News 14:00

BULLETIN 9 September 2 pm

Good afternoon. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# Economists warn South Africa’s sugar industry faces a growing crisis
# Zimbabwean matric learners are brought back to South Africa to write their final exams
# And cricket: Australia wants to sell the Melbourne Renegades to a private investor

# Economists warn South Africa’s sugar industry is under mounting pressure from cheap imports, mill closures and rising costs. More than one-million people depend on the sector, supporting around 270-thousand direct and indirect jobs. Oxford Economics economist Jee-A van der Linde says Tongaat Hulett narrowly avoided liquidation after receiving state-backed financial support, while other producers remain under strain. She says despite government raising sugar import tariffs, cane growers want deeper reforms, including action on imports, electricity, rail services and delayed biofuel and power-generation plans.

# The EFF’s Johannesburg mayoral candidate Tlaleng Mofokeng says the city has lost sight of its mandate, plunging residents into a governance crisis. During an SABC-TV debate about the upcoming local government elections, she pointed out service delivery has collapsed, infrastructure is deteriorating and accountability is lacking. Mofokeng argues urgent intervention is needed to rebuild Johannesburg and restore public trust:

# Grade 12 Zimbabwean learners who left South Africa after the June 30 immigration deadline are being brought back to write their matric exams. The Zimbabwe Exemption Permit Coordinating Committee Academy says learners will be housed at a boarding facility in Johannesburg ahead of the exams, starting next month. About 35-thousand children reportedly returned to Zimbabwe with their parents between May and September amid deportations and anti-immigration tensions. The academy appeals to affected learners to return this week to prepare.

# International independent medical humanitarian organisation, Doctors without Borders, has warns aid cuts are forcing mass clinic closures across Sudan, leaving patients with even fewer places to seek care. It urges governments and institutional donors to protect funding for essential health services, as approximately 33.7-million people need humanitarian assistance. Southern Africa director of Associations, Monica Genya, says the war is driving humanitarian needs higher while funding cuts shrink the necessary response:

# Cricket: Australia will introduce private investment in its lucrative Big Bash T20 league from the 2027/28 season, starting with the sale of the Melbourne Renegades. Cricket Australia says pending the result of that sale, it will consider placing other clubs on the market under a self-determination model. Renegades, which won the competition in the 2018/19 season, currently belongs to the governing body of the state of Victoria. Reuters reports C-A hoped to raise up to 6.9-billion-rand from its initial privatisation plan after reporting a huge net deficit earlier.

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 16-rand-6-cents and the euro at 18-rand-67-cents. One British pound costs 21-rand-73-cents and Bitcoin trades at 79-thousand-24-dollars. Gold sells at four-thousand-394-dollars-36-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 102-dollars-22-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….