·5 Sep 2025
Ford, Glencore and ArcelorMittal SA this week announced plans to cut thousands of jobs in South Africa, dealing a further blow to an economy contending with mass unemployment and lacklustre growth.
Industry in Africa’s most-developed economy faces constraints, including a costly and unreliable electricity supply as well as increased competition from Asian manufacturers.
The imposition of 30% tariffs on some South African exports to the US has exacerbated the challenges. Opposition parties and labor unions accuse the government of failing to…
Rainfall: Most of the country receives less than 600 mm of rainfall annually, with
the eastern regions being wetter.
Plenty Orange
If God is watching you, at least be entertaining
Rope
Fun South African Fact: South African Dr. Christiaan Barnard performed the world’s first heart transplant on 3 December 1967 at Groote Schuur Hospital in Cape Town. The groundbreaking surgery was carried out on Louis Washkansky and Dr. Barnard was assisted by a large and exceptional team of surgeons, nurses and technicians. One of Dr. Barnard’s assistants was Hamilton Naki, a black laboratory assistant who had worked previously as a gardener and went on to work in the animal laboratory at the University of Cape Town. He had assisted Dr Barnard with research leading to the transplant. In the apartheid days, Naki had no access to higher education due to his race. Despite being unable to access formal training, he learned from and assisted university researchers and went on to do improbable work.