Jacob Webster | 9 February 2026 The minister backtracked on a proposal to place BEE requirements on prospecting rights in June. Mining minister Gwede Mantashe said his recent reversal on empowerment requirements for prospectors should not signal a retreat from BEE, which remains vital to the local mining sector’s agenda. “Many say BEE is driving investors out. It is not. It is an opportunity given to people who were excluded by apartheid. Do your exploration. At the point of

Nyaniso Qwesha | 8 February 2026 When a 124-year-old South African industrial giant quietly leaves the Johannesburg Stock Exchange, it should give us pause. Barloworld’s R23 billion acquisitions by the Saudi-backed Zahid Group and the Black-owned Entsha consortium, followed by its delisting after 86 years on the JSE, mark the end of a long public chapter in the company’s history. The deal has been framed as a transformation, a renewal, and a fresh start. But behind the reassu

Lihle Mvusi, Nthateng Mhlambiso, Nokuthula Futwa and Tabisa Bata | 5 February 2026 Students end up starving and homeless, and also risk dropping out. When Amanda Shinga, 24, from Port Shepstone in KwaZulu-Natal, enrolled at the Buffalo City TVET College in the Eastern Cape in 2021, her first year was shaped by systemic neglect. For the first four months, she did not receive her National Student Financial Aid Scheme (Nsfas) stipend, forcing her to survive on handouts while liv

Lyse Comins | 4 February 2026 The Department of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development has gazetted procedures that elevate Broad-Based Black Economic Empowerment (B-BBEE) compliance as a core criterion in allocating preferential export quotas to the European Union under the SADC-EU Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) for 2026. Published in Government Gazette No. 54037 on January 30, the notice outlines the application, administration and allocation of Tariff Rate Q

Malcolm Libera | 4 February 2026 The government’s plan to channel R100 billion into black-owned businesses through a Transformation Fund has come under fire, with critics warning that it risks becoming another poorly governed, corruption-prone initiative with limited real economic impact. On 19 March 2025, Minister of Trade, Industry and Competition Parks Tau published the Draft Transformation Fund concept document for public comment. The proposal outlines a fund capitalised

Staff Writer | 4 February 2026 End Black Economic Empowerment (BEE) premiums and save taxpayers billions of rands by endorsing the Value for Money Bill drafted by the Institute of Race Relations (IRR). This is the challenge IRR CEO Dr John Endres has delivered in a letter to Cyril Ramaphosa as the President finalises his ninth State of the Nation (SONA) speech, slated for 12 February. The Value for Money Bill is part of a legislative package drafted by the IRR aimed at genuin

Sihle Bulose and Lebogang Molebale | 2 February 2026 As corporate regulation evolves globally, new frameworks are emerging that reconceptualise the relationship between governance, strategy and value creation. These are not merely updated compliance requirements but rather comprehensive reimagining of what responsible corporate stewardship means in an era defined by technological disruption, environmental pressure and unprecedented stakeholder scrutiny. Evolution of corporate

Terence Creamer | 29 January 2026 Trade, Industry and Competition Minister Parks Tau has Gazetted proposed amendments to the existing Broad-Based Black Economic Empowerment (B-BBEE) codes of good practice in a bid to open the way for the establishment of a new Transformation Fund. The notice has allocated 60 days for public comment on the draft amendments. These especially affect the codes that deal with enterprise and supplier development (ESD), which will serve as the main

Jaco Mulder | 28 January 2026 The Freedom Front Plus (VF Plus) calls on business leaders and investors to take a firm stand against the R100 billion BEE fund proposed by the ANC Minister of Trade, Industry and Competition, Parks Tau. The original aim of Broad-based Black Economic Empowerment (B-BBEE) – to economically empower black South Africans – has not been achieved. Under ANC rule, the system was exploited to enrich a small group of billionaires while the broader public

Philippa Larkin | 28 January 2026 SME empowerment organisation Unconventional CA (UCA) has raised concerns that the Transformation Fund offering big black economic empowerment points incentive reflects no meaningful shift from earlier drafts and is unlikely to serve the real needs and requirements of South Africa’s entrepreneurs and small, medium and micro enterprises (SMMEs). This is in response to the news that the government is getting ready to move ahead with the revamped

Jens Langenhorst | 26 January 2026 Starlink dominates South African headlines, but pricing and market realities raise questions about who it's really for. South African media has been saturated with Starlink coverage for months. Every ministerial statement, every regulatory development, every parliamentary objection becomes headline news. Yet amid this relentless coverage, a curious question emerges: why Starlink specifically? The regulatory challenges facing Elon Musk’s sat

Tiisetso Motsoeneng | 27 January 2026 The government is preparing to launch a revamped Transformation Fund as early as next week, rewriting incentives that have shaped corporate behaviour for more than two decades. A trade, industry & competition ministerial briefing pack, seen by Business Day, shows that companies will be able to earn 30 broad-based BEE (BBBEE) points by contributing 3% of net profit after tax to the fund — double the points currently available for the same

Rebecca Campbell | 26 January 2026 The Chemical Industries Education and Training Authority (CHIETA) has stressed that providing equitable access to high-quality maths and science education, especially for learners in under-resourced and rural areas, is a priority. Such education is essential to unlock career opportunities for young people in science-based industries and for the country’s long-term development. Yet gaps in maths and science education persisted. Addressing th

FA News | 20 January 2026 The Technology Innovation Agency (TIA), an entity of the Department of Science, Technology, and Innovation (DSTI), has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the Insurance Sector Education and Training Authority (INSETA) to advance skills development, innovation, and capacity-building within the insurance sector and related industries. The MoU was signed on Thursday 18 December in Johannesburg. Through this five-year agreement the two entiti

The Citizen | 21 January 2026 Trades and technical skills are proving more practical than many traditional degrees. It is a useful and timely reminder from the Kagiso Trust that young people and new matriculants should consider 99 occupations which are in high demand and which they can qualify for through technical and vocational education. Kagiso Trust CEO Mankodi Moitse says the reality is that the economy is crying out for skilled workers across numerous sectors. Of the 35

Alex Hogg | 20 January 2026 Black Economic Empowerment (BEE) remains one of the most polarising policies in post-apartheid South Africa. Supporters argue it is essential for correcting historical injustice, while critics contend it has become economically destructive and socially corrosive. In a candid interview with Alec Hogg, Gerhard Papenfus, Chief Executive of the National Employers’ Association of South Africa (NEASA), sets out why he believes BEE has failed to deliver m

Thulani Dasa | 18 January 2026 The minister of labour must introduce clear, strategic interventions to decisively reduce South Africa’s unacceptably high unemployment. This cannot remain a discussion exercise while millions of citizens are locked out of economic participation. We must urgently identify basic and entry-level jobs that should be prioritised for only South African citizens. Fuel station attendants are often foreign nationals. On farms, in restaurants and in othe

IOL News - Journal News | 14 January 2026 The Department of Employment and Labour said the submission would mark the first year in the submission of EE Reports since the amendment of the EE Act that now requires designated employers to prepare and implement EE Plans for the period from 1 September 2025 until 31 August 2030. The department explained that the Employment Equity Amendment Act, No. 4 of 2022, became operational from 1 January 2025. Since then, two sets of EE Regul

Creamer Media | 14 January 2026 In response to an increasingly complex regulatory and policy environment, senior leaders across South Africa’s mining and original equipment manufacturing (OEM) sectors are being invited to participate in two focused, outcomes-driven workshops to be held on February 5, 2026, in Johannesburg. Hosted by the industry association OEM Mining Supply Forum in collaboration with the Minerals Council South Africa, the workshops are positioned as strateg

Yuneal Padayachy | 14 January 2026 As we move into the new year, we do so with optimism and energy to deliver impact through Broad-Based Black Economic Empowerment (B-BBEE) legislation. 2025 has seen a number of debates surrounding B-BBEE legislation, some positive, some negative, but nevertheless under the spotlight in various ways. The year of 2025 introduced new concepts such as the Enterprise and Supplier Development Fund by the Department of Trade, Industry and Competiti