Government

5 important things happening in South Africa today

Seth Thorne

 ·19 Jan 2024

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

• Eskom rejects Mozambique’s power offer: South Africa’s embattled state-owned power utility has rejected Mozambique energy company Electricidade de Moçambique’s (EDM’s) offer to sell 100 megawatts of electricity to the country, citing high tariffs. [Mail & Guardian]

• 82.9% NSC pass rate – but concerns remain: 691,690 candidates wrote the 2023 National Senior Certificate (NSC) exams through public schools, achieving an overall pass rate of 82.9%, which is 2.8% higher than the pass rate achieved in 2022. However, education experts and civil society groups are concerned that more than 450,000 learners who started Grade 1 with last year’s cohort of matrics did not make it to Grade 12. [BusinessTech]

• Company tries to recover R50m ‘disguised donation’ to ANC: Liquidators of the embattled Regiments Capital have taken the African National Congress to court in a bid to recover R50 million that the company channelled to the party in 2016. [Daily Maverick]

• PioTrans relaunches amid legal turmoil: After weeks of legal battles and a court-ordered intervention, Johannesburg’s Rea Vaya bus operator, PioTrans, has recommenced operations. In December, the Rea Vaya operator was placed under business rescue after creditors tried to seize buses due to its outstanding debt. [The Citizen]

• Markets: South Africa’s rand strengthened on Thursday after monthly mining figures showed an increase in production. On Friday (19 January), the rand was trading at R18.93 to the dollar, R24.10 to the pound, and R20.58 to the euro. Oil is trading at $78.99 a barrel. [Nasdaq]