News 11:00

BULLETIN 19 January 11 am

Good morning. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# Ramaphosa applauds the matric results, but acknowledges challenges remain
# The death toll from floods in Limpopo has risen to 18, with five people still missing
# And tennis: Medvedev and Gauff are off to a winning start at the Australian Open

# President Cyril Ramaphosa says the outstanding achievement by the matric class of 2025 shows the value of the investment government is making in education. More than 650-thousand learners passed the exams, achieving a pass rate of 88-percent. In his weekly newsletter, Ramaphosa says despite the great results, challenges remain. He says he is concerned that more children are not completing their schooling, and the drop in performance in subjects like mathematics. He adds government is now making more investments in the foundation phase. 

# Amnesty International South Africa says government has an obligation to urgently implement a human-rights-based approach to climate change and extreme weather events. Several provinces have been ravaged by deadly floods and wildfires, specifically in Limpopo, Mpumalanga, KwaZulu-Natal, and the Western Cape. Amnesty International South Africa’s Genevieve Quintal says disaster risk reduction must be fully integrated into urban planning processes to protect people from the devastating impact of flooding:

Meanwhile, Limpopo’s Department of Cooperative Governance, Human Settlements and Traditional Affairs has confirmed the death toll from the devastating floods has risen to 18. At least five people are missing after being swept away by strong river currents. Spokesperson Tsakani Baloyi says conditions on the ground remain dangerous, with rivers still swollen following days of heavy rain:

Moving abroad:

# Chilean president Gabriel Boric has declared a state of catastrophe in the Ñuble and Biobío regions following wildfires that have claimed the lives of at least 18 people. The fires have burnt through eight-thousand-500 hectares so far, and prompted 50-thousand people to evacuate from the two regions. More than one-thousand homes have been affected in the Biobio region alone. Boric says under the state of catastrophe, armed forces will now be deployed to help, while the death toll is expected to rise.

# Tennis: Three-time Australian Open runner-up Daniil Medvedev is through to the second round in Melbourne. The Russian beat the Netherlands’ Jesper de Jong in straight sets. Seventh-seeded Felix Auger-Aliassime of Canada was forced to retire during his first-round match due to cramping. Home favourite Alex de Minaur eased past American Mackenzie McDonald. In the women’s draw, American Coco Gauff began her quest for a maiden Australian Open title with a straight sets victory over Uzbekistan’s Kamilla Rakhimova.

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 16-rand-40-cents and the euro at 19-rand-8-cents. One British pound costs 21-rand-98-cents and Bitcoin trades at 92-thousand-566-dollars. Gold sells at four-thousand-678-dollars-16-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 63-dollars-8-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….