News 07:00

BULLETIN 1 September 7 am

Good morning. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# Minister Ramokgopa says municipal debt is a threat to Eskom’s sustainability
# The Institute of Race Relations says women voters could determine the outcome of the elections
# And rugby: Rassie expects an even more intense match on Saturday

# Minister of Electricity and Energy Kgosientsho Ramokgopa says municipal debt remains one of the biggest threats to Eskom’s financial sustainability. On the 31st of March this year, municipal debt stood at 111.6-billion-rand, and increased to approximately 119-billion-rand by June. This comes as Eskom has recorded a second successive year of profitability, recording a profit after tax increase of 30.3-billion-rand, up from 2025’s restated 14-billion-rand. Ramokgopa says government’s debt-relief intervention was never a permanent solution:

# The Institute of Race Relations says women voters could be key in determining the outcome of the local government elections on 4 November. Its latest poll shows the ANC still has stronger support among women, with 37-percent backing the party compared to 26-percent for the DA. The poll also indicates that 82-percent of women want the government to focus more on creating jobs than social grants. The Institute’s Hermann Pretorius says parties offering jobs and household security could challenge ANC support among women.

# Deputy minister of Higher Education and Training, Nomusa Dube-Ncube, says institutions need to be more proactive in responding to skills shortages and changing economic needs, rather than waiting for directives from government. The department’s 2026/2027 Annual Performance Plan is anchored in a reform mandate flowing from president Cyril Ramaphosa’s declaration of a National Skills Revolution during this year’s State of the Nation Address. Dube-Ncube says acquiring a technical skill is not enough if graduates lack access to markets, finance, and industrial integration.

# IFP eThekwini mayoral candidate, Mkhuleko Hlengwa, says he is determined to bring about change to the metro. He is currently serving as the party’s national spokesperson and the deputy minister of Transport in the government of national unity. KwaZulu-Natal is the IFP’s stronghold. The party has increased the number of candidates it is fielding for the upcoming local government elections by more than 600 compared with the 2021 polls. Hlengwa says eThekwini has the potential to be one of the biggest economies in Africa:

# US president Donald Trump has threatened Iran after Tehran’s retaliatory strikes on American military targets in Jordan and the United Arab Emirates, saying “we’re going to hit them hard”. American forces attacked two Iranian rocket launchers on Larak Island in the Strait of Hormuz. The strike killed three people. Trump has also reiterated his claim that Iran is begging for a deal with the US. Iran’s Foreign Ministry says the retaliatory strikes on bases in Jordan and the UAE were a legitimate defence.

# Rugby: Springbok coach Rassie Erasmus expects an even more intense match against the All Blacks at the FNB Stadium in Johannesburg on Saturday. The series is currently drawn one-all, and he thinks both countries are now into hard Test mode. Erasmus decided to change his front row, using Ox Nché, Malcolm Marx and Wilco Louw in the starting team and moving Gerhard Steenekamp, Deon Fourie and Thomas du Toit to the bench. He says this is due to the different weather than in Cape Town last weekend.

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 16-rand-11-cents and the euro at 18-rand-69-cents. One British pound costs 21-rand-81-cents and Bitcoin trades at 78-thousand-284-dollars. Gold sells at four-thousand-442-dollars-88-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 93-dollars-9-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….