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 – 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 […]

CAPE TOWN – South Africa will struggle to finance the public services that form the largest part of its budget… due to falling revenues and an economic recession, the National Treasury told lawmakers on Tuesday. South Africa slipped into recession in the second quarter for the first time in nearly a decade; and the political […]

Prince Harry and his wife Meghan – who are currently in Australia – are expecting their first child in the spring of 2019, around a year after their glittering wedding injected Hollywood glamour into the British royal family. Kensington Palace announced Monday morning: “Their Royal Highnesses The Duke and Duchess of Sussex are very pleased […]

WINDSOR, England – Queen Elizabeth’s granddaughter Princess Eugenie married Jack Brooksbank at Windsor Castle on Friday in front of celebrities and Britain’s senior royals including Prince Harry and wife Meghan who wed at the same venue in May. Eugenie, 28, younger daughter of the queen’s third child, Prince Andrew, and his ex-wife, Sarah Ferguson, the […]

CAPE TOWN – Beloved anti-apartheid cleric and Nobel laureate, Desmond Tutu, was discharged from hospital in South Africa on Friday after almost two weeks of routine tests, his foundation said. Tutu, who spent his 87 birthday in hospital, has had prostate cancer for roughly two decades and has largely withdrawn from public life. His foundation […]

WASHINGTON – Rapper Kanye West, with a stream of consciousness speech in the Oval Office and a burst of profanity, defended his support for President Donald Trump on Thursday, to the great delight of Trump himself. The event was billed as a lunch at the White House to discuss prison reform, jobs for African-Americans and […]

Extremely powerful Hurricane Michael crashed into Florida’s northwestern Panhandle coast on Wednesday, flooding towns and ripping up trees with 249 km per hour winds and the potential for a devastating storm surge. Michael, which had caught many by surprise with its rapid intensification as it churned north over the Gulf of Mexico, was the most […]

CAPE TOWN (Reuters) – South Africa’s top anti-corruption body – the office of the Public Protector – said on Tuesday it would investigate whether Finance Minister Nhlanhla Nene breached ethics guidelines over a state pension fund investment, piling pressure on Nene as he faces questions about his future. The Public Protector’s office said it would […]

South African department store chain Woolies announced Monday that it will remove single-use plastic bags from one of its Cape Town stores during a six-month trial period… in a bid to end plastic pollution. From November, Woolworths – which also has operations in Australia and New Zealand – will not offer any plastic bags at […]

JOHANNESBURG – South Africa’s rand was weaker early on Monday following reports in the Business Day that Finance Minister Nhlanhla Nene has asked President Cyril Ramaphosa to sack him, after he admitted to visiting the home of the Gupta brothers, friends of scandal-plagued former leader Jacob Zuma. Nene has become a divisive figure in SA […]

Congolese Nobel Peace Prize-winner Denis Mukwege has dedicated his award to all women affected by rape and sexual violence. “This violence committed on their bodies happens not only in our country, the Democratic Republic of Congo, but also in many other countries,” said Mukwege during a news conference on Friday at his Panzi Hospital, in […]

PRETORIA  – South Africa expect an all-out assault from world champions New Zealand when the two countries meet in their Rugby Championship test on Saturday, says Springbok captain Siya Kolisi. After the Springboks’ surprise away win in New Zealand last month, Kolishi is awaiting a backlash in the last match for both teams in this […]

JOHANNESBURG – South African President Cyril Ramaphosa announced a package of reforms on Thursday which he said would create 275,000 more jobs a year, in a bid to bring down sky-high unemployment and improve his own track record on the economy. Ramaphosa said the measures unveiled today included agreements by top public and private firms […]

JOHANNESBURG – Saudi Arabia is in talks with South Africa’s major arms manufacturers and is considering taking an equity stake in the struggling state-owned defence firm Denel, the head of the Saudi state defence company told Reuters. Saudi Arabian Military Industries’ (SAMI) chief executive Andreas Schwer said he expected to conclude the first partnership deals […]

JOHANNESBURG – South Africa’s Finance Minister Nhlanhla Nene is due to give evidence on Wednesday at an inquiry into state capture, testimony that could reveal new details about the role of former president Jacob Zuma and his friends, the Guptas. Nene is a pivotal figure in a probe into the three Indian-born Gupta brothers, who […]

JOHANNESBURG – South African energy regulator NERSA on Tuesday gave power utility Eskom the go-head to recover R32.69 billion ($2.25 billion) of costs incurred over the past three years through higher tariffs over a four-year period from 2019 to 2023. Eskom had been hoping to recover the costs in three years. Cash-strapped Eskom, which is […]

ACCRA – Melania Trump arrived in Ghana on Tuesday, choosing for her first extended international trip alone to visit Africa, a continent her husband has referred to somewhat derisively! The U.S. first lady touched down at mid-morning in Ghana’s capital, Accra, where she was greeted by the country’s first lady, Rebecca Akufo-Addo, and a young […]

NAIROBI – More African ivory is being smuggled into China from Myanmar and Beijing’s ban on trade in ivory has failed to dampen imports, a report by conservation group Save the Elephants said on Tuesday. Wildlife activists said they welcomed China’s ban this year on the ivory trade, arguing the step by a country that […]

WINDHOEK – Namibia’s president called on Monday for a change to the constitution to allow the government to expropriate land and re-distribute it to the majority black population. “The willing-buyer willing-seller principle has not delivered results. Careful consideration should be given to expropriation,” President Hage Geingob said at the opening of the Second National Land […]

PALU, Indonesia – The toll from an earthquake and tsunami in Indonesia soared on Sunday to 832 confirmed dead, with authorities fearing it will only climb as rescuers struggle to reach outlying communities cut off from communications and help. Dozens of people were reported to be trapped in the rubble of two hotels and a […]

JAKARTA – The death toll from the earthquake and tsunami on the Indonesian island of Sulawesi jumped to 384 on Saturday, authorities said, with many of those killed swept away by giant waves as they played on the beach. Strong aftershocks continued to rock the coastal city on Saturday morning after waves up to six […]

JOHANNESBURG – South Africa’s land reforms will include issuing title deeds to small-scale farmers living on tribal lands, a senior ruling party official said on Friday, in comments likely to rile powerful traditional chiefs. The remarks by Ronald Lamola, a member of the African National Congress’ (ANC) top governing body and one of the party’s […]

South African tennis player Kevin Anderson took down Novak Djokovic for a second straight night as his team – Team World – rallied to win the final two matches and reel Team Europe’s lead back to 7-5 after the second day of the Laver Cup in Chicago on Saturday. Anderson led the charge by blasting […]

CAPE TOWN – South Africa will be without fullback Willie le Roux and loose-forward Francois Louw for the Rugby Championship clash against Australia in Port Elizabeth on September 29 after the pair were released to their English clubs. Le Roux will return to Wasps and Louw to Bath after the duo featured in the first […]