Update@Noon

Talking about all things Brics Summit 2023 and how South Africa leverages its BRICS membership to address its domestic challenges of load-shedding, inequality, poverty, and unemployment, As some economic benefits to South Africa of being a BRICS member include increased intra-BRICS trade, investment, tourism, capacity building, skills, and technology transfers. Sakina Kamwendo spoke to The Deputy...

As Brics gets underway to discuss various topics that extend beyond our newsrooms. update at noon with Sakina Kamwendo spoke to international media journalist from Venezuela covering the summit to look at media role and its coverage in Brics summit 2023, as Venezuela is one of the countries that has formally applied to join the BRICS group, Venezuela hopes to bring to the brics table oil reserves...

South Africa hosts the historic 15th Summit of BRICS nations: Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa. It's the first BRICS summit to be hosted in person since the emergence of the COVID-19 pandemic and the subsequent global restrictions. The BRICS mechanism aims to promote peace, security, development, and cooperation. It also aims at contributing significantly to the development of humani...

Tensions are brewing within the E-Hailing space following the introduction of the Buja Qute, a quadricycle operated by Botl. The Bujaj has been predominantly operating within the Central Johannesburg District including some parts of Johannesburg West. Drivers for traditional E-Hailing vehicles are however not impressed, expressing disdain at the competition while also raising safety concerns. Saki...

The South African Reserve Bank (SARB) has released its report into the Phala Phala- following an investigation which was launched on the back of the allegations by Former intelligence boss, Arthur Fraser. The Reserve Bank says it has found that was no perfected transaction and cannot conclude that there was any contravention of the Exchange Control Regulations (the applicable Regulation is Regulat...

The Coal-Face with Martin Creamer, publishing editor of Engineering News and Mining Weekly. 1. Another South African gold mine is going green with the generation of 30 MW of solar power in the Free State. 2. An India-controlled zinc mine in the Northern Cape this week struck a deal to generate its own clean electricity. 3. A company mining vanadium in North West province is going ahead with a 25 M...

The South African Health Products Regulatory Authority - SAHPRA -  has made the decision to withdraw pholcodine-containing medicines from the South African market due to the increased risk of sudden, severe, and life-threatening allergic reactions occurring during surgery. Pholcodine has been used as a cough suppressant since the 1950s. It is registered to treat dry coughs and is available in vari...

Residents of Jerusalem Informal Settlement, South of Johannesburg are reeling in shock after having spent the night at the Florida police stations last night. The distraught residents fled from their homes, fearing for their lives following a shootout between suspected illegal miners. Women, children including infants were forced to sleep on the floor of the police station. Sebezile Nkambule spoke...

That was Police Minister Bheki Cele, present the quarterly crime statistics. The latest crime statistics show that the murder rate has decreased by 3.1% between April and June this year. A total of 6228 people were killed in SA between April and June this year. This is compared to 6424 people who were killed in the same period last year. At the same time, more than 9,200 rape cases were reported,...

The Portfolio Committee on Basic Education is currently sitting and deliberating on the clauses of the Basic Education Laws Amendment Bill. The deliberations started on Monday but did not get off to a smooth start. On Tuesday the DA and ACDP walked out of the committee, but Wednesday all was back to normal.  Yesterday the committee heard the Department of Basic Education would need R16 billion to...

Businesses in the agricultural town of Lichtenburg in the North West are down on their knees following serious electricity problems. They have had to survive with only one transformer for the past 21 days with Eskom refusing to switch them back on before a substantial payment has been made.  Eskom is owed an estimated R1 billion by the struggling municipality of Ditsobotla in the Northwest, which...

The Co-Chairperson of the National Joint Operational and Intelligence Structure (NATJOINT), Lieutenant General, Tebello Mosikili says the Sandton Convention Centre, north of Johannesburg will be a no fly-zone from this coming Sunday. This is ahead of the much-anticipated 15th BRICS summit which will see heads of state, ministers, diplomats and the business fraternity -  amongst others -  gather fr...

The two-day Multi-Party National Convention is underway in Kempton Park, East of Johannesburg. Seven political parties - the DA, IFP, FF Plus, ActionSA, United Independent Movement, Spectrum National Party and Independent South African National Civics Organisation have converged to craft a pre-election plan with the aim of forming an alternative government to the ANC following next year's election...

Residents in Marikana say nothing much has changed since 34 mineworkers were killed by police in 2012. This is the official commemoration of the massacre getting into full swing in honour of those that died on this day, eleven years ago. Sakina Kamwendo spoke to reporter Zebilon Maine and Thabisile Phumo  Executive Vice President: Stakeholder Relations at Sibanye-Stillwater

A municipality building has been allegedly set alight in Swellendam, Western Cape. Community members are protesting against a lack of service delivery. The N-2 highway at Swellendam in the Overberg region of the Western Cape is currently closed and traffic is being diverted through the town. Reports suggest that protesters laid burning debris and rocks across the road. Sakina Kamwendo spoke to Ove...

The Section 194 committee has recommended that Public Protector Busisiwe Mkhwebane be removed from office. The committee says it has satisfied itself that on the evidence it has, charges of misconduct and incompetence have been proven against Mkhwebane. Only two parties, the EFF and Al Jamaah expressed their opposition to the recommendation. The draft report should have been delivered to the suspe...

A child has been severely burnt at Ga-Mathabatha outside Lebowakgomo in Limpopo after a man allegedly set alight a house in which his partner and the child were sleeping. The perpetrator is known and police apparently refused to open a case. It is alleged police tried to mediate between the family of the burnt child and the perpetrator. Sakina Kamwendom spoke to reporter, Mahlatse Phaladi

Statistics South Africa released the unemployment rate for the second quarter, which declined slightly to 32-point-6 per cent from 32-point-9 per cent in the first quarter.  The results of the Quarterly Labour Force Survey indicate that the number of employed persons increased by 154 thousand to 16,3 million in the second quarter of 2023 compared to the first quarter of 2023. The number of unemplo...

Convicted child rapist and sex trafficker, Gerhard Ackerman has been handed 12 life terms for his crimes by the Gauteng High Court. Ackerman was found guilty of over 700 crimes which also include, being in possession of child pornography as well as creating and broadcasting pornographic material. He was charged alongside the former acting judge Paul Kennedy who committed suicide following his arre...

 The murder trial of Senzo Meyiwa is underway in the High Court in Pretoria. The state has called a new witness, Sergeant Mandla Masondo. Last week, two digital forensic experts were called to testify about the chain of evidence. Five men are on trial for the murder of the soccer star. Sakina Kamwendon spoke to reporter Pearl Magubane

The National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) says the unbundling of Power Utility, Eskom is not the answer to the country's energy problems. The union accuses Eskom together with the Public Enterprises Minister, Pravin Gordhan of unilaterally implementing the decision to sell Eskom's distribution assets to a new state-owned company, without proper consultation with key stakeholders such as the unions a...

Dr Mathole Motshekga has withdrawn as the guardian of Rain Queen-elect Princess Masalanabo Modjadji. Motshekga has written to the High Court in Pretoria to withdraw as a guardian and applicant in the interdict to stop the coronation of Masalanabo's brother Lekukela as king of Balobedu. He is citing that he can't afford the costs of the legal dispute between him and the Modjadjis. Sakina Kamwendo s...

The Coal-Face with Martin Creamer, publishing editor of Engineering News and Mining Weekly. 1. Major global mining companies this week singled out Africa as their biggest and best investment destination. 2. It is impossible for the world to fight off the huge climate change threat without metals and minerals from Africa. 3. Namibia this week caught the eye yet again as a country of choice when it...

West Africa's regional bloc is forging ahead with plans for the activation of a standby force for possible use against the military junta that took power in Niger in July, saying it wanted a peaceful restoration of democracy, but all options, including force, were on the table. The remarks came as the 15-member Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) met in Nigeria's Abuja on Thursday f...

Members of the Section 194 parliamentary committee have, this morning, been going through a draft report on suspended Public Protector, Advocate Busisiwe Mkhwebane. The draft report has been divided into three with the first part focused on the charges put forward against Mkhwebane while the second part covers the evidence gathered. The last part of the report is mainly focused on the conclusion m...