A powerful tropical storm made landfall in Mozambique on Thursday evening, battering a coastal city with heavy rain and wind at speeds of up to 170 km an hour and injuring several people. Parts of Mozambique were cut off on Friday because of Cyclone Idai. In Beira, a city of around 500,000 people and a […]

Botswana’s High Court on Thursday postponed its ruling on a case challenging the criminalisation of gay sex, which is being scrutinised by campaigners hoping the law could be overturned. Judge Abednico Tafa told a packed courtroom in Botswana’s capital Gaborone that a decision would be handed down on June 11 after a one-day hearing. George […]

At least 49 people have been killed, and 20 injured following an attack on two mosques in Christchurch, New Zealand. Tributes from around the world have poured in, including one from All Blacks rugby player Sonny Bill Williams, who is Muslim: “My heart is hurting about the news coming out of Christchurch. Sending love & […]

Democratic Alliance (DA) leader Mmusi Maimane is one of several well known South African figures who has joined the Woolies Water Challenge! Watch below… In a post on Facebook on Thursday evening, Maimane said: “44/10 or 4/10? It’s actually 4 out 10 South Africans who can not find a JOB. Let’s bring a job in […]

DAKAR – A mosquito-killing drug tested in Burkina Faso reduced malaria cases by a fifth among children and could be an important new tool in the global fight against the disease, researchers said. The drug, ivermectin, is already widely used to treat parasitic infections but had not previously been tested for its effects on malaria […]

JOHANNESBURG – The World Bank will lend Angola $1 billion to fund social security and water projects, their president’s office said on Wednesday. Angola, Africa’s second largest oil producer, has been pushed into an economic crisis by the fall in oil prices since mid-2014. Alongside a $500 million loan agreed earlier, which Angola is set […]

CAPE TOWN – A young lion captured after being on the run for almost a month spent the night in a South African police cell before being moved back to its national park home. And judging by the video below, he wasn’t very happy about it! The juvenile male lion escaped from the Karoo National […]

LONDON – Britain’s Prince Harry and his pregnant wife Meghan are to set up their own household, breaking away from the joint operation they shared with Harry’s elder brother William and his wife Kate, Buckingham Palace said on Thursday. Harry and Meghan, known officially as the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, have shared staff with […]

JOHANNESBURG – South Africa’s popular Standard Bank will cut around 1,200 jobs and close 91 branches as part of efforts to digitise its retail and business bank, it said on Thursday. South Africa’s lenders, like others around the world, have been shuttering branches and trimming their headcount in an attempt to cut costs and adapt […]

Cyclone Idai, the worst storm to threaten Mozambique in years, is due to make landfall late on Thursday according to South Africa’s Weather Services (SAWS). The powerful hurricane – called a “rare giant hurricane” in some international news reports – threatens to rip through Mozambique’s second largest port with winds of over 190 km per […]

At a special event in Johannesburg on Thursday, President Cyril Ramaphosa praised the multi award-winning Soweto Gospel Choir for being South African heroes who have showcased what SA has to offer to the world. The Choir in turn presented the President with their third Grammy award! Ramaphosa said: “We thought it was important we hold […]

On Sunday a video by four South African students went viral… for its fantastic humour, showing what happened to their accents after drinking water from Woolworths, which is known for being super posh! Since then there have been some brilliant #WooliesWaterChallenge videos in response… Here’s the first video, in case you missed it, by Twitter […]

The Ad Hoc Committee – set up to amend Section 25 of the Constitution — has adopted a report on its work into a possible amendment to the Constitution in order for the State to expropriate land without compensation, in the public interest. Committee chairperson Thoko Didiza said in the report, the committee recommended to […]

ADDIS ABABA – Draped in traditional white mourning shawls, relatives of the Ethiopian victims of ET Flight 302 gathered silently in a hotel conference room in Addis Ababa on Thursday, before boarding buses headed for the crash site. Couples held each other, slumped forward in their chairs, their gazes downcast. Some men held their heads […]

Voting times for South Africans living abroad have been extended to accommodate Jewish voters after a meeting between the SAJBD (SA Jewish Board) and the IEC, the SAJBD said in a statement Wednesday. The voting day for South Africans living or travelling abroad is 27 April, which falls on a Saturday. The SAJBD said: Earlier […]

Around 220 animals tragically died during a fire on Monday evening at Mulati Wilddienste Farm near Brits in North West, South Africa. Police suspect it was arson. According to WildForLife, the animals “died a painful death, trapped in burning enclosures”. The heartbroken owner of Mulati, Gustav Strydom, said in a video interview that in 20 […]

Thousands of South Africans around the world will not be taking part in the SA National Elections this year, despite having the privilege to do so… because of an unfounded rumour. They’re afraid their details will be passed on to the SA government for the future ‘expat tax’ that is due to be introduced in […]

CAPE TOWN – South Africa’s rising debt trajectory will make it difficult to weather a significant global economic downturn, the Reserve Bank deputy governor said, adding it would take at least a decade to bring the debt-to-GDP ratio down to the 30 to 40 percent range. Deputy governor Kuben Naidoo also said on Wednesday that […]

Rooibos is already popular in Europe and now it’s becoming a big deal in Japan – one of the largest tea-drinking nations in the world – with exports of our indigenous tea hitting record highs in 2018. More than 2 000 tons were shipped to Japan‘s shores last year – the largest consignment since Rooibos […]

FRANSCHHOEK, South Africa – Step aside Francis Bacon… there’s a pig in South Africa whose art work is selling for a high price, and has even been featured on the face of a watch! UPDATE 17 DEC: Pigcasso’s painting sells for record-breaking price.  Brandishing a paintbrush in her snout, Pigcasso enthusiastically tosses her head to […]

South African Communications Minister Stella Ndabeni-Abrahams has on Tuesday announced that the National Treasury has decided to offer the South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) urgent interim financial relief. The announcement was made in Parliament’s communications committee. “We just needed assurance that by the end of the month, there’ll be a relief. In terms of how […]

A man who was swallowed by a whale in South Africa has lived to tell the tale. The German owner of an Algoa Bay tour company is making front page news around the world with his unique story! Rainer Schimpf (51) jokingly thanked Heinz Toperczer on his business page for the “insensitivity” of taking photos […]

South African singer Selkii will be seen dazzling the judges of The Voice in America on Monday evening. As seen in a ‘sneak peek’ Blind Auditions 2019 video that The Voice released a few days ago, Selkii ‘stands out’ with her version of Macy Gray’s ‘I Try’. The sneak peek shows two judges turning around, […]

Research has shown that excess salt intake is harmful to people’s health. It can lead to high blood pressure and increase the risk of heart disease and stroke. Globally salt reduction programmes are gaining traction, whether through awareness campaigns or through governmental interventions. This has been true in South Africa too. Three years ago it […]

South African Justin Harding claimed his maiden European Tour title with a six-under-par 66 in the final round of the Qatar Masters to win by two strokes at the Doha Golf Club on Sunday. Harding made three birdies in the first four holes and birdied three of the final four to finish 13 under par, […]