Qatar Airways has signed an interline agreement with Fly Mango, further expanding its presence in South Africa as the largest international carrier to operate from the region, it has announced. The agreement provides Qatar Airways’ passengers with eight additional connections via Johannesburg and Cape Town; and will see Qatar Airways operating 26 weekly flights from […]

South Africa’s President Cyril Ramaphosa says poor countries desperately need COVID-19 vaccines as much as other nations that have already started vaccinating their citizens, and – without holding any punches, has asked wealthy nations that have ordered or hoarded excess vaccines to please release them. “We are all not safe if some countries are vaccinating […]

Talented South African artist – Fourie Ackermann – has used Lockdown to brighten up the rustic village of Friemersheim… and he’s done such a fantastic job, with beautiful large wildlife murals bringing the walls to life, that tourists on the Garden Route are now visiting simply to view his incredible artwork. Fourie told SAPeople that […]

US-based charity Animal Defenders International (ADI) is celebrating the one-year anniversary of the arrival of 12 lions and 5 tigers at their sanctuary in South Africa, following an extraordinary rescue mission that saw the animals rescued from circuses and airlifted from Guatemala. The photos say it all – from cruelty and cages to the freedom […]

President Joe Biden has today signed a Proclamation suspending the entry of travellers from South Africa into the US from 30 January… due to the increased risk of transmission of the Covid-19 variant identified in South Africa. The Proclamation also immediately suspends the entry of travellers from the UK, Ireland, Schengen Area and Brazil effective […]

South Africa has entered the Bernie Sanders meme world with some brilliant contributions. Tshwane resident Barbara Dannenhauer created this Bernie Sanders meme of the US politician in SA’s legendary Kruger National Park. Barbara captured the amazing elephant photo last month in the Kruger. Bernie Sanders seen in a South African expat shop And in Seoul, […]

There has been an incredibly special sighting of a female Cheetah with three new cubs in Hluhluwe-iMfolozi Park (HiP). The sighting  of the cubs, believed to be around two-and-a-half months old, was made recently by The Wildlife ACT monitoring team on the iMfolozi section of the Park. This female Cheetah, known as CF23 (Cheetah Female […]

Over 4 000 Temporary Disability Grant reapplications have been assessed in KwaZulu-Natal, since the process commenced this year. The South African Social Security Agency (SASSA) in KwaZulu-Natal said more beneficiaries are heeding the call to visit the offices to reapply for Temporary Disability and Care Dependency Grants in the province. The reapplication process, which commenced […]

I moved overseas to Germany in 2014, but like approximately 820,000 other SA ex-pats, my family still live in South Africa writes Anelia Heese. In order to stay in touch, we had to become experts in the nuances of digital communication. On a video call in my kitchen, I will ask my tannie how to […]

The Kruger National Park has reported heavy rains overnight, with the Sabie River “flowing strongly”. KNP issued a warning alert that “Crocodile Bridge gate closed due to rivers overflowing”, but informed visitors that the Punda – Shingwedzi tar road is now accessible again. The area is feeling the effects of ex Tropical Cyclone Eloise, which […]

With South Africa gearing to receive its first consignment of COVID-19 vaccines, President Cyril Ramaphosa has reiterated that government’s mass vaccination campaign strategy would reach all corners of the country, prioritising those most in need. The President emphasised the commitment in the latest edition of his weekly newsletter on Monday. The President said that in […]

The South African National Parks (SANParks) has begun evacuating and closing camps, as it warns that the situation with Tropical Cyclone Eloise approaching is creating flood conditions in the Kruger National Park, despite the cyclone being downgraded to a tropical depression. The heavy rains and powerful winds of up to 130km/hour have already caused devastation […]

Between 3 May 2020 and 16 January 2021, the number of excess deaths in South Africa was more than 106,000. This is the estimate of the latest weekly Medical Research Council mortality report. These excess deaths are, either directly or indirectly, due to the Covid-19 epidemic. Some of those deaths may be because people with […]

Sir Elton John is reported to be “deeply upset” after the boss of his flagship project to care for teenagers struck down with HIV in South Africa died suddenly from Covid-19. The international superstar had befriended leading HIV scientist and tireless fundraiser Dr Arthi Ramkissoon after she wrote to him, begging for help to rebuild […]

Late last year the Network for Genomic Surveillance in South Africa (NGS-SA) led by the KwaZulu-Natal Research Innovation and Sequencing Platform (KRISP) identified a rapidly spreading new variant of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19. The new variant, called 501Y.V2, raises critical questions – including whether current vaccines and treatments will still be effective. With […]

A video has captured the incredible moment a dog was swept to certain death down the steep side of an overflowing KwaZulu-Natal dam, in raging floodwaters… until a brave human hero came to his rescue, risking his own life to save the dog. Watch below (get ready to hold your breath!). The dog, named Scamp, […]

There is a clamour by some people for ivermectin to be approved by the South African Health Products Regulatory Authority (SAHPRA) to treat Covid-19. An article published a couple of week ago in the South African Medical Journal (SAMJ) titled Ivermectin for COVID-19: Promising but not yet conclusive, written by six Tygerberg Hospital and Stellenbosch […]

The fatalities on South African roads during the 2020 festive season declined by seven percent when compared to the previous period… with one of the main differences this year being a time when South Africans were under lockdown to curb the spread of COVID-19. Over a third of these fatal accidents occurred during curfew hours, […]

A doctor in the Eastern Cape has developed a relatively simple device that could save the lives of many! The local doctor from Frere Provincial Hospital will be featured on Carte Blanche this Sunday. Presenter Derek Watts says: “While South Africa focuses primarily on the vaccine rollout, another vital element – oxygen – is somewhat […]

A Save Our Seas Foundation shark researcher has captured an incredible photo of a crocodile catching a shark in the recently opened St Lucia Estuary in South Africa’s KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) province. The picture, taken by Ryan Daly, is captioned: “When a predator becomes prey”. Save Our Seas told SAPeople “the image has been extremely well […]

Disaster teams in the Kruger National Park, and external role players, have been put on high alert as Tropical Storm Eloise approaches. The South African Weather Services (SAWS) has warned that various parts of the Kruger, particularly in the far north, will be affected by major rainfall and strong winds over the coming weekend, specifically […]

I wrote this on my personal Facebook page a few days ago, and from the responses realised that other South African ex-pats might be also affected by, or experiencing, this dynamic and so thought to share it writes Sandy Jonker Geyer. Last Tuesday COVID-19 took a much-loved member of our family. Buyiswa Zibi, a beautiful […]

Knowledge Nyamutowera came to Cape Town from Zimbabwe almost three years ago. He has been walking dogs at Paw Pets in Sea Point for over a year and a half now. “I’m just doing this for a living,” he says. Nyamutowera works from 8am to 5pm on weekdays and two Saturdays a month from 9:30am […]

Jackson Mthembu’s death on Thursday, from Covid, has left South Africans reeling with an outpouring of tributes for a man who was deeply loved, and known for his sense of fun, loud laughter, and desire to always put people at ease. The Minister’s final tweets on 12 January show the humble man he was, and […]

The young doctor who died in the Netcare helicopter crash in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa, yesterday, had earlier been called to help save Minister Jackson Mthembu’s life. The Minister in the Presidency succumbed to Covid-19 on Thursday. Hours later the cardiac anaesthetist, who tried to save him, perished in the Netcare helicopter tragedy near Bergville, on […]