News 09:00

BULLETIN 15 July 9 am

Good morning. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# The government wants to eradicate poverty, fight inequality, and protect the planet
# Minister Pule says social grant payments will continue uninterrupted
# And athletics: Zakithi Nene finishes third in the 400-metre in Budapest

# Deputy Minister in the Presidency for Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation, Seiso Mohai, says South Africa continues to strengthen efforts to reduce poverty, inequality and unemployment, while promoting sustainable industrialisation, climate resilience, food security, energy transition and social protection. He addressed the general debate of the United Nations High-Level Political Forum on Sustainable Development in New York on Tuesday. Mohai stated that despite a challenging global and domestic environment, the country has made progress in several areas, including access to electricity, safe drinking water, sanitation, digital connectivity, and social protection services.

# Newly appointed Social Development minister, Dina Pule, says grant beneficiaries should not be concerned about the transition from the South African Social Security Agency gold card to the Postbank black card, as this will not affect grant payments. Government provides social assistance to approximately 28 million South Africans through various grant programmes. The department’s spokesperson, Sandy Godlwana, says the new payment system will reduce logistical challenges previously associated with transporting cash to payment points, making the grant payment process more efficient and reliable:

# The Western Cape police have arrested two more suspects, aged 26 and 32, in connection with the deadly mass shooting in the Wesbank community in Malmesbury over the past weekend. Two people were shot dead while eight were wounded, including a one-year-old toddler. The latest arrest brings the total number of suspects involved in the incident to three. Police spokesperson, Andrè Traut, says preliminary investigations indicate that the three suspects are linked to a local gang operating in the Malmesbury area:

# The European Union has stepped up its international support for Palestinians through the launch of the “Team Gaza Initiative”. Spain, France, Denmark, the UK, Germany, Norway, Finland, Italy, the Netherlands, Japan, Switzerland, Sweden, Belgium, the World Bank, and the European Investment Bank are taking part in the initiative. In total, the Israeli-Hamas war has killed at least 73-thousand Palestinians. The EU’s Guillaume Mercier says approximately 16.83-billion-rand has already been committed to help the people of Gaza meet their immediate needs:

# Athletics: South Africa’s Zakithi Nene finished third in the men’s 400-metres on the last World Athletics Continental Tour Gold meeting of this year in Budapest. He crossed the line in 44.57-seconds, behind Zambia’s Commonwealth Games champion, Muzala Samukonga, and Hungarian Attila Molnár. Cameroonian Emmanuel Eseme was victorious in the men’s 100-meters, while South Africa’s Akani Simbine finished tied for fourth with Jamaican Nishion Ebanks, both men going 10.05-seconds. Julien Alfred won the women’s 100-metres finishing ahead of Jamaican duo Tina Clayton and Brianna Lyston.

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 16-rand-33-cents and the euro at 18-rand-69-cents. One British pound costs 21-rand-90-cents, and Bitcoin trades at 64-thousand-752-dollars. Gold sells at four-thousand-33-dollars-81-cents a fine ounce, and Brent crude oil is quoted at 84-dollars-39-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….