Category: South Africa Government

President Cyril Ramaphosa undertook a Working Visit to the Kingdom of Spain on Wednesday night.

“His Excellency President Cyril Ramaphosa is this evening undertaking a working visit to the Kingdom of Spain, where the President will have an audience with the King of Spain, His Majesty Felipe VI, and a bilateral engagement with the President of the Government of Spain, His Excellency Dr Pedro Sánchez,” the Presidency said on Wednesday night.

In his weekly newsletter, which reflected on the recently concluded sixth South Africa Investment Conference, President Ramaphosa stated that he would be visiting the European country this week.
In Monday’s newsletter, President Ramaphosa said South Africa’s investment drive does not start and end with the Investment Conferences.

“We continue with our outward investment missions in search of new markets and to consolidate existing trade ties. We continue to convene structured business forums on the sidelines of bilateral engagements, including state visits and bi-national commissions. As we have done in the past, we continue to prioritise targeted, one-on-one engagements with investors during international trips,” he said.

Bilateral trade between South Africa and Spain grew by 9.7% from US$3.1 billion in 2022 to US$3.4 billion in 2023. Previously, the Presidency stated that there had been steady investment in South Africa by Spanish companies, while South African companies have also looked to Spain as an investment destination in the real estate sector. 

More than 150 Spanish companies have invested in South Africa, creating over 20,000 jobs across various sectors.

Prime Minister Sánchez visited South Africa in October 2022.

The President’s Working Visit reaffirms the strong diplomatic relations and partnership between the Kingdom of Spain and South Africa, and will explore opportunities to strengthen people-to-people ties. –SAnews.gov.za

 

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Deputy Minister of Water and Sanitation, Sello Seitlholo, has raised concerns over delays in the completion of the R220 million upgrade of the Meyerton Wastewater Treatment Works (WWTW). 

Seitlholo raised concerns during an oversight visit to the facility in the Midvaal Local Municipality, within the Sedibeng District Municipality, as part of ongoing efforts to address sanitation challenges. 

Tuesday’s visit aimed to assess progress on the upgrade and expansion of the project, which resumed in 2017, and to engage with key stakeholders.

He was accompanied by Sipho Mosai, Chief Executive Officer of Rand Water, as well as Midvaal Executive Mayor Peter Teixeira, Sedibeng Executive Mayor Lerato Maloka, and Desmond Fransman, Chairperson of the Vaal-Orange Catchment Management Agency.

Meyerton Wastewater Treatment Works project was funded by the Department of Water and Sanitation through its Regional Bulk Infrastructure Grant. With Rand Water appointed as the implementing agent, the project is intended to improve sanitation services and ensure that the effluent treated at the plant meets the required standards. 

Two phases of the project have been completed, while the third phase, which will expand the plant’s capacity from yielding 10 megalitres per day (ml/d) to 25 ml/d is still underway.

Seitlholo expressed concern over the delays, warning that ongoing failures in wastewater management will threaten the municipality’s water resources, locally and nationally. Rand Water has, however, committed to completing the project within the current financial year.

Project delays have been attributed to contractor cash flow constraints, payment challenges, and persistent rainfall, which disrupted construction. Rand Water said it has since implemented recovery measures, including resolving payment issues, re-engaging subcontractors and accelerating construction to recover lost time.

The utility added that sanitation challenges are not only limited to Midvaal but also affect the broader Sedibeng District.

Beyond the delays, Seitlholo emphasised the need to protect water resources as a component of the water value chain.

“If we do not take care of the value chain, how are we going to secure the quality at the end of it? How are we going to give people clean drinking water?” the Deputy Minister said.

He stressed that safeguarding rivers, tributaries and dams from pollution is essential to ensuring a safe water supply, warning that the discharge of untreated sewage continues to threaten water quality.

“I am concerned about the beginning of water value chain and this has propelled me to engage with stakeholders in the country on how to fundamentally get to a point where our water resources, tributaries, rivers, and dams are not being infiltrated by millions of litres of raw sewerage every day,” said the Deputy Minister, underscoring his commitment to the protection of water resources.

Seitlholo added that the improvement of the water value chain at the infrastructure level, with a completed upgrade of Meyerton WWTW will significantly improve sanitation services for communities, including Rothdene, Meyerton, Rustervaal, Sicelo Shiceka informal settlement and the surrounding industries.

The Department of Water and Sanitation maintains that the oversight visits are essential to hold implementing agents accountable, resolve bottlenecks, and ensure that infrastructure projects deliver tangible benefits to communities without further delay. – SAnews.gov.za
 

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President Cyril Ramaphosa has called for urgent reforms to unlock local economies, warning that poor governance at municipal level is undermining service delivery and stifling economic growth.

Delivering the keynote address at the 2026 National Local Economic Development (LED) Summit at the Birchwood Conference Centre on Wednesday, President Ramaphosa said persistent failures in local government are directly affecting economic opportunity.

“The Auditor-General’s report on local government highlights persistent weaknesses that directly undermine service delivery and constrain local economic development,” he said.

He listed key shortcomings, including “weak financial management and revenue collection, failure to maintain infrastructure, ineffective supply chain management, irregular and wasteful expenditure, and weak consequence management”.

These failures, he said, are felt daily by citizens and businesses.

“These challenges translate into unreliable electricity, water insecurity, poor roads, poor service delivery and unsafe trading environments.” 

President Ramaphosa stressed that governance reform is non-negotiable if municipalities are to play their role in economic development.

“Without fixing governance, we cannot fix service delivery and without fixing service delivery, we cannot unlock local economic development. The task of this summit is to shift the discussion from the problems to the solutions,” the President said. 

He raised concern over the chronic underinvestment in infrastructure maintenance, noting that municipalities are falling far below required benchmarks.

“National Treasury Guidelines require municipalities to budget 8% of the carrying value of property, plant and equipment. Many municipalities are budgeting less than 1%,” he said. 

The President called for improved revenue collection and greater use of private investment to address infrastructure backlogs, saying municipalities must take the lead in resolving service delivery constraints. 

“As my contribution to the deliberations of the summit, there are four sets of actions that I would like to put forward. The first of these is to unblock service delivery constraints at local government level, especially with regards to basic infrastructure,” he said. 

He emphasised that reliable energy, water and transport systems are essential to economic growth. 

“Energy security, water provision, roads and rail lines are the foundation of growth. We have made much progress in tackling load shedding and improving the efficiency of our logistics sector. This summit must now translate national progress into local success,” the President said. 

President Ramaphosa added that municipalities must ensure conducive conditions for businesses to operate. 

“Municipalities must be the frontline in unblocking infrastructure constraints, ensuring that the local industrial park has the power it needs… and that township businesses have streetlighting to trade safely beyond daylight hours,” the President said. – SAnews.gov.za

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President Cyril Ramaphosa has appointed Roelf Meyer as South Africa’s Ambassador to the United States, describing him as a seasoned and capable envoy suited to strengthening bilateral relations.

The President confirmed the appointment on the sidelines of the National Local Economic Development (LED) Summit in Boksburg on Wednesday.

“Roelf Meyer is a South African, a very loyal and patriotic South African, who has distinguished himself in a number of areas where he has worked. And yes, he did lead the National Party negotiating team, together with myself. 

“He was a Cabinet Minister in the initial government of national unity and has done very well in those areas,” President Ramaphosa said. 

The President highlighted Meyer’s recent international mediation work as a key asset to his diplomatic role.

“Recently, he’s been involved in mediation processes in a number of countries, and that, in many ways, has sharpened his diplomatic skills, where he has been able to get involved either in conflict situations, trying to bring peace amongst differing warring parties at a very quiet level, continuing to assist even our government in these different diplomatic efforts,” he said. 

The President said Meyer has already begun engaging key stakeholders in the United States.

“When we needed to appoint an Ambassador to the United States, I found him to be more than qualified to be able to work in the United States, recalibrate our relationship with the United States and interface with a number of stakeholders. 

“As it is now, he’s been interfacing with a number of people in the United States, both in Capitol Hill and in the various departments of the United States.

“Already a lot of interactions have taken place. So he is, for me, more than well qualified to execute this task,” the President said. 

He added that Meyer is expected to formally present his credentials to the US government.

“He still has to present his credentials to the government of the United States or to the President of the United States and I am more than hopeful that just as we have received and accepted the credentials of Ambassador Bozell, he will also be accredited equally in that manner,” President Ramaphosa said. 

President Ramaphosa expressed confidence that Meyer will represent South Africa effectively.

“He has always flown the South African flag, and he will do so like all our ambassadors all over the world, and all we should do is to wish him well and the very best, and give him all the support that he needs,” the President said. 

He emphasised the importance of the United States as a strategic partner.

“The United States is the largest economy in the world, and it still plays an important role in our own economic fortunes,” said the President. – SAnews.gov.za

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President Cyril Ramaphosa has called for sweeping reforms to cut red tape and support small businesses, warning that bureaucratic delays at municipal level are driving away investment and limiting opportunities for township entrepreneurs.

Speaking at the 2026 National Local Economic Development (LED) Summit at the Birchwood Conference Centre, President Ramaphosa said improving the ease of doing business must be a top priority for local government.

“Cutting red tape is crucial both to attract large scale investments and also to enable informal traders and small township entrepreneurs to succeed,” he said on Wednesday. 

While acknowledging progress in some municipalities, he expressed concern that these remain isolated successes.

“Some of our cities and municipalities have done well in improving the ease of doing business. They have systems and targets for zoning approvals, issuing construction permits, connecting businesses with water and electricity, issuing trading and business licences, including using e-registration systems. There is regulatory certainty. However, I worry that these municipalities are the exception rather than the rule,” the President said. 

He pointed to administrative inefficiencies that continue to block economic activity.

“More often than not, bureaucratic delays at municipal level prevent local investments from getting over the line,” he said. 

Among the key challenges are delays in issuing business licences, which prevent small enterprises from accessing support.

“There are backlogs in issuing business licences, which, among other things, prevent micro enterprises from accessing government support. This must change,” he emphasised. 

President Ramaphosa said government is working to address these issues through policy reforms, including the Business Licensing Bill and the Red Tape Reduction Framework, but stressed that municipalities must act decisively. 

“We call on local government to drive its own red tape reduction reforms,” he said. 

He further urged stronger collaboration between municipalities and the private sector to unlock local economic potential.

“We would also like to see continuous engagement with local business associations and forums, so that we may understand their frustrations and address their concerns,” he said. 

The President emphasised that investment decisions are heavily influenced by how business-friendly municipalities are.

“Investment will always gravitate towards municipalities that make it easy to do business,” the President said. 

He also called on established businesses to partner with municipalities, develop local suppliers, invest in skills and open value chains. 

“We must leave this summit with a programme of action that binds us to clear deliverables and timelines. 

“We must ensure that the collaborative blueprint we draft here over the next two days contributes to a new reality for every South African, for every business, in every municipality, in every corner of our land,” he said. 

He concluded by reaffirming the country’s entrepreneurial potential and the need to create an enabling environment for it to thrive.

“South Africa is a country of entrepreneurs. Our task is to unleash their potential and, in so doing, to build an inclusive economy that creates opportunities for all,” the President said. – SAnews.gov.za

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The South African Weather Service (SAWS) has warned of severe storms over the extreme north-east of the Northern Cape, the North West, and the Free State on Wednesday. 

Due to the upper air system (cut-off low), conditions are favourable for the development of severe storms, potentially leading to minor impacts.

Due to these conditions, there could be localised damage to infrastructure, settlements (informal), localised flooding of susceptible roads, low-lying areas and bridges, and trees could block minor roads.

The outlook for Thursday and Friday is partly cloudy and warm, but it will be cool in places in the east and south with isolated to scattered showers and thundershowers possible over the central and eastern parts of the country. –SAnews.gov.za

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KwaZulu-Natal MEC for Finance Francois Rodgers has welcomed the comprehensive engagement held with the Government of India on its Government e-Marketplace (GeM) — a world-class digital public procurement platform designed to enhance transparency, efficiency and inclusivity in government procurement systems.

Rodgers noted the strong alignment between the principles underpinning the GeM platform and KwaZulu-Natal’s own efforts to modernise procurement through digital reform.

The GeM platform, which operates as a fully digital, rule-based and transparent procurement marketplace, has been instrumental in reducing human transactional interfaces, improving price determination, expanding supplier participation, particularly among small and emerging enterprises, and strengthening audit trails within public procurement processes.

Rodgers said KwaZulu-Natal Treasury is pursuing a similar vision through the implementation of the provincial digital procurement plan aimed at modernising procurement practices, strengthening financial governance, and curbing inefficiencies and opportunities for maladministration.

“The engagement with the Government of India confirms that KwaZulu-Natal is on the right path in its digital procurement reform journey. Digital procurement platforms are critical for building capable institutions, improving oversight, and restoring public trust in the management of public resources,” Rodgers said in a statement on Wednesday.

He said the KwaZulu-Natal government remains open to learning, development and partnership with other governments and institutions that have successfully implemented innovative reforms in public financial management.

“We recognise that no government operates in isolation. There is value in learning from international best practice and adapting proven systems to strengthen service delivery outcomes and ensure value for money for our citizens,” he said.

The engagement forms part of KwaZulu-Natal Provincial Treasury’s broader commitment to advancing the vision of an ethical and capable State, where public finances are managed transparently and procurement systems directly support inclusive economic growth and improved service delivery.

Under Rodgers’ leadership, the department is expected to continue exploring collaborative opportunities, knowledge exchange platforms, and reform partnerships aimed at strengthening governance, accountability, and institutional capacity across the province. – SAnews.gov.za

 

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Home Affairs Deputy Minister Njabulo Nzuza will on Friday lead an Identity Document (ID) Campaign and High Impact Outreach Programme in Escourt, KwaZulu-Natal, bringing essential government services closer to the people.

“This programme is dedicated to ensuring that every qualifying member of the community has access to the documents they need, particularly IDs, so that no one is left behind ahead of the upcoming Local Government Elections. For many, these documents are not just pieces of paper, but a gateway to dignity, opportunity and full participation in society,” the Department of Home Affairs said in a statement.

“Working together with the Electoral Commission of South Africa (IEC), the outreach will also provide voter education, to help community members understand the importance of their voice in shaping the future of their society.

“Taking place as South Africa marks 30 years of its Constitution, this initiative speaks to the continued commitment to uphold the rights of all citizens – ensuring that everyone, especially those in underserved areas, can fully exercise their democratic rights,” the department said. – SAnews.gov.za

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Trade, Industry and Competition Deputy Minister Zuko Godlimpi and Gauteng Economic Development, Agriculture and Rural Development MEC Vuyiswa Ramokgopa will lead an interactive public participation session on the planned designation of the proposed Vaal Special Economic Zone (SEZ).

The session will be hosted by the Department of Trade, Industry and Competition (dtic), in partnership with the Gauteng Provincial Government and Sedibeng District Municipality.

“The public participation session follows Trade, Industry and Competition Minister Parks Tau’s publication in the Government Gazette of his intention to designate the proposed Vaal SEZ for public comment,” the Department of Trade, Industry and Competition said in a statement. 

Tau has provided the general public 30 days to comment on the proposed development.

“The session in Vereeniging will provide the residents of the area with an opportunity to express their views and share ideas on the proposed SEZ with national, provincial and local government leadership,” the department said.

The Vaal SEZ land area will comprise of five land parcels in Heidelberg, Rietspruit, Langlaagte, Zwartkopjies and Kookfontein. 

The prospective sites for the Vaal SEZ are strategically located near significant population centres and essential transportation infrastructure, moreover, the development of the Vaal SEZ aligns seamlessly with the objectives outlined in the Sedibeng District Municipality’s District Development Model (DDM) and its District One Plan. – SAnews.gov.za

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The North West Provincial Treasury has issued a warning about fraudulent communications currently circulating that falsely claim a tender has been awarded by the department.

According to the department, individuals and businesses are being contacted regarding the alleged awarding of a tender identified as “BID NWP002/25 for the supply and delivery of cleaning chemicals to the North West Provincial Government for a period of three years”.

These messages reportedly originate from the Head of Department. However, the Provincial Treasury has categorically dismissed the communications as fraudulent and misleading.

“The Head of Department is not involved in any procurement or bidding processes, including the awarding of tenders. All official procurement processes are conducted in accordance with established Supply Chain Management policies, and any communication relating to bids or awards is issued through formal and verifiable departmental channels only,” the department said in a statement.

The department has urged members of the public, service providers, and stakeholders to ignore such messages and refrain from sharing personal or financial information. It further encouraged anyone who receives suspicious communications to report them to law enforcement authorities.

The department said the tender pertaining to the supply and delivery of cleaning material was indeed advertised and has been closed. The tender adjudication processes will follow the legislated processes, which are still to follow in accordance with legislated procedures.

For verification of any tender-related information, stakeholders are encouraged to contact the department through its official communication platforms. – SAnews.gov.za
 

 

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