South African conservationists have welcomed news that Vietnam authorities have seized more than 125 kg of rhino horn in its crackdown on wildlife trafficking in Southeast Asia, although it is tragic that this is a reactive rather than proactive response to the demand for rhino horn. It’s too late for any rhino who were killed. […]

In the face of news headlines in Australia claiming that Nando’s is in crisis with stores shutting down, and is a “very cruel” company that has left many of its franchisees broke, Nando’s South Africa told SAPeople the company in Australia has celebrated its most successful year yet, and has only closed underperforming restaurants. According […]

PRETORIA – In another blow to the public protector, a judge of the North Gauteng High Court today interdicted Busiswe Mkhwebane or her office from enforcing remedial action she had recommended the president take against Pravin Gordhan, pending a judicial review of Mkhwebane’s report against Gordhan. The decision was handed down by Judge Sulet Potterill, […]

The family of the Ukranian tourist who was murdered on Sunday morning whilst hiking in Table Mountain National Park, in Hout Bay, has revealed that the father of three – named as Ivan Ivanova – was in South Africa on a business trip, and had stayed for two extra days to rest. A Western Cape […]

JOHANNESBURG – The Presidential Advisory Panel on Land Reform and Agriculture has proposed amending the South African Constitution to allow the government to seize land without compensation… but only in limited circumstances. The recommendations in the final report were released Sunday by Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development Minister Thoko Didiza, and members of the […]

The internet’s falling in love with a video mash of Trevor Noah and Whitney Houston. In the video – created by social media user Myster Giraffe – it appears that Trevor is impersonating Whitney singing her 1987 hit “I Wanna Dance With Somebody”. And he’s ‘singing’ it well! The face swap video has already been […]

JOHANNESBURG  – Helen Zille (68) is to join think tank The Institute of Race Relations (IRR), the former Democratic Alliance (DA) leader announced on Sunday. The ex-Premier of the Western Cape – who stepped down in June, after two terms – tweeted today: “I am very pleased to be part of the IRR South Africa […]

A new facility that rehabilitates wild animals that have been injured or abandoned, with a view to returning them to the wild, has been opened at Shamwari Private Game Reserve, outside Port Elizabeth. At the R5 million (or $350,000) facility, the animals are treated before being released back to the wild, Shamwari said in a […]

SINGAPORE – Singapore said this week it had seized 8.8 tonnes of elephant ivory, a record haul by authorities in the city-state, which conservation groups say is a transit point for the illegal wildlife trade. The elephant ivory, estimated to be worth $12.9 million, came from nearly 300 African elephants, and was heading to Vietnam […]

A 44-year-old male tourist from the Ukraine has been fatally stabbed in Hout Bay whilst walking in Table Mountain National Park, the South African Police Service (SAPS) confirmed on Saturday afternoon. Lieutenant Colonel Andrè Traut from SAPS Western Cape said the man was walking in Table Mountain National Park around East Fort at 11h00 this […]

A group of 80 young South African dancers from across the country have set off to the UK with their bags packed and their hearts full with hope to compete in the World Lyrical Dance Championships 2019. It’s sure to be an incredible experience for the group – aged between 7 and 19 – as […]

WELLINGTON, NEW ZEALAND – The Springboks’ replacement scrumhalf Herschel Jantjies scored a try in the final minute of play to help South Africa snatch a 16-16 draw with New Zealand in a tense Rugby Championship clash in Wellington on Saturday. Jantjies pounced on an error by Aaron Smith to silence most of the sold-out crowd, […]

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 […]

JOHANNESBURG – Ratings agency Fitch downgraded the outlook for South Africa’s sub-investment credit rating on Friday, citing fiscal pressures including increased support for struggling state firms such as the power utility Eskom. South Africa’s public finances are under huge strain as economic growth has proved weaker than expected while a handful of state companies have […]

In an affidavit submitted to the state capture inquiry, and now made public, President Cyrial Ramaphosa has given details of his meetings with the Gupta brothers and Gavin Watson, the head of Bosasa, the company at the centre of many of the state capture allegations because of allegedly bribing numerous government departments for work. The […]

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 […]

Watch the Johnny Clegg memorial service – being held at the Sandton Convention Centre in Sandton, Johannesburg – live below. (Update: the service is now over but you can still watch it below. It’s very moving…) Dr John Kani opened the proceedings. He said: “Today we pay tribute to an incredible human being, a cultural reservoir, […]

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 […]

Rating agency Moody’s said the South African government’s proposal to provide additional financial support to struggling state-run power firm Eskom was “credit negative” for the sovereign as it was a further drain on fiscal resources. Eskom, which supplies more than 90% of South Africa‘s power but had to implement power cuts earlier this year, is grappling with high debt […]

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 […]