If you are from a country that has been listed by South Africa in the High Risk category for Covid-19 infection and transmission rate, and you need to undertake a business trip to SA, you may do so from 1 October 2020 by following the below guidelines. While leisure travel to South Africa is not […]

Gauteng Premier David Makhura has placed the provincial Health Department head, Professor Mkhululi Lukhele, on immediate precautionary suspension for allegedly failing to exercise responsibility in the COVID-19 related procurement. The development comes after the Special Investigating Unit, in a report dated 22 September 2020, made the recommendation. “The Special Investigating Unit found that the Head […]

The back and forth of the South African Airways Saga continues, as the business rescue practitioners in charge of the airline’s future or demise have suspended all operations with immediate effect until they have a clearer picture of whence (and if) the money is coming to save the beleaguered carrier. “The BRPs have made a […]

Despite the South African economy shedding 2.2 million jobs due to the COVID-19 lockdown, unemployment in the country dropped from 30.1% to 23.3% in the second quarter of 2020, according to Statistics South Africa (Stats SA)… the lowest rate since 2009! However, before we all celebrate, the sharp fall in unemployment – as published in […]

GENEVA – Curbing capital flight and illicit financial flows in Africa could generate new funds to respond to the COVID-19 crisis on the continent, says UNCTAD’s Economic Development in Africa Report 2020, which was launched on Monday 28 September. The UN estimates that African countries will need to raise at least $200 billion to cope […]

Researchers at Stellenbosch University have found that South Africa has sufficient log resource options for a sustainable wood residential building market. “Our study showed that with the use of wood resources currently exported as chips, as well as planting trees in areas that have been earmarked for afforestation, it will be possible (in the long […]

Independent solar and wind power generators, among others, will in future be allowed to sell electricity to Eskom, which will hopefully break the cycle of loadshedding that has afflicted the country and its potential for progress. Rules were gazetted today allowing the procurement of 11,813 MW of electricity and storage from independent power producers (IPPs). […]

This Sunday Carte Blanche digs into murky waters to find out The Truth About 5G. You can watch the show on Sunday 27 September in South Africa on DStv Now or stream it overseas in most countries from Tues 29 September if you’re abroad. The Truth About 5G Fifth-generation cellular technology is the next frontier […]

President Cyril Ramaphosa has thrown his weight behind the empowering of women in Africa by giving them enabling tools to build themselves a financially secure and independent future. President Ramaphosa was speaking during a high-level virtual panel, G7 Partnership for African Women’s Financial Inclusion on Wednesday. The panel also featured philanthropist Melinda Gates, Queen Máxima […]

The Competition Tribunal has approved The Foschini Group to acquire Jet stores subject to conditions, while seller Edcon has said that it would maintain its big branch of Edgars in downtown Johannesburg, which has been there for 90 years and is being renovated, a major impetus to the central business district. It was reported earlier […]

Unilever Southern Africa has agreed to collaborate with the Department of Small Business Development to increase investment in small, micro and medium enterprise (SMME) development. “Unilever [has] already identified input materials which can be manufactured locally and committed to work with the department to build the capability of SMMEs, particularly black, women and youth-owned, and […]

The rezoning of the River Club property in Observatory to allow a R4.5 billion mega-development including headquarters for Amazon was given the go-ahead by the City of Cape Town’s Municipal Planning Tribunal on Friday 18 September. A city tribunal has made way for Amazon to move in to River Club mega-development in Cape Town. The […]

South Africa will reopen its international borders on 1 October 2020, under alert level 1 of lockdown which began today, but not all visitors will be welcome just yet. SA to keep close watch on countries’ COVID-19 status The SA Government says while a ban will be put in place for international countries still experiencing […]

Who would have thought that something as simple a strelitzia seed pod would give a retrenched Salt Rock man the business opportunity of a lifetime. You could very well call Peter Shanley an innovative opportunist who not only has a creative eye, but plans to help others make a living through his breathtaking ‘lockdown lights’. […]

Is the crime holiday over? As lockdown restrictions ease, criminal activities in South Africa are sharply spiking, according to Carte Blanche on this Sunday’s broadcast. Presenter Macfarlane Moleli says: “As the national lockdown restrictions continue to ease, experts around the country are seeing a spike in criminal activities. It seems the perpetrators are making up for […]

Nando’s proved again tonight that it’s not just a fast food chicken outlet – it’s also fast with its distinctive and humorous adverts which tend to highlight SA’s unique culture! Less than an hour after President Cyril Ramaphosa announced on Wednesday that South Africa will enter Level 1 on 20 September and that its borders […]

After months of talk, they are finally here, the bumped-up security detail being put in place to protect the infrastructure and trains of South Africa’s railways. There will be at least 3,100 of them in identified hotspots, and some of them were out marching in Rhodesfield, Johannesburg, today (see video). Introducing a new security plan […]

The Western Cape government today launched a R3 billion housing project in Cape Town to redress historical imbalances in spacial planning as a result of apartheid, with a safe Live-Work-Play-Learn environment for people and families close to public transport and sustainable work opportunities. Construction at the Conradie Better Living Model Project officially commences this month, […]

South Africa’s President Cyril Ramaphosa will address the nation at 19h00 tonight on developments in the country’s risk-adjusted response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Many South Africans, fed up with the long lockdown, are hoping that Ramaphosa will announce a move from Lockdown Level 2 to Level 1, and that some international travel will be permitted. […]

Five suspects have been arrested for tampering with essential infrastructure in the rail environment. The outrageous train looting in South Africa was recently exposed by Carte Blanche in a deep undercover investigation going inside some of PRASA’s railway stations where thieves have been stripping every piece of copper and steel they can find. Bit by […]

The statement by President Cyril Ramaphosa today praising the work of the media is a sea change from the days of his predecessor Jacob Zuma and his support of the Gupta ANN7 network and New Age newspaper and the vilification of Jacques Pauw, author of “The President’s Keepers,” among other low points. Countries with strong […]

For all those people who hate the way taxi drivers behave on the road, the way they disobey traffic lights, go the wrong way down one-way streets, overcrowd, drive abysmally and disrespect even their own passengers, now is the time to have your say. Today saw the launch of a public platform, the National Taxi […]

South Africa is making its best wines ever, according to British journalist and wine master Tim Atkin, who managed to put together his latest report during the pandemic and gave two wines a perfect score of 100 points. “Rather than just a few individuals, what we have now is a constellation shining bright above us […]

Pioneer Foods has confirmed that the substance in its Liqui Fruit 330ml red grape juice cans is not glass. Chief Executive Officer of Pioneer Foods/PepsiCo Sub-Saharan Africa, Tertius Carstensthat, said what was previously visually identified as shards of glass found in the 330ml cans is actually crystals of a naturally occurring substance in products of […]

In one of the worst year’s on record for loadshedding in South Africa, more of the same is possible as one of the conveyor belts at Medupi power station broke down, Eskom said today. “This means the four generation units in service are not able to take in the requisite amount of coal to generate […]