News 11:00

BULLETIN 16 August 11 am

Good morning. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# Minister Simelane says the government will provide proper housing for GBVF survivors
# Eskom continues to maintain additional system capacity
# And rugby: The Springboks are now focused on the Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry series

# Human Settlements minister, Thembi Simelane says government plans to introduce a policy declaration to expand priority access to subsidised housing for survivors of gender-based violence and femicide. Simelane was speaking at the Women of Human Settlements Ministerial Leadership Engagement at Freedom Park in Pretoria. She says the recommendation will integrate GBV prevention into housing urban planning, social economic policies and alignment with the new urban agenda. The Minister reaffirmed government’s commitment to ensuring safe, dignified housing for survivors:

# Education activist Hendrick Makaneta is calling on the National Student Financial Aid Scheme board not to invalidate the good work done by the administrator, Hlengani Mathebulain, in an effort to resolve the challenges faced by the scheme. The Pretoria High Court on Friday suspended the appointment of Mathebula and reinstated the disbanded NSFAS board. Makaneta says he respect the decision of the court:

# Eskom says it continues to maintain additional system capacity, with three-thousand-363-megawatts in cold reserve due to excess capacity, providing further assurance of system adequacy. The power utility spokesperson, Daphne Mokwena says last week, average unplanned outages declined to six-thousand-653-megawatts from eleven-thousand-982-megawatts in the corresponding period last year, a reduction of five-thousand-329-megawatts. She says this improvement is nearly equivalent to the combined generating capacity of Camden and Kriel power stations:

# Moroccan authorities have detained more than 100 migrants attempting to reach Spain’s North African exclave of Ceuta. Security sources say 111 people were detained in and around Fnideq, near the border, with most from sub-Saharan Africa. Police, including officers in riot gear, used tear gas to disperse groups gathering on nearby hills. Security was increased following a mass influx into Ceuta two weeks ago, when around 78-thousand migrants arrived by sea. Morocco says it is monitoring social media calls for another mass crossing and has warned that organisers and participants could face prosecution.

# Sports news:

# Rugby: The Springboks have stepped up preparations for their four-Test Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry series against New Zealand. Coach Rassie Erasmus says the squad has recovered well following last week’s 17-10 victory over Argentina. The travelling squad returned to South Africa on Monday and Tuesday, and spent much of the week recovering before resuming full training on Friday and Saturday. The series begins at Ellis Park on August 22, followed by Tests in Cape Town, Johannesburg and Baltimore in the US. Erasmus says the Boks are ready for the challenge and will fine-tune their preparations during the week.

# And tennis: Novak Djokovic has suffered an early exit from the Cincinnati Masters, losing to Argentina’s Thiago Tirante in three sets. The 24-time Grand Slam champion won the opening set 6-2, but struggled with the heat and humidity as Tirante fought back to take the next two sets, 6-4, 6-4. Djokovic appeared physically drained during the second set and received medical attention before continuing. Despite recovering enough to compete in the decider, he could not prevent defeat. The 39-year-old will now focus on preparing for the US Open, starting on August 30.

Stay tuned for more news………….