News 17:00

BULLETIN 30 July 5 pm

Good afternoon. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# The DA accuses president Cyril Ramaphosa of recycling old plans to tackle the water crisis
# Cabinet extends the validity of driving licences to ten years
# And: South Africa’s population reaches 63.5-million people despite a decline in fertility

# The DA says Parliament must scrutinise president Cyril Ramaphosa’s Water crisis plan and hold the Presidency accountable for its implementation. The party’s Stephen Moore says the plan lacks clear targets, deadlines, and funding, and calls for regular progress reports. Moore added urgent action is needed to ensure municipalities protect water revenue and provide reliable water to residents:

# Cabinet has approved extending the validity of driving licences for light motor vehicles from five to ten years. The change applies to licence codes A, A1, B and EB, while heavy commercial and public transport vehicles will continue with existing two or five-year renewal cycles. Professional driving permits will also remain valid for two years. Minister in the Presidency Khumbudzo Ntshavheni says the change aligns with international best practice:

# Polish prime minister Donald Tusk says an object that crashed into a field in the country’s east was probably a Russian missile. It caused a 10-meter-wide crater about 100-kilometres from the Ukrainian border. There were no reports of casualties, but the incident is being treated as serious. Ukraine’s acting Foreign minister, Andriy Sybiha, earlier said a Russian cruise missile crossed into Poland during a strike against Ukraine, and violated NATO airspace. A number of Russian drones and missiles have landed in Poland since the start of the war.

# Motorsport: Formula One’s president, Stefano Domenicali, says the current season will conclude in Europe in the event the final two Grand Prix in Qatar and Abu Dhabi cannot take place due to the ongoing conflict in the Middle East. The uncertainty follows the removal of the races in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia from their original April dates. The Bahrain Grand Prix will now be hosted by Malaysia in October. Domenicali says they will wait until the mid-September deadline before making a decision.

# The financial indicators: The dollar trades at 16-rand-55-cents against the rand and the euro at 18-rand-98-cents. One British pound costs 22-rand-13-cents and Bitcoin trades at 64-thousand-799-dollars. Gold sells at four-thousand-74-dollars-72-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 91-dollars-35-cents a barrel.

# And finally: The latest mid-year population estimates indicate South Africa’s population has grown to approximately 63.5-million people in 2026, despite a decline in fertility rates. Statistics South Africa’s Diego Iturralde says the population grew by 1.2-percent between last year and this year, with women making up about 51-percent of the population. Iturralde added the average number of children per woman has fallen to 2, but continued births are still supporting population growth:

Stay tuned for more news………….