News 06:00

BULLETIN 3 February 6 am

Good morning. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# President Ramaphosa says the increase in international visitors is a vote of confidence
# Solidarity appeals to the Trump administration to keep South Africa in AGOA
# And cricket: The Proteas hope to go one better in the T20 World Cup this year

# President Cyril Ramaphosa says government is determined to strengthen the regulatory and policy environment to further grow the tourism sector. Between January and December 2025, approximately 10.5-million tourists visited South Africa, which is the highest number of international arrivals on record. In his weekly newsletter, Ramaphosa says every visitor to the country contributes to foreign revenue earnings, supports local businesses, bolsters local economies, and helps to create and sustain jobs. He says South Africa’s expanding global tourism footprint is an important part of the country’s public diplomacy. 

# Trade union Solidarity has urged the White House in the US to keep South Africa in the African Growth and Opportunity Act. Recently, the US Senate approved an extension of AGOA, but the White House must still decide which African countries qualify. Solidarity’s Jaco Kleynhans warns that South Africa could be excluded due to tensions with the US, risking jobs and exports. Kleynhans says trade benefits should protect South African jobs and businesses, while policy concerns should be resolved through dialogue, not trade exclusion.

# Energy regulator, Nersa, says all small-scale solar and embedded generation systems connected to the electricity grid must be registered. Installations up to 100-kilowatts must register with the local distributor, while those above 100-kilowatts register directly with the regulator. Nersa’s Charles Hlebela says registration ensures safe and reliable integration into the electricity network and supports the growth of renewable energy while protecting all electricity users:

# The Gauteng Provincial Government says precautionary suspension is administrative, not punitive, and labour regulations require the state to utilise available capacity rather than keep officials on prolonged paid suspension. Spokesperson Elijah Mhlanga responded after the reassignment of three senior officials who were previously placed on precautionary suspension due to investigations into alleged fraud and maladministration:

# European Union Policy Chief Kaja Kallas has welcomed the reopening of the Rafah crossing, describing it as a lifeline for injured and sick Palestinian people in Gaza. Rafa, which is Gaza’s only border crossing with Egypt, has largely been closed since Israel seized it in May 2024. Its reopening followed the return of the last Israeli hostage, Ran Gvili, whose body was found at a cemetery in northern Gaza and returned to Israel last week. Kallas says practical steps like this help move the truce plan forward and must continue to be implemented.

# Cricket: The Proteas hope to go one better in the T20 World Cup, starting in India and Sri Lanka this coming weekend. South Africa reached the final in Barbados two years ago, but just couldn’t succeed in beating India to clinch the cup. But winning the World Test Championship last year gave the Proteas hope for a similar result in white-ball cricket. They face Canada, Afghanistan, New Zealand, and the United Arab Emirates in their group matches, starting against Canada in Ahmedabad, India, on Monday.

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 16-rand-5-cents and the euro at 18-rand-93-cents. One British pound costs 21-rand-95-cents and Bitcoin trades at 78-thousand-721-dollars. Gold sells at four-thousand-659-dollars-34-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 66-dollars-21-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….