South African High Commission and Embassy staff around the world have been working all weekend – many in foreign countries on lockdown themselves, working from home – to do all they can to help the South Africans who have found themselves stranded abroad. “Her Excellency Ms Tembi Tambo, the SA High Commissioner in the UK […]

South Africa’s national airline SAA, which had suspended flights during lockdown, may be used for foreigners to be evacuated from SA. According to an article in the Mail & Guardian on Sunday, the paper said it had “reliably learnt the airline is in discussions with several countries about the possibility of operating special commercial charters […]

Tonight Carte Blanche visits Bloemfontein Zoo where animals were left starving after the zoo was closed down a few months ago. Some even died. Fortunately it was announced in the last week that most have now been relocated to ethical facilities. The current affairs show also investigates how COVID-19 will affect the economy here in […]

Madeleine Van Wyk (48) sadly passed away this week, becoming South Africa’s first Coronavirus casualty. In an attempt to put a face to this tragic disease and remind everyone in SA to please take lockdown seriously, we are posting a personal tribute written by her close friend and colleague (and SAPeople contributor) Debra Ann Badenhorst, […]

The South African High Commission in Sri Lanka has confirmed that plans being arranged by the SA Honorary Consul in the Maldives, for a chartered flight for stranded South Africans to be flown back home to South Africa, are legitimate. The SA High Commissioner’s Deputy Johannes van Niekerk confirmed that the SA’s Honorary Consul Mohamed […]

President Cyril Ramaphosa will today – Sunday 29 March 2020 – see off the 112 repatriated South African citizens who will be reunited with their families after all testing negative for coronavirus at the end of their quarantine at the Ranch Resort in Polokwane. The group was placed under quarantine at the resort from 14 […]

The lockdown in South Africa, put in place to limit the spread of COVID-19, mean most people are house-bound. Self-isolation means far fewer opportunities to be physically active if you are used to walking or cycling for transportation and doing leisure time sports. But equally worryingly, the home environment also offers abundant opportunity to be […]

The number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in South Africa has risen to 1,187, with Gauteng still reporting the highest number of cases, at 533. But it is the the number of confirmed cases involving healthcare workers in private and public hospitals that is causing concern. Health Minister Dr Zwelini Mkhize said in a statement on […]

British performer Stephen Ridley – aka The Talented Mr Ridley – has produced a poignant video that is going viral around the world. It’s a cover of John Lennon’s ‘Imagine’ – with some lines that touch close to home, in the time of coronavirus. The video is made even more moving by the fact that […]

The South African Government has identified 17 land parcels for resettlement purposes for people who stay in informal settlements should the need arise, as the country deals with the spread of COVID-19. “Of these, 13 land parcels are state-owned and four pieces of land parcels are privately owned. We have already started preparing some areas […]

South African students who were repatriated to South Africa from Wuhan City, in China, will finally be making their way home to their families on Monday, after spending 14 days in quarantine at a resort in the Limpopo province. The SA Government said plans are underway to reunite the 114 South African citizens with their […]

The group of 60 Germans travellers stranded in South Africa will be repatriated by their government next week, the Minister of Transport Fikile Mbalula said yesterday. But the Germany Embassy in Pretoria said nothing was confirmed yet. Yesterday it was reported by News24 that members of the group were under quarantine in several locations in […]

South Africans who are stranded in the Maldives, where the imminent closure of resorts is expected until June, are urged to contact the Honorary Consulate (details below) to be added to a chartered flight home to South Africa. The more who join the less the costs will be. According to Stuart Trenoweth from Joburg, who […]

Last night an entrepreneurial South African’s team in the UK delivered another 200 meals to St George’s Hospital Critical Care Nurses… feeding the nurses on the frontline of the UK’s fight against the coronavirus (COVID-19). South African entrepreneur James Durrant, co-founder and director of Blue Sky Publications and of London-based Mustard Foods, says he and […]

South Africa has been downgraded to subinvestment (Ba1) status by Moody’s, on the same day the country went into a 21-day lockdown. That means the country is now rated junk by the big three ratings agencies, Moody’s, S&P and Fitch. The other two agencies downgraded South Africa in 2017 already. “The South African government faces […]

Roedean School in South Africa has created a unique and incredibly moving version of Leonard Cohen’s famous ‘Hallelujah’. The legendary song has been covered numerous times over the years, but this version by the South African school is unique. The choir have done it “together apart”… in these times of coronavirus. Roedean School said: “Apart […]

South African police arrested 55 people on a largely successful operation, on the first day of a nationwide 21-day lockdown, Police Minister Bheki Cele said. “We had a good night, [it was] a success. Many South Africans had a very good will, our phones were abuzz with reports and things that were seen and telling […]

The number of COVID-19 deaths in South Africa has been revised down from two to one mortality, after a subsequent investigation found that one patient was negative for the virus. Earlier on Friday, the Health Minister, Dr Zweli Mkhize, said South Africa had recorded its first two deaths. The cases were in private and public […]

South Africans stranded abroad are encouraged to call DIRCO’s helpline and send a short email with their plight (details below), as the Department of International Relations and Cooperation weighs up the situation and what steps to take. Currently it is not looking that positive that the South Africans will be evacuated, as the country is […]

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has tested positive for COVID-19, he confirmed in a tweet on Friday morning. The British PM said: “Over the last 24 hours I have developed mild symptoms and tested positive for coronavirus. “I am now self-isolating, but I will continue to lead the government’s response via video-conference as we fight […]

A group of 60 German tourists has been placed under quarantine after one of them tested positive for COVID-19, said the Gauteng Health Department on Friday. In a statement, the department said the group is now at a health facility in the province. The development comes on the same the day the national Department of […]

As South Africa enters its first day of a 21-day national lockdown, this performance by the award-winning Ndlovu Youth Choir is so welcomed… by a nation that is pulling together (separately, with social distancing!) in these tough times. The choir posted the video on the eve of lockdown saying: “God bless our nation. Our spirit […]

The first two deaths from the Coronavirus in South Africa announced earlier today were two women aged 28 and 48, according to two separate statements, although the results of the one patient, who was admitted to hospital only yesterday, still have to be confirmed. “Today, we woke up to the sad news that we, too, […]

South African National Parks has confirmed that a French tourist visiting Kruger National Park tested positive for the Coronavirus. He is the latest of several foreign tourists who have been found to have the virus while travelling around the country. The tourist was part of a group of six who arrived in the country on […]

The first two deaths from Coronavirus in South Africa have been reported, two women in the Western Cape, according to statements released today, as the number of positive cases in the country went over 1,000. “This morning we wake South Africans up with sad news that we now have our first deaths resulting from COVID-19,” […]