy call to President Jacob Zuma yesterday morning at his Mahlamba Ndlopfu residence in Pretoria.  It was their first meeting since Adv Mkhwebane was appointed as the Public Protector on the 6th October 2016. President Zuma congratulated Adv Mkhwebane on her appointment and pledged his and […]

Suzelle DIY’s latest video has some top tips and tricks for going to the beach. South Africa’s do-it-yourself Goddess includes beach hacks like how to put an umbrella up so it stays up, how to make a head rest, a table for your drinks, a no sand zone, how to keep cool and how to […]

“Love Thy Neighbour… But Don’t Get Caught!” is the catch phrase behind a brilliant new South African movie, ‘Keeping Up with The Kandasamys’. Shanti Naidoo and Jennifer Kandasamy are matriarchal rivals of neighbouring families in the South African film, whose young adult children become romantically involved. And the last thing these two Chatsworth mothers need […]

Somewhere far away in the Czech Republic is a young graffiti artist whose artwork on the walls of Prague show how his heart bleeds for Africa and the plight of its wildlife. In May this year, Pavel Cisarovsky from Prague happened across the story of Satao on the internet. Satao was the well-known Kenyan elephant, with tusks […]