Indice dei contenuti per 2023-11-16 in Star

PAN AFRICAN entertainment group MultiChoice Group said its headline loss per share slid to 289 cents (-58c) in the six months to September 30 following R1.7 billion of foreign exchange headwinds, Showmax trading losses and a lower contribution from South Africa. Weaker currencies were a significant impediment to profit improvement, with about five currencies in African countries that the group trades in falling sharply against the US dollar, chief financial officer Tim Jacobs said. The sharp fall of particularly the naira in Nigeria resulted in a large proportion of the previously recognised losses incurred on cash remittances, being recorded in trading profit. Jacobs said in an interview it was difficult to predict the currency impact in the second half, but the group was working hard on improving…

October 2023 trade environment survey shows that the sector is facing increasing pressure THE SOUTH African Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Sacci) has warned of possible stagnation in the labour market in the next six months as a majority of companies halt recruiting due to deteriorating trade conditions. Sacci said yesterday that the October 2023 trade environment survey revealed the sector was facing increasing pressure, with both current and anticipated trade conditions receiving negative evaluations. According to the survey, merely 35% of respondents expressed positivity regarding current conditions, while 53% were hopeful for improvements over the next six months. However, a significant majority of respondents (56%) perceived the present trade conditions to be worse than those in October 2022. Sacci said at least 70% of respondents also noted a decline…

RETAILER Woolworths’ shares slid nearly 6% after it released a trading update for the 20 weeks ended November 12, 2023, that showed its food and fashion units taking strain amid a moribund economy, however, it grew its online sales. The shares hit an intraday low of R68.70 after the update. Its turnover and concession sales from continuing operations for the 20 weeks ended November 12, 2023, excluding David Jones that was disposed of in the prior period, increased by 4.7% and by 3.9% in constant currency terms. It said sales growth for the current period should also be considered in the context of the high prior-year base in which group sales grew by 13.4%, driven in part by post-Covid pent-up demand in Australia. Group turnover and concession sales on…

ONE OF THE biggest retailers in the country, Shoprite, which also boasts having one of the largest private fleet of trucks in South Africa, recently held its 11th annual Shoprite Truck Driver of the Year competition. The company announced that Josias Moila, from Centurion, has received the title of Driver of The Year, beating more than 1 400 colleagues from across South Africa and surrounding African countries. With more than 23 000 rolling wheels covering more than 100 million kilometres annually, the Shoprite Group said the Truck Driver of the Year competition served as a platform to celebrate and acknowledge the remarkable skills and dedication of truck drivers operating within the vast network. The top 13 drivers who emerged from the regional competitions throughout the year from…

HUMAN rights law firm Richard Spoor Inc (RSI) has filed an application for certification for a class action against the Exxaro Group. The company yesterday announced that it had launched the third in its series of class actions against coal mining giants in ongoing efforts to seek justice for workers facing unacceptable conditions within the coal mining industry. The law firm previously initiated class actions against the South32 Group, including BHP Billiton and Seriti Power, as well as against Anglo American and Thungela. The class action against the Exxaro Group, filed by lawyer Richard Spoor in the Gauteng Division of the High Court of South Africa on November 8, 2023, sought accountability for alleged breaches of legal duties, negligence, and inadequate safety measures that have caused long-term damages to workers’…

Forget the Phoebe Dynevor you loved as Daphne Bridgerton in Shonda Rhimes’s critically acclaimed Regency romance series, Bridgerton. The 28-year-old actress ushers in a new era with Fair Play, which reminds me of that well-worn cliché, “All’s fair in love and war”. And when you watch the Netflix psychological thriller, you will understand why it’s so apt. She straddles that fine line between right and wrong with such prowess that you wonder where she’s been hiding all this time. Perhaps, in those corsets and gowns, nudge, nudge, wink, wink … Dynevor is a revelation in this film, where she shares the spotlight with Alden Ehrenreich as Luke Edmunds. And if he looks familiar, it is probably because of Supernatural, his breakthrough role, and his recent movie, Cocaine Bear. The premise…

STANDARD Chartered Bank (SCB) has admitted to engaging in the manipulation of the rand alongside 17 other banks accused of engaging in unethical conduct. Yesterday, the bank became another commercial bank that admitted to wrongdoing and agreed to pay a penalty of R42 million to the Competition Commission for its role in conspiring to rig trades involving the US dollar-rand currency pair. The commission announced yesterday that it had entered into a settlement agreement with Standard Chartered, which “admitted liability” and agreed to pay an administrative penalty of R42.7m. The commission said it welcomed the latest landmark settlement agreement with the British multinational bank in which the bank acknowledged and admitted to a currency manipulation case and agrees to pay an administrative penalty of R42.7 million. Commission spokesperon Siyabulela Makunga…

The identity of a teen who slipped and fell into the Padavlei section of the Klips River at Kliptown, Soweto, on Tuesday afternoon has not yet been determined. The body was recovered yesterday by City of Joburg’s Aquatic Rescue Services Unit, the Joburg Emergency Management Services and the SAPS Water Wing who were leading the search for the 18-year-old boy. Joburg EMS spokesperson Robert Mulaudzi said the boy was swept away on Tuesday afternoon. The body will be handed over to the SAPS for investigation, he said. “We are pleading with residents to continue to look after young children and themselves and to stay away from rivers and streams since the water levels are higher due to the rain ... so that we can be able to prevent incidents like…

In WHAT has been a year of milestones, WWF’s Black Rhino Range Expansion Project (BRREP) recently completed the successful translocation of its 250th rhino. The BRREP, celebrating its 20th anniversary in its tireless work to increase the population of this critically endangered species, announced that it had translocated a further 20 rhinos, bringing the total number of rhinos to have been moved to 250. In this instance, the rhinos were captured from a reserve managed by the Eastern Cape Parks and Tourism Agency (ECPTA). In the past two decades, more than 200 calves have been born on BRREP sites, and the hope is that this latest move will encourage even more successful breeding. As a result of these and other efforts, black rhino numbers have more than doubled in the…

A Rottweiler attacked a mother and her toddler son on the Bluff, Durban. ALS Paramedics Medical Services spokesperson Garrith Jamieson said just before 10am yesterday, they received many calls and responded to a dog attack in Boshoff Street on the Bluff. When paramedics arrived, they found metro police in attendance who showed them the mother and child. Jamieson explained that leading up to the incident, a mother, in her thirties and her son, 3, were walking up the road when the Rottweiler apparently escaped from its yard and attacked them. He said metro police who were in the area at the time intervened and rescued the patients. “Paramedics found both mom and son to have sustained serious injuries to their lower limbs and backs. “Advanced life support paramedics worked to…

TSHWANE township residents are up in arms over poor service delivery, “ballooning” service bills, illegal spaza shops and foreign national conducting business in their areas. Under the banner of the Lotus Gardens, Saulsville and Atteridgeville Civic Association, they marched to Tshwane House on Friday to lay bare that their demands must be met by tomorrow, or they will shut down the capital. The threats come as the Metro is recovering from a more than three-month-old municipal strike that plunged the city into service delivery chaos. The strike has however been halted since Monday and the metro is scrambling to clear up the service delivery backlog. Handing over the memorandum to the city’s finance MMC Peter Sutton on Friday, the group’s chairperson, Tshepo Mahlangu, said they expected the city to wipe…

Churches and other religious entities in and around Pretoria need to be more cautious of their surroundings to avoid falling victim to robbers preying on them. Pretoria Central SAPS station commander Brigadier Gibin Hlengane Mashaba made the appeal yesterday, following a spate of robberies, SAPS Pretoria Central spokesperson Constable Thabang Nkhumise said. “This comes after the current incidents that have taken place within the province where some of the churches were robbed in broad daylight of their neck ties, equipment and other personal belongings,” Nkhumise said. “It has sparked a whole lot of fear among the community. A video clip has also been doing rounds on social media platforms, where a congregation was robbed while the sermon was taking place,” he said. “The (police) station calls on the community to…

ONE OF the world’s most iconic cars driven in Tokyo sounds like one for the books. And when you see your name’s on the list to drive the Nissan Z, you can’t help but give a little inner shout of glee. It would only be a short half an hour behind the wheel in Tokyo morning traffic but that’s enough to tick a box. The Z, along with the GTR, will always rate as two of the best sports cars ever designed and while most of our time with Nissan in Japan revolved around electric mobility and renewable energies, when you push the start button and light up the 3.0-litre V6 twin-turbo petrol engine, any thoughts around batteries quickly loses its appeal. For petrol-heads it’s nirvana; with a throaty burble…

The Omoda C5 turned heads with its striking looks when it was launched earlier this year, but didn’t quite have the go to match the show. Now a GT model is coming to rectify that. The Chery-owned Chinese brand has announced that the Omoda C5 GT will go on sale later in November, fitted with a 1.6-litre direct injection turbopetrol engine. The 1.6 TGDi unit, as it’s named, pumps out 145kW and 290Nm, allowing the GT to accelerate from 0-100km/h in a claimed 7.8 seconds. Those are useful gains over the regular C5’s 1.5-litre turbopetrol, which is rated at 115kW and 230Nm. The new engine comes with Chery’s iHEC combustion system, which boasts an impressive thermal efficiency of 37.1%. Pricing for the new GT model has yet to be announced,…

MUMBAI: Barely 18 months ago, South African cricket was in a perilous state. In sync with the state of the nation, nobody trusted an organisation that had become synonymous with maladministration. Sponsors were taking their coinage elsewhere, and the game was on the brink of bankruptcy. With the boardroom collapsing, the knock-on effect of it was most felt by the Proteas’ men’s national team as their results – or rather lack thereof – began reflecting the overall nosedive. And then something happened. Hard decisions were taken by a new set of suits, which almost put the Proteas’ automatic World Cup qualification in jeopardy, but was ultimately necessary to keep the lights on at their Illovo offices. Along with the birth of Betway SA20 – Cricket SA’s new love child –…

After more than four decades, Formula One returns to Las Vegas bringing together the world’s hottest sports property and the planet’s party capital for a turbo-charged weekend that could see more action off the track than on it. With Red Bull’s Max Verstappen having clinched a third consecutive drivers crown weeks ago and a miserable forecast predicting cold, rainy weather for a Saturday midnight blitz down the Strip, the sporting elements for Formula One’s most hyped race ever are not optimal. But otherwise it is all systems go for the launch of an event F1 owners Liberty Media believe can propel the sport into a new money-spinning orbit. “I think once we have the event in Vegas, there’s going to be a whole new recognition for Formula One in the…

TELKOM, the country’s third-biggest tele- coms operator, said yesterday that its interim profit could rise by almost 50%, led by lower depreciation and improved performance, sending shares up 7% in early trade. The company has seen its market value more than halve from the highs of 2021 as it struggled to gain market share dominated by larger rivals Vodacom and MTN. It booked an impairment of R13 billion on its legacy copper business last year, pushing profits down by more than three quarters and cancelling divi- dends. For the six months ended Sep- tember 30, Telkom was expected to report a headline earnings per share, a profit measure, of between R1.86 and R1.99, up 40% to 50% over a restated profit of R1.33, it said. Analysts had predicted that…

NINETY-ONE, the JSE- and London-listed asset manager, expects the dampened appetite for emerging markets and public equities to remain in place for the rest of its financial year to end-March 2024, CEO Hendrik du Toit said yesterday. He said at the release of their results for the six months to September 30 that rising interest rates and increased geopolitical uncertainty have caused investors to be cautious. “Equity markets have been driven by narrow sectoral and geographic performance. These factors have dampened investor appetite for emerging markets and public equities in general,” he said. The caution that the company had signalled at the beginning of the reporting period had proved justified. “On the surface, equity markets rose, but the rally was extremely narrow and largely restricted to a small number of…

THE 16TH ANNUAL Global Entrepreneurship Week campaign, celebrating and empowering entrepreneurs everywhere, is officially underway. Millions of people have attended thousands of activities in their communities and cities to celebrate the power of entrepreneurship and innovation in advancing economic growth and job creation. With four more days to go, highlights over the past two days include: In Nigeria, Founders nationwide joined their peers and walked to honour the values of entrepreneurship, creativity and innovation, which took place in multiple cities, including Lagos, Calabar, Oshogbo, Benin, Enugu, Araba, Warri, Sokoto, Kibbe, Katsina, Zamfara, Abuja, Kaduna and Ilorin. In the US, $300 000 (R5.56 million) was awarded to 30 small businesses. FedEx, GEN and Hello Alice announced the 30 grant recipients of the FedEx® Entrepreneur Fund, an initiative that provides…

BRAIT’S net asset value fell 3% in the six months to September 30, despite a robust performance by it premium international health and wellness brand, Virgin Active, although it is still losing some members in South Africa, its biggest market. Interim results released yesterday showed Brait’s net asset value close at R6.84 at the half-year stage, compared with R7.06 at the end of the 2023 financial year. Brait’s share price closed 5% lower at R2.28 on the JSE yesterday, indicating that it is trading at an approximate 66% discount to net asset value. Virgin Active, which makes up 65% of Brait’s assets, has operations that span South Africa, the UK, Italy and Australia. In South Africa, Virgin Active sold 170 000 memberships in the nine months to September, net membership…

It’s been a great year for South African and African music artists who have showed up on the global stage, offering the world hit songs like Water, Calm Down and Mnike. Their efforts were celebrated at the ninth annual African Entertainment Awards USA held in the US on Saturday, November 11. The international awards, which aim to celebrate African entertainment and achievements, saw Jerusalema hitmaker Master KG and his former girlfriend Makhadzi bag an award each. Master KG walked away with the Music Producer of the Year award, while Makhadzi won the Best Collaboration award for her song MaGear featuring Mr Brown. South African music producer and DJ Tyler ICU also featured among the South African winners. The night’s biggest winners were Tanzanian artist and Young, African & Famous…

The South African Democratic Teachers’ Union (Sadtu) has hit back at EFF leader Julius Malema in their tit-for-tat battle regarding who should be appointed as elections staff next year. Sadtu wants Malema to apologise for statements he made that Sadtu members would compromise the elections in favour of the ruling ANC. Elections in South Africa are organised by the Electoral Commission of SA (IEC), which often uses schools, community centres, and other public amenities as election venues. School principals, school management team members, and/or teachers, including those aligned with Sadtu, are often appointed to temporary roles at voting stations, such as presiding officers and other roles. Political parties are allowed to appoint their party agents to oversee the process and ensure no voter fraud takes place. Malema has called on…

Over the course of 2023 so far, South Africans have endured bouts of extreme weather in the form of heavy rains and floods, snow, hailstorms, and tornadoes. We take a look at several extreme weather cases reported throughout the year. At the tail end of June, the South African Weather Service (Saws) issued a standard report for inclement weather for parts of KwaZulu-Natal. But on Tuesday, June 29, residents of Inanda and Phoenix, north of Durban, were shocked to see what looked like a tornado developing from the storm clouds. It turned out to be a “landspout”, according to the Saws as reported by News24. Saws said landspouts and tornadoes share similarities, but form in different ways. Tornadoes are usually accompanied by lightning and thunderstorms, which were not present at…

The City of Tshwane has failed to adhere to Batho Pele principles by not providing Hammanskraal residents with clean water. Dr Chana Pilane-Majake, Deputy Minister of the Department of Public Service and Administration, expressed her disappointment with regard to poor services to township residents during her unannounced visit to the Rooiwal wastewater treatment plant yesterday. Residents in Hammanskraal have been forced to consume dirty water because the Rooiwal plant lacked capacity to purify waste water, resulting in the sludge being discharged into the Apies River. The Apies River in turn supplies water to the Temba water treatment plant, used to purifywater for Hammanskraal residents. The City said roaming water tankers were providing residents with water as an interim measure to alleviate the problem. Pilane-Majake also visited Jubilee district hospital, where…

As a Vaalie (or are we Gautengers now?), born a screaming distance away from Randfontein – that produced several world boxing champions between her two townships of Mohlakeng and Toekomsrus, I’ve always been morbidly fascinated by the tag Mdantsane in East London enjoyed as the boxing capital of South Africa. I’ve also been in wonderment at the genesis of the Dan Qeqe Stadium, more so the identity of the man behind the naming of the Zwide, Gqeberha facility. A stadium named after a black man during the height of apartheid! The goosebumps have never really left my skin, even as we inch towards 30 years into the not-so-new political dispensation. Thanks to Buntu Siwisa, who has written a warts-and-all biography of the famed Gqeberha sports personality and civic leader, Qeqe,…

There’s a new Ford Territory coming to South Africa in the second quarter of 2024, the carmaker has confirmed, but it’s nothing like the one we once knew. That nameplate first found its way to our country in 2005 as a large Australian-built SUV based on the Falcon sedan’s rear-wheel drive platform. The new Ford Territory is a midsize SUV that hails from China, and it was conceived out of a joint venture with JMC. Rebadged as the Territory for export markets outside China, it is known as the Ford Equator Sport in its home market, effectively a two-row version of the larger seven-seat Ford Equator. Although a 1.5-litre EcoBoost engine is available in some markets, SA models will be powered by a 1.8-litre EcoBoost turbopetrol, which sends 140kW and…

MUMBAI: Sometimes Goliath does actually emerge victorious. And with it, India’s quest for a successive home World Cup title remained intact at a spectacular Wankhede Stadium yesterday as they beat New Zealand by 70 runs to advance to Sunday’s final. New Zealand have almost perfected the art of being David, the underdog that over-achieves on the biggest stage. But their spoilsport act, especially hauled out when they face the juggernaut India team, was left in the locker room in this pulsating World Cup semi-final. It allowed India to exact revenge for their defeat four years earlier at the same stage to the Black Caps in Manchester, while also denying Kane Williamson’s team a third consecutive final appearance. It is not often that David Beckham gets upstaged, but the Wankhede Stadium…

Bafana Bafana’s new recruit Bradley Cross is excited by the opportunity handed to him after impressive performances at club level. Coach Hugo Broos is putting final touches to his side’s preparations for their forthcoming 2026 World Cup qualifiers, starting with Saturday’s clash against Benin at the Moses Mabhida Stadium in Durban. Kick-off is at 3pm. Broos has never hidden his intentions of ushering in a new breed of national team players that could possibly restore pride in the yellow and green colours of Bafana. A man very familiar with green and yellow is Golden Arrows utility man Cross, who received his first call-up as part of a few fresh faces in the team. The 22-year-old left back was named in the final 23-man squad to face Benin and Rwanda, alongside…

The 12th man. In football circles around the world, that is one of the most common phrases and rightfully so, because everyone in the world of sport understands the difference it makes to have a crowd on your side. That seems to exclude the mighty South African Football Association (Safa), though. The local governing body has not only displayed a lack of desire to mobilise South African football fans to attend Bafana matches, but is also increasingly showing the middle finger to anyone who believes otherwise. The latter is confirmed by the fact that it took Safa at least 10 months to fill the position of marketing director in the organisation. Former Banyana Banyana captain Amanda Dlamini resigned from that position in November last year, and Safa only appointed Errol…

MUMBAI: The iconic Eden Gardens in Kolkata is one of the most storied cricket grounds in the world. The Gardens, as the locals affectionately refer to it, has hosted plenty of significant matches, most notably the 1987 World Cup final won by Australia after an ill-judged Mike Gatting reverse-sweep led to the capitulation of the English. And then there was ‘The Miracle of Kolkata’, when India produced the greatest comeback of all through VVS Laxman and Rahul Dravid in the 2001 Test series against Australia. Let’s not forget Carlos Braithwaite’s “Remember the name” six-hitting heroics to power West Indies to their second T20 World Cup title too. But for South Africans, the mere mention of Eden Gardens, which will host the Proteas’ World Cup semi-final against Australia today, will…

THERE was no need for panic buying at this stage, as the South African egg stock levels were replenishing steadily, the Department of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development (Dalrrd) said yesterday. In a public statement, the department said it has a few open import permits for eggs and poultry products from a few countries. “Import of table eggs, fertilised eggs, pasteurised eggs, egg powder and liquid eggs has been on-going for many years in South Africa and has not only started with the current outbreak of the Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI). “Other countries including Brazil, USA and Argentina have been exporting eggs to South Africa for quite some time and the department is currently processing import permit applications from a few more countries.” The department said it…

IF YOU CAN’T beat them, buy them. For years, a little-known company called Tooling & Equipment International (TEI) has helped Tesla push back the frontiers of “gigacasting”, the process it pioneered to cast large body parts for cars in one piece to save time and money. Until 2023, that is. TEI is now part of General Motors after agreeing to a deal that might have flown under the radar, but was a key part of the US carmaker’s strategy to make up ground on Tesla, four people familiar with the transaction said. By snapping up a specialist in sand- casting techniques that accelerated the development of Tesla’s gigacasting moulds and allowed it to cast more complex components, GM had jump-started its own push to make cars more cheaply and efficiently…

TWK INVESTMENTS, a diversified agriculture and forestry company, said basic headline earnings per share fell 37.25% to 549.54 cents for the year to August 31 after sales were hurt by volatile exchange rates, falling commodity prices and cancelled wood chips sales. CEO André Myburgh said, however, the new summer production year was starting favourably for the primary producers, with much lower input costs, although commodity prices were also much lower than last year. “The most significant danger for the new year lies in the higher interest rates and the production conditions for the season. It is crucial to highlight that an El Niño is forecast in the upcoming 2023/24 summer season and is an aspect to watch. “However, we remain optimistic that it will have a mild impact…

By Faiez Hartley WHILE the notion of the metaverse is fairly conceptual, has lost some of its initial appeal and will evolve along with consumer trends and online user behaviour, several large companies are seeing the benefits of offering customers immersive, digital experiences. With the quantum leaps being made in the realms of virtual and augmented reality, the metaverse has the potential to open doors of opportunity, not only for large corporations but for small businesses too. The metaverse can be loosely defined as a digitally driven reality that mimics the nature of life in the real world. The best examples of this kind of technology can be seen in games like Minecraft and Decentraland. Within the games, users can build their own realities, complete with virtual homes and avatars…

FESTIVE season shopping traffic for this year, which kicks off with Black Friday specials, is forecast to be on a slight upward swing after retail activity in September rose for the first time this year. Consumers seem to have bitten the bullet on rising interest rates as demand for credit remained strong to supplement household incomes as the increase in real incomes slowed. Data from Statistics South Africa (StatsSA) yesterday showed that retail sales rose by 0.9% in September from a year earlier, following a downwardly revised 0.3% decrease in August. This was better than market forecasts of a 0.1% increase following nine consecutive months of declines. StatsSA’s deputy director for distributive trade statistics, Raquel Floris, said the retail sales print in September was largely driven by increased sales…

Social media platforms have given individuals the opportunity to bridge the gap between fans and celebrities. Musicians, in particular, have found a unique space on these platforms to share their covers, original compositions and musical skills. The potential for recognition on a grand scale has become more attainable than ever before. One notable example is the story of Naledi Aphiwe, a 17-year-old singer from KZN, who experienced a meteoric rise to fame after catching the attention of international star Chris Brown. In October last year, Brown shared a video of Aphiwe singing on his Instagram stories, praising her “incredible” voice. Little did Aphiwe know that this recognition would be a stepping stone to something even greater. A year later, her talent transcended social media platforms and made its way onto…

Two civil society organisations with interest in matters related to the judiciary have criticised Chief Justice Raymond Zondo’s recent public comments, including those on the ongoing case involving former president Jacob Zuma. Alison Tilley of Judges Matter said yesterday that they agreed with a statement issued by the Council for the Advancment of the South African Constitution (Casac) which urged Zondo to exercise restraint in his public engagements and to always act with the best interests of the judiciary in mind. Zondo participated in a TV interview on Monday where he expressed his views on several issues, including judicial misconduct, the implementation of the recommendations of the State Capture Commission and the ongoing prosecution of Zuma. During the interview, Zondo said he did not want to speak a lot about…

The Electoral Commission of South Africa (IEC) said they are ready to get the ball rolling when they welcome eligible citizens at 23 296 registration stations across the country this weekend. The IEC declared its readiness to conduct a general registration weekend as part of the programme for the preparations of the 2024 national and provincial elections. This Saturday and Sunday registration stations will operate between 8am and 5pm both days. The IEC briefed the media yesterday at their offices in Centurion as part of unpacking its readiness. IEC CEO Sy Mamabolo said they will approach this weekend with the expectation that it will once again provide them with significant registration activity. Mamabolo said the recently released Census 2022 results indicate the population has grown to 62 million inhabitants with…

Ingredients 12 figs, scored or halved 12 slices prosciutto ham 1 baguette, thinly sliced 2 Tbsp butter, melted 3 wheels Camembert 2 Tbsp honey + extra for serving 2 Tbsp pomegranate rubies 1 Tbsp chopped fresh thyme Method Preheat oven to 180°C. Tightly wrap each fig in a slice of prosciutto. Set aside. Arrange baguette slices on a baking tray and brush with melted butter. Bake for 5 minutes, or until golden. Set aside. Arrange Camembert wheels in a single layer on a lined baking tray. Drizzle with honey and bake for 5–10 minutes, or until soft to the touch. Transfer Camembert to a serving platter and top with prosciutto-wrapped figs. Garnish with pomegranate rubies, drizzle with extra honey and scatter with thyme. Serve immediately with baguette slices on the…

The Men’s Imbizo, an initiative focused on men’s wellness, has summoned men to Jabulani Safe Hub in Soweto on Sunday for a special day as part of commemorating International Men’s Day. According to Mzansi Act Now CEO Mpho Lerole, the Men’s Imbizo is all about celebrating men and engaging in conversations about issues that men face, such as parental alienation, abuse, suicide, respect, violence, spirituality, financial wellness, mental health, depression, and marriage. This initiative also encourages and supports the establishment of safe spaces and cogent interactions between the corporate sector, government, men’s sector, civil society, and men’s forums. “Men’s Imbizo is happening on International Men’s Day. It is an annual day that is celebrated by men. We have partnered with several partners that will be joining us for the programme.…

EIGHTEEN children will see their lives drastically transformed for the better through free lifesaving surgical procedures, including reconstructive surgeries, at Tygerberg Hospital during Smile Week. Smile Foundation’s Smile Week, sponsored by Adcock Ingram, began on Monday and surgeons will perform free surgeries for conditions such as cleft lip and cleft palate, congenital hand and foot abnormalities, and more complex craniofacial reconstruction. On Tuesday, Andre Daniels, 10, from Elsies Rivier who was born with Crouzon syndrome, also known as craniofacial dysostosis, a rare genetic disorder affecting the shape of a child’s head and face, had his surgery. Children with Crouzon syndrome often experience complications related to vision, dental and breathing issues, hearing loss and hydrocephalus. Daniels’ mother, Catherine said: “Andre gets bullied a lot by other children. It breaks my heart…

WATER and Sanitation Minister Senzo Mchunu has been asked to set up an independent commission of inquiry to investigate systemic failures within Rand Water, blamed for ongoing water supply disruptions in parts of Gauteng. The call was made by DA Gauteng leader Solly Msimanga yesterday during a protest in Pretoria, where party supporters marched to the Water and Sanitation Department offices to deliver a memorandum of demands. Part of the memorandum called for Mchunu to dismiss the water utility’s chief executive Sipho Mosai for failing to fulfil the obligations and responsibilities entrusted to him. “There is no need to give him a performance assessment as the end of his contract draws near – dry taps are indicative enough of his performance,” the memo said. It further noted that in parts…

The profound statement by former public protector Thuli Madonsela that waving the Palestinian flag is not anti-Semitic nor pro-Hamas refers. The abject failure of the UN and the big powers in halting this 21st-century Gaza holocaust has cast a dark shadow over humanity. The whole of mankind has turned a blind eye to the human tragedy unfolding in this demolished enclave. Choosing not to respond to their plight, not to relieve their solitude by offering aid and refuge, is to exile them from our collective memory. In denying them their humanity, we have betrayed our own. The world should be ashamed of its flight from moral responsibility and a retreat from its own standard of humanitarianism. Even today we stand by while innocent human beings are eliminated in a ball…

SINCE the Kia Sportage was introduced 30 years ago it has become a mainstay of the company and since 2016 globally the company’s best seller. It’s also one of only a handful of SUVs in the mid-size segment that boasts a diesel engine and we know how much South Africans like our oil burners, especially when it comes to being economical. With many manufacturers scaling down on their diesel development and focusing their attention on New Energy Vehicles, Kia South Africa say they have no intention of phasing out their diesel derivatives any time soon. In fact the company has freed up production capacity at two of their plants as a result of their Chinese plant producing exclusively for that market. The South African Sportage, by the way, is produced…

The 2024 Dakar Rally is but a few weeks away. News has been coming in over the last few weeks about teams’ changes. The latest news is the 2024 Toyota Dakar Rally team that will be driving for Toyota Gazoo Racing. Toyota Gazoo Racing (TGR) enter the 2024 Dakar Rally as defending champions. However, the team will be contesting the upcoming event without the man who claimed the last two wins at the event. Nasser Al-Attiyah left TGR to join Prodrive for 2024 Nevertheless, the 2024 Toyota Dakar Rally team will still be led by a former champion in Giniel de Villiers. Co-driver Dennis Murphy will take his regular seat alongside the Capetonian driver. The pair bring a wealth of experience to proceedings. The rally veterans will lead the South…

Bafana Bafana coach Hugo Broos has set his sights on helping his side qualify for the World Cup for the first time in 21 years. The South African men’s national team begin their 2026 World Cup qualifying campaign with clashes against Benin and Rwanda in the next two weeks and are looking to make a positive start. Although Bafana last featured in the global showpiece in 2010 as hosts, their ability to qualify for the World Cup was last proven in 2002, when Jomo Sono took his team to South Korea. The “Black Prince” led the likes of Benni McCarthy, Quinton Fortune and Mbulelo Mabizela, but South Africa fell short and failed to emerge from the group stages in what would become Bafana’s last earned participation at the World Cup.…

Cole Palmer says his surprise move from treble winners Manchester City to Premier League rivals Chelsea is already paying off after he earned a first England call-up. Palmer scored for City in the Community Shield in August and again in the Uefa Super Cup, but joined free-spending Chelsea in a deal worth up to £42.5 million on transfer deadline day, September 1. The 21-year-old forward has scored four times and provided four assists in 11 appearances since arriving at Stamford Bridge. He was called up to Gareth Southgate’s England squad after injuries to James Maddison, Callum Wilson and Lewis Dunk. “It happened fast, to be fair,” Palmer said at a media conference ahead of England’s final two Euro 2024 qualifiers, referring to his move. “I spoke to someone at Chelsea…