Gauteng Health MEC’s NHI lie and first Steinhoff conviction

Here’s what is happening in and affecting South Africa today:

• Gauteng Health MEC backlash: Three medical organisations criticised the Gauteng Health MEC’s claim that Mamelodi Regional Hospital is the first NHI-ready facility, calling it misleading. They argued that the overdue upgrades should not be framed as part of the NHI initiative, with Dr Aslam Dasoo stating that maintaining hospital infrastructure is a basic duty of the health department. Dr Mvuyisi Mzukwa of the SA Medical Association added that NHI readiness involves more than just refurbishments; it requires comprehensive improvements in healthcare delivery. [News24]

• NPA secures first Steinhoff conviction: The National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) secured its first conviction in the Steinhoff fraud case nearly seven years after its collapse in December 2017. Former Steinhoff physician Dr Gerhardus Diedericks Burger, 79, received a five-year suspended sentence for insider trading at the Specialised Commercial Crimes Court in Pretoria. His sentence is suspended for five years on the condition that he complies with the Financial Markets Act and testifies against his accomplices. The court also ordered the confiscation of €90,000 (about R1.7 million) seized by Swiss authorities following Steinhoff’s downfall. [Daily Maverick]

• SARS loses tobacco factories camera appeal: The South African Revenue Service (Sars) has lost its appeal to install CCTV cameras in tobacco factories to monitor production and address an estimated R20 billion tax leakage. Earlier, Bozza Tobacco and the Fair-Trade Independent Tobacco Association (Fita) secured an interim interdict against Sars, citing violations of privacy and property rights. The main case is still pending in the Pretoria High Court and may escalate to the Constitutional Court due to constitutional concerns. There are arguments that granting Sars surveillance powers could lead to similar measures in other high-tax sectors, like clothing and fuel. [Moneyweb]

• SA’s climate aid spending shortfall: South Africa’s donor-funded climate program has spent just over $1.9 billion of its $11.6 billion budget, primarily on expanding the power grid and supporting the coal-mining region of Mpumalanga as it transitions to renewables. About half of the funds were allocated as policy-based loans to the government, with $488 million directed toward electricity projects. Originally pledged at COP26 by multiple nations, the program is progressing slowly due to its complexity and internal political factors, leading to the acknowledgement that South Africa will not meet its 2030 emissions-reduction targets. [Business Day]

• Markets: The rand edged higher early on Thursday, ahead of the release of a quarterly bulletin by the central bank and monthly producer inflation figures. On Friday (27 September), the rand was trading at R17.22 to the dollar, R23.06 to the pound, and R19.24 to the euro. Oil is trading at $71.37 a barrel. [Reuters]