South Africa

Pretoria - President Jacob Zuma has congratulated Ladysmith Black Mambazo on their fourth Grammy Award win.

Pretoria – The Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration (CCMA) remains upbeat that a solution to end the strike in the platinum sector can be found.

One of the first things that President Jacob Zuma did when he assumed office in 2009, was to split the then Department into two ministries - the Department of Basic Education and the Department of Higher Education and Training.

Pretoria - Police marked National Police Day on Monday by reaching out to and improving relationships with communities in the Free State.

Pretoria - North West Premier Thandi Modise has called on the community of Swartruggens to assist the police in arresting the perpetrators of a gruesome murder of a woman.

Pretoria - South Africa has welcomed the adoption of the new constitution in Tunisia, saying the country has shown the world the value of dialogue, consultation and consensus.

Pretoria - The State of the Nation Address, Budget Speech and a conference in support of the people of Cuba, Palestine and Western Sahara are some of the highlights on Parliament’s first term programme for 2014, as it races against time to finalise its work before the end of this administration.

Pretoria – Housing finance and urban development will form the thrust of a paper Human Settlements Minister Connie September will deliver at a meeting with her SADC (Southern African Development Community) counterparts in Zambia.

Pretoria - Home Affairs Director-General Mkuseli Apleni has refuted claims that the department is offering training with the prospect of employment to matriculants.

Pretoria - Construction for the Further Education and Training (FET) College campus in Sterkspruit, in the Eastern Cape, is set to commence in April.

Pretoria – Water and Environmental Affairs Minister, Edna Molewa, says there is room for improvement with regard to communication between government and local communities.

Pretoria – The Health Professions Council of South Africa (HPCSA) has reminded prospective students and their families to make sure that the training institutions they are enrolling in are accredited colleges.

Pretoria – Authorities have warned the public against using illicit birth control pills, as they might be harmful.

Pretoria – Transport Minister Dipuo Peters has condemned attempts to destabilise operations at the South African National Roads Agency (Sanral), following threats directed at staff at the Central Operations Centre (COC) in Samrand.

Pretoria - North West Premier Thandi Modise has called on the Independent Police Investigative Directorate (IPID) to investigate alleged death threats made against a journalist, who took pictures of police taking a bribe in Rustenburg recently.