South Africa

Durban - Bafana Bafana has moved up 17 places in the FIFA World rankings and now occupies the 66th position.

Cape Town – The Parliamentary Precinct in Cape Town’s city centre is abuzz with activity ahead of President Jacob Zuma’s State of the Nation Address.

Pretoria - Mineral Resources Minister Susan Shabangu has warned that government will not tolerate inferior safety measures and will act firmly against mining companies who put the lives of mineworkers at risk.

Pretoria - The Southern Africa Customs Union (SACU) Heads of State and Government are meeting to reposition the union as a vehicle for deeper economic integration after friction developed within the five-nation bloc.

Bloemfontein - The National Museum's soccer showpiece is attracting numerous visitors, both local and international, as every visitor is taken by the rich culture and history of soccer in the Free State and South Africa.

Johannesburg - Football fans who have still not bought their tickets for tonight's face-off between Spain and Portugal have one last chance to purchase their tickets before the game kicks-off at 20h30

Cape Town - Jubilant Spanish fans celebrated at the FIFA Fan Fest in Cape Town last night as their team beat Portugal 1-nil, advancing to the quarter-finals.

Pretoria - The nationwide strike by municipal workers will continue until an agreement is reached, says South African Municipal Workers Union (Samwu) Deputy General Secretary Walter Theledi.

Pretoria - Paraguay squeezed through to the quarter-finals of the FIFA World Cup for the first time in their history as Yuichi Komano's penalty miss sent Japan crashing out of the tournament at Loftus Versfeld on Tuesday.

Pretoria - The Department of Health has expressed concern with the unnecessary deaths of young boys due to traditional circumcision.

Pretoria - Basic Education Minister Angie Motshekga has sent a high level delegation to the North West to assess the situation that led to the closure of 19 schools in Tlakgameng Village

Pretoria - The Presidency has taken the lead in encouraging civil servants to participate in the HIV, Counselling and Testing (HCT) campaign with more than 600 Presidency employees expected to undergo HIV testing

Cape Town - The Department of Home Affairs is to roll out a new queue system at its branches.

Pretoria - The impact of Tuesday's public servants strike on services at Home Affairs has been minimal, according to the department.

Pretoria - Authorities have put the brakes on the the roll-out of the Administrative Adjudication of the Road Traffic Offences (Aarto) Act to the country's four metropolitans.