News 18:00

BULLETIN 9 July 6 pm

Good afternoon. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# The DA claims neglect forced the closure of South Africa House in London
# Anti-corruption expert Albertus Schoeman urges faster action against unexplained public servants wealth
# And, the wind energy sector could create over 20-thousand jobs by 2042

# The DA says the Department of International Relations and Cooperation has allowed South Africa’s diplomatic missions to fall into disrepair, following the closure of the South African High Commission in London. The party’s Ryan Smith claims the historic South Africa House building has deteriorated after years of neglect, leaving staff to work under poor conditions and resulting in repair costs of nearly 70-million-rand:

# Anti-corruption expert Albertus Schoeman has told the Madlanga Commission that South Africa should consider non-conviction-based confiscation to tackle unexplained wealth more effectively. Schoeman said proving criminal conduct can be costly and time-consuming, diverting resources from major corruption cases. Schoeman suggested using financial disclosure systems as evidence to identify undeclared assets, allowing quicker sanctions against officials. He said civil or administrative measures could strengthen accountability and deter corruption:

# Standard Bank Africa Regions and Offshore chief executive, Lungisa Fuzile, has urged African leaders and businesses to turn the continent’s challenges into opportunities for growth. Speaking at the Africa Unlocked 2026 conference in Cape Town, Fuzile said the African Continental Free Trade Area, infrastructure investment, energy security and artificial intelligence are vital to economic progress. He stressed that stronger intra-African trade collaboration will boost investment, and strengthen Africa’s economic resilience:

# South Africa’s wind energy sector could increase its workforce by up to 400-percent by 2042 if planned renewable energy expansion continues. The world’s leading wind turbine manufacturer, Denmark’s Vestas, says industry employment could grow from three-thousand-750 to more than 20-thousand jobs. However, the company warns that policy certainty, a predictable procurement pipeline and expanded grid capacity are essential to attract investment. The industry says sustained demand will drive localisation, skills development, manufacturing and long-term job creation.

# Soccer: France’s head coach, Didier Deschamps, is not concerned by the ­appointment of only Argentinian officials to oversee their World Cup quarterfinal match against Morocco in Boston today. Facundo Tello is the on-field referee. The sport’s governing body has been accused of showing bias towards Lionel Messi and Argentina after a controversial 3-2 victory over Egypt in the round of 16. Deschamps says their opponent is Morocco, and not the referee.

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 16-rand-34-cents against the rand and the euro at 18-rand-69-cents. One British pound costs 21-rand-90-cents and Bitcoin trades at 62-thousand-978-dollars. Gold sells at four-thousand-125-dollars-88-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 77-dollars-10-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….