First Take SA

While there have been calls for more technical schools in South Africa, there is growing concern on the funding of these schools. Basic Education director-general, Mathanzima Mweli, together with the backing of President Cyril Ramaphosa, made the call citing the skills shortage in the country. Currently there are only one-thousand-and-10 technical schools out of more than 25-thousand-762 schools i...

South African Revenue Service officials have intercepted a consignment of rhino horns at the OR Tambo International Airport worth over 23-million rand. Sars says the horns were hidden underneath cut laminated wooden sheets in four boxes which were filled with doormats and decorative items

The Khoi and San communities have welcomed the adoption of the Traditional and Khoi-San Leadership Bill by the National Council of Provinces. All provinces were in support of the bill except the DA-led province of the Western Cape. The bill provides for the recognition of traditional and Khoisan communities and makes provision for the establishment of Provincial Houses of Traditional and Khoi-San...

There have been calls for more schools in South Africa to become technical schools. Currently there are only one-thousand-and-10 technical high schools out of more than 25-thousand-762 schools in the country. Basic Education director-general, Mathanzima Mweli made the call ahead of the 2018 pass rate last week. The call comes as the country faces skills shortages. Mweli says President Cyril Ramaph...

Talks between striking students and the management of Unisa have ended in a stalemate as the two parties could not reach an agreement on the key issues raised by the National Student Representative Council ahead of this year's academic year. The students have embarked on protests action across Unisa campuses nationwide demanding that all students who completed higher certificates in 2018 should be...

Universities this week started dealing with long queus of student registrations and influx of late applications. In light of this, many students still do not consider Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) colleges as their first option. Only when they are not accepted at Universities do they flock to TVET colleges. The question is why are TVET colleges still looked at as inferior...

Opposition candidate, Felix Tshisekedi is said to be the provisional winner of the Democratic Republic of Congo presidential election. The electoral commission has just released the election results in the capital,

Controversial Nigerian Pastor Timothy Omotoso, who is detained at the St Albans Prison in Port Elizabeth, is reportedly receiving preferential treatment. A report in the City Press Newspaper has alleged that Omotoso is still preaching to his congregants via a cell phone, eats special meals and wears his fancy clothes. The preacher and two co-accused are facing numerous charges, ranging from sexual...

Preliminary results from the Democratic Republic of Congo's presidential election has been delayed past YESTERDAY'S (Sunday) deadline. The delay in announcing the result is the latest setback in a disorganised poll to choose a successor to President Joseph Kabila, who has ruled the DRC since his father was assassinated in 2001. The opposition, represented by its two main candidates Martin Fayulu a...

Eleven people were killed an a multi-vehicle crash that forced the closure of the N3 north and south between Roadside and Villiers near the Wilge Toll Plaza in the Free State yesterday. Arrive Alive says two vehicles, a taxi and a tanker truck were involved

Public Protector Busisiwe Mkhwebane has found that former Sports Minister Fikile Mbalula violated the Executive Ethics Act during a family holday to Dubai in 2016. Mkhwebane also released several other reports that made adverse findings against Western Cape Premier Helen Zille and Treasury Director General Dondo Mogajane as well as the awarding of the PEU - City of Tshwane metering contract.

Edcon CEO Grant Pattison says the retail giant needs about a billion-rand of funding to be financially sustainable over the next year. Pattison has however rejected speculation that Edcon is on the brink of collapse. Reports over the weekend suggested that the group, which owns Edgars, Jet and CNA stores, is facing liquidation and 40-thousand workers could lose their jobs and 100-thousand others a...

The Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union (AMCU) has accused Sibanye Stillwater of resorting to underhanded tactics in an effort to discredit its protected strike action in the gold sector. This after Sibanye's announcement that AMCU was no longer the majority union at the company. AMCU, which represents 43 percent of Sibanye's 32-thousand two-hundred workers downed tools over three we...

A fire has gutted an electoral commission warehouse in Kinshasa, capital of the Democratic Republic of Congo, just days before the highly anticipated presidential vote. Officials say the blaze destroyed thousands of voting machines and ballot boxes that were due to be used in the election. The campaign to elect a successor to President Joseph Kabila on 23 December has been marred by deadly clashes...

A 58-year-old scholar patrol guard who was accused of raping and sexual assaulting learners at the A.B Xuma Primary school in Soweto, has been acquitted of all charges. Johannes Molefe appeared in the High Court in Johannesburg sitting at the Palm Ridge Magistrate's Court in Ekhuruleni earlier today. Molefe, worked at the school as a patrol guard, was arrested in October last year after several le...

Over 800 South Africans are currently locked up in prisons all over the world - mostly for drug smuggling. In the third and final part of this series on South African drug mules, we interview Shani Krebs, who was sentenced to death in Thailand.

Today, we bring you an interview with Patricia Gerber, who heads Locked Up, a non-governmental organisation that assists South Africans in prisons abroad. Locked up has also been lobbying government to enter into prisoner transfer agreements with other countries, so that South Africans convicted for drug trafficking abroad can serve out their prison sentences here - and not overseas.

The International Relations ministry maintains that relations between South Africa and Rwanda are solid despite the recall of the country's high commissioner in Kigali. This follows derogatory tweets by Rwandwa's Deputy Foreign Minister towards International Relations Minister, Lindiwe Sisulu. Sisulu who had met with former Rwanda army commander General Faustin Kayumba Nyamwana who lives in South...

There continues to be wide-spread reaction to the allegation that ANC national spokesperson, Pule Mabe sexually harassed his 26-year old female personal assistant. The governing party YESTERDAY* swiftly came out to confirm that it had received a grievance report about the issue and that it's receiving urgent attention. Meanwhile, the ANC Women's League also came out condemning sexual harassment wh...

Four South African women are behind bars in Miami, in the US, following their recent arrests on drug smuggling charges. The women - three from Durban and one from Lusikisiki - have appeared in a US court where they pleaded not guilty. Employed on a cruise ship, they were arrested during a dramatic raid, after they allegedly smuggled cocaine from Jamaica to Miami. If convicted, they could face ten...

President Cyril Ramaphosa will today announce the effective date for the implementation of the National Minimum Wage at a ceremony with relevant stakeholders in Kliptown, Soweto. This occasion is will acknowledge contributions made by representatives of government, business and labour under the auspices of the National Economic Development and Labour Council (NEDLAC) to achieve the consensus that...

Some political parties in Parliament say the resignations of the four SABC board members is unfortunate. President Cyril Ramaphosa has accepted the resignation of Khanyisile Kweyama, Krish Naidoo, John Mattison and Mathatha Tsedu

The Democratic Alliance has written to Energy Minister Jeff Radebe seeking clarity on reports that the CEO of the Nuclear Energy Corporation of South Africa - NECSA - , Phumzile Tshelane, as well as the Chairperson of NECSA, Dr. Kelvin Kemm, have been dismissed. NECSA has faced numerous governance problems in the recent past and some reports say the board had been asked to give reasons why it shou...

The significance of both houses of parliament deciding to amend section 25 of the constitution in order to expropriate land without compensation

The department of Home affairs has relaxed its requirements for children travelling in and out of South Africa. The amendments took effect on the first of this month. The department says children who are foreign nationals from countries where visas are required will no longer have to carry supporting documents