Uthingo’s contract as the national lottery operator expires within five days, but South African Trade and Industry Minister Mandisi Mpahlwa "still seems to have no idea" how to lead his department out of the quagmire following the Pretoria High Court’s reversal of his decision to award the licence to the Gidani consortium, the official opposition said on Tuesday.
The South African Airways (SAA) Bill, which converts the national airline into a public company, got the nod of the second chamber of Parliament, the National Council of Provinces, on Tuesday. The SAA Bill has already received the nod of the National Assembly.
Clashes in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) capital last week left between 200 and 500 dead, the German ambassador said on Tuesday as European Union envoys expressed concern at the force used by government troops against political opponents. The figure came from hospital sources, aid groups and diplomats, German envoy Karl-Albrecht Wokalek said.
From April 1 insurance companies will pay out life insurance and funeral claims to relatives of people who die of Aids-related illness, the Life Offices’ Association (LOA) said in Johannesburg on Tuesday. Insurance companies belonging to LOA will no longer apply the HIV/Aids exclusion clause to life and disability policies.
A national strike planned for Wednesday by bus workers’ unions was prevented by the Labour Court in Cape Town on Tuesday when it granted an interdict to the South African Bus Employers’ Association. The strike action would have put additional strain on Johannesburg’s public-transport system, which is already chaotic due to strike action by Metrobus employees.
Plans for the world’s first commercial space flights may be well advanced, but lift-off is facing an unexpected snag: the residents of the sleepy county of Dona Ana in New Mexico. The New Mexico state government opted for a deserted area abutting the county as the site of Spaceport America, launchpad for paying customers who want to visit space.
American Michael Phelps smashed Ian Thorpe’s 200m freestyle world record on an extraordinary evening at the World Swimming Championships on Tuesday. Four world records tumbled in the space of 90 minutes at the Susie O’Neill pool with Aaron Peirsol, Natalie Coughlin and Federica Pellegrini setting new marks in one of the most remarkable days in the event’s history.
South African steel giant Mittal Steel has contravened the Competition Act by charging excessive prices, the Competition Tribunal ruled on Tuesday. The tribunal, however, dismissed a complaint that Mittal Steel contravened the Act by inducing its customers not to deal with a competitor.
Violence, red tape and poor access are jeopardising international relief operations in Sudan’s war-torn Darfur region, United Nations humanitarian chief John Holmes said on Monday. "If we don’t deal with those problems, [the] humanitarian effort could begin to unravel with catastrophic effects for the civilian population," he told a news conference.
A multi-faceted public transport system action plan, involving integrated metered taxis and long-distance public transport, has been announced by Transport Minister Jeff Radebe. Noting that about R9-billion has been allocated of the medium-term budget to public transport, Radebe told journalists that the aim is to create "integrated rapid public transport networks".