News 08:00

BULLETIN 17 September 8 am

Good morning. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# The National Student Financial Aid Scheme is blamed for the instability at universities
# The DA in Tshwane vows to preserve the progress made by the coalition government
# And the UN warns that its humanitarian aid goals in Gaza are not being met 

# The Department of Higher Education and Training says the National Student Financial Aid Scheme is the main factor of instability in institutions of higher learning. This was revealed during extensive consultation with various stakeholders, including student formations. Minister Nobuhle Nkabane says the department is reviewing the scheme’s funding model to improve its systems and reduce glitches, as the 2025 online applications for funding will open on Friday:

# Business Leadership South Africa says it is encouraged by Trade, Industry, and Competition minister Parks Tau’s intention to sort out the leadership of the department and many of the entities it oversees. The minister reportedly plans to overhaul the boards of eleven out of 18 department entities to improve stability and efficiency. The entities include the Competition Commission and the National Empowerment Fund. BLSA CEO Busiswe Mavuso says all of the entities have the potential to be important drivers of economic activity, if they function optimally.

# The DA in Tshwane says it will fight to preserve its progress with coalition partners in the metro. This follows ActionSA’s announcement yesterday that it was leaving the DA-led coalition government in Tshwane, after holding talks with the ANC to take over the capital city. The DA’s, Willie Aucamp, says it is clear that ActionSA’s turn on the coalition has nothing to do with service delivery, the residents, or the future of the metro:

# The United Nations is warning that insufficient progress is being made in getting desperately needed aid and commercial goods into Gaza. There are about 300-thousand people with severe shortages of food, water, and other necessities. Since May, 229 consignments have requested clearance, 175 have been approved, 101 have been delivered, 17 are pending clearance, and 37 have been rejected. The UN’s, Sigrid Kaag, says a manmade humanitarian crisis has turned Gaza into the abyss:

# Soccer: Speculation is intensifying that Benni McCarthy and Mamelodi Sundowns are in talks about his availability as coach. The former Bafana Bafana striker left his role as first-team coach at Manchester United at the end of last season and has reportedly expressed a strong desire to return to Africa to take charge of a major team. Amid the rumours, Sundowns are determined to start their defence of the Premiership title with a win over SuperSport United at the Loftus Versfeld this evening.

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 17-rand-62-cents and the euro at 19-rand-61-cents. One British pound costs 23-rand-28-cents and Bitcoin trades at 58-thousand-42-dollars-4-cents. Gold sells at two-thousand-578-dollars-57-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 73-dollars-7-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….