'Surge' in gender-based violence during lockdown Level 3, says Ramaphosa

South Africa has among the highest levels of intimate partner violence in the world, with 51% of women experiencing violence in a relationship.

Ministers will be engaging with community leaders on gender-based violence during Covid-19 interventions.

Mboweni will struggle to raise government revenue - experts

Finance Minister Tito Mboweni has very few options left to raise much-needed government funds, experts say.

Bicycle delivery service hits the road just in time for lockdown in Langa township

Cloudy Deliveries is a bicycle delivery service that has been operating in Langa, Cape Town, since the beginning of this year.

The small business was started by law student Colin Mkosi, who employs a fleet of 11 local high school boys to operate the deliveries.

OPINION | In a whirlwind 2020, can South African government bonds come out on top?

The turmoil in global financial markets during the first quarter of the year following the rapid spread of Covid-19 as well as the sudden plunge in oil prices caused havoc in fixed income markets across the globe.

MONEY CLINIC: How does the economic fallout from Covid-19 affect my pension?

A Fin24 reader noticing a negative investment return on his pension fund seeks the advice of an expert on how Covid-19 and the state of the economy affects his investment.

Covid-19: 'Her wings were ready but our hearts were not' – schoolmate bids farewell to friend

The novel coronavirus has claimed a daughter, wife, mother, sister, cousin and friend in Sasja Faro.

"Her wings were ready, but our hearts were not," her childhood friend, Charlene Schaff Jacobs, said.

Coronavirus morning update: 100 days of Covid-19 in SA, and concerns over North West, Gauteng

Cases are increasing at the highest rate since the outbreak began; two North West municipalities may go back to Level 4; and the pandemic is "gaining momentum" in Gauteng.

Hudson High School in East London became the 38th school in the Buffalo City metro to close this week due to a Covid-19 case, the Eastern Cape education department has said.

The metro's education district director, Nomvuselelo Fikeni, said 12 of the 38 schools have been cleared for reopening next week after they were fumigated.

Fikeni added the education had resolved to award the Department of Health custodian rights of schools during the lockdown.

'We're no longer as rich as we once were' - Mboweni hints at zero-based budgeting

Dropping a hint that the government is looking at zero-based budgeting ahead of next week's special budget, Finance Minister Tito Mboweni says the country is no longer as rich as "we once were".

All eyes will be on Mboweni who will deliver an "emergency" budget on 24 June in order to make provision for Covid-19 relief efforts.

Casinos reportedly hope to reopen in July, with every second slot machine turned off

South African casinos believe they'll be able to open their doors to the public again soon, probably within a couple of weeks, though gambling floors may look a little different, Moneyweb reported on Friday.

There "is no reason" why casinos can't open again on 1 July, Tsogo Sun Gaming CEO Chris du Toit told Moneyweb journalist Suren Naidoo.

And there are indications that the government "want the sector to open in July", said Sun International CEO Anthony Leeming.

Parents do not have to sign indemnity forms for their child to return to class, Western Cape Education MEC Debbie Schäfer said on Friday.

"The [department] does not support the use of such forms, and indemnity forms do not remove legal responsibility from the department," she added in a statement.

"Parents do not have to sign such forms, and their children may not be refused entry to school if they do not sign. Any parent who has been asked to sign such a form should contact their district office immediately."

Two Cape Town labour dept offices close after employees test positive for Covid-19

Covid-19 cases have resulted in the closing of the Mitchells Plain and Nyanga offices of the department of employment and labour until next Wednesday.

This comes after the Cape Town and Vredenburg labour centres were closed due to Covid-19, but have since reopened.

The North West Department of Health is considering taking two municipalities back to Level 4 due to increasing numbers of Covid-19 infections. 

Rustenburg and Matlosana municipalities, where mining activities take place, have recorded a spike in infections.

City Press earlier reported Health MEC Madoda Sambatha said the numbers in North West showed the "direct impact of mining operations" on Covid-19 cases, and emphasised the need for things to be done differently as mining companies brought back most of their employees during Level 3.

Expect more to die from TB and diabetes than Covid-19, says Zweli Mkhize

While Covid-19 is the most talked about virus, TB and diabetes are silent killers that remain the leading causes of natural deaths in South Africa. 

This was said by Health Minister Zweli Mkhize during a media briefing in East London on Friday.

Two Cape Town labour dept offices close after employees test positive for Covid-19

Covid-19 cases have resulted in the closing of the Mitchells Plain and Nyanga offices of the department of employment and labour until next Wednesday.

This comes after the Cape Town and Vredenburg labour centres were closed due to Covid-19, but have since reopened.

Covid-19 restrictions on personal care industry to stay for now as DA court bid postponed

The DA's application to the Western Cape High Court to challenge the prohibition on the personal care industry, which includes hairdressers and beauticians, was postponed on Friday.

DA MP Dean Macpherson said Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs Minister Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma was not ready to proceed.

Lesufi self-isolating after two staff members test positive for Covid-19

Gauteng's Education MEC Panyaza Lesufi is self-isolating after two staff members tested positive for Covid-19, Premier David Makhura revealed on Friday.

The department’s head office in Johannesburg is currently being decontaminated after it was shut down on Wednesday.

INSIGHTS | The first 100 days of Covid-19 in 10 graphs

Graphic representations of reported Covid-19 data can make analysis of the numbers much easier. We take a look at some of the key graphs that map progress in the fight against the coronavirus outbreak, and how it has spread.

Covid-19 wrap: US virus hotspots reopen as second wave looms, Ukraine's first lady tests positive

The pandemic has killed at least 421 691 people worldwide since it surfaced in China late last year, according to an AFP tally at 11:00 GMT on Friday, based on official sources.

There have been 7 529 910 cases registered in 196 countries and territories.

Covid-19 pandemic is gaining momentum in Gauteng, says Makhura

Gauteng needs to face the reality that the Covid-19 pandemic is gaining momentum. 

This is the view of the province's premier, David Makhura. 

"The pandemic is gaining momentum in the Gauteng province. This is the critical message that I want to send and we have got to face this reality head on and where there is no compliance. This will undo any gains that we made during the lockdown," he said during a virtual Provincial Coronavirus Command Council (PCCC) briefing on Friday.

Gauteng Department of Education officials and the School Governing Body (SGB) from an Ekurhuleni school had to step in this week after a teacher from the school tested positive for Covid-19 before the school reopened on Monday. 

This after at least 82 staff members including ground staff from Norkem Park High School were unable to return after the educator received the results, SGB chairperson Roy Mkhonza told News24 on Friday.

South Africans are not taking leave in lockdown - and companies are getting worried

With nowhere to go during the national lockdown, many South Africans have cancelled their leave for the winter holiday.

Delhi coronavirus deaths twice as high, say authorities

Deaths from coronavirus in New Delhi are almost twice as high as official figures show, a city leader said, as India overtook Britain with the fourth-highest number of cases worldwide.

With India's lockdown being widely eased, the government has been reporting almost 10 000 new confirmed cases every day with infections totalling almost 300 000, including 8 500 deaths.

Densely populated megacities such as Delhi and Mumbai are the worst affected, stretching hospitals to breaking point.

But data in Delhi is understating the true scale of the outbreak, said Jai Prakash, standing committee head of the North Delhi Municipal Corporation, one of the three sub-districts that make up the capital.

Citing data from the city's busy crematoriums and cemeteries, Prakash said Thursday that just over 2 000 people have died from the virus across the city - almost twice the official toll.

- AFP

Gauteng to consider joining call for sale of alcohol to be banned again

Gauteng Premier David Makhura's government will make a decision in the next few days on whether they will support the call for the reinstatement of the alcohol ban.

Salons, still closed for lockdown, must now pay all staff bonuses under a bargaining deal

Salons, barber shops, and beauty establishments remain closed for services under Alert Level 3 – but some just became liable for "ex gratia" payments to staff at the end of June.

Covid-19 and stigma: Staff testing positive cannot be sole grounds for dismissal - CCMA

The Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration (CCMA) says it has received more than 200 referrals dealing with Covid-19-related unfair terminations since March.

Covid-19: Joburg primary school use hula hoops to help pupils maintain physical distancing

As schools adjust to the new normal of pupils physical distancing while in and out of class, a Johannesburg primary school has come up with an innovative way of getting pupils used to the new way of interacting amid the Covid-19 pandemic.

Scientists predicted that the Covid-19 death rate would fall over time, but it doubled

Many countries' coronavirus curves are flattening, at least for now.

Yet somehow, the global case-fatality rate has increased significantly since March, when it was around 3.4%.

The rate was 5.8% on Tuesday, according to tallies from the World Health Organisation, and it hovered around 7% from mid-April through May.

Gauteng Provincial government briefing summary:  

Premier David Makhura says that the Covid-19 is gaining momentum in Gauteng as the data from a growing infection rate shows.  

There is increase in the number of active cases in Gauteng. There are 47% recoveries, 52% active cases last week. Now there are 62% active cases.  

The premier linked most of the new cases to an increase in mining activity.  

In the hotspots in the West Rand there are new cases coming up, linked to mining activity, says Makhura  

He said that interventions work and the government has been actively tracing contacts of new cases.  

On schools, 56 have had positive cases and WHO protocols have been enacted to ensure that the institutions can open again as soon as possible.  

Makhura though, expressed concerns about the continued vandalism at schools, highlighting that more than 400 people have been arrested.  

At least 85% of the staff and pupils have returned to school and the province is preparing for the other grades.  

Health MEC Bandile Masuku highlighted the impact of alcohol-related injuries on the health system, but stopped short of calling for a ban in the province.  

Makhura said that a decision will be made in the next few days.

We will share the experience of the Eastern Cape, says Makhura.  

Haven't yet decided whether alcohol should be fully banned.  

MEC Masuku is studying the effect of alcohol on the healthcare system, says Makhura

Says the province has been examining the stricter regulation of alcohol.  

Alcohol places a disease burden on the healthcare system