Innholdsfortegnelse for 2025-12-04 i Cape Times

The Central Energy Fund (CEF) says it is preparing to absorb fuel infrastructure and other assets from global oil companies that are scaling down operations in South Africa, as part of its strategy to secure national fuel supply and strengthen its downstream footprint. Acting Group CEO Sifiso Msabala told Parliament that several oil majors, including Shell, have approached the State-Owned Entity with proposals to offload assets as they retreat from the local market. "We have a very clear understanding of how the majors have been behaving in wanting to sell in that space. A number of them are offloading their assets. The State cannot be caught in a situation where the assets are not attended to as we will be the last resort for fuel," Msabala said. "Some of…

South Africa has just come through its most demanding tourism year since the 2010 FIFA World Cup as Johannesburg hosted the G20 Summit. The event brought heads of state, ministerial teams, security units, media crews and technical staff to the country, who depend on reliable logistics and high-quality service, which placed real pressure on hospitality, tourism and events businesses that must deliver at a global standard while managing the usual seasonal peaks. Consider the magnitude of the G20 as an operation; delegations travelled with specialist staff, protocol requirements, and strict security expectations. As such, hotels had to balance full occupancy with seamless guest handling, conference venues had to deliver consistent technical and service execution, and restaurants and travel companies had to accommodate fluctuating demand while maintaining speed and accuracy. This…

The South African Poultry Association’s (SAPA) renewed call for chicken to be zero-rated for VAT has drawn mixed reactions from economists and industry analysts, as pressure mounts to ease the burden of rising food prices on low-income households. SAPA confirmed that it has formally submitted a proposal to the National Treasury, requesting the removal of the 15% value-added tax (VAT) on chicken in the 2026 National Budget in February. CEO of SAPA’s Broiler Organisation, Izaak Breitenbach, said on Wednesday that the proposal follows Treasury’s call for submissions after a parliamentary committee last year recommended expanding the list of VAT-exempt basic foodstuffs. "At present, tinned pilchards are the only meat protein zero-rated for VAT, with the remaining proteins on the list limited to plant-based or dairy options," he said. "These alternatives…

A concerning trend has emerged within South Africa's small business sector as a new report revealed that 67% of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) plan to raise prices by up to 10% over the next six months. This shift is largely a response to relentless operational cost pressures, posing significant challenges for the sustainability of these businesses in an increasingly volatile economic environment. The latest Small Business Growth Index (SBGI) report, based on a comprehensive survey of more than 2,000 SMEs, highlights the precarious state of the sector, indicating that fewer than four out of ten of these businesses believe they can withstand the current pressures for more than a year without external support. The SBGI was launched earlier this year through a collaborative effort between Absa Business Banking, the…

The African Rail Industry Association (ARIA) has hailed the R3.4 billion investment in locomotive production by Traxtion as a move that will enable competitive and open-access rail network, and reinforce Transnet’s capacity to support national targets. Traxtion on Tuesday announced that the investment, part of a broader R5bn private-sector commitment made at the launch of the National Rail Policy in 2022, will help expand freight capacity and accelerate sector reforms. The programme includes R1.8bn for locomotives and R1.6bn for wagons, with a minimum 60% local content requirement. Construction and deployment are expected to create 662 direct jobs. ARIA on Wednesday said the investment represents the largest private freight rail commitment in South Africa’s history and provides “definitive validation” of government’s reform efforts. The association said it offers tangible relief for…

SUSPENDED Ekurhuleni Metro Police Department (EMPD) Deputy Commissioner Julius Mkhwanazi contracted the City’s former divisional head of employee relations Xolani Nciza’s testimony that the vehicles ‘donated’ by tenderpreneur and alleged underworld kingpin Vusimuzi “Cat” Matlala were fitted with blue lights. Mkhwanazi has been accused of facilitating the registration of those private vehicles under the municipality’s name and having them fitted with blue lights. He also allegedly entered into two memoranda of understanding for the city with Medicare 24 and CAT VIP Security, companies tied to Matlala without the consent of the council and city manager. Mkhwanazi yesterday told the Madlanga Commission of Inquiry that the city’s senior management team, which included suspended chief of police Isaac Mapiyeye and heads of departments, were aware of the donations Matlala intended to make…

In an inspiring tale of resilience and hope, seven-year-old Hayden has shown the world that determination, coupled with exceptional medical care, can lead to astonishing recoveries. Just six months ago, Hayden from Caledon, arrived at St Joseph’s Intermediate Paediatric Care in Montana, grappling with severe complications from tuberculous meningitis that had left him unable to walk and suffering from malnutrition and unbearable pain. His survival was uncertain, and his prognosis was described as “touch-and-go.” Today this once-quiet little boy walks, laughs, sings and eats up a storm and is a testament to both his fighting spirit and the world-class care provided at St Joseph’s, which has cared for more than 30 000 children over its 90-year existence. St Joseph’s is a 175-bed facility that provides free, transitional care to children…

Proceedings in the Western Cape High Court ground to a halt Wednesday morning when accused husband killer Zurenah Smit broke down inconsolably as she was made to recount the night of his murder. Smit was being led by her defence attorney Susan Kuun with regard to the murder charge she faces. It was Smit's testimony that she and Stefan Smit were having supper with a friend on the evening of the murder when she said they heard “a huge noise”. Again assisted by a court translator due to her being inaudible, Smit told the court: “I heard…I saw this dark side of someone rushing…screaming ‘money where is the money?’. And I screamed. “Later in my nightmares, I remember being strangled (and) being lifted off my feet. I remember being pulled…

When Fifa president Gianni Infantino first paid a visit to Donald Trump at the White House in 2018, he won over the US president with a gift: an oversized red card, which he jokingly suggested Trump could brandish “whenever you want to kick someone out.” Trump, delighted, wasted no time in flashing the card to the assembled press corps — a gesture that neatly captured his often combative relationship with the media. What seemed a playful exchange between the head of world football and the US leader would prove to be the opening act in one of the most contentious alliances in sport. Tomorrow, Trump and Infantino’s burgeoning bromance will be back on display when they take centre stage at the draw for the 2026 Fifa World Cup in Washington.…

There was high drama during Eben Etzebeth’s disciplinary hearing on Tuesday night when the panel could not agree on a length-of-ban verdict, meaning the Bok bruiser will reportedly have to wait until Sunday to hear his fate. After five hours of deliberation on the eye-gouging allegation — the hearing began at 7pm on Tuesday and called it a day at midnight — the panel asked for more time to reach a consensus. This amounted to a hung jury of sorts, which could be good news for the 34-year-old, as there was clearly an argument from some quarters of the panel for a less severe suspension. According to an online news site, there was a major disagreement over the severity of the sanction. Etzebeth was sent off in the seventy-ninth minute…

South Africa’s transport and logistics industry has warned of higher operating costs, rising consumer prices and pressure on holiday travel budgets after the government announced steep fuel price increases for December. This comes as both grades of petrol rose by 29 cents per litre on Wednesday, while diesel saw even sharper increases of 65.48 cents per litre for 0.05% sulphur diesel and 82.48 cents per litre for 0.005% sulphur diesel. The timing, coinciding with the height of the festive season, has raised concerns across the logistics, agricultural and labour sectors. Gavin Kelly, CEO of the Road Freight Association (RFA), said that the increase in petrol and diesel at the beginning of December is not a good omen and will have an immediate impact on transporters who purchase fuel daily. “The…

South Africa’s private sector recorded another month of deteriorating business conditions in November, with the S&P Global South Africa Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) slipping to 49.0, signalling a second consecutive monthly contraction. Although slightly better than October’s reading of 48.8, the second consecutive month of decline highlights a subdued end to 2025 for the economy. The S&P PMI corresponds with the seasonally adjusted Absa PMI released earlier this week, which showed that sentiment plunged by 7.2 points to 42, its weakest reading in several months and well below the 50-point mark that separates expansion from contraction. According to the S&P survey data collected between November 12–26, firms continued to grapple with reduced output and a shortage of new business, particularly in domestic markets. Activity levels dropped at the fastest rate…

What if the difference between a struggling idea and a thriving venture is not money, not technology, but in fact people? Behind every bold vision lies a network of unseen supporters, collaborators, and co-creators who build alongside the dreamer. Across the world, communities have become the invisible scaffolding that allows ideas to rise, take shape, and withstand the uncertainty that comes with starting something new. Entrepreneurship rarely grows in isolation. From iHub to Co-Creation Hub and 22 On Sloane, we see how spaces that nurture belonging become the heartbeat of innovation. These are not just places to work. They are places where entrepreneurs exchange stories of failure and breakthrough, where collaboration becomes the quiet pulse that keeps ideas alive. In Africa, this sense of togetherness runs even deeper. The continent…

Kaspersky’s detection systems discovered an average of 500 000 malicious files per day in 2025, marking a 7% increase compared to the previous year. Certain types of threats saw growth globally – there was a 59% surge in password stealer detections, a 51% growth in spyware detections, and a 6% growth in backdoor detections compared to 2024. These findings are part of the Kaspersky Security Bulletin series where it reviews the key cybersecurity trends of the past year. Windows remains the primary target for cyberattacks. 48% of users on Windows were targeted by different types of threats throughout 2025. For Mac users, this figure stands at 29%. Web threats Globally, 27% of users were attacked with web threats – these refer to malware that targets users when they are online.…

Sizwe Hosmed Medical Scheme says it has made substantial progress towards long-term stability and financial sustainability of the scheme and its members, with the focus now on building membership over the next few months. This was according to the scheme's Curator Lebogane Mpakati, who said Wednesday that since her appointment, she has been managing the scheme to stabilise operations and to access to healthcare facilities for members. Service providers have been engaged to resolve issues, following industry concerns and healthcare access restrictions for members in the past few months, due to the scheme's financial position. "Within a few months after my appointment, the scheme's members are now able to access more healthcare services across most service providers. Most hospital groups have since reopened access to members, supported by more predictable…

ANC veteran Zibuse Mlaba’s murder accused Mzamo Patrick Mlaba allegedly used his connections for favours while at Westville prison hospital. This emerged yesterday when State prosecutor Advocate Nokulunga Ngcobo asked the court to note how Mzamo was abruptly discharged from the prison hospital after they questioned his admission there. “We deal with the issue of him being admitted to a medical ward. We established that he has connections and he was favoured in prison,” Ngcobo said. Mzamo, 68 told the Camperdown Magistrate's Court yesterday that he was sick and had been admitted to the prison hospital from the day he was arrested. He also alleged that the prison was inadequate in treating his medical conditions. He is charged with the murder of his cousin, Zibuse, who was killed…

A Mitchells Plain woman has recounted the horrific moments when she ran back home after hearing gunshots, and found her nine-year-old grandson, her daughter and another man shot and killed. Five people were shot inside a house in Rocklands, Mitchells Plain on Tuesday night. The brutal attack took place in Viscount Street, Rocklands around 9pm when four unknown gunmen entered the premises and opened fire on the victims. Little Zechariah Matthee, nine, was shot dead inside a wendy house, alongside Cleo Bailey, 19, and Mougsheen Daniels, 26. Two other victims aged 51 and 36 were wounded in the attack. A family member said: “I was at the shop across the veld when I heard gunshots going off. "I ran back home and I heard people telling me that Zechariah was…

Should the court rule in favour of the South African Property Owners Association (SAPOA) and AfriForum, the City says they will seek to have Section 75A of the Systems Act declared inconsistent with the Constitution and invalid, as it impedes their ability to exercise their full municipal powers and deliver services to communities. Proceedings in the fight over the City’s fixed tariffs and their decision to link certain fixed charges to property values continued yesterday, where SAPOA and AfriForum responded to the City’s assertion of having “unconstrained power”, and the City also argued its counter-application. The Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (Cogta) is a respondent in the case. At the centre of the dispute, being heard by Judge President Nolwazi Mabindla-Boqwana, as well as presiding judges Judge Andre…

Orlando Pirates midfielder Oswin Appollis revelaed the team’s focus remains firmly on their objective, stressing that they will not take Marumo Gallants lightly when they contest the Carling Knockout Cup final at the New Peter Mokaba Stadium on Saturday. Fresh from lifting the MTN8 earlier this season, Pirates are eyeing a second piece of silverware as they look to recreate the type of dominance they last enjoyed during their treble-winning 2012/13 campaign. The team has demonstrated impressive consistency in recent months, showing measured dominance throughout their cup run. They secured their spot in the final with a hard-earned 1-0 win over Richards Bay FC in the semi-finals. Although widely considered favourites, Pirates understand that cup finals carry their own unpredictability and pressure. Their earlier 2–1 league defeat to Gallants in…

The South African Revenue Service (Sars) has moved to attach PetroSA’s mothballed Gas-to-Liquids (GTL) refinery in Mossel Bay as the state-owned oil company struggles to settle more than R4.5 billion in unpaid licensing and duty fees. PetroSA executives told Parliament this week that Sars officials arrived at the company’s offices last Tuesday to discuss a repayment plan, followed shortly by a formal notice demanding a response by Friday, 5 December. Failure to comply would allow Sars to proceed with attaching the refinery as security for the debt. Nombulelo Tyandela, PetroSA's chief financial office, said the refinery’s book value, R340 million, falls far short of the amount owed. "Looking at the balance sheet, the refinery is sitting at R340m. We owe Sars R4.5bn. The attachment won't cover sufficiently what they want…

South Africa recorded a welcome rebound in business sentiment in the final quarter of 2025, with the RMB/BER Business Confidence Index (BCI) rising by five points to 44, its highest level this year and three points above the long-term average. The improvement follows two consecutive quarters of decline and reflects a broad recovery across five of the six sectors surveyed. Only building contractors reported weaker sentiment. RMB said the latest uptick represents a “green shoot” - promising, but still fragile - and stressed that continued structural reform and steady demand will determine whether business confidence strengthens sustainably. According to RMB Chief Economist Isaah Mhlanga, the uptick is not a dramatic shift but marks a “meaningful turn in the right direction”. “The key positive is that the improvement is broad-based. Even…

As December ushers in the festive season, the landscape for small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in South Africa appears cautiously optimistic, thanks to positive developments in fiscal conditions and consumer spending. Miguel da Silva, Group Executive of Business Banking at TymeBank, provides insights into the factors influencing this encouraging outlook for SMEs as they navigate the end of 2025. The forthcoming review by Moody’s on South Africa’s credit rating, scheduled for 5 December, is a pivotal moment for the economy. Currently rated Ba2, just shy of investment grade, Moody’s will consider the implications of recent credit upgrades performed by S&P Global Ratings, which marked a significant milestone for the country. In November, S&P upgraded South Africa’s foreign currency long-term sovereign rating from BB- to BB and lifted the local currency…

World economic activity will remain “subdued” next year amid trade uncertainty and geopolitical tensions that are restraining investment outside of artificial intelligence and weighing on government finances, a UN agency predicted in a new report. Global growth will weaken this year to 2.6% and maintain that pace in 2026, according to the report released this week by the Geneva-based UN Conference on Trade and Development. After a 2.9% expansion last year, those projections if realized would be 0.4 percentage point lower than the pre-pandemic average. “The global economy and trade have shown resilience during 2024 and 2025,” Rebeca Grynspan, secretary-general of the United Nations agency, said in an interview. “But the reasons may not be sustainable if we don’t lower uncertainty and we don’t go back to some predictability for…

FINANCE Minister Enoch Godongwana has turned down the Portfolio Committee on Land Reform and Rural Development’s request for a presentation on expenditure trends related to land reform funding, saying undertaking such an exercise would undermine policy development and the mandate of the department. In a letter to the committee, Godongwana said it would be inappropriate as the efficient management of fiscal resources falls primarily under the purview of the department itself. Godongwana also said the funding arrangements related to institutions and service delivery were the core component of policy development and was within the mandate of the department. “I believe that clear delineation of responsibilities strengthens Parliament’s oversight function. However, in light of the above, I request that the National Treasury be excused from the meeting and will not…

DEFENCE and Military Veterans Deputy Minister Bantu Holomisa kept his cards close to the chest about the disciplinary proceedings against Navy Chief Vice-Admiral Monde Lobese for decrying the defunding of the army. Holomisa said Defence and Military Veterans Minister Angie Motshekga has already started the process to consult on the issue of disciplinary action against the navy boss. He said the disciplining of Lobese depended on Motshekga and the commander-in-chief, President Cyril Ramaphosa. “Until such time that they had engaged him, we will not be in a position to respond to your question, because now if I attempt to address that question, it will be like I am basing my answer on high level gossip.” Lobese recently criticised the underfunding of the country’s defence force, questioning whether those responsible…

A team of South African scientists have made a groundbreaking discovery using the MeerKAT radio telescope, locating a rare and exceedingly faint radio glow emanating from a colossal cluster of galaxies positioned approximately 7 billion light-years away. This type of glow — called an ultra-steep-spectrum radio halo — is the most distant one ever found. Galaxy clusters are the largest objects in the universe, held together by gravity, containing thousands of galaxies and enormous amounts of hot gas. The newly discovered radio glow sits at the centre of the cluster SPT-CLJ2337−5942, which has a mass of roughly a quadrillion times that of the Sun (a million billion). The discovery, led by Isaac Magolego, a PhD student at the University of the Witwatersrand (Wits), supervised by Professors Roger Deane and Kshitij…

UNDER US President Donald Trump, it is no longer debatable that the American empire is irrelevant as a beacon of exemplary and ethical leadership in global affairs today. But this is not entirely new; Trump simply makes the unravelling of American imperialism more dramatic, if not tragic. What perhaps remains unresolved, is how long the American electorate will allow Trump to reduce their country into a paranoid state, an empire of appalling tantrums and ragtag diplomacy. American exceptionalism continues to put the country’s common sense into the deep freeze. As things stand, there is no charitable way to look at Washington beyond the stubborn nightmare of an unbelievably manic and dubious warmongering presidency. When President Cyril Matamala Ramaphosa spoke to the nation on Sunday night, to briefly report on the…

Proteas opening batter Aiden Markram brought up his fourth ODI century in Raipur to lead South Africa to a series-levelling four-wicket victory against India on Wednesday as the visitors recorded their third-biggest run chase in ODI cricket. Markram (106), after being under a bit of pressure as an opening batter, responded with a statement century in Raipur as he smashed India’s bowlers all around the park to bring up his fourth ODI ton. The 31-year-old struck ten boundaries and four sixes during his 30-over stay at the crease and put South Africa in a good position to chase the 359-run target. The Proteas’ victory wasn’t without a bit of adversity, as they lost Nandre Burger and Tony de Zorzi due to injury, leaving the visitors with only eight wickets to…

In a year that will be remembered as a turning point for South African women’s rugby, the Springbok Women have done more than make history — they have captured the imagination of a nation. Their run to the 2025 Rugby World Cup quarter-finals in England, the first in the team’s history, was not just a sporting milestone but a testament to years of belief and determination. For a side that has often battled for resources, attention, and respect, 2025 has become the year in which everything clicked. At the heart of this rise is a coaching trio who refused to accept the constraints they had to perform under: Swys de Bruin, Laurian Johannes-Haupt, and Franzel September. Their combined influence has reshaped not only the team’s rugby identity but also the…