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| PRES ZUMA TO ADDRESS UNGA69 |
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| The address will be streamlined live on Ubuntu Radio (www.ubunturadio.com) and the UN YouTube channel (http://www.youtube.com/user/unitednations). |
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On 24 September 2014, President Jacob Zuma will deliver an address during the 69th Session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA 69), under the theme: “Delivering on and Implementing a Transformative Post-2015 Development Agenda”.
The General Assembly, comprised of all 193 members of the UN, provides a unique forum for multilateral discussion of the full spectrum of international issues covered by the UN Charter. |
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| SA SURVIVORS FROM NIGERIA RETURN HOME |
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| The Inter-Ministerial Task Team on the Nigeria tragedy, led by Minister in The Presidency and Chairperson of the task team, Jeff Radebe, received the 26 patients at the Zwartkop Air Force Base in Pretoria. |
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Twenty six South Africans who were injured when a building at the Synagogue Church of all Nations in Nigeria collapsed, arrived in the country on 22 September.
Ambulances from the Gauteng Emergency Services transported the patients directly to the Steve Biko Hospital where they would be assessed prior to being transferred to the hospital of their choice or discharged according to their condition.
Minister Radebe said a team of specialists accompanied and cared for the injured during the 10-hour flight back home.
Minister Radebe has requested families of South Africans who are not yet unaccounted for to contact the information line: 012 351 1000.
The South African assessment team in Lagos is continuing with the work of finalising the process of repatriation of deceased South African citizens.
Specific details about the repatriation of the deceased South Africans will be provided as soon as the identification process is completed.
The Inter-Ministerial Task Team has thanked South Africans for their continued support to the affected families during this difficult time. – SAnews.gov.za |
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| DEPUTY PRESIDENT RAMAPHOSA RETURNS TO LESOTHO |
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| Since his appointment by the SADC Double Troika of Heads of State and Government plus the Democratic Republic of Congo and Tanzania, Deputy President Ramaphosa visited Lesotho on 18 September. |
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Supported by a team of Southern African Development Community (SADC) Troika member states experts and secretariat – led by the Deputy Executive Secretary Dr Themba Mhlongo – Deputy President Ramaphosa met with all political and other role players in Lesotho.
Deputy President and SADC facilitator, Cyril Ramaphosa, returned to Maseru, Lesotho, on Monday, 22 September, for talks aimed at restoring peace, stability and democracy in Lesotho.
During the visit, he paid a courtesy call on King Letsie III, and held meetings with leaders of the Coalition Government (led by Prime Minister Thomas Thabane), main and small opposition political parties as well as the College of Chiefs.
“Critical in this regard is the urgent need to address all political and security challenges in preparation for the brought-forward elections, the reopening of Parliament, stabilisation of the security situation and thus help the Kingdom of Lesotho return to constitutional normalcy,” said The Presidency. – Source: SAnews.gov.za |
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| NEW TRAVEL REGULATIONS FOR CHILDREN PUT ON HOLD |
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| Minister Gigaba explained that the postponement was in light of the upcoming peak travel periods for families in December and January for the festive season and April for Easter. |
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The new requirement of an Unabridged Birth Certificate for all children travelling to and within South Africa's borders, as well as written permission, has been postponed until 1 June 2015, says Home Affairs Minister Malusi Gigaba.
This refers to the requirements that children be in possession of an Unabridged Birth Certificate and have written permission from both parents or guardians authorising the child's travel. The certificate is expected to assist in the safety of children, including their protection from child trafficking, abduction and kidnapping.
The immigration regulations were announced in May and the provision for an Unabridged Birth Certificate was set to come into effect on 1 October 2014.
Ahead of the decision to postpone the new requirement, the Minister met with Tourism Minister, Derek Hanekom, and stakeholders in the tourism and aviation industry. Addressing media in Cape Town, he said: “A postponement would greatly assist travellers and the sectors as a whole."
“… we have granted a postponement of these two particular requirements, the Unabridged Birth Certificate and written permission to June 1st 2015,” he said, adding that during the postponement, government would work intensively with industry stakeholders to ensure accurate information was available to all prospective travellers accompanying children all around the world, and allow those travellers time to gather the necessary documents.
Minister Gigaba said the department would also heighten vigilance at all the country’s ports of entry during the postponement. – Source: SAnews.gov.za |
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| SA, CHINA SIGN LABOUR PACT |
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The two ministers signed a memorandum of understanding, which will see parties working together to strengthen employment services, labour inspection services, social security and employment programmes to meet the challenges of the labour market and globalisation. |
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The Minister of Labour, Mildred Oliphant, and her Chinese counterpart, Yin Weimin, recently met to discuss matters related to improving human resource development in both countries.
Weimin said China was looking forward to deeper cooperation with South Africa. “The purpose of our visit is to promote our exchanges in the fields of human resources and employment services between South Africa and China.”
Minister Oliphant said officials her department would visit China to explore IT systems, their governance service delivery models and business processes. She added that during the Sixth BRICS Summit held in Fortaleza, Brazil, the leaders agreed that a Labour and Employment, Social Security and Social Inclusion Public Policies Forum be explored as a new area of focus. – Source: SAnews.gov.za |
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| POOR SCHOOLS GET SUPPORT FROM BRITISH COUNCIL |
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| LEAP is also an initiative aimed at improving low literacy and numeracy rates consistent with the findings of the Annual National Assessments. |
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The Minister of Basic Education, Angie Motshekga and British High Commissioner to South Africa, Judith Mcgregor, on 16 September 2014 launched the Learn English Audio Project (LEAP).
LEAP is a project which seeks to empower teachers from remote and underresourced schools in nine African countries with tools to improve their English listening and speaking skills, while tremendously enhancing and supporting learners’ comprehension of oral and written language. This will be achieved through quality English learning material on micro-SD cards delivered via solar-powered MP3 players popularly known as “Life Players”. |
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| DIRCO HOSTS NATIONAL CONSULTATIVE WOMEN FORUM ON AGENDA 2063 |
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| The Department of International Relations and Cooperation (DIRCO) has already initiated national consultations with different sectors with a view to submit inputs to the African Union (AU) by the end of October 2014. |
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The Director-General of DIRCO, Amb Jerry Matjila, hosted a National Women Consultative Forum on Agenda 2063 in Pretoria on 16 September.
The continent is currently engaged in extensive consultations on its vision for the next 50 years, known as Agenda 2063, under the theme “The Africa We Want”. This vision, which is expected to be adopted by the January 2015 Summit of the AU, spells out the aspirations of African people across all sectors and the pledges of Africa’s leaders which are translated into a “Call to Action” comprised of a 10-year action plan that will contain flagship projects.
Each AU member state, including South Africa, is expected to contribute to this vision through inclusive national consultations by October this year. When the vision is adopted, member states will have to align their national policies with it through a process of domestication which, in South Africa’s case, will entail harmonising Agenda 2063 with the National Development Plan. |
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| AFRICA AEROSPACE AND DEFENCE (AAD) EXHIBITION DRAWS THOUSANDS |
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| AAD 2014 was expected to generate R684 million worth of economic output and create 2 055 temporary jobs. |
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The Minister of Defence, Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula, officially opened the 2014 edition of the Africa Aerospace and Defence (AAD) at Air Force Base Waterkloof on 17 September where 47 000 trade visitors were expected to congregate over the first three days of the show.
AAD 2014 took place against the backdrop of the country celebrating 20 years of democracy and freedom. It thus provided a unique opportunity to reflect deeply on the progress of our journey towards building a robust democracy and an environment that provides equal opportunities for all citizens.
Minister Mapisa-Nquakula said that over 95 000 people were expected to attend the show, with the majority arriving for the public air show days over the weekend. She added that 413 exhibitors from 29 countries would descend on Waterkloof, together with 84 foreign delegations.
“The Africa Aerospace and Defence show … is organised as a show of the continent, and hosted on our home soil, and it has been growing in strength and size since the inaugural edition. I want to commend the partners of the AAD for having grown the partnership and the show from strength to strength with every bi-annual edition,” she said during her opening address.
“… we see this exhibition as a platform that encourages mutually beneficial partnerships between our local industry and international original equipment manufacturers in a manner that will ensure that our industry remains capable and capacitated through technology transfer, collaborative developments, indigenisation and market access.” – Source: www.defenceweb.co.za |
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| SA TO HOST GLOBAL CRIME CONFERENCE |
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| Hosted in Africa for the first time, Crime Stoppers is an international body that is active in over 26 countries around the world through programmes that are driven by the anonymous tip-offs that are passed on to law enforcement. |
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South Africa will next month host the 35th Annual Crime Stoppers Conference, which will see the global crime--fighting community converge in Cape Town.
The four-day conference from 12 to 15 October 2014, will offer delegates a comprehensive look at crime globally, but with actions and solutions that they can take home. It will be held under the theme, “It’s Time”.
Speaking at the formal launch of the conference recently, National Police Commissioner, Riah Phiyega, said that the South African Police Service had an abundance of experience in successfully securing events of this nature.
“Last year, we also hosted a similar conference, when over 1 000 policewomen descended on our shores for the International Association of Women Police’s annual training conference in Durban.
“This is yet another chance for all of us as South Africans and those of us in law enforcement in particular to showcase our hospitality as well as our professionalism, expertise and skills,” Commissioner Phiyega said. – Source: SAnews.gov.za |
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| SOUTH AFRICAN COMPANIES EXCEL IN RUSSIA |
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| South Africa’s local food products have been well received among Russian food importers. |
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Cabinet recently congratulated South African companies that were awarded the best standing at the World Food Show in Moscow.
This year, 3 000 exhibitors showcased their produce. Under the Export Marketing and Investment Assistance scheme, 21 South African companies showcased the agroprocessing sector. |
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| ARGUS AFRICA LIQUID PETROLEUM GAS (LPG) CONFERENCE HELD IN CAPE TOWN |
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| The conference offered the Department of Energy an opportunity to highlight continued diligent work done by the department to ensure energy security for all South African citizens. |
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The Argus Africa LPG Conference was held from 16 to 17 September 2014 in Cape Town. This regional Africa event was the latest edition in the successful series of global Argus LPG conferences.
It is a platform for industry stakeholders, investors and government representatives to convene and share best practices and overcome challenges associated with improving access to LPG across Africa. |
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| NDI AND IEC CO-HOST AFRICAN EXCHANGE WORKSHOP ON OPENING ELECTION DATA |
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| The Electoral Commission of South Africa (IEC) has been a leader among election management bodies around the world in both promoting and implementing election transparency practices. |
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Access to electoral data and electoral transparency was the focus of a three-day exchange workshop hosted by the National Democratic Institute (NDI) and the IEC in Parktown, Johannesburg.
The NDI, an international non-profit, non-governmental democracy assistance organisation brought together 15 citizen election observers from across the African continent and a United States-based transparency specialist to engage in discussions and practical exercises with their South African colleagues on the theme of open election data. As a co-host of the event, the IEC shared its work in promoting transparency in election administration and guidelines for citizen observers to engage constructively with election management bodies on transparency issues.
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| SA COMMITTED TO WORK WITH DRC |
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| The investment seminar was part of the dti’s Investment and Trade Initiative, which took a 30-member business delegation to the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). |
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South Africa is committed to collaborating with the DRC to ensure that relations are strengthened.
“There are a number of areas where South Africa and the DRC could collaborate on. South Africa is committed to working closely with the DRC in ensuring that our bilateral trade relations are strengthened and deepened,” said the Acting Deputy Director-General of the Department of Trade and Industry (dti), Yunus Hoosen.
He was speaking at a Trade and Investment Seminar held in Kinshasa recently.
The delegation represented companies in the agriculture and agroprocessing, infrastructure, built environment, energy, mining and capital equipment sectors, among others. |
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| SA, JAMAICA HOST POETRY SESSION |
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| The two countries have agreed to cooperate in projects and activities in the fields of artistic, architectural restoration, preservation, and generally developing their national heritage. |
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South African poet laureate, Professor Keorapetse Kgositsile held a poetry reading session at the National Library with his Jamaican counterpart poet laureate, Professor Emeritus Mervyn Morris, last week.
This as South Africa marks 20 years of democracy and freedom and Jamaica recently celebrated its 52nd Independence Day. It is also 20 years since the establishment of diplomatic relations between Jamaica and South Africa.
The aim of the event was to foster relations with the Diaspora and broaden cultural relations with Jamaica. – Source: SAnews.gov.za |
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