The National Pulse

In conversation with SA Tourism about this year’s Meetings Africa event, which is currently taking place at the Sandton Convention Centre. The event provides a platform for exhibitors to display their offerings to international and local buyers, African associations and corporate planners. So how does this event increase the competitiveness of the tourism sector in South Africa? Guest: Rendani Kho...

Tshwane residents will find out who their new mayor is later today. The city’s special council is sitting today to elect a new mayor following Randall Williams’s resignation from the position earlier this month after two years. This will be a third executive mayor for the city in less than four years. The DA is oputting forward its former member of parliament, Cilliers Brink. What’s the latest upd...

Expelled Stellenbosch student Theunis du Toit wants the Western Cape court to overturn last year’s decision by the institution to expel him, following an incident where he urinated on another student’s belongings. The incident sparked protests on campus as students spoke out against many other incidents where black students had been victimized. Du Toit says he was unfairly labelled a racist. The S...

As we continue with this topic, let’s now look at some of the challenges, approaches and responses that are aimed at tackling unemployment rate. For more on this, we are joined by….. GUEST: Dr Lumkile Mondi, Senior Lecture Wits Business School  

Earlier on today, Statistics South Africa released the unemployment rate for the fourth quarter. The latest results indicate that the number of unemployed persons increased by 28 000 to 7,8 million in the fourth quarter of last year, also during the same period about 169 000 jobs were gained. But what is even more worrying is the fact that the total number of unemployed youth increased by 46 000 t...

Yesterday, the United Kingdom and the European Union signed a new agreement that will allow goods to enter Northern Ireland freely from other parts of the U.K. The agreement comes more than six years after British voters chose to leave EU – but why has it taken so long to be finalised? To help us understand post-Brexit trading arrangements for Northern Ireland is……..   GUEST: Musa Mdunge, Politica...

The Democratic Alliance in KwaZulu-Natal says the growing number of informal settlements in the eThekwini metro is concerning as it affects not just tourism, but the overall quality of life for both the people who live there and those who live nearby. GUEST: Marlaine Nair, DA KZN spokesperson for Human Settlements

The Gauteng department of health is urging families to come forward to claim their relatives who have passed on. Gauteng mortuaries have over 930 unclaimed and unidentified bodies. Pretoria, Germiston and Johannesburg have the highest number of unclaimed bodies. The health department says it is not coping with the numbers and encourages families with loved ones who are missing to check mortuaries....

Some good news for our police. The South African Police Service’s Special Task Force Unit now ranks among the top 10 SWAT teams in the world. They came 9th out of 55 law enforcement teams from 55 from all over the world, making them the best in Africa. The competition assessed tactical acumen, mental focus and physical endurance. The team moved four spots up from 13th place in 2022. So what does t...

How high are the water levels now at the Orange and Vaal Rivers? The Water and Sanitation Department has been warning residents who had been evacuated due to high levels of water to not go back home yet. Twelve sluice gates were opened last week to release water in a bid to preserve water storage infrastructure following days of heavy rains that left dams and rivers overflowing. The department is...

Tensions are still high in Wesbury following the shooting of an alleged gang leader that was following by multiple shooting incidents since Friday. About 10 shootings have happened in the area and residents continue to live in fear. Nine people have been shot and one has been killed in the past 24 hours. Peace talks between community members and the police stalled earlier. What has happened since...

Last week Friday, the Pietermaritzburg High Court ruled that the council sitting, which was convened by KZN Cogta officials that led to the ousting of Nongoma Mayor Albert Mcnwango, was invalid. According to the IFP in KwaZulu-Natal, the high court ruling proves that the MEC for Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (COGTA), Ms Bongi Sithole-Moloi, abused her authority in terms of how she...

Build One South Africa (BOSA) leader Mmusi Maimane has laid criminal charges against former Eskom CEO Andre de Ruyter and Public Enterprises Minister Pravin Gordhan. This following De Ruyter’s recent interview with Annika Larsen where he alleged that the ANC is treating Eskom as a feeding conduit. Maimane says de Ruyter is compelled to give evidence and name the cabinet minister he has implicated...

Vote counting is currently underway in Nigeria’s tightest presidential election. We understand that Saturday’s voting was marred by long delays at polling stations and some parties have raised alarm over allegations of irregularities, which could lead to a disputed outcome. Many have described this year’s presidential poll as Nigeria’s most competitive election to date.   GUEST: Dr Akinola Olojo,...

Dr Chidochashe Nyere, Research Fellow at the Institute for Pan African Thought and Conversation, University of Johannesburg Ukraine Association of South Africa - Inna Coetzee Spokesperson for the Russian Embassy in SA - Alexander Arefiev

We celebrate DUT’s Prof Kelebogile Motaung who has just been nominated as one of the top 30 female leaders who are pioneers of transformation, gender equality, diversity & inclusion. She has been recognised for championing the empowerment of women and girl children.   GUEST: Professor Keolebogile Motaung, Acting Deputy Vice-Chancellor for Research, Innovation and Engagement at the Durban Unive...

 It now stands at just 23%. This was discussed when Brics countries met with the International Labour organisation as well as the African Union this week. South Africa has a history of a robust trade union representation in the labour market, however, current numbers show a weakening of the labour movement. Presenting the meeting, Jahni de Villiers, director at Labour Amplified said this constitut...

South Africa has been greylisted. This means it is riskier to do transactions with businesses and individuals in South Africa and therefore South Africans will face more due diligence from international banks when transacting. The Financial Action Task Force greylists countries it deems to be not doing enough to stop money laundering and terror financing. What does this look like in reality for th...

Following yesterday’s postponement of the swearing in ceremony – Mxolisi Dukwana has finally been sworn in as the new Premier of the Free State province. Giving his acceptance speech, Dukwana told the gathering in Bloemfontein that today is a day of hope and restoration. GUEST: Mxolisi Dukwana, Free State Premier

It’s been a year since Russia’s President Vladimir Putin launched his all-out war on Ukraine. One year later – are there any signs that this war will end and how has it changed Ukraine and Ukrainians? GUEST: Ms Liubov Abravitova, Ukraine’s Ambassador to South Africa

Earlier on today, KwaZulu-Natal Premier Nomusa Dube-Ncube delivered her maiden State of the Province Address. During her speech, the Premier revealed that KwaZulu-Natal’s economy is experiencing low growth due to a number of factors such as low investment, loadshedding, and persistent external shocks such as the global geo-political factors and low global demand. Joining us to react to her Speech...

THE INNERVIEW: In conversation with ANC Treasurer General Dr Gwen Ramokgopa about the party’s state of finances and her views on Political Party Funding Act. This as the ANC needs more money to help prepare for the 2024 general elections. In recent months, she has been urging corporate South Africa to play their part in ensuring that political parties are funded. GUEST: Dr Gwen Ramokgopa, ANC Trea...

Today we chat to Jaco van Schalkwyk, founder and director of The Character Company, which runs a vital mentorship programme for boys growing up without their fathers. Currently, the organisation has 55 mentors across the country who meet with the boys in their care once a week and engage them in fun, bonding and learning activities. GUEST: Jaco van Schalkwyk, Founder and Director of The Character...

The National Prosecuting Authority has abandoned information obtained through GuptaLeaks emails in the Nulane fraud case. This follows failure to have the GuptaLeaks email admitted into evidence. It says it will no longer pursue that avenue using that information. It is still unclear how this affects future cases that relate to evidence obtained through the emails. The Nulane trial is the first st...

Sisi Ntombela has stepped down from her position as premier in the Free State. ANC Secretary General, Fikile Mbalula announced on Tuesday that she had informed him of her intention to resign. Mxolisi Dukwana who defeated her at the last provincial elective conference is taking over from her. What plans does she have for the future? Guest: former Free State Premier, Sisi Ntombela.