The Weekend View

In its 2024 report, the South African Fraud Prevention Service revealed that identity theft skyrocketed by 400% in South Africa between April 2023 and April 2024.  SAFPS adds that out of the 8521 formal cases opened at the Ombudsman for Banking Services in 2023, 43.47% were categorised as fraud. This is part of a rising trend in scams where fraudsters use false identities or intercept the secure identification process to steal funds and data. The issue of identity fraud has come to the fore following the investigation into the citizenship of former Miss SA contestant Chidimma Adetshina. For more Bongiwe Zwane spoke to  iiDENTIFii co-founder and Chief Strategy Officer, Lance Fanaroff 

Standard Chartered's Women in Tech accelerator program offers women entrepreneurs a unique platform to unleash their potential, overcome barriers, and accelerate their business ventures. The programme  is part of the bank's commitment to fostering gender equality and driving innovation in the rapidly evolving technological landscape, aimed at empowering and supporting women entrepreneurs in the technology sector. This week , a graduation event was held in Sandton in Johannesburg, marking the close of the 12 week Incubator Programme , where entrepreneurs from the cohort pitched for a total of $50,000, showcasing their unique technology-enabled solutions.  To find out more Bongiwe Zwane spoke to Catherine Tivanapi , from the Diversity and Inclusion Council at Standard Chartered 

While many countries have made strides on gender equality and women's empowerment, discrimination remains deeply embedded in some societies, imposing chronic constraints on the rights and hopes of women and girls. As the world commemorates International Women's Day TODAY, women and girls continue facing unprecedented growing threats, from higher levels of discrimination to weaker legal protections in addition to less funding for programmes and institutions that support and protect women. To look at these challenges in the South African context Bongiwe Zwane spoke to the  Deputy Minister of Women, Youth and Persons with Disabilities, Mmapaseka Letsike

The Health Department is urging the public not to panic as three new Mpox cases have been detected. The cases have been confirmed in Ekurhuleni, Gauteng. One of the patients  recently travelled to the Ugandan capital Kampala. This increases the total cumulative number of positive cases from 25 to 28 cases, including three deaths since the outbreak in May last year. For an update on the health scare we are now joined on the line by Health Department spokesperson Foster Mohale 

The Institute for Security Studies says anti-corruption measures targeting traffic police, not just SAPS, are vital to improve safety in SA's major cities and that traffic cop corruption tarnishes all policing in South Africa. The ISS report further adds that soliciting bribes is deeply embedded in traffic policing in South Africa. Six of the nine national surveys conducted since 2003 that asked about bribery, identified traffic police as the government service most frequently linked to corruption. To unpack this Udo Carelse spoke to David Bruce, Independent Researcher and Consultant at the Institute for Security Studies 

Wildlife organisations, Ban Animal Trading - BAT  and the EMS Foundation are bracing for a fight to stop the sale of lion bones. This after the two organisations became aware that the South African Predator Association - SAPA - has instituted High Court action against the government in an effort to compel the Environment department to establish an annual quota for the sale of lion bones and derivatives. BAT and EMS have taken exception to the action by the lion bone farmers and maintain that the trade in lion bones is a major ethical, legal and administrative embarrassment for South Africa. To discuss this Udo Carelse spoke to  Michele Pickover,  Executive Director at  EMS Foundation 

The Indigenous Cinema Alliance  - ICA - recently announced its 2025 fellowship line-up with the addition of new members to its expanding global network that now includes a South African. Khoikhoi Cultural and Language Revivalist, Toroga Denver, has been added to the line-up of the international group that promotes indigenous film and television. Denver joins other indigenous film makers from as far afield as Canada, New Zealand, Greenland, Hawaii, Norway, Australia and Ecuador. The ICA advances and elevates indigenous cinema across continents and showcased works by different film makers at the European film Market in Berlin, Germany, 2 weeks ago. Toroga Denver has just returned from the film festival and spoke to Udo Carelse ...

Many South Africans have gone off the grid because of the country's challenge with electricity supply. This week Eskom implemented stage 6 , after a number of unit failures at the Camden, Majuba and Medupi power stations. The three days of loadshedding was more than enough to remind South Africa that the country is not out of the woods yet. Amid load shedding, South Africans have become victims of solar equipment fraud. The Consumer Goods and Services Ombud (CGSO) has previously issued an alert that it received a number of complaints about solar systems and generators and cautioned South Africans about falling for solar equipment scams amid the power outage. For more Udo Carelse spoke to Lee Soobrathi, Consumer Goods and Services Ombudsman.

Government says there will be no extension for spaza shops owners to register their businesses. YESTERDAY MARKED the final day for spaza shop operators and other food-handling outlets to register their businesses with local municipalities. Many are frustrated and uncertain about their business future ..  For reaction we are joined on the line by National Informal Traders Alliance of South Africa chairperson, Rosheda Muller. 

The late Namibian founding president Sam Nujoma, who died 3 weeks ago aged 95, will be laid to rest in a state funeral TODAY, which has been declared a national holiday.  Nujoma, a guerilla who headed the South West Africa People's Organisation - SWAPO - which led the liberation struggle, was the country's first president after it won independence from South Africa in 1990. He will be laid to rest at the National Heroes Acre in the capital Windhoek. Udo Carelse spoke to Namibian journalist, Isack Hamata in Namibia...