JOHANNESBURG – It’s been a long battle for tens of thousands of gold miners in South Africa who say they have suffered dreadful illnesses because of decades of negligence in health and safety. Finally yesterday, a class action settlement of R5-billion ($353-million) was approved by the Gauteng High Court in Johannesburg. A victory at last… […]

“Did you know I was a falconer?” Johnny had said to me some time ago. “I used to have falcons, you know, as pets.” I remember how he smiled with his eyes. His voice sang with laughter and amusement as he told the story of how he would need to feed the falcons mice, and […]

The cigarette maker Philip Morris has opened a flagship store in Johannesburg, hoping to promote its heated tobacco product IQOS, according to the company. The store for IQOS, which stands for I Quit Ordinary Smoking, is in Sandton. South Africa, with an estimated 7 million smokers, is the only market in Africa where the company […]

Duane Vermeulen was nowhere near South Africa’s surprise victory against New Zealand in Wellington last year, sitting in Japan and watching the test on television. On Saturday the 33-year-old number eight will, however, become the 62nd Springboks captain when they face the All Blacks in the Rugby Championship clash that will likely decide the title in this year’s […]

There’s a Proudly South African family living on a farm in the North West, with some amazing employees and friends, who are giving us all goosebumps and inspiring the nation on how we could all work and play together. Watch the video below – filmed on Bona Bona Game Farm in Buisfontein (between Klerksdorp and […]

Records have been broken across Europe as a heatwave grips the continent again… caused by a cauldron of hot air from Africa’s Sahara desert being drawn northwards by high pressure. South Africans living abroad – who are used to the humidity in Durban and the hot, hot Karoo – shared their experiences with SAPeople today […]

President Cyril Ramaphosa signed the Presidential Health Compact on Thursday, which will make the way for a new health care system in South Africa that doesn’t discriminate against whether a person is rich or poor. “It has as its stated goal: one country, one health system. This means quality of care must be the same […]

The crack all-women anti-poaching team the Black Mambas, who have helped reduce poaching in their territory near Kruger National Park by 75 percent, and their founder have won two of four prestigious awards at a world tourism conference in Johannesburg, once again highlighting their environmental successes. At the African Resilience Summit, which was held yesterday […]

South Africa has lost yet another 16 endangered black rhino… but this time they fortunately weren’t poached. They were dehorned, and moved for their own protection across SA’s borders to eSwatini (formerly Swaziland) – to a habitat that is “ideal” – and safer, according to the eSwatini national wildlife authority. As South Africa has tragically […]

The capacity of dams serving Cape Town have risen above 70 percent, an astounding gain of almost 10 percent over the past two weeks and almost three times as much as during Day Zero in 2017, according to the City of Cape Town. Heavy rains over the Western Cape during the last few days have […]

Dr. Reuel Khoza has been appointed as the first non-political chairman of the state-owned Public Investment Corporation, the largest asset manager in Africa, the Minister of Finance Tito Mboweni announced at the new board’s inaugural meeting today. Khoza is a former chairman of Eskom and Nedbank, and the author of numerous books. A new 13-member […]

Showmax subscribers will be able to live stream the Bokke taking on the All Blacks in Wellington on their screens at 9:35am (South African time) on Saturday, 27 July. Fresh from their victory over the Wallabies at Ellis Park last weekend, the Springboks are facing the All Blacks on Saturday morning in Wellington. The last […]

Universal Man: Jonathan Clegg “Sikeyi” (1953-2019). “Sikeyi” is a Zulu dance praise name: “The peg through a yoke that secures oxen in position, from Afrikaans juskei (juk: yoke], referring to the capacity of a formidable dancer to hold his stand.” In my mind, like a Zulu ngoma (drum) dancer completing his turn, I somersault backwards […]

On Monday members of the Royal Family were treated to a military display in Wales by members of South Africa’s Zulu ‘impi’ regiment, to mark 140 years since the Anglo-Zulu War of 1879 when members of the Royal Welsh regiment fought at Rorke’s Drift. (Watch video below.) https://www.facebook.com/TheBritishMonarchy/photos/pcb.2531354623553019/2531351610219987/?type=3&theater The Prince of Wales, Charles, and his […]

“When you spend two decades of your life with somebody, and you lose them, it takes time to realise what impact that person’s life had on your own life and that of the rest of the world. This is the case with me and Nelson Mandela,” says Zelda la Grange, Madiba’s long-term personal assistant. On […]

Two South African u19 boys and girls canoe polo teams are preparing to fly to Northern Ireland where they will compete in the Junior International Canoe Polo Championships next week. It’s an exciting competition for the youngsters – who are all still in school and have an average age of 16. “This tour is a […]

South African firefighters from Working on Fire (WoF) have yet again inspired the locals in Canada with their song and dance routine. Watch below. Alberta Wildfire in Canada posted a video of the South African crew dancing and singing on Mandela Day (18 July), and said: “Today is #MandelaDay2019, when the legacy of Nelson Mandela […]

Prince Albert II of Monaco was in South Africa this weekend to present the Rhino Conservation Awards (RCA) 2019 to all those heroes who dedicate their lives to conserving Africa’s iconic rhino. The Prince – who is married to South Africa’s former Olympic swimmer Charlene Wittstock – said he admires all those honoured as well […]

In a dream come true, top South African epidemiologist Professor Salim S. Abdool Karim has officially become a Fellow of the prestigious Royal Society, the world’s oldest science academy… over three decades after he first made it his goal as a student while studying at the London School of Economics. Professor Karim joins the ranks […]

Travel between Germany and more parts of South Africa will be easier, now that Lufthansa and Mango, the low-cost subsidiary of South African Airways, have started a code-sharing agreement. In 2017 Mango took over certain routes from SAA, such as such as Durban, Port Elizabeth and George. Because it did not have the same interline […]

CAPE TOWN – In a combined operation of metro police and traffic cops, a record number of arrests were made over the past week in Cape Town, South Africa, including hundreds of taxi owners and drivers who hadn’t paid fines, drunk drivers, and people in illegal possession of drugs and unlicensed firearms, according to a […]

On Sunday evening Carte Blanche paid tribute to legendary musician, songwriter and activist Johnny Clegg. Best known for some of his iconic hits such as ‘Impi’ and ‘Asimbonanga’ – a song paying homage to Nelson Mandela and other struggle stalwarts of his time – the man fondly known as the ‘White Zulu’ succumbed to pancreatic […]

South Africa’s Karla Pretorius was named Player of the Tournament on Sunday night at the Netball World Cup in Liverpool, England… for her “outstanding performance” and for being SA’s “impenetrable wall”. With huge cheers from the crowd, it was obvious said the compere, that Karla was a popular winner. The Netball World Cup announced on […]

South Africa’s Akani Simbine streaked to a surprise victory in London in the 100 metres race on Saturday at the IAAF Diamond League championships. Simbine was on fire from start to finish, rocketing over the finishing line in 9.93 seconds, a season’s best. The South African athlete surprised all (and thrilled everyone from Africa) at […]

The question most people ask when we meet them somewhere on our travels through the vast dry Karoo region of South Africa is: “How do you find your stories?”… writes Chris Marais from KarooSpace. Those who read our Karoo books and our regular features in SA Country Life magazine and various other publications want to know what sets us […]