21 Squadron SAAF is a squadron of the South African Air Force. It was formed as a bomber squadron in Kenya during World War II and became a VIP transport squadron in the 1960s, a role which it performs to this day. The squadron currently flies two Dassault Falcon 50s, two Cessna Citation Is, a Dassault Falcon 900 and a Boeing BBJ aircraft. 21 Squadron is one of the most active squadrons in the air force with 606 VIP transport flights being made between 2009 and 2012. The Boeing BBJ is used as the presidential aircraft when the President of South Africa travels.
Eskom Hld SOC Ltd or Eskom is a South African electricity public utility. It was established in 1923 as the Electricity Supply Commission (ESCOM) and was also known by its Afrikaans name Elektrisiteitsvoorsieningskommissie (EVKOM). Eskom represents South Africa in the Southern African Power Pool. The utility is the largest producer of electricity in Africa, and was among the top utilities in the world in terms of generation capacity and sales, but has since slipped in both categories. It is the largest of South Africa's state owned enterprises. Eskom operates a number of notable power stations, including Matimba Power Station and Medupi Power Station in Lephalale, Kusile Power Station in Witbank, Kendal Power Station, and Koeberg Nuclear Power Station in the Western Cape Province, the only nuclear power plant in Africa.
The South African National Defence Force (SANDF) comprises the armed forces of South Africa. The commander of the SANDF is appointed by the President of South Africa from one of the armed services. They are in turn accountable to the Minister of Defence and Military Veterans of the Defence Department.
Local government in South Africa consists of municipalities of various types. The largest metropolitan areas are governed by metropolitan municipalities, while the rest of the country is divided into counties called district municipalities, each of which consists of several boroughs called local municipalities. Since the boundary reform at the time of the municipal election of 3 August 2016 there are eight metropolitan municipalities, 44 district municipalities and 205 local municipalities.
Water supply and sanitation in South Africa is characterised by both achievements and challenges. After the end of Apartheid South Africa's newly elected government struggled with the then growing service and backlogs with respect to access to water supply and sanitation developed. The government thus made a strong commitment to high service standards and to high levels of investment subsidies to achieve those standards. Since then, the country has made some progress with regard to improving access to water supply: It reached universal access to an improved water source in urban areas, and in rural areas the share of those with access increased from 66% to 79% from 1990 to 2010.
Corruption in South Africa includes the improper use of public resources for private ends, including bribery and improper favouritism. The 2017 Transparency International Corruption Perceptions Index assigned South Africa a score of 43 out of 100, ranking South Africa 71 out of 180 countries; a high score and a low ranking signals that the country's public sector is perceived to be honest. There was a marginal improvement by 2021, when South Africa received a score of 44, ranking it 70 out of 180 countries. Nonetheless, this remains below its score of 45 in 2016. Countries with scores below 50 are believed to have serious corruption problems.
The Emfuleni Local Municipality, founded in 1999, is one of three local municipalities comprising the Sedibeng District in Gauteng, South Africa. It is the westernmost local municipality in the District, and covers an area of 987 km² at the heart of the Vaal Triangle. It is located in the former industrial heartland of Gauteng which created employment and wealth for Sebokeng, Vanderbijlpark, Vereeniging and Sharpeville. Its head offices are located at the corner of Klasie Havenga St and Frikkie Meyer Blvd, Vanderbijlpark.
Lindiwe Nonceba Sisulu is a South African politician, member of parliament since 1994, and member of the National Executive Committee of the African National Congress currently serving as Minister of Tourism since August 2021. She previously served as Minister of Housing, Minister of Defence and Military Veterans, Minister of Public Service and Administration from 2012 to 2014. and Minister of Human Settlements, Water & Sanitation from 2014 to 2021.
Maite Emily Nkoana-Mashabane is a South African politician who is the Minister of Women, Youth and Persons with Disabilities. She was Minister of Rural Development and Land Reform from 2018 to 2019, and previously served as Minister of International Relations and Cooperation from 2009 to 2018. Nkoana-Mashabane is also a member of the National Executive Committee of the African National Congress (ANC).
Cuba–South Africa relations refer to the bilateral relations between Cuba and South Africa. Relations were strained during the apartheid era. Cuba has an embassy in Pretoria, South Africa has an embassy in Havana.
The African National Congress retained majorities in the National Assembly of South Africa & National Council of Provinces as well as in eight of the nine provincial legislatures, but lost control of the Western Cape. Members are elected using party-list proportional representation.
David Mahlobo is a South African politician and Deputy Ministry of Human Settlements, Water and Sanitation. He is a former Minister of Energy and former Minister of State Security.
The 54th National Conference of the African National Congress (ANC) took place from 16 to 20 December 2017 at the Johannesburg Expo Centre in Nasrec, Gauteng. At the conference, the ANC elected its National Executive Committee (NEC) and other top internal leaders. Often referred to as the Nasrec Conference, it was held during the centenary of the birth of former ANC President Oliver Tambo and was convened under the theme, "Remember Tambo: Towards Unity, Renewal and Radical Socioeconomic Transformation."
The President's Keepers: Those Keeping Zuma in Power and out of Prison a 2017 book by Jacques Pauw, an investigative journalist from South Africa about allegedly corrupt and compromised power networks in the government of President Jacob Zuma.
In South Africa the Department of Public Enterprises is the shareholder representative of the South African Government with oversight responsibility for state-owned enterprises in key sectors. Some companies are not directly controlled by the Department of Public Enterprises, but by various other departments. Further, not all state owned entities are registered as companies.
VBS Mutual Bank was a South African mutual bank. In 2018 it was declared insolvent and bankrupt and placed under curatorship, with South African citizens and taxpayers defrauded out of roughly R2 billion.
The National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS) is a South African government student financial aid scheme which provides financial aid to undergraduate students to help pay for the cost of their tertiary education after finishing high school. It is funded by the Department of Higher Education and Training. The program also manages bursaries such as the Funza Lushaka Teacher Bursary, DHET Disability Bursary and other bursaries from the Sector Education and Training Authorities (SETAs).
The Judicial Commission of Inquiry into Allegations of State Capture, Corruption and Fraud in the Public Sector including Organs of State, better known as the Zondo Commission or State Capture Commission, is a public inquiry established in January 2018 by former President Jacob Zuma to investigate allegations of state capture, corruption, and fraud in the public sector in South Africa.
Organisation Undoing Tax Abuse (OUTA) is a registered non-profit Civil Action Organisation, located in Johannesburg, South Africa. The anti-corruption advocacy organisation focuses on tackling government corruption and misappropriation of public funds. It is crowd funded by the public and businesses within the Republic of South Africa.
The 2021 South African unrest, also known as the Zuma unrest or Zuma riots, was a wave of civil unrest occurred in South Africa's KwaZulu-Natal and Gauteng provinces from 9 to 18 July 2021, sparked by the imprisonment of former President Jacob Zuma for contempt of court. Resulting protests against the incarceration triggered wider rioting and looting, much of it said to be undertaken by people not in support of Zuma and fuelled by job layoffs and economic inequality worsened by the COVID-19 pandemic policies. The unrest began in the province of KwaZulu-Natal on the evening of 9 July, and spread to the province of Gauteng on the evening of 11 July, and was the worst violence that South Africa had experienced since the end of Apartheid.
