First Take SA

Elvis Presslin takes a look at the current top African economic stories with Victor Kgomoesoana, author of "Africa Is Open For Business" and "Africa Bounces Back". Victor is also the Executive Director for Marketing and Communication at the University of Limpopo

The South African National Roads Agency Limited, Sanral has announced an increase in toll fees. South African motorists will pay an additional 6.25% for their toll fees as of March. Will the new fees take a "toll" on the pockets of motorists, commuters and the freight industry? To answer this and more, Elvis Presslin spoke to the CEO of the Road Freight Association, Gavin Kelly

South Africa's association for the hospitality industry, FEDHASA, has called on the government to prioritize tourism, which was not mentioned in the 2024 State of the Nation Address.  The organization believes the tourism industry can be the fastest route to tackling unemployment, creating jobs, and equipping individuals with skills and livelihoods. For more on this Elvis Presslin spoke to Rosemar...

DA Leader John Steenhuisen will today lay criminal charges against Deputy President Paul Mashatile. The move comes after several media reports implicated Mashatile in alleged corruption during his tenure as MEC for Human Settlements in Gauteng. Steenhuisen says last week they attempted to deliver a comprehensive docket of all of the corruption allegations levelled against Mashatile to the Presiden...

Eskom has dismissed claims of sabotage being behind the recent surge in load shedding. This after ANC Secretary General, Fikile Mbalula took to "X", alleging acts of sabotage were behind the power utility implementing stage 6. Eskom's Head of Generation, Bheki Nxumalo says the failure of some units were unpredictable and law enforcement are still safeguarding the utility's power stations. Eskom ha...

The Department of International Relations and Cooperation, DIRCO says a proposed new Bill calling for the review of America's bilateral relations with South Africa will not pass. US law makers submitted a bill before Congress to review relations between Washington and Pretoria after South Africa hauled Israel before the International Court of Justice for acts of genocide against Palestinians. The...

Some opposition parties say President Cyril Ramaphosa's State of the Nation Address was nothing more than repetition of ideas and old broken promises. Ramaphosa delivered the last SONA of the sixth administration at the Cape Town City Hall last night. The DA says none of the promises made by Ramaphosa in his last five SONA speeches have been kept. For more on this, Elvis Presslin spoke to DA Natio...

Elvis Presslin takes a look at the current top African economic stories with Victor Kgomoeswana, author of "Africa Is Open For Business" and "Africa Bounces Back". Victor is also the Executive Director for Marketing and Communication at the University of Limpopo

The South African National Roads Agency (Sanral) has warned that a surge in trucks on national corridors is destroying road infrastructure in the coal belt. The N2 from Ermelo to Pongola is the hardest hit, as it now requires to accommodate around 2,500 trucks a day. The growth in heavy vehicles is outpacing the design assumptions of the road, which can cause roads designed to last for up to 25 ye...

Parliament says it is confident it will be able to implement its new rules during the State of the Nation Address today. The legislature had begun amending its joint rules as part of addressing disruptions during the SONA. The rules will be implemented for the first time this year. For more on this Elvis Presslin spoke to Grace Boroto, House Chairperson for Internal Arrangements in the National As...

Ikageng residents, East of Mamelodi, say it's disappointing that they have entered the 5th year of the ongoing water crisis in their community. That's despite many promises by politicians to find solutions. In anticipation of the 2024 State of the Nation Address by President Cyril Ramaphosa, the community has pleaded with him to honour the promises made to resolve the water crises in the area. Ram...

With the African mining indaba currently underway in Cape Town, the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) is looking at innovations that can help make the mining industry safer. SA's mining industry recorded a total of 55 fatalities during 2023, a 22% increase from the deaths in the previous year. Several mining incidents and fatalities have been reported, with the major one last y...

Build One South Africa (BOSA) will host a gathering of the unemployed outside City Hall in Cape Town ahead of the State of the Nation Address (SONA) tomorrow (Thursday). BOSA Leader Mmusi Maimane says the unemployment line is 11 million and growing - so the unemployed need to be heard. Elvis Presslin spoke to BOSA leader, Mmusi Maimane

Motorists will pay more for fuel from today. The Department of Mineral Resources and Energy has confirmed that the price of both grades of petrol will increase by 75-cents per litre. The diesel price will increase by between 70 and 75-cents per litre. While Illuminating paraffin is going up by 71-cents per litre at retail level. The department has attributed the increase to the current geopolitica...

The Department of Employment and Labour is warning South Africans not to pay for employment services. The call comes after the latest scam where persons are asked to pay R250 for background checks at Pep stores. The department says it is illegal for private employment agencies to deduct any amount from employee's remuneration or demand them to pay for being placed in a job. To further discuss this...

Health Minister Dr. Joe Phaahla says they are engaging National Treasury for additional budget to employ newly qualified doctors. He was responding to the delays in the placement of graduate doctors. Phaahla says most of the affected doctors have been allocated posts but were unable to work due to lack of funding. For more on this, Elvis Presslin spoke to Dr. Cedric Sihlangu, General Secretary of...

Labour Federation COSATU says it's optimistic about the increase of the national minimum wage, which comes into effect next month. The national minimum wage has been increased to 27-rand 58-cents per hour, from 25-rand 42-cents per hour. To speak more on the matter Elvis Presslin chatted with COSATU Parliamentary Coordinator and Spokesperson, Matthew Parks 

Elvis Presslin takes a look at the current top African economic stories with Victor Kgomoesoana, author of "Africa Is Open For Business" and "Africa Bounces Back". Victor is also the Executive Director for Marketing and Communication at the University of Limpopo

President Cyril Ramaphosa says the mining sector has seen significant growth and major transformation, with black ownership increasing from 2% in 2004 to 39% this year. Ramaphosa was addressing the 30th Investing in African Mining Indaba, currently underway in Cape Town. The 2024 African Mining Indaba, the world's largest gathering of influential stakeholders in the mining industry focuses on the...

The University of Kwazulu-Natal has introduced a compulsory module for its 9,000 first-year students, aiming to tackle societal issues like gender-based violence, racism, xenophobia, and homophobia. The module will consist of eight online lectures and tutorials. Now for more on this Elvis Presslin spoke to Professor Yanga Zembe-Zondi, an Associate Professor in the disciple of Community Development...

More than half a million South Africans registered to vote, on the first day of the registration weekend. The Independent Electoral Commission, IEC held its final voter registration at the weekend. This as the country prepares for a defining election this year. For more on this Elvis Presslin spoke to Terry Tselane, Executive Chairman of the Institute of Election Management Services in Africa and...

Water and Sanitation Minister Senzo Mchunu says no effort will be spared to resolve the water crisis in eThekwini, KZN. He was speaking during a community engagement with residents of Verulam, Tongaat and Phoenix yesterday. Last week, residents took to the streets demanding for water be restored after weeks of prolonged water outages. To discuss this further, Elvis Presslin spoke to Minister Mchun...

Tanzania's President, Samia Suluhu Hassan has joined a growing list of heads of states, who are offering messages of condolences following the passing of Namibia's President, Hage Geingob. Geingob, who was 82, passed away in a hospital in Windhoek weeks after being diagnosed with cancer. Elvis Presslin spoke to Namibian Political analyst, Rui Tyitende

Registrations for returning students at the Mangosuthu University of Technology have been postponed due to water challenges in parts of eThekwini Municipality. According to a statement from the university, MUT executives have postponed registration of returning students in favor of only registering first-time students. Students who are unable to register online will be assisted by staff members wh...

Ekurhuleni Finance MMC Nkululeko Dunga has accused the Auditor General's office of being politically motivated for delaying the release of the City's latest audit report. However the public audit body says the report was completed on time but the City's dispute over audit outcomes of the 2022-23 financial year stalled the release of the report. For more on this Elvis Presslin spoke to Action SA Ek...