In the world of smartphones, China has Huawei, Korea has Samsung, while the United States of America has Apple. And soon South Africa will have Mara! Long-time dark horse Africa is now taking centre stage with the announcement of the Mara phone project that is touted to take the smartphone business by storm. Developed by […]

We’re used to seeing touching pictures of police in Cape Town stopping the traffic to allow ducklings to cross the road. But this morning, there is outrage in South Africa as one careless driver – perhaps in too much of a rush to notice – ran over two ducklings while passersby frantically tried to get […]

DAR ES SALAAM – Tanzania released two staff members of the New York-based Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) on Thursday, a day after they were detained and their passports seized, the South African Foreign Ministry said. Tanzanian Immigration Department spokesman Ali Mtanda said Angela Quintal and Muthoki Mumo were arrested for violating the terms of […]

This week’s episode of popular South African current affairs show, Carte Blanche, features E-Tolls, Saving Burn Victims, Codeine Cocktail Addiction and an Ermelo Investment Horror. If you’re a South African living abroad – subscribe to Showmax to watch from Tuesday 13 November (14-day Free Trial). E-Tolls: on the Road Again During Finance Minister Tito Mboweni’s medium-term […]

South African Airways (SAA) has been named the African Long-Haul Airline winner in the prestigious Business Traveller Africa magazine awards. The awards, which were launched in 2012, are targeted at the South African business travel trade and the broader business travel community. SAA clinched the top award last week, as its future has been hotly […]

Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (Cogta) Minister Zweli Mkhize has extended condolences to the family and colleagues of the firefighter killed when the truck in which they were travelling overturned and rolled down a pass. The incident happened in Mitchell’s Pass near Worcester as the team was returning from fighting fires. “It is with deep […]

South African journalist Angela Quintal and her Kenyan colleague Muthoki Mumo, who were mysteriously detained by law enforcement officials at their hotel in Tanzania last night, have been released. “South African journalist Angela Quintal and colleague are back in their hotel. They are safe and are now with the High Commissioner of South Africa, Thami […]

Trevor Noah’s mom, Patricia, isn’t into fame. As Trevor told an audience member of ‘The Daily Show’ this week: “She has no interest in television or any of these things that I do. She just loves the fact that I can pay the rent, and she loves me for who I am.” But Patricia Noah […]

JOHANNESBURG – South Africa will hold parliamentary elections sometime between May 7 and August 5 next year, the Electoral Commission (IEC) chairperson announced on Wednesday… increasing the likelihood that the vote will be in May, which is President Cyril Ramaphosa’s preference. A voter registration weekend will be held in January. The commission briefed the media […]

DAKAR – A shocking FOUR out of six endangered black rhinos – that were relocated to Chad from South Africa – have tragically died, possibly of starvation, the two countries and an NGO said. The six rhinos were transferred from South Africa in May, re-introducing the species into Chad for the first time since it […]

Dan Plato has been elected as Cape Town’s new mayor during a special council sitting on Tuesday… and has already outlined his vision for the Mother City. Plato clinched the top spot by a majority, receiving 146 votes in council. His election follows the stepping down by former mayor Patricia De Lille. Plato thanked those […]

PARIS – Scrumhalf Faf de Klerk has answered an SOS from South Africa’s coach Rassie Erasmus and joined the Springbok squad for their test against France in Paris on Saturday, adding significant experience in a problem position for the side. De Klerk (who has 20 Test caps) was initially rested for the November internationals which, […]

PERTH – Dale Steyn claimed two early wickets as South Africa’s pace attack combined superbly to heap more misery on Australia with a six-wicket thrashing to take a 1-0 lead in their three-match one-day international series on Sunday. It was brilliantly executed in front of Proudly South African expats who cheered their team on to […]

Firefighters have been battling raging fires on South Africa’s scenic Garden Route for eight days now. These hauntingly beautiful photos by Marie Morley capture the “apocalyptic skies” that have resulted from fires which stretch over 70,000 ha with a frontline of over 100km. We are immensely grateful to all the firefighters who have been out there […]

This week’s Carte Blanche features exclusive footage from the Krugersdorp Murder Trial, one of South Africa’s most outrageous murder sprees… led by a high-school mother, who involved her own children in the killings. South Africa’s also at the forefront again of pioneering medical research. There are beetles threatening Johannesburg’s famous landscape – known as one […]

A young South African pilot is taking the internet by STORM! Tumi Carter Katisi’s story – about her dream to fly for South African Airways – went viral within a couple of hours, after it was posted on Facebook by Humans of New York (which is posting stories from Johannesburg at the moment). Within four […]

JOHANNESBURG – South Africa’s new Finance Minister Tito Mboweni said on Thursday that struggling state-run South African Airways (SAA) should be closed down, adding however that decisions over the future of the state carrier were not under his remit. SAA, which has not generated a profit since 2011, survives on state guarantees and is regularly […]

With heavy hearts, the Johannesburg Wildlife Veterinary Hospital announced Thursday morning that the baby pangolin – named Menina – that they were trying so desperately to save with a world first technique, has sadly passed away. “We’ve spent just over a week fighting for a baby pangolin that barely stood a chance due to the […]

The South African Government says it has welcomed the decision by South Sudan President Salva Kiir to pardon death-sentenced South African William Endley. Endley, a former South African National Defence Force (SANDF) colonel, was in February sentenced to death for espionage and conspiring to overthrow the government. He was sentenced along co-accused, James Gatdet, a […]

A top-level police investigation into allegations of a paedophile ring – involving senior members of the apartheid-era National Party government, including former Defence Minister Magnus Malan  – is underway. The allegations are contained in the book The Lost Boys of Bird Island, written by former policeman Mark Minnie – who died in mysterious circumstances just a […]

You’ve seen the classics – from all three Scream movies to Anthony Hopkins’s Hannibal to the psychological terror that is Shutter Island. Looking for a new flavour of fright? These lesser-known horrors and thrillers are waiting for you on Showmax if you live in South Africa. For South Africans living abroad – two of these movies […]

Hydrologists from the Department of Water and Sanitation say the country will not experience drought over the next three months, even though below normal rains are forecasted. The experts met in Tshwane recently – as they do annually – to discuss their state of preparedness for floods during the rainy season. “The country will definitely […]

Home Affairs is once more embroiled in a legal battle. On 21 September court papers were filed against the Minister and Director General for declaring a visa application by a Zimbabwean child fraudulent and banning him for five years from returning to South Africa. As a result of the department’s action, Wadzanai Bello has been […]

Fires continued to rage across the Southern Cape in South Africa on Tuesday, as firefighters battle against windy conditions that keep changing. In its latest update, the Garden Route District Municipality complimented the South African Police Service (SAPS) for being an asset. The municipality said SAPS “confirmed a lot of information and have been a […]

JOHANNESBURG – The South African central bank – the Reserve Bank – said on Tuesday that it has started the process of winding up VBS Mutual Bank, which was caught up in a corruption scandal earlier this year. A report commissioned by the Reserve Bank this month titled “The Great Bank Heist” found that R1.9 […]