CAPE TOWN – South African Finance Minister Tito Mboweni said on Thursday that the country had to act swiftly on its debt levels to avoid turning to the International Monetary Fund for help. “Whether or not you like the IMF, ideologically or practically, it doesn’t matter. When you get into a debt trap that’s where […]

Amongst the more depressing aspects of Finance Minister Tito Mboweni’s maiden budget speech to the South African parliament on Wednesday (details here), there were some highlights… Sanitary pads are to be added to VAT free items which will come as welcome news to over half the population! Sanitary pads – along with bread flour and […]

Tributes have poured in for South African firefighting pilot, Nico Heyns (65), who lost his life in the line of duty on Tuesday in Vermaaklikheid, in the southern Cape. Early on Thursday evening, Working on Fire posted the following moving video tribute to a man who was loved and respected by all who knew and worked […]

Europe made a step forward in the fight against plastic on Wednesday with a move to ban popular throw-away plastic items like straws and cotton buds… and a greater burden to be placed on manufacturers to recycle; all in a bid to help clear up ocean pollution. Under the proposal by European Union (EU) lawmakers […]

Hip-Hop legend, Jabulani “HHP” Tsambo has sadly passed away on Wednesday afternoon. Details surrounding the veteran’s death are still sketchy at this stage, although he was known to have been suffering from depression for some time. ‘Jabba’ had spoken honestly in interviews about his battle, and had told The Sowetan in 2016 that he had attempted suicide […]

JOHANNESBURG – South Africa’s rand weakened more than 1 percent on Wednesday after new Finance Minister Tito Mboweni forecast wider deficits and slower growth in his maiden budget speech. At 1247 GMT, the rand traded at 14.4200 versus the dollar, 1.1 percent weaker on the day. Mboweni delivered the medium term budget to parliament as […]

JOHANNESBURG – South Africa’s state pension fund and a local black investment firm have bought a majority stake in Africa’s biggest cattle company for R5.2 billion. The Public Investment Corp. (PIC), Africa’s largest investment fund and the biggest investor in South Africa’s economy, said on Tuesday it had bought a majority share in Karan Beef […]

JOHANNESBURG  – South Africa’s biggest supermarket chain, Shoprite, said on Tuesday it would pay customers for reusing its newly introduced recyclable bag… as it joined domestic rivals in efforts to curb plastic pollution. Supermarkets have come under increased pressure to cut their use of plastic as images of littered oceans and beaches become commonplace, shocking […]

Police in South Africa have shot and killed two men in KwaZulu-Natal in a ‘blaze of bullets’ who were allegedly responsible for the murder of two security guards in a stationary vehicle in Soweto two weeks ago. This was confirmed by South African Police Service (SAPS) spokesperson Vishnu Naidoo in a statement on Tuesday. Chilling […]

Local South African film-maker – Joshua Bradley – is thrilled at having his movie screened in the United States next month. The movie – Nommer 37 – is set to premier in cinemas in Los Angeles and New York on 2 November 2018. The crime thriller, set in the Cape Flats, was funded by the Department of […]

JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) – South Africa’s new finance minister will target spending on agriculture, infrastructure and job creation projects in his inaugural budget speech on Wednesday in a bid to haul the economy out of a recession. With the government facing a ballooning debt, stubbornly high unemployment, struggling state companies, and dwindling coffers, Tito Mboweni, a […]

N’DJAMENA – Two of six critically endangered black rhinos – relocated to Chad in May – have tragically died, Zakouma National Park’s management said, undermining efforts to restore their population in Chad after a nearly 50-year absence. Before the transfer of the six rhinos from Addo Elephant National Park in South Africa in May, the […]

Americans are clamouring to buy a $2 lottery ticket that could make them one of the richest people in the world… with a fortune GREATER than South Africa’s gross domestic product! Tuesday night’s Mega Millions lottery jackpot stands at a whopping $1.6 billion!! Wouldn’t it be great if a South African expat, living in the […]

LUSAKA – Zambia has revived plans it suspended two years ago, after protests by animal rights activists, for the controlled slaughter of up to 2,000 hippos over the next five years, its tourism minister said on Monday. Charles Banda said the hippo population could not be supported by the water levels in the Luangwa river […]

JOHANNESBURG – Wiping out corruption in South Africa continues with an announcement that Transnet’s board of directors has removed Chief Executive Siyabonga Gama, who has been accused of misconduct in a multi-million-dollar deal. State-owned Transnet, which operates nearly three-quarters of the African rail network – most of which is in South Africa – has been […]

Urgent help is being sought from South Africans, locally and abroad, after a devastating fire ripped through Khayelitsha township in Cape Town in the early hours of Saturday morning. While most of us were peacefully sleeping, a fire raged through the township – fuelled by strong winds in the Western Cape –  claiming the life […]

The case of the South African student activist and #FeesMustFall campaign leader, Mcebo Dlamini has been officially postponed to next year April. The student leader, who was confident that his trial would finally start, appeared in the Johannesburg Magistrate’s court on Friday morning. Dlamini is facing numerous charges including assault, public violence and malicious damage […]

The Department of Environmental Affairs has urged community members to assist the police and conservation authorities to combat rhino poaching. “Community members are the eyes and ears of the police. They are the people who hear or even know about illegal activities such as wildlife crime and rhino poaching,” the department said. The call follows the […]

Some employees of VBS Mutual Bank have finally agreed to sign retrenchment letters following days of refusing to sign them. The employees had a meeting with representatives of the office of the curator and the bank’s Human Resource Department in Limpopo, Thohoyandou on Thursday. According to SABC 100 workers are being retrenched while 25 will […]

JOHANNESBURG – South Africa’s President Cyril Ramaphosa on Wednesday appointed a judicial inquiry into the R2 trillion rand ($142 billion) state pension fund, a government gazette said, following corruption allegations. The PIC is Africa’s biggest pension fund and the biggest investor in South Africa’s economy holding a large volume of bonds issued by government and […]

Cheryl Zondi, a state witness in the trial of Timothy Omotoso, a senior pastor at the Jesus Dominion International Church, has been praised for her bravery and fortitude by the South African Portfolio Committee on Women in the Presidency and the Ministry. Twenty-two year old Zondi, an alleged rape victim, has for the past three […]

The South African Police Service (SAPS) says it has arrested 18 people in Stutterheim in the Eastern Cape, on charges of public violence and malicious damage to property. This follows the shocking protests which began yesterday. SAPS said the arrests followed protest action in Mlungisi Township this morning “during which police vehicles were damaged and […]

JOHANNESBURG – Ratings agency Moody’s said this week that it expected new South African Finance Minister Tito Mboweni to keep the government’s broad policies intact in the medium-term budget speech due next week. Lucie Villa, Moody’s lead analyst for South Africa said in a research report that while the change in ministers “may lead to […]

JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) – An inquiry reviewing evidence on Tom Moyane, the suspended head of South Africa’s Revenue Service (SARS), issued an interim report on Tuesday urging President Cyril Ramaphosa to fire the tax official. The agency has been plagued by infighting over the last three years and is subject to ongoing government investigations. Judge Robert […]

Civil rights organisation AfriForum on Tuesday made a presentation regarding farm murders in South Africa to members of the Parliament of Western Australia… in an attempt to persuade the Australians that farm attacks (346 so far this year) and farm murders (46 this year) are a serious issue and that President Cyril Ramaphosa’s denials are […]