Michael Taylor | 21 June 2026 The business group Sakeliga has warned that the South African National Roads Agency’s (SANRAL’s) new draft proposals will impose new broad black economic empowerment (BEE) requirements for petrol stations and other roadside businesses. These concerns relate to SANRAL’s Draft Policy for Rest and Service Facilities along National Roads, which Sakeliga says could unlawfully expand the agency’s powers over private businesses. The policy aims to regul

SA News | 11 June 2026 Higher Education and Training Minister Buti Manamela has announced a series of transitional arrangements aimed at modernising South Africa's qualifications system, while ensuring continuity for learners, training providers and employers. Speaking at a media briefing in Pretoria on Thursday, Manamela said the implementation of the Directive on Transitional Arrangements for Pre-2009 Qualifications forms part of government's broader efforts to strengthen a

Malcolm Libera | 19 June 2026 President Cyril Ramaphosa has thrown his support behind the proposed R100 billion Transformation Fund in South Africa. He said it will help address longstanding inequalities in South Africa’s economy by expanding opportunities for black-owned businesses and broadening participation in key industries. The proposed fund, which would be capitalised over five years, is expected to channel around R20 billion annually into majority black-owned and cont

Nkateko Joseph Mabasa | 17 June 2026 While the affirmative action policy was broadened in 2011, from targeted share transfer ownership to wider socio-economic transformation, including women and youth, slow economic growth has resulted in growing scepticism over its effectiveness Compliance fatigue and unclear outcomes under the broad-based black economic Empowerment policy have been highlighted by business leaders at the Nedbank Top Empowerment Conference. They emphasised th

Boitumelo Kgobotlo | 7th June 2026 Black shareholders of brewing firm SAB are up in arms, alleging they have not seen financial returns on their broad-based black economic empowerment (B-BBEE) investment scheme for five years. Those holding shares in SAB’s Zenzele Kabili empowerment scheme – a special purpose vehicle that holds shares in the local arm of global brewing giant AB InBev – which was set up to enable black South African investors to participate in the ownership of

BizCommunity | 5 June 2026 The National Youth Development Agency (NYDA) has launched Phase V of the National Youth Service (NYS) Programme, which will unlock 100,000 paid service opportunities for unemployed young people across South Africa's nine provinces. Unveiled on Thursday in partnership with the Presidential Youth Employment Intervention (PYEI), the programme aims to provide young people with meaningful opportunities through community service, work experience, skills d

Zingiswa Losi | 8 June 2026 Two recent important legislative developments have taken place in South Africa that will play important roles in raising workers’ wages, putting money in their pockets and helping to reduce our shameful levels of poverty and inequality. The Congress of South African Trade Unions (Cosatu) has been heartened to see our efforts begin to shift the needle in this struggle. It is important to remember the damage done to South Africa by centuries of insti

Kate Philip | 31 May 2026 If there was ever any doubt, it is now clear. Public employment makes a measurable difference to our national job statistics. In the latest Quarterly Labour Force Survey (QLFS), the single biggest contributor to the rise in unemployment was the loss of jobs from the termination of Phase 5 of South Africa’s biggest youth employment programme: the Basic Education Employment Initiative (BEEI), which is part of the Presidential Employment Stimulus. In th

Zelda Venter | 31 May 2026 South Africa’s National Employers’ Association of South Africa (Neasa) and business group Sakeliga lost their Constitutional Court fight to halt the government’s new employment equity (EE) quotas, but they vowed to continue the fight. The Constitutional Court declined Sakeliga and Neasa's application for leave to appeal in their urgent application for an interdict against the Employment Equity quotas enacted in 2025. But they will now pursue the mat

SA News | 17 May 2026 Deputy Minister in the Presidency Nonceba Mhlauli has called on young South Africans to take an active role in shaping government and the country’s future, declaring them “not just leaders of tomorrow, but changemakers today”. Speaking at the Seventh-day Adventist Community Day held in Maragon Mooikloof, Pretoria, Mhlauli said young people play a very important role in shaping government, society, and the future of the nation. She emphasised that South A

Staff Writer | 22 May 2026 The Media, Information and Communication Technologies Sector Education and Training Authority (MICT SETA) and the Chemical Industries SETA (CHIETA) have renewed their memorandum of understanding (MOU) aimed at cross-sectoral skills development. Built on a partnership first established in November 2021, the renewed agreement will transform CHIETA's existing smart skills centres into external integrated summative assessment (EISA) exam centres. Under

SA News | 13 May 2026 The South African government has outlined an ambitious programme of action for the 2026/27 financial year, placing women, youth and persons with disabilities at the centre of national development efforts. Presenting her department Budget Vote in Parliament on Wednesday, Minister in the Presidency for Women, Youth and Persons with Disabilities, Sindisiwe Chikunga, said the department’s priorities are aimed at driving inclusive growth, tackling inequality

Nkosinathi Mahlangu | 13 May 2026 As the country recently commemorated Workers’ Day, millions of young people questioned the true significance of celebrating work in a nation where the majority of its youth remain unemployed. The latest unemployment statistics paint an even more worrying picture. South Africa’s overall unemployment rate has increased to 32.7%, while youth unemployment continues to rise sharply, now sitting at nearly 46% - and this is still excluding the expa

Stock Markets | 11 May 2026 SANDTON - Old Mutual Limited (JSE:OMU) announced Sunday that it has maintained its Level 1 Broad-Based Black Economic Empowerment contributor status for the seventh consecutive year, according to a press release statement. The South African financial services group disclosed that its B-BBEE certificate and annual compliance report are available on the company’s website. The announcement was made in accordance with paragraph 12.7(g) of the JSE Listi

Boitumelo Kgobotlo | 3rd May 2026 Black Management Forum insists that the withdrawal by Coca-Cola Beverages South Africa of a job advertisement stipulating that the candidate must be black does not resolve transformation issues within the company. The company was forced to withdraw the advert after trade union Solidarity threatened legal action over the job adverts for intern positions. Coca-Cola Beverages South Africa had put out an ad for a number of fleet internships in th

Ivan Meyer | 5 May 2026 South Africa’s commitment to redressing the injustices of the past is both necessary and non-negotiable. Transformation is a constitutional imperative and the Western Cape Government (WCG) has consistently supported policies that promote meaningful economic inclusion, dignity-enhancing work and expanded opportunity for those historically excluded from the economy. It is precisely because transformation matters that the WCG cannot support the Draft Stat

Zelda Venter | 24 May 2026 While the public gallery in the Gauteng High Court, Pretoria, was on Monday packed to the brim with members of the legal fraternity, the country’s top legal minds present to present their legal arguments in the legal challenge against and for the BEE Legal Sector Code (LSC), the formal arguments will only start on Tuesday. The legal challenge, brought by four of the country’s biggest law firms – Deneys-Reitz (earlier know as Norton Rose Fulbright),

Malcolm Libera | 28 April 2026 Taxpayers have been warned that the National Treasury’s newly proposed procurement regulations will drive up costs, reduce competition, and ultimately lead to a higher tax burden. This month, the National Treasury has published the draft General Public Procurement Regulations for public comment. The policy in its current form could lead to sweeping changes to procurement legislation and black economic empowerment (BEE) in South Africa. These reg

Nompu Siziba | 23 April 2026 President Cyril Ramaphosa has called on business to do more on its part to empower particularly the country’s youth in being more work ready, given the current educational mismatch in terms of skills and industries. The President was giving the keynote address at the National Business Initiative’s (NBI) 30th birthday celebration taking place in Sandton, Johannesburg, on Thursday. The President praises the NBI for pioneering initiatives that have s

Hasina Kathrada | 27 April 2026 At a time when black economic empowerment is increasingly reduced to a shorthand for elite enrichment, Cape Flats to the JSE enters the conversation as a deliberate counter-narrative. The Johannesburg launch, held at Exclusive Books in Rosebank on Thursday, positioned the book not only as a company history, but as an intervention in how South Africa remembers and debates B-BBEE. Author Phakamisa Ndzamela was explicit about his intention. The b