South Africa

Hazyview - Mpumalanga Premier David Mabuza has congratulated the provincial Education Department for improving the matric pass rate from 70% in 2012 to 77.6% in 2013.

Pretoria - President Jacob Zuma will on Thursday hand over land to the N'wandlamhlarhi Community Property Association made up of communities who claimed land from Mala Mala game reserve in Mpumalanga province.

Cape Town – Top jazz guitarist Jimmy Dludlu and house music trio Mi Casa are among a number of artists set to perform at the opening ceremony of the third Africa Nations Championship on Saturday, in what singer and musical director Sibongile Khumalo has promised will be better than the opening ceremony of Afcon 2013.

Phalaborwa - The Department of Water and Environmental Affairs (DWEA) has laid criminal charges against the owners of a tailing dam that overflowed and caused extensive pollution of the Selati and Olifants rivers in Limpopo.

The SA National Roads Agency (SANRAL) has clarified confusions over e-tolls bills that were sent to unregistered road users a month after the system was introduced.

Pretoria - The Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) and the Department of International Relations and Cooperation (DIRCO) have announced their collaboration to register South Africans living outside of the country as voters for the very first time.

Mahikeng - North West youths have until Friday to apply for 71 bursaries worth about R21 million to study skills that are scarce in the province.

Johannesburg - Brand South Africa has congratulated the Class of 2013 on their improved results and welcomed this as a positive contribution to the long terms development of South Africa.

Johannesburg – Basic Education Minister Angie Motshekga says her department is burning the midnight oil to improve the quality of the education system.

Pretoria - Basic Education Minister Angie Motshekga and the Vice-Chancellor and Principal of the University of the Witwatersrand, Professor Adam Habib, have announced a R1 million scholarship programme to benefit poor students.

Pretoria - The stage is set as 16 teams continue to arrive for the final battle to lift the coveted trophy of the Orange African Nations Championship South Africa 2014, set to begin from 11 January till 1 February 2014.

Mbombela - The Mpumalanga Department of Public Works, Roads and Transport has announced that the rehabilitation of the deteriorated R36 between Machadodorp and Mashishing (formerly Lydenburg) in Mpumalanga will be done in the 2014/15 financial year.

Mbombela - The Mpumalanga Health Department has joined forces with the Integrity Management Unit to investigate a multi-million Rand contract given to a company in charge of the province's Voluntary Medical Male Circumcision (VMMC) programme.

Johannesburg - The umbrella body for schools governing bodies says the announcement of the 2013 National Senior Certificate results is an indication that the quality of the education system is “stabilising”.

Johannesburg - Rita Ngiba from KwaZulu-Natal took off her reading glasses, put her hands on her head and shed a few tears when Basic Education Minister Angie Motshekga paid a heartfelt tribute to her on live television for the role she played in the success of her grandson in matric.