September 18, 2024.

For Creamer Media in Johannesburg, I am Halima Frost.

Making headlines:

Ramaphosa pays tribute to Gordhan

ANC says massive increase in cost of electricity is untenable

And, Zimbabwe's new currency faces headwinds five months on

Ramaphosa pays tribute to Gordhan

“He was my comrade, he was also my colleague and he was a very good friend.”

These were the words of President Cyril Ramaphosa as he delivered the eulogy at former Minister Pravin Gordhan’s funeral, in Durban, on Thursday.

Gordhan passed away at the age of 75 in the early hours of September 13, following a period of illness. He was given a category 2 Special Official Funeral.

Speaking to the Gordhan family, and State dignitaries present at the funeral, Ramaphosa described the former Minister as a humble person, activist and leader.

Ramaphosa spoke of Gordhan’s courage in standing up for “what is right”, noting that he took this stance even before his ministerial roles in a democratic South Africa.

He acknowledged the sacrifice made by the Gordhan family owing to the former Minister’s dedication and said his legacy would continue to guide efforts to ensure South Africa is just and equal.

ANC says massive increase in cost of electricity is untenable

The African National Congress said any massive increase in the electricity price is currently “untenable”, as well as pledging its support for a larger amount of free electricity for indigent households in the new budget.

Members of Parliament will debate a recent decision by the National Energy Regulator of South Africa to grant Eskom’s application to retrospectively recover R8-billion for the 2021/22 financial year.

ANC Parliamentary Caucus Chief Whip Mdumiseni Ntuli said this debate was not one the ANC relished, saying the party understood the gravity of the situation and why it was imperative for the tariff increase to be effected.

Ntuli pointed out that Eskom needed to be reimbursed for the generation, transmission and distribution of electricity, and had accumulated a growing municipal debt which necessitated bailouts from National Treasury.

Zimbabwe's new currency faces headwinds five months on

Five months after its launch, Zimbabwe's new currency is under pressure as increased grain imports eat away at foreign reserves, putting at risk the government's plan to make it the only currency in the market by 2026.

The gold-backed ZiG, which stands for Zimbabwe Gold, is the country's sixth attempt at a stable currency in 15 years. It was introduced in April at a rate of 13.6 ZiG per US dollar and has since lost almost 80% of its value on the black market.

Independent economist Prosper Chitambara said the devaluation pointed to a lack of confidence in the new currency, that locals have been reluctant to embrace.

Persistence Gwanyanya, a member of the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe's Monetary Policy Committee, told Reuters that although uptake had been slow, it was too soon to consider the new currency a failure.

That’s a roundup of news making headlines today

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