Cape Town —  

Weather Service Predicts Hot, Wet Summer

South Africans can expect a hotter summer than usual, with the South African Weather Service (SAWS) forecasting “above-normal” minimum and maximum temperatures in the months ahead, News24 reports This could put pressure on the country’s already strained power grid as the need for cooling increases, it warned. Heat waves struck the northern hemisphere this year. SAWS also expects above-normal rainfall for most of the country from mid to late spring. The weather service issued its seasonal forecast for South Africa this week, for the months from September 2023 to January 2024. The El Niño weather phenomenon – associated with warmer, dry conditions in southern Africa – is expected to persist in most of the summer months. The local forecast comes amid warnings from the World Meteorological Organization that globally, El Niño, along with climate change, would usher in new, record-breaking temperatures in the next five years (2023-2027).

Organised Business Launches Anti-Corruption Guide

Organised business has established an anti-corruption guide for corporate executives, which also calls for companies to set up protection funds for whistleblowers, Moneyweb reports. Speaking at the launch of the guide, Business Leadership South Africa (BLSA) CEO Busi Mavuso said the private sector should be allowed to do its bit in fighting corruption. The guide, unveiled by the Gordon Institute of Businesses Science in partnership with BLSA, was launched against the backdrop of a country that has faced high levels of crime and corruption over the past decade, within both public and private sector entities, which has contributed the stalling the country’s economic growth.

People Are Being Kidnapped for Small Ransoms – Police

Gauteng provincial police commissioner Lieutenant-General Elias Mawela has warned that kidnappings for small ransoms are becoming rife, with criminals often holding hostages captive for as little as R200 (about U.S.$10), TimesLIVE reports. Speaking to journalists at the Gauteng legislature, Mawela said: “Criminals have seen that they can make a quick buck. In the past they would go for business owners, but now they take ordinary citizens.” He was speaking after presenting provincial crime statistics for April to June. Kidnappings increased by 8.3% from 1,909 in the previous year to 2,068 cases in 2023.

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