5 important things happening in South Africa today
·19 Jun 2024

Here’s what is happening in and affecting South Africa today:
- Ramaphosa’s presidential inauguration: President-Elect Cyril Ramaphosa will be inaugurated as President of South Africa during a public swearing-in ceremony at the Union Buildings in Tshwane, Gauteng. The swearing-in follows his re-election by Parliament on Friday, 14 June 2024 and officially signifies the start of the seventh administration of democratic South Africa. [SAnews]
- PAC joins GNU: The Pan Africanist Congress of Azania (PAC) is the latest party to join the African National Congress (ANC)-led Government of National Unity. This follows a meeting between the party with one seat in the National Assembly and the ANC on Tuesday. Last week, the PAC formed part of a so-called progressive caucus led by the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) but left it to join the Democratic Alliance (DA), Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP), Patriotic Alliance (PA) and GOOD Party in signing an agreement to work alongside the ANC in government. [EWN]
- Sanral cancels multibillion-rand tender: After three years of evaluation, the South African National Roads Agency (Sanral) has withdrawn a multi-billion rand tender for upgrading a section of National Route 2 in KwaZulu-Natal. Initially issued in January 2021, the project received bids between R1.9 billion and R3.7 billion. However, Sanral has deemed these prices as no longer commercially viable. [Moneyweb]
- Calls for fruit & veg prices to be more transparent: Regulatory bodies suggest supermarkets show fresh fruits and vegetable prices both by weight and per piece to help customers easily compare costs across stores. This recommendation, prompted by the Competition Commission, aims to enhance price transparency and foster competition in the fresh produce market. [Business Day]
- Markets: The rand was slightly stronger in early trade on Tuesday, building on gains after unity government members were confirmed last week and ahead of talks by U.S. Federal Reserve officials. On Wednesday (19 June), the rand was trading at R18.04 to the dollar, R22.94 to the pound, and R19.46 to the euro. Oil is trading at $85.37 a barrel. [Reuters]