Star 2025-12-05

President Cyril Ramaphosa has paid a poignant tribute to the late Oupa Magashula, the former South African Revenue Service (Sars) Commissioner. Magushula passed away at the age of 63 this week. According to his family, he died in hospital on Wednesday evening following a long illness. In his tribute, Ramaphosa said Magashula "devoted his life to the development of our economy and the stimulation of entrepreneurship among a new business generation." Ramaphosa said Magashula led Sars at a critical period during which South Africa's economy was affected by the global downturn of 2008, at a time when SA also relied on fiscal resources to host the 2010 FIFA World Cup. "Oupa Magashula was an astute, ompassionate leader whose mission at SARS was driven by the needs of the most…

Acquisition gives Vodacom control over its biggest African market with 62 million customers Vodacom Group will spend about R35.77 billion ($2.1bn) to acquire a further 20% stake in Safaricom, bringing its stake to 55%, as the Kenya government moves to raise additional capital instead of raising taxes or debt. The South African telecoms group said Thursday it will acquire 15% of the shareholding from the government of Kenya and 5% from Vodacom's parent, the UK-based Vodafone group. The deal gives Vodacom control over its biggest African market - Safaricom holds about 62 million customers, more than the 46.1 million customers Vodacom holds in South Africa, and roughly the same size of the group's 51 million customers in Egypt. The deal attracted widespread comment on social media. On "X", Lawrence Kitema…

Sappi's shares traded 9.27% higher at R23.71 Thursday afternoon after plans with UPM were announced to combine their European graphic paper operations into a standalone R19.94bn (€1.42bn) joint venture (JV) company. The share price jump comes despite being well below the R51.76 it traded at a year ago, which reflects the challenges being faced by the global paper and packaging sector: rising costs, shifting consumer demand, stricter sustainability regulations and supply chain disruptions. Demand for graphic paper has been in structural decline for decades. "The proposed JV represents a decisive response to structural changes in the European graphic paper industry, offering a path to strengthen its resilience and provide long-term commitment and supply security to customers," Sappi's CEO Steve Binnie and UPM President and CEO Massimo Reynaudo said in a…

South African agricultural organisations have raised urgent concerns over reports that an illegal Foot-and-Mouth Disease (FMD) vaccine manufactured in Kenya is being smuggled into the country. Industry leaders warn that the unauthorised importation and possible use of the vaccine poses a severe biosecurity threat that could trigger new outbreaks and devastate the livestock sector. The Department of Agriculture this week confirmed it is aware of the risks, stressing that only the Botswana-produced Aftovaxpur vaccine containing SAT1, SAT2 and SAT3 strains is authorised for use in South Africa. “Importing any veterinary vaccine without proper authorisation is a serious biosecurity breach and criminal offence. Vaccines must be declared and imported under strict permit conditions, as they require cold-chain management and are classified as high-risk cargo,” said Moses Rannditsheni, the department's spokesperson. “We…

South Africa stood at two remarkable crossroads last month. A continent-first G20 summit in Johannesburg put our nation — its people, institutions and hospitality — in the global spotlight. At almost the same time, I was in Barcelona at Workday Rising, where enterprise leaders explored the near-term reality of AI-driven, people-centred workplaces. The two experiences together crystallised a single, urgent point: South Africa can not only adapt to the future of work — it can lead it. First, the context. Global leaders arriving on our soil exposed us to the highest expectations in security, logistics, digital capability and service delivery. Coverage from international and local outlets praised South Africa’s delivery — our media centre, our event management and the warmth shown to delegates were singled out repeatedly. That goodwill is…

South Africa’s construction sector posted a strong rebound in the third quarter of 2025, with the Afrimat Construction Index (ACI) recording a double-digit quarterly increase and signalling a marked improvement in industry activity. The ACI, a composite measure of building and construction activity compiled quarterly by economist Dr Roelof Botha for Afrimat, rose 10.2% quarter-on-quarter, far outperforming the country’s 0.9% GDP growth over the same period. Construction sector activity outperformed the GDP by a healthy margin during the third quarter, although it lagged behind overall economic activity compared to the third quarter of last year. Importantly, the index also broke a long-running downward trend in its four-quarter moving average, registering a slight upward turn for the first time in several quarters. Dr Botha said the latest results were driven by…