Coming up on Carte Blanche this evening (Sunday 24 Feb) in South Africa, and available to stream from Tues 26 Feb for South Africans abroad. (14-day Free Trial): Brexit: What It Means for South Africa The end of March deadline for Britain’s withdrawal from the European Union is fast approaching and the interminable and bruising internal debates will […]

JOHANNESBURG – The South Africa’s rugby union (SARU) says it will scrap a rule that requires overseas-based players to have at least 30 test caps to be eligible for Springboks selection… as part of a “radical” overhaul of its contracting system. The 30-cap rule was instituted at the start of 2017 in an attempt to […]

JOHANNESBURG – South Africa’s largest opposition party, the Democratic Alliance (DA), launched its manifesto for May’s general elections on Saturday with pledges to create jobs and set up an anti-corruption unit. The DA faces a resurgent ruling African National Congress (ANC) under new President Cyril Ramaphosa, who has also vowed to root out corruption and […]

PATERNOSTER – In a small fishing village on South Africa’s rugged west coast, restaurateur Kobus van der Merwe is struggling to process his meteoric rise to gastronomic stardom. He recently got back from Paris, where four days ago his 20-cover Wolfgat was named Restaurant of the Year at the inaugural World Restaurant Awards, also winning […]

Government is looking at developing the biggest tech hub in Africa, a coding and programming academy as well as co-working and co-creation spaces for the youth and start-ups in particular. “Through the Small Enterprise Development Agency (seda), my department, in partnership with the Department of Telecommunication and Postal Services, has started a conversation to develop […]

Zambia will begin a planned cull of around 2,000 hippos in May, a senior government official said on Friday, reviving a measure put on hold two years earlier amid protests from animal rights activists. Zambia says its population of 12,200 hippos is too large for the water levels in the Luangwa river, where most of […]

Rescuers have retrieved another 13 bodies from a disused South African coal mine following a gas blast there around two weeks ago, police said on Friday, raising the confirmed death toll to 18. More than 20 people were trapped underground in early February when a gas pipe exploded after they entered the mine to steal […]

Water supply in the Eastern Cape is set to improve with the launch of the Mzimvubu Water Project’s advanced infrastructure. The R113 million advanced infrastructure project in Esiqhungqwini village in Tsolo will also contribute to job creation in the rural area. This infrastructure will allow easy access to the dam site and water treatment works, […]

The National Assembly has adopted a resolution to dissolve the Fifth Parliament, whose five-year term ends on 10 May. This is in line with section 50 of the Constitution, which deals specifically with the “dissolution of National Assembly before the expiry of its term”. By law, elections cannot be held during the term of office of […]

In his maiden budget speech, South Africa’s Finance Minister Tito Mboweni confirmed the depth of the financial crisis at South Africa’s power utility Eskom. He also underscored the serious risks this poses to economic recovery in the country. Mboweni allocated R23bn a year over the next three years to Eskom, to be extended over the […]

The desperate search for an escaped lion in the Karoo National Park outside Beaufort West in the Western Cape continued into its sixth day. According to Park Manager, Nico van der Walt, the trackers started with the spoor where they left off the previous night. “As they were tracking in a very deep gorge they […]

Rating agency Moody’s said on Thursday that it did not believe that South Africa’s decision in its 2019 budget to raise the expenditure ceiling by around R16 billion ($1.14 billion) over three years would weaken fiscal policy credibility. Moody’s, the last of the big three rating agencies to rate South Africa in investment grade, is […]

South Africa’s support plan for struggling state-owned electricity firm Eskom will put further strain on the country’s finances, rating agency S & P Global said on Thursday, although it should be offset to a degree by easing external pressures. In his maiden budget speech on Wednesday Finance Minister Tito Mboweni outlined a 69 billion rand […]

Vulnerable communities have lost their land to the state and mining companies in the past decade. In 2018, the political stage was dominated by the question of whether government has or should have the power to expropriate property without compensation – and use it. Some hailed this as the silver bullet that would lift millions […]

South Africa captain Faf du Plessis won the toss and elected to bat first in the second and final test against Sri Lanka at St George’s Park in Port Elizabeth on Thursday. The home side have handed a debut to all-rounder Wiaan Mulder, 21, who comes in for the injured Vernon Philander in the only […]

The South African Revenue Service (SARS) is intensifying its effort to identify and bring to book tax dodgers. This comes after revelation that the revenue collector is launching units aimed at tackling the illicit tobacco industry and big business. The illicit economics unit was launched late last year, while the large business unit is expected […]

Deutsche Bank is hiring 26 people in South Africa, a spokesman said on Wednesday, less than a year after scaling back the operation in a broad restructuring of its investment bank. The spokesman said the lender had appointed a new head of corporate finance coverage in South Africa and the remaining hires would mostly be […]

The Department of Women has lauded government’s efforts to support South Africa’s star athlete Caster Semenya through her legal challenge of the International Association of Athletics Federation’s ruling. The department said it is appalled at the IAAF ruling, which expects certain athletes to reduce natural testosterone levels through artificial chemical processes. The federation wants women […]

Tuesday marked the fifth day since a lion escape in the Karoo National Park outside Beaufort West, Western Cape. This is according to Nico van der Walt, Park Manager at Karoo National Park who said the search party consisting of 14 Rangers and about six volunteers from neighbouring farms breathed a sigh of relief late […]

An intelligence driven operation on Monday in Touwsriver, in the Western Cape landed two suspects behind bars for being in possession of a truck load of abalone with an estimated street value of R28 million. After receiving information about a truck allegedly transporting abalone to Gauteng on the N1 freeway, SAPS pursued the vehicle which […]

There will not be a host and Sunday’s Oscars ceremony will not open with the traditional monologue in which celebrities and politicians are skewered. Yet, with the rock band, Queen, pop superstar Lady Gaga and two musicals in the race for best picture, the highest honours in the movie industry will have an unusually strong […]

Ministers have widely welcomed Finance Minister Tito Mboweni’s 2019 Budget, saying he had done well in the largely unstable economic climate. Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (Cogta) Minister Zweli Mkhize said Mboweni had a difficult budget amid rising debt and stunted economic growth. “The Minister has tried everything that can be done. It’s a very […]

Princess Charlene of Monaco has shared a video compilation of photos taken on her children’s first safari trip to Africa. The former South African Olympic swimmer posted the video to her Instagram page early this week, with a simple message: “First African Experience.” Movingly, the soundtrack to the video is Johnny Clegg’s ‘Great Heart’. The […]

South Africa is supposed to be a secular state, but one can perhaps forgive Tito Mboweni, the Minister of Finance, for quoting numerous biblical verses in his 2019 Budget Speech. After all, South Africa’s fiscal situation is enough to make many people hope for divine intervention. The 2019 budget numbers show that the past year […]

South African comedian Trevor Noah has been selected to be one of the presenters at the Academy Awards on Sunday in the USA. The Oscars® production team made the announcement on Wednesday… a great surprise birthday present for Trevor who turns 35 today! The comedian, who grew up in Soweto, is already becoming a household […]