THE industrialised world and particularly Group of Seven nations should do more to address the double scourge of AIDS and heavy foreign debt crippling southern Africa, says Botswana President Festus Mogae. Mogae said he was disappointed by the lack of response and accused the US government of making ”sympathetic noises” but doing little while African […]

STEVEN SWINDELLS, Johannesburg | Wednesday SOUTH Africa’s top medical body has approved the use of a combination anti-Aids drug which contains the drug AZT – but despite the endorsement, AZT will still not be available in the public sector other than for health workers who are occupationally at risk of becoming HIV-positive. The regulatory Medicines […]

UNITA rebels launched a weekend attack near the central Angolan gateway town of Kuito, killing 19 people and wounding 27, the Portuguese news agency Lusa said. About 150 heavily-armed rebels on Sunday attacked Catala, about 30 km from Kuito, which was the scene of bloody clashes when fighting resumed in late 1998 between the government […]

SOUTH African President Thabo Mbeki says an African summit to try to end war in the Democratic Republic of Congo has been postponed so more leaders could attend. Mbeki said the talks in the Mozambican capital Maputo would be held as soon as the presidents agreed on a date that suited them all. He said […]

UGANDA’S health ministry has warned Kenyan authorities that seven Kenyan nationals may have come into contact with the deadly Ebola virus after attending the funeral of a woman who died of the killer disease. Ugandan officials said she was the same woman who had unwittingly spread the epidemic when she fled the centre of the […]

SOUTH African IT group Datatec has announced the sale of Internet firm UUNET South Africa and a management reshuffle at its offshore units, which helped lift its recently hard-hit shares. Datatec – whose share price dived 22% in the past week since posting poor first half profits – agreed to sell 76% of UUNET SA […]

FRANCE is keen to provide former colony Ivory Coast with sorely-needed aid but Abidjan must first hold transparent parliamentary elections and reach a new deal with the IMF, France’s cooperation minister said. ”If the Ivorian democracy makes it successfully past the legislative elections, it is obvious that all our cooperation will be able to be […]

OWN CORRESPONDENT, Johannesburg | Wednesday A FORMER murder and robbery unit detective has described on public television how members of the disgraced North East Rand dog unit set their dogs on him when he criticised the animals for not being able to find a gun magazine. Braam van Wyk, a former detective with 18 years’ […]

THE Rand Merchant Bank (RMB) said this week it had completed a $540m collateralised debt obligation (CDO) on the U.S market. RMB said the CDO – debt security backed by a pool of high-yield investments – had a 12-year final maturity, but with an eight year average life as it amortises down towards the end. […]

INSURER Mutual & Federal said this week it would return about R720m to its shareholders by way of a special dividend as part of efforts to trim excess capital. It said the reduction in its reserves was part of an ongoing review of the efficient use of capital and the company’s commitment to deliver shareholder […]