Star 2025-10-08

The Financial Sector Conduct Authority (FSCA) has noted recent media reports regarding the establishment of a KwaZulu-Natal CoGTA Pension Fund for Amakhosi and denies it has approved the application. It was announced in media earlier this week that the Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs announced the official approval of the KZN COGTA Pension Fund for Amakhosi by the FSCA. This structured savings mechanism is designed to support the social standing of amakhosi by providing them with financial resources upon retirement, thereby recognising their lifelong service and commitment to their communities. However, the FSCA says the reports suggest that it has approved the registration of this fund.The Authority said it wishes to clarify that it has not received any application for the registration of this pension fund,…

In a display of market confidence, the share price of Datatec, a JSE- and US-listed international information and communications technology (ICT) company, surged by 9.9% on Tuesday following the release of a trading statement heralding a strong performance across all its divisions in the first half of the 2026 financial year. By midday, shares were trading at R66.39, marking a substantial 75.49% increase over the past year. Datatec, which operates inmore than 50 countries supported by more than 11 000 partners, attributed the interim performance to the impressive results of its subsidiaries. Westcon, a leader in technology distribution and financial services, showcased an expanding margin along with strong profit growth. Meanwhile, Logicalis International demonstrated improved operational leverage, resulting in notably enhanced profitability through its collaborations with industry giants like Cisco,…

South Africa faces the world’s most severe and persistent unemployment crisis, with more than 12 million people actively seeking work, according to a new report by the Centre for Development and Enterprise (CDE) released on Tuesday. The report, titled “South Africa’s Unemployment Catastrophe: A Call for Urgent Action,” paints a stark picture of an economy that has failed to generate sufficient jobs for nearly two decades. CDE executive director Ann Bernstein said the figures reflect a long-term structural failure. “For 17 years, 1 000 people have joined the unemployment queue every day. Over nearly two decades, South Africa’s labour force grew by 42 per cent, while total employment increased by barely 15%. The result: millions more work-seekers chasing far too few opportunities,” she said. This comes as the latest…

World Bank says SA GDP growth is projected to accelerate from 0.5% in 2024 to 0.9% in 2025 South Africa’s economy is projected to grow modestly in 2025, supported by easing inflation and improving investor confidence, but structural weaknesses and persistent joblessness continue to weigh on the country’s recovery. This is according to the World Bank’s latest Africa’s Pulse report released on Tuesday, which provides economic analysis for Sub-Saharan Africa. The World Bank said gross domestic product (GDP) growth in South Africa was projected to accelerate from 0.5% in 2024 to 0.9% in 2025 and further speed up to an annual average rate of 1.2% in 2026–27. The biannual report forecasts regional growth to edge up to 3.8% in 2025 from 3.5% in 2024, driven by easing inflationary pressures and…

Industry leaders have warned that South Africa’s poultry sector faces mounting pressure from unfair US trade advantages, uncertainty around the African Growth and Opportunity Act (Agoa), and anti-dumping exemptions that undermine local producers. These concerns were raised during a webinar hosted by the FairPlay Movement on Tuesday, where stakeholders discussed the implications of US trade policies, avian influenza regulations, and the future of South Africa’s poultry industry. Izaak Breitenbach, CEO of the South African Poultry Association (SAPA), said it was concerning that the US continues to export chicken to South Africa without paying anti-dumping duties, despite the country losing its Agoa benefits. “That is actually and effectively allowing for dumping of chicken in South Africa. That agreement was reached during the Agoa negotiations of 2015,” Breitenbach said. “Subsequent to that,…

Developing economies can grow fast from low-income per capita bases if they implement economic reforms, which support human capital development and sound economic infrastructure. The latter is a catch-all, not only for physical infrastructure, but also sound government institutions, which uphold the rule of law and promote prudent financial management. In the early stages of development, mobilization of savings and capital accumulation are prominent. Fast-growing developing economies typically have high levels of investment. But investment requires funding. It is in this context that we should explore the role of insurance in economic development. In this regard, insurance companies play a vital role in financial intermediation by helping to overcome the problem of asymmetry of information that exists between savers and borrowers, which facilitates the collection and channelling of savings towards…