Director-General for Basic Education Hubert Mathanzima Mweli responds to recent claims about the ‘political theatre’ surrounding the annual announcement of the matric pass rate, arguing that attempts to present a narrative of decline in education are ‘misleading’.

In the midst of the urban decay in Johannesburg’s inner-eastern suburbs, something remarkable is growing. A once-neglected field in Bez Valley has been transformed into a working, thoughtful and increasingly thriving urban farm known as Marais-BezValley-garden

The ease and accessibility of a variety of mountain bike trails is one of the reasons I can survive in and love Johannesburg. Here’s my A to T of trails, which hopefully will encourage you to get on your bike (or get a bike) and experience the trails for yourself.

The Nelson Mandela Bay Metro is scrambling to avert a refuse crisis after failing to advertise a key compaction truck tender on time. The metro has now moved to extend the lapsed contract for six months, despite warnings that such deviations contributed to the metro’s rising unauthorised, irregular, fruitless and wasteful expenditure.

When a fire broke out at the busy Physician-on-Call section at Nelson Mandela Bay’s Livingstone Hospital, doctors and nurses discovered that neither the fire panels nor the alarms and smoke detectors were working – and the service dates of the fire extinguishers had expired.

In a chaotic turn of events, four suspects were arrested after a home invasion in Theescombe, with private security and the community potentially cracking a case linked to one of Nelson Mandela Bay’s most notorious robbery gangs.

If a quick check of your daily average screen time leaves you slightly concerned, know that you are among a very large group of people who spend too much time on their devices. And South Africans are doing it more than virtually anyone else.

A routine quality check in the Netherlands has spiralled into a global Nestlé product recall. That means South African parents need to return tins of contaminated NAN infant formula.

The Judicial Service Commission has recommended the initiation of removal proceedings against Judge Mushtak Parker following a finding of gross misconduct.

Russia on Thursday slammed a plan for European peacekeepers to be deployed to Ukraine as “dangerous” and dubbed Kyiv and its allies an “axis of war”, dousing hopes the plan could be a step towards ending the almost four-year-war.

Seasoned broadcast journalist Graeme Raubenheimer brings you The Lead, News24’s definitive podcast for in-depth reporting. This is The Lead, and this is the South African story.

Absa’s Purchasing Managers’ Index just slipped 1.5 points, but the landing spot is the real headline: 40.5, the weakest since April 2020 for the second straight month. Inventories and jobs fell hard, hinting at a manufacturing sector running on fumes.

Hot and humid conditions are expected in parts of KwaZulu-Natal and the Eastern Cape, while severe thunderstorms with heavy rain are forecast in five other provinces, according to the South African Weather Service.

In a striking display of loyalty amid adversity, Boitekong residents in the North West delivered glowing testimonials about their ward councillor Thabang Rampou during ANC president Cyril Ramaphosa’s Thursday visit, even as they navigate daily battles with water shortages, power cuts, and poor roads.

As the 2026 academic year looms, South Africa’s Technical and Vocational Education and Training sector finds itself at a critical crossroads. While campuses prepare to welcome thousands of students, a profound leadership vacuum and a chronic shortage of specialist educators threaten to undermine the very institutions tasked with solving the nation’s skills crisis.