For Creamer Media in Johannesburg, I’m Halima Frost.

Making headlines: Life Esidimeni families urge NPA to criminally prosecute; South African Budget eyed by investors for further reform steps; And, Nigeria ready to use all tools to manage inflation, central bank chief says

Life Esidimeni families urge NPA to criminally prosecute

The families of the victims of the Life Esidimeni tragedy, members of the disability sector, the South African Depression and Anxiety Group, public interest law centre SECTION27, and others, this morning staged a picket, calling for the National Prosecuting Authority to pursue criminal charges against former Gauteng Health MEC Qedani Mahlangu and former Director of Mental Health in Gauteng Dr Makgabo Manamela for their negligence in the matter.

The group meet at Church Square in Pretoria to hand over a memorandum to the NPA.

SECTION27 said despite a historic court judgment that indicated government officials should be held personally criminally accountable for their roles in the tragedy, the NPA has not yet pursued criminal charges against those implicated, including Mahlangu and Manamela.

In July, Judge Mmonoa Teffo found that Mahlangu and Manamela caused the unnatural deaths of at least nine people, from among the 144 deaths resulting from the Life Esidimeni disaster.

The group pointed out that the families had endured a painful eight-year wait for justice. The picket takes place at the end of Mental Health Awareness month.

South African Budget eyed by investors for further reform steps

South Africa’s new coalition government’s resolve to control debt and expedite reforms to fire up the lackluster economy will be put to the test when it unveils its first Budget tomorrow.

Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana’s mid-term policy statement will provide an early glimpse of the priorities of the alliance forged between the African National Congress, the business-friendly Democratic Alliance and eight smaller rivals after elections in May failed to produce an outright winner.

The new administration’s pledge to prioritise growing the economy has driven a 4% gain in the rand, helped local-currency bonds outpace all peers in an emerging-market index and fueled successive record highs on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange over the past four months.

GDP has averaged less than 1% over the past decade, insufficient to keep pace with population growth, and the central bank says a recovery needs to be underpinned by a sustained increase in real net investment following years of decline.

And, Nigeria ready to use all tools to manage inflation, central bank chief says

Nigeria's central bank is prepared to use "whatever tools are at our disposal" to manage inflation, its central bank chief Olayemi Cardoso said today.

Inflation in Africa's most populous country rose in September for the first time in three months, reaching 32.70% in annual terms, spurred by food and energy costs.

Cardoso told the FT Africa Summit in London that while he expected headline inflation to moderate in the coming months, food inflation was "proving stickier".

He said the country "cannot tire" with its reform efforts.

That’s a roundup of news making headlines today

Don’t forget to follow us on the X platform, at the handle @PolityZA