Tuesday, 22 September 2026

IT’S OFFICIAL THE 2026 FOUNDATION PHASE NATIONAL CATALOGUE IS OUT FOR IMPLEMENTATION WITH IMMEDIATE EFFECT

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BY: CHANON LECODEY MERRICKS | ONLINE EDITOR

IT’S OFFICIAL THE 2026 FOUNDATION PHASE NATIONAL CATALOGUE IS OUT FOR IMPLEMENTATION WITH IMMEDIATE EFFECT

The Department of Basic Education's 2026 Foundation Phase National Catalogue has now been approved and endorsed, provinces are now empowered to use the latest catalogue and procurement has commenced.

This follows a 18 September 2026 decision endorsed by the Council of Education Ministers (CEM) after due consideration. A triple-layer review - comprising an AGSA audit, an independent investigation, and legal opinions from both internal legal services and external Senior Counsel have confirmed the integrity of the process.

They found NO FRAUD, NO FAVOURITISM, and therefore NO BASIS TO CANCEL.

The new catalogue brings important educational and financial benefits. It provides updated, curriculum-aligned materials, stronger resources for foundational literacy and provision for newer curriculum areas such as Coding and Robotics. It also creates opportunities for greater efficiencies through economies of scale and broadens participation in the publishing sector.

On early grade reading, one of the sector priorities, the new catalogue strengthens access by providing for 40 readers per class and a Core Reader per learner, while reducing the number of listed titles from eight to three to enable more focused teacher development and subject-advisory support.

The Department regards the conclusion of these processes as an important point of certainty for the sector. Recommendations arising from the reviews will be incorporated into the continued strengthening of governance and administration around LTSM, while implementation proceeds. The priority now is delivery.

The DBE has engaged provinces on the details for procurement. We are confident that the sector will come together to ensure that books are bought and delivered as effectively as possible, keeping in mind the upcoming new academic year.

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MINISTER AUCAMP ANNOUNCES PRIVATE SECTOR TO ASSIST IN LOCAL FMD VACCINE PRODUCTION

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BY: CHANON LECODEY MERRICKS | ONLINE EDITOR

MINISTER AUCAMP ANNOUNCES PRIVATE SECTOR TO ASSIST IN LOCAL FMD VACCINE PRODUCTION

A proposal by the Minister of Agriculture, Willie Aucamp, to allow qualifying private companies to make use of the ARC’s intellectual property (IP) regarding Foot and mouth disease (FMD) vaccines and for them to join in manufacturing the ARC’s FMD vaccine at a large scale, have been unanimously agreed to by the Agricultural Research Council (ARC) and its Board on Monday 21 September 2026.

The ARC vaccine is a very effective defence against the domestic FMD strains and requires only a single annual administration. However, due to manufacturing constraints, the ARC is currently not able to manufacture their FMD vaccine at scale.

Allowing local and/or international companies to manufacture the ARC vaccine, under conditional IP licensing agreements with the ARC, will therefore help the ARC to overcome the current manufacturing constraints that they are experiencing.

Following the board meeting, Minister Aucamp said: “Partnering with the private sector to manufacture the ARC vaccine marks a decisive breakthrough in safeguarding South Africa’s livestock sector, strengthening national biosecurity, and securing food supply chains.”

“I’ve listened to the concerns of farmers and other stakeholders in the sector, and I appreciate that they want swift action to deal with this Foot and Mouth Disease outbreak. It is against this background that we are now, for the first time, going to allow the private sector to make use of the IP of the ARC to enhance the availability of the ARC vaccine.” The ARC remains steadfastly committed to rebuilding its own internal production capacity, and while third party assistance will be brought in to produce the ARC vaccine at large scale, the ARC will continue to expand its own FMD manufacturing capacity. Any income that the ARC will derive from these licencing agreements will be ringfenced by the ARC and will only be used by the ARC to increase its own FMD vaccine manufacturing capacity. “Although the implementation of this decision will not happen overnight, it is a huge step forward in combating this FMD outbreak, and I am proud to confirm that all parties involved have committed to do whatever they can to ensure that this decision is implemented without delay.” said Minister Aucamp. Further to this development, and on the request of Minister Aucamp, the ARC will also submit representative FMD field-circulating virus isolates from South Africa to the Pirbright Institute in the United Kingdom in October for a second round of vaccine-matching assessments.

The purpose of this exercise is to provide an additional scientific assessment of the suitability of available local and imported vaccines against FMD viruses currently circulating in South Africa.

The Department of Agriculture will continue to work with commodity organisations, provincial veterinary services, the ARC, organised agriculture, and other stakeholders to strengthen the country's FMD control programme.

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SACP congratulates Mamelodi Sundowns for winning the FIFA African-AsianPacific Cup 2026

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BY: CHANON LECODEY MERRICKS | ONLINE EDITOR

SACP congratulates Mamelodi Sundowns for winning the FIFA African-AsianPacific Cup 2026

The South African Communist Party (SACP) joins football fans in South Africa and across the African continent in congratulating Mamelodi Sundowns football club for winning the FIFA African-Asian-Pacific Cup 2026, after beating Saudi Arabia's Al Ahli 2-1 on Saturday. A major step in their historic quest towards conquering world football, Sundowns have set the bar so high for South African football as they are the first ever South African club to clinch the African-Asian-Pacific Cup and only the third African club to ever win it after Al Ahly FC and Pyramids FC, both from Egypt. Mamelodi Sundowns entered the 2026–27 season as the top-ranked football club on the African continent.

Following their victory against the Asian champions, the African kings and now intercontinental champions have climbed the world football clubs ranking, now ranking 58th, and look set to break new records along the way.

The FIFA African-Asian-Pacific Cup forms part of the mega final matches within the FIFA Intercontinental Cup, which is expected to conclude in December. After their victory on Saturday, Sundowns now proceed to the Challenger Cup, where they will meet either the Concacaf Champions Cup holders, Toluca FC of Mexico, or the winners of the Copa Libertadores, the South American club championship.

As Sundowns continue on their journey in world football, the SACP is confident that the future of South African football is in good hands. In tribute to Mamelodi Sundowns, the SACP reiterates its call to our government to deepen sports development, particularly in townships and rural areas.

The government has the duty to, working with the people, redress any imbalances that were created by colonial and apartheid rule, which largely impacted the black majority, with black women being the most impacted.

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DA Legal Action against ActionSA, EFF, MK and GOOD for deliberately hiding their Candidates

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BY: CHANON LECODEY MERRICKS | ONLINE EDITOR

DA Legal Action against ActionSA, EFF, MK and GOOD for deliberately hiding their Candidates

The DA has filed an urgent application in the Electoral Court, against ActionSA, the EFF, the MK Party and GOOD, for their attempt to bend the laws governing candidate lists in this year’s Local Government Election.

The DA’s papers challenge the deliberate submission of proportional representation lists with only one name on them, by ActionSA, the EFF, MK and GOOD ahead of the 2026 Local Government Elections, a decision we view as deliberately concealing their candidates from voters.

They are bending the rules, and attempting to mislead voters, by misinterpreting the law which allows the IEC to request a party to submit extra names after an election if that party wins more seats than they have candidates on their PR list.

The principle at stake is so fundamental that it cannot go unchallenged: parties are required to present voters with the names of their candidates before voters go into a voting booth to choose their political parties, not after the votes have been counted.

The courts have consistently held that voters’ rights to information ahead of voting is sacrosanct, requiring the disclosure of party political funding and other matters. The DA will stand up for this principle, on behalf of voters who should not be hoodwinked by this tactic from ActionSA, the EFF, MK or GOOD.

The law in question was not crafted to allow parties to hide or conceal their candidates from voters and wait for the election to be done before submitting names to the IEC. Doing this is a perversion of the very meaning of a candidate election, and is deeply disrespectful to South African voters.

The law was only intended to cover situations where parties make entirely unexpected and fortuitous surges in support and end up winning a few more PR seats than their lists could cover before the election.

The EFF is contesting almost every ward in South Africa, with thousands of individual ward candidates, while submitting just one PR candidate in every municipality.

ActionSA has nominated more than 2,000 individual ward candidates while submitting one-person PR lists in virtually every municipality it contests. In Johannesburg, where it currently has dozens of PR councillors, it has submitted just one PR candidate.

MK has similarly fielded candidates across thousands of wards while submitting one-person PR lists.

GOOD has done the same in municipalities where it already holds multiple PR seats.

The scale and uniformity of this practice is precisely why the DA has approached the Electoral Court.

Most revealingly, ActionSA has publicly acknowledged that its approach was deliberate: it submitted one name so that it could supplement its list after discovering how many seats it had won.

ActionSA has even said it would use the seats it attains as rewards for party members who work hard during the election campaign, putting the party ahead of residents and voters again.

ActionSA, the EFF, the MK Party and GOOD are in the midst of bending the law of candidate nominations to hide their councillor candidates from voters, and the DA is approaching the Court to stand up for voters rights to know.

The question now before the Electoral Court is whether the topping-up of lists after seat calculations can deliberately be used as an electoral strategy to avoid identifying candidates before voters get to vote.

The DA’s case is that it cannot be done that way, because these parties would be hiding their candidates from voters.

The DA has asked the Electoral Court to determine the legality and constitutionality of this practice, and we have asked the Court to grant appropriate relief.

This is particularly important after the ANC was excluded from contesting in various municipalities after failing to submit its lists on time. If the ANC engaged in the same willful deception of voters and only submitted one name on the list, it would be on the ballot.

Voters must be presented the candidates they are voting for. Elections cannot become games of slight-of-hand.

The ballot box must determine which candidates are elected.

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GUINEA-BISSAU STRENGTHENS HEALTH SYSTEM AS MPox AND OTHER PUBLIC HEALTH RISKS TEST NATIONAL CAPACITY

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BY: CHANON LECODEY MERRICKS | ONLINE EDITOR

GUINEA-BISSAU STRENGTHENS HEALTH SYSTEM AS MPox AND OTHER PUBLIC HEALTH RISKS TEST NATIONAL CAPACITY

GUINEA - Guinea-Bissau is strengthening its health system as authorities continue responding to infectious-disease risks and improving access to healthcare.

The country confirmed an mpox case earlier this year, prompting health authorities to strengthen surveillance and public-health coordination. The World Health Organization reported the confirmed case in July and has continued to monitor developments.

A Vulnerable Health System

Guinea-Bissau has a relatively small population but faces major healthcare challenges.

Health facilities and medical personnel are concentrated unevenly.

Rural communities can experience difficulty accessing hospitals and specialist services.

The government therefore needs stronger primary healthcare.

Mpox

The confirmed mpox case demonstrates why surveillance matters.

Early detection can prevent outbreaks from spreading.

Public awareness is equally important.

Citizens need accurate information about symptoms, transmission and when to seek medical care.

Polio Progress

There is also positive news.

An independent assessment recommended closure of Guinea-Bissau's 2021 variant poliovirus type 2 outbreak while calling for continued immunisation and surveillance.

This represents important progress.

However, the country cannot afford to reduce vaccination efforts.

Cross-Border CoOperation

Guinea-Bissau is part of a region where people move frequently between countries.

Disease outbreaks can cross borders quickly.

Health cooperation with Senegal, Guinea and other West African states is therefore essential.

The WHO has reported that ten African countries recently signed an agreement strengthening cross-border cooperation for health emergencies.

Agriculture and Cashews

Cashew production remains central to Guinea-Bissau's economy.

The crop provides income for large numbers of farmers.

However, excessive dependence on one commodity exposes the country to price fluctuations.

The development of cashew processing could help retain more value domestically.

Fisheries

Guinea-Bissau also possesses substantial marine resources.

Fisheries can provide food and export earnings.

Sustainable management is essential to prevent overfishing.

Political Stability

Political stability remains important to economic development.

Frequent political crises can discourage investment and disrupt government programmes.

Long-term development requires continuity.

Youth Employment

Young people need opportunities in agriculture, fisheries, services and digital industries.

Technology could help overcome the country's geographic isolation.

Strengthening primary healthcare should remain a national priority.

The country's progress against polio demonstrates what can be achieved through coordinated health programmes.

The challenge is sustaining that progress while preparing for new diseases.

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Tuesday, 22 September 2026