News 11:00

BULLETIN 23 May 11 am

Good morning. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# Minister Ronald Lamola calls for greater SADC regional unity and resilience
# Minister Buti Manamela says South Africa has a workforce transition-capacity problem
# And, more than 80 people are killed in a Chinese coal mine gas explosion

# Minister of International Relations and Cooperation, Ronald Lamola, has called for greater unity and resilience among Southern African countries. He was speaking during the opening of the SADC Ministers of Foreign Affairs Retreat at Kruger National Park in Mpumalanga. Minister Lamola warned that global geopolitical tensions and economic uncertainty are placing increasing pressure on the region, contributing to rising food prices, inflation, and financial strain:

# Higher Education and Training minister, Buti Manamela says South Africa does not primarily have a skills shortage, but a workforce transition-capacity problem. Manamela was addressing the Johannesburg Business School Skill Forum at the University of Johannesburg. The minister says a skills shortage implies that South Africa simply needs more graduates while a workforce transition-capacity problem means the institutions are not sufficiently configured to move people from where they are to where the economy is going:

# The George Municipality has lifted emergency water tariffs and the easing of water restrictions from Level 2D to Level 2B. The municipality’s spokesperson, Ntobeko Mangqwengqwe, says the decision follows a substantial improvement in storage levels at the Garden Route Dam, which increased from 46,09-percent to nearly 89-percent within two weeks after heavy rainfall in the catchment areas. He says the Haarlem Dam has also fully recovered and is currently at 100-percent:

# A gas explosion at a coal mine in northern China has killed 82 people. According to state media rescue efforts are underway, with the number of casualties still being tallied and at least nine people still missing. It was unclear how many people remained trapped at the mine in Shanxi province. Coal is a key source of energy in China despite efforts in recent years to wean off the fossil fuel. Shanxi is a major hub for Chinese coal and home to a mining industry with a notoriously poor safety record.

# And motorsport: Williams driver Alex Albon was ruled out of Canadian Grand Prix sprint qualifying on Friday after hitting a groundhog in the sole practice session and crashing his car. His team said despite best efforts to repair the car, the damage was far more extensive than originally thought, requiring the gearbox and power unit to be replaced.  The Thai driver is a big animal lover with an Albon Pets Instagram page featuring his family cats, horses and dogs.

Meanwhile George Russell of Mercedes and his team mate and championship leader Kimi Antonelli are on the front row for the sprint race later today. The two McLarens of Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri are third and fourth respectively, with Ferrari’s seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton fifth, next to his teammate Charles Leclerc.

Stay tuned for more news………….