JOHANNESBURG – South Africa’s largest opposition party, the Democratic Alliance (DA), although heading for defeat in May 8 national elections, pledged to forge coalitions with smaller parties to break the dominance of the ruling ANC, especially at the local level. South Africans vote for a sixth time since the end of apartheid in 1994, and […]

South African Grant ‘Twiggy’ Baker took surfing’s Ride of the Year trophy at the the World Surf League’s (WSL’s) Big Wave Awards held at Redondo Beach near Los Angeles on Thursday May 2. Baker (46) received the trophy for his performance on a massive wave in Maui, Hawaii, last November AND collected the Biggest Paddle […]

As most South Africans now know, a new poll ranked the world’s sexiest accents and ‘South African’ came in second! (New Zealand came in first.) Watch below as Trevor Noah makes fun of the list with his interpretation of the New Zealand and Australian accents. Trevor asked which South African accent they specifically meant – […]

LONDON – Britain’s Princess Charlotte celebrated her fourth birthday on Thursday and her parents released three new pictures of the smiling young royal to mark the occasion. Charlotte, daughter of Prince William and his wife Kate, was pictured in the gardens at Kensington Palace in central London, and the family home in Norfolk, eastern England. […]

SANParks is offering 40% discount for last minute specials on selected accommodation and camping. This special offer applies only to new reservations made via the online bookings platform. Qualifying accommodation and camping bookings apply to stays between 08/05/2019 and 14/05/2019 and is subject to availability. The 40% discount is available for the following accommodation units […]

An unusual selfie taken by a ranger at Virunga National Park in the Democratic Republic of Congo has helped the Park raise much needed awareness and funds to protect more animals. The photo, which included two orphaned gorillas – Ndakazi and Ndeze –  striking very human-like poses, was taken by ranger Mathieu Shamvu, an anti-poaching […]

A travel website with over 1.5 million readers has voted ‘South African’ – specifically Afrikaans – as the second sexiest accent in the world! Which is no big surprise. Many South African expats have been complimented on their accent for years (and ja, no well, some have been teased too). In 2011 British presenter Piers […]

Struggling Vrede farmer Meshack Ncongwane was a life-long supporter of South Africa’s governing African National Congress, but says the party won’t get his vote in parliamentary and provincial elections next week. Local ANC officials offered him what he thought would be a lucrative stake in a dairy farm in 2013. He was one of 80 […]

Good Morning….???. It’s misty and a bit cold outside in beautiful Benoni… want to stay in bed ?… but I can’t…work to be done. Just want to share a few thoughts with you… writes businessman and SAPeople contributor Stan Sanetra. A few weeks ago we had some friends visiting from the UK. They spent 10 […]

State-owned South African Airways (SAA) has reached an agreement in principle with lenders to roll over $642 million of debt, its CEO said on Tuesday, giving him room to execute a turnaround aimed at weaning the airline off government bailouts. South African President Cyril Ramaphosa has made a point of supporting ailing state firms like […]

Durbanite singer Selkii said she “felt like a goddess” on The Voice in the US on Monday night, where the South African expat performed the Goo Goo Dolls’ “Iris” on the Live Top 24 Performances 2019. “What an amazing experience,” she said on Facebook, adding “I need every vote and every prayer you got! ❤️”. […]

Proud South Africans turned out in force yesterday for the famous London Marathon in the UK… and were not disappointed by the results, with the top three winning positions being hogged by athletes from the African continent in both the men’s and women’s categories. The race was won by Kenyan Eliud Kipchoge who led from […]

Thursday, 2 May, will be a day of mourning in KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) for the victims of the floods that devastated Durban and surrounding areas on Easter Monday. The day of mourning was declared today by KZN Premier Willie Mchunu during a media briefing, according to SABC News. eThekwini Mayor Zandile Gumede was also provide updates […]

Photos and stories have poured in from SAPeople members around the world who voted overseas in the SA elections on Freedom Day, 27 April 2019. Here we’ve selected just four messages that reveal the heart and passion of South African expats worldwide, still inextricably linked to their beloved homeland… Sonja VanNiekerk DeBeer, Venezuela – “The […]

A video revealing the horrific practices within South Africa’s captive-bred lion industry has been posted by UK businessman, philanthropist and former Deputy Chairman of the Conservative Party, Lord Ashcroft. The industry – known also as “canned lion hunting” – is fuelled often by unknowing local and foreign tourists. After commissioning a year-long investigation, codenamed Operation […]

Two men have been hailed as heroes on social media for risking their lives to save two women from an alleged motor heist in South Africa. According to Frans Haasbroek, writing in Afrikaans, the two gentlemen (one of whom, Steve, owns the BMW in the picture) responded immediately to protect the women from the heist, […]

Pope Francis today called for prayers and ‘concrete support’ from the international community for those who had died or suffered serious damage in the recent floods in South Africa. Over 70 people died, and more than 1,000 were displaced this week after huge downpours on Easter Monday, which caused floods and mud slides on South […]

South African expats around the world showed how deep their passion for South Africa is by braving inclement weather (including Storm Hannah in the UK), enduring long overnight treks and some spending a fortune they can barely afford… to make their way to one of the 121 foreign missions to cast their vote in the […]

President Cyril Ramaphosa has (finally) ended the tenure in the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) of advocates Nomgcobo Jiba and Lawrence Mrwebi, as recommended by the Mokgoro Enquiry into the fitness of the two officials to hold office. The President took this action on Thursday, 25 April 2019 after studying the findings and recommendations of the […]

Cyclone Kenneth killed at least one person and left a trail of destruction in northern Mozambique, destroying houses, ripping up trees and knocking out power, authorities said on Friday. Officials said thousands have been left homeless, and warn of heavy rains to come. (UPDATE: Cyclone Kenneth brings floods to Mozambique, death toll rises to 5) […]

South African expat Trevor Noah’s latest clip from The Tonight Show in the US has gone viral because of the SA expat’s infectious laugh! Watch below as Trevor reacts to David Oyelowo’s story about his Nigerian dad loving his leaf blowers in LA… British-Nigerian actor David has starred as Martin Luther King Jr (Selma) and […]

Violent winds of up to 140 kph lashed the East African island nation of Comoros overnight, killing three people, authorities said on Thursday, as tropical Cyclone Kenneth swept towards flood-battered Mozambique and southern Tanzania. The region was pounded by Cyclone Idai last month; the storm and subsequent flooding killed more than 1,000 people in Mozambique, […]

Rescue workers are in a fight against time to find unaccounted-for people as the death toll from the torrential rains in Durban and along the eastern coast of South Africa exceeds 70 people. Rescuers are still sadly discovering more bodies in areas where mudslides and sinkholes have swallowed homes. KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) province, where most of […]

There have been renewed calls for South Africa to join other countries in Africa, most recently Tanzania, who have pledged to ban single-use plastic… as mountains of plastic refuse have piled up on Durban’s once iconic beachfront following the devastating floods in KZN this week that left 60 dead and over 1,000 people displaced. Tragically […]

KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) Health MEC, Dr Sibongiseni Dhlomo, has urged the relatives of people who passed away during the flash floods that swept through Durban on Monday night and Tuesday to come forward and identify their bodies. According to Reuters, the latest figures put the death toll at 60 people, and more than 1,000 have fled […]