Category: The Outlier
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SA is embracing hybrids, but all-electric and plug-in sales lag
South Africans are slowly warming to hybrid vehicles but not to fully electric or plug-in hybrids. More than 6,000 hybrid vehicles were sold in 2023, 10 times the number sold in 2021. That is still just a fraction of the approximately 350,000 traditional internal combustion engine (ICE) passenger vehicles sold every year. FULL STORY +…
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As Venetia mine transitions underground, SA’s diamond production drops to 6m carats
Diamond mining production in South Africa has hit a 10-year low. The country was producing an average of 8.5-million carats a year, but by 2023 this had dropped to 6.1-million carats. The reason for this is that De Beers’ Venetia diamond mine reached the end of its open-pit operations in December 2022. The mine, which…
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Municipalities owe Eskom R78bn – and energy minister is pessimistic about recovery
South African electricity and energy minister Kgosientsho Ramokgopa says South Africa’s municipalities owe power utility Eskom R78-billion. At a recent media conference, the minister expressed doubt that Eskom would be able to recover these funds. Municipal debt has increased almost six times since 2018. Just 28 municipalities collectively accounted for R26.7-billion in March last year.…
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Mapping chess mastery: South Africa’s Jesse February shines as new African champion
South Africa’s Jesse February is the African women’s chess champion, winning gold at the 2024 African Individual Chess Championship. This is her second title, having first won in 2021. The 27-year-old from Gqeberha is South Africa’s top-ranking female player and has held the title Woman International Master (WIM) since 2016. Egyptian Shahenda Wafa, who came third…
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990 caps: South Africa’s most-experienced XV to take on the Irish
The most-experienced team in Springbok history will take on the Irish in Durban on Saturday, 13 July. South Africa’s starting XV has a total of 990 combined test caps among them. This is three more than the run-on team that played in the Rugby World Cup final in France last year. Between them, they have…
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32 of South Africa’s prisoners are children
The number of young inmates in South Africa’s prisons – those under the age of 18 – has dropped by about 83% since 2015/16, according to data from the department of correctional services. In August 2022, the age of criminal capacity was raised from 10 years of age to 12. The Child Justice Act means…
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Cholera surges in Africa: Over 110,000 cases in 5 months
More than 110,000 cases of cholera were reported in Africa in the first five months of the year. This is half of the total reported in 2023 and more than all the cases in 2022. Last year, a cholera outbreak in South Africa claimed the lives of 47 people. The disease spread quickly in areas…