The South African Post Office (Sapo) has advised its customers not to pay self-appointed queue marshals a fee for a place in front of the queue when visiting their branches. “Customers are advised not to pay the fee demanded by these queue marshals, and to report such incidents to the South African Police and to […]

The World AIDS Day commemoration of 2020 took place in the midst of a global pandemic. It served as another reminder that people are not only susceptible to pathogens, but to the political, social and economic inequities that determine vulnerability to infections. HIV remains a major global public health challenge and COVID-19 has added to […]

As the world discusses her haircut and husband’s latest paternity suit, Princess Charlene of Monaco has gracefully posted a Christmas message with family photos on her Instagram page. The former South African Olympic swimmer, born Charlene Wittstock, said: “Merry Christmas to all our friends and families, love you all ❤️” The main photo on Instagram […]

Travellers between South Africa and Zimbabwe, making their way home for the festive season, have been stuck in long traffic jams (some for five days) at the Beitbridge border post, in incredibly hot conditions without easy access to water, food and other amenities. This has led to the tragic death of at least four people […]

South Africa’s Deputy President David Mabuza delivered the following Christmas message to the nation… Fellow Compatriots, The end of the year is a special time for everyone. It marks the pinnacle of individual and collective journeys we have traversed in the course of the year. It is a time to reflect on where we are, […]

The Department of Water and Sanitation says South Africans are poised for a bumper wet Christmas following persistent rains that fell over large parts of the country in the past month. (Although it looks like sunshine on Christmas Day for the Northern Cape and most of the Western and Eastern Cape.) South African Dam Levels […]

The South African government may have to review current lockdown restrictions and consider further measures to curb the exponential spread of the COVID-19 virus, says Health Minister, Dr Zwelini Mkhize. He warned that within days the number of daily positive cases recorded in SA will surpass that of the peak during the first wave. The […]

England announced last night that as of 09h00 today, Thursday morning 24 Dec, no more flights will be allowed to enter the country from South Africa. This follows the discovery of at least two patients in the UK being identified with the Covid-19 variant from South Africa, a mutation which the South African authorities announced […]

DOHA, QATAR – Qatar Airways says it has paid out over R200-Million since March 2020, honouring its obligation to passengers who had travel plans impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic. The airline said in a statement on Wednesday that this demonstrates its commitment to the SA market. The airline said it also helped repatriate over 12,000 […]

Following the recent massive fire that destroyed over 1,000 homes in Masiphumelele and led to the City of Cape Town declaring it a local disaster, the government has called on the public to assist where they can. Here’s a first hand account from volunteer Lynn Duddy… When you arrive it is a bit overwhelming, like […]

South Africa has recorded 339 more COVID-19 related deaths bringing the death toll to 25 246, says Health Minister Dr Zweli Mkhize. A total of 9 501 new cases have been reported in the past 24 hours pushing the country’s cumulative COVID-19 figures to 940 212. Covid-19 Deaths by Province in SA The Eastern Cape […]

The North Gauteng High Court in Pretoria today ruled against the motion to have the COVID-19 beach ban regulation declared unconstitutional. This means that all beaches in the Eastern Cape, as well as on the Garden Route in the Western Cape, will remain closed until 3 January; and that all beaches in KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) will […]

News that British Airways has announced plans to suspend 13 destinations, including the direct Durban – London route, has been met with disappointment by KwaZulu-Natal’s (KZN) Economic Development and Tourism Department… as well as understanding. The department’s Ravi Pillay has warned this will hamper growth of international air services into the province post-Covid-19, but said […]

South Africa has made a down payment to secure the COVID-19 vaccine for 10% of the country’s population. “The National Department of Health and the Solidarity Fund are pleased to announce that a down payment of US $19.2 million USD (R283 million) has been made to GAVI (the Vaccine Alliance) to secure South Africa’s entry […]

The Western Cape High Court has extended beach opening hours, but has judged in favour of keeping the Garden Route’s beaches closed for the festive season, as announced by South Africa’s President Cyril Ramaphosa last week (along with all beaches in the Eastern Cape). The Democratic Alliance (DA) says it notes the ex tempora judgement […]

Three African Painted Dogs in KwaZulu-Natal have been successfully collared to assist with their conservation. Monitoring the endangered species is essential – with only about 550 African Painted Dogs left in South Africa, every individual counts, writes Janelle Barnard… An afternoon of darting and collaring African Painted Dogs on Somkhanda Community Game Reserve almost became […]

Only a massive global rollout of an effective vaccine can end the Covid-19 pandemic in the short term. The vaccine is being rolled out in the United Kingdom and United States. It’s expected to become available in Europe imminently. This is where things stand in South Africa. The Department of Health is playing its cards […]

Germany plans to ban all passenger flights between Germany and South Africa with an emergency order. Israel has implemented a similar ban on flights from SA. Both Germany and Israel, along with several other countries, have also closed their borders to the UK. German Health Minister Jens Spahn said on Sunday: “Tomorrow we are planning […]

Israel has closed its borders to South Africa because of the new Covid-19 strain that is believed to be driving SA’s second wave of infections. Israel has also stopped all flights from the UK and Denmark, it was announced on Sunday afternoon by the Israeli Prime Minister. SA has highest proportion of Covid-19 variant in […]

The Department of Water and Sanitation has warned South Africans against flocking to the country’s dams and rivers as an alternative to the beaches, following a government ban on the use of some SA beaches to minimize the impact of COVID-19. This week President Ramaphosa announced the government’s decision to bar public access to all […]

The Democratic Alliance (DA) says it has found out that once again, Minister Dlamini-Zuma has decided to overrule President Ramaphosa through the latest amended regulations published on the 17th of December 2020. “This time, Minster Dlamini-Zuma has unilaterally decided to change the closing time for restaurants, bars, gyms, cinemas, theatres and museums from 10pm to […]

Holiday accommodation spots on the Garden Route have suffered devastating cancellations, especially in Knysna and Sedgefield, according to a survey. One third of owners say they have lost 50% of their bookings for the festive season. Some have lost over 80% of their revenue. According to the survey, run by online accommodation booking system provider, […]

South African National Parks (SANParks) announced on Friday that items believed to be those of missing Field Ranger, Checkers Mashego, who went missing in the Stolsnek Section of the Kruger National Park during the evening of 17 November 2020, were discovered by a search party in the same section during the late afternoon of Wednesday, […]

Colin Gertse, a 57-year old South African family man and pastor from Montagu, travelled to the US in March to earn money as a truck driver and create a better life for his family back home in SA… but sadly, in October he suffered an aneurysm. Colin is currently in critical care in a St. […]

The novel Coronavirus continues to spread rapidly amid the second wave of infections, with the country recording another 9 131 confirmed cases in the last 24 hours. This is after South Africa topped the 10 000 mark of new cases on Wednesday — for the first time since August. Meanwhile, 184 people succumbed to the respiratory […]