Author: Agency

Higher Education, Science and Innovation Minister, Dr Blade Nzimande, says he is pleased with the implementation of the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR) interventions within the post school education and training sector. This follows recorded partnerships and progress by universities, colleges and Sector Education and Training Authorities (SETAs) in advancing 4IR interventions within the sector. He said the Department of Higher Education and Training has collaborated with CISCO and Huawei to align the existing Technical Vocational Education and Training (TVET) colleges’ curriculum with industry demands in the digital skills area. “Under the CISCO agreement, at least 300 lecturers are being trained…

Eskom says after making some ground in recovering generation capacity, it may lift all stages of load shedding on Friday evening. The power utility has been battling generation unit failures throughout the past week, which have tipped the country into the more stringent stage four load shedding – dropping down to stage three on Wednesday evening. Eskom CEO Andre de Ruyter said the power utility is recovering some of the lost capacity back into the system. “We were sitting way in excess of 16 000MW of unplanned losses earlier in the week, so the system is recovering. We are seeing some…

President Cyril Ramaphosa has used his weekly newsletter to condemn anti-foreigner sentiments, and acts of vigilantism and assure citizens that the government is dealing with illegal migration in the country. This in the wake of recent protests in Diepsloot against alleged deficiencies in policing following several murders in the area. The protest turned violent and culminated in the murder of an alleged illegal migrant. “The events in the Gauteng township of Diepsloot last week were a tragedy. In the course of a single weekend, seven people were killed, sparking protests. This loss of life is deplorable, as is the killing…

South Africa has a “tremendous opportunity” to take the global lead in hydrogen and fuel cell production. This is according to Mineral Resources and Energy Minister, Gwede Mantashe, who was speaking at the Platinum Group Metals Industry Day held at the Johannesburg Country Club in Auckland Park on Wednesday. “The new global dispensation of green energy offers South Africa a rare and tremendous opportunity to become a global leader in the production of hydrogen, as well as fuel cells. This is primarily because South Africa holds nearly 80% of the world’s platinum reserves. It is the leading global supplier of…

Director-General, Dondo Mogajane, will leave the National Treasury in June after opting not to have his contract extended. “The Minister of Finance, Enoch Godongwana, hereby announces that the Director-General (DG) Dondo Mogajane, whose contract comes to an end on 7 June 2022, has elected not to extend his contract. The DG will leave the National Treasury on the expiry of his current contract to pursue new opportunities outside of the public sector,” said the Ministry of Finance on Thursday. Mogajane has served the National Treasury for 23 years of which the last five years have been as the Director-General. “Under…

The South African Medical Association (SAMA) says there is a need for intensive campaigning for more people to vaccinate against COVID-19, despite the lifting of the National State of Disaster (NSD). SAMA welcomed the lifting of the National State of Disaster by President Cyril Ramaphosa, describing it as a positive step for South Africa and the correct move forward for the country’s beleaguered economy. “Considering the decreasing number of COVID-19 cases in the country, ending the National State of Disaster is the appropriate step in government’s response to the pandemic. “SAMA supports the decision in the same way that it…

Operating hours at Home Affairs offices will extend to 18:30 this evening, after the department’s systems went offline nationwide on Friday. “The Department of Home Affairs wishes to inform members of the public that services at the department have been restored. The department and the State Information Technology Agency (SITA) have been able to fix the cable breakage that impacted service delivery on Friday,” said the department in a statement. Home Affairs Minister, Dr Aaron Motsoaledi, instructed the department to extend Monday’s operating hours in order to ensure that all clients that visited the offices on Friday are served. According…

President Cyril Ramaphosa says the turnaround of the South African Revenue Service (SARS) – from an inefficient revenue collector to hitting its highest margins in years – is proof that efficient and well-run state institutions can bolster trust between government and citizens. The President was addressing the nation through his weekly newsletter. Last week, SARS Commissioner Edward Kieswetter announced that the revenue collector had recorded a 25% increase in collections – reaching at least R1.5 trillion in revenue collection between April 2021 and March this year. “As we forge ahead with efforts to strengthen the capacity of the state and…

The government has noted and welcomed Moody’s decision to affirm South Africa’s long term foreign and local currency debt ratings at ‘Ba2’ and revise the outlook to stable from negative. The National Treasury on Friday said according to Moody’s, the key driver behind the decision to change the outlook to stable is the improved fiscal outlook that raises the likelihood of government’s debt burden stabilising over the medium term. “In addition, over the last two fiscal years, government has shown it was able to reprioritise its spending while staying committed to fiscal consolidation, which Moody’s expects will remain the case…

The Department of Transport has again extended the grace period for renewing expired driving licences to 15 April 2021. This comes as the deadline for the renewal of expired driving licences ended on 31 March 2022. In August 2021, Transport Minister, Fikile Mbalula, announced the extension of learner’s licences, driving licence cards, temporary driving licences, and professional driving permits for a grace period ending on 31 March 2022. This was part of government measures in response to the lockdown in the management of COVID-19. Updating the media on the deadline for the extension of licence validity in Midrand on Friday,…