R100 for matric marks investigated, and big win for the pass rate in South Africa

 ·14 Jan 2025

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


  • Investigation into sale of matric marks: A company called Edumarks has been offering learners their matric results in advance of this date for R100. The Department of Education has described the company as a “bogus business” and says a criminal case has been opened. [GroundUp]

  • Kruger rains: Heavy rains driven by a tropical low-pressure system over Botswana last weekend caused significant disruptions and flooding in the Kruger National Park, leading to the closure of some camps and gravel roads south of the Olifants River. [Daily Maverick]

  • Matric pass rate improves: The Department of Basic Education has published the final National Senior Certificate (NSC) results for the 2024 matric year, showing a percentage point increase in the pass rate to 87.3%, or over 615,000 learners. Additionally, private schools saw an overall pass rate of 98.47%. [BusinessTech]

  • More bodies retrieved from Stilfontein: The bodies of nine more illegal miners have been retrieved from an abandoned mine in Stilfontein as rescue experts begin work to clear a shaft occupied by illegal miners known as zama zamas. This is the final stage of the protracted rescue mission expected to bring hundreds of zama zamas back to the surface as law enforcement clamps down on illegal mining in the area. [EWN]

  • Markets: The rand was unchanged after slumping to a nine-month low early on Monday against a buoyant dollar amid an uncertain outlook for further interest rate cuts by the Federal Reserve. On Tuesday (14 January), the rand was trading at R18.97 to the dollar, R23.20 to the pound, and R19.45 to the euro. Oil is trading at $80.61 a barrel. [Reuters]
Show comments
Subscribe to our daily newsletter