News 09:00

BULLETIN 24 March 9 am

Good morning. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# Minister Steenhuisen welcomes the swift intervention to expedite the importation of vaccines
# The Development Bank of Southern Africa supports the country’s investment drive
# And, at least 34 are killed in a Colombian military plane crash

# Minister of Agriculture John Steenhuisen has welcomed the South African Health Products Regulatory Authority’s swift intervention to expedite the importation of six million Dollvet vaccine doses to combat the Foot-and-Mouth disease. This follows a Section 21 permit issued last Friday for two million doses of the vaccine, while two additional permits for the remaining four million doses will be issued. The department’s spokesperson, Joylene van Wyk, says this phased procurement of FMD vaccines is a logistical necessity in light of the Middle East conflict:

# The Development Bank of Southern Africa says it is positioning itself as the private sector entry point into South Africa’s infrastructure backlog. The bank is the primary sponsor of the upcoming South Africa Investment Conference. Since the first investment conference in 2018, the country has registered investment pledges of 1.56-trillion-rand across all nine provinces and multiple sectors. The bank’s CEO, Boitumelo Mosako, says they have already secured 23-billion-rand through bilateral finance institutions for bulk water projects:

# The ANC in Tshwane has rejected the DA’s plan to approach the Madlanga Commission over alleged corruption. This follows damning allegations against the City of Tshwane officials regarding tenders. DA Tshwane caucus leader Cilliers Brink claims deputy mayor Eugene Modise has undeclared interests in security and water tanker firms. However, ANC spokesperson Joel Masilela says the claims are politically driven, arguing the DA failed to act on alleged wrongdoing while it was in power.

# At least 34 people were killed when a Colombian military plane crashed just after take-off in the south of the country on Monday. The C-130 Hercules aircraft, which was carrying 114 army personnel and eleven crew members, caught fire after going down near Puerto Leguízamo. Over 80 people were injured. Colombia’s Defence minister, Pedro Sánchez, says that while the cause of the accident is under investigation, it is already possible to rule out that the crash was caused by an attack from any of the numerous armed groups that plague the country.

# Tennis: World number two Jannik Sinner is through to the Miami Open round of 16, continuing his bid to become the first man to complete the ‘Sunshine Double’ since Roger Federer achieved the feat in 2017. The Italian defeated Frenchman Corentin Moutet, 6-1, 6-4. American Frances Tiafoe knocked out defending champion Jakub Mensik of the Czech Republic, 7-6, 4-6, 7-6, while Argentina’s Francisco Cerundolo defeated Russia’s Daniil Medvedev, 6-0, 4-6, 7-5. In the women’s draw, world number one Belarusian Aryna Sabalenka and American Coco Gauff are through to the quarterfinals.

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 16-rand-94-cents and the euro at 19-rand-61-cents. One British pound costs 22-rand-96-cents, and Bitcoin trades at 70-thousand-628-dollars. Gold sells at four-thousand-349-dollars-53-cents a fine ounce, and Brent crude oil is quoted at 100-dollars-36-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….