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The first-ever World Table Tennis Championships is coming to Durban in 2023 and to the African continent for the first time since 1939.

The International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) on Monday said Durban won 90 votes (69.77%) to beat off competition from the other candidate city, Düsseldorf, Germany, which won 39 votes (30.23%).

The KwaZulu-Natal MEC for Economic Development, Tourism and Environmental Affairs, Nomusa Dube-Ncube, has since expressed gratitude to the South Africa Table Tennis Board (SATTB) President Joe Carrim for working with the KwaZulu-Natal government, eThekwini municipality and other key role players during the bidding process.

“I know that in the beginning, it was extremely difficult but through your determination, you have managed to pull this off.

“On behalf of the people of KwaZulu-Natal, I wish to personally salute all role players who have been involved in this important national project,” Dube-Ncube said.

She thanked government and Premier Sihle Zikalala and the entire provincial cabinet for the guidance throughout the bidding process.

“With Durban being selected as the next host city, we flatter ourselves to believe that this is because South Africa and KwaZulu-Natal, in particular, have in the past proved to be worthy and competent hosts of a number of national, continental and international events of diverse interests.”

Dube-Ncube said the province is overwhelmed by the enthusiastic response and interest that has been shown by the sport-loving community from across the globe.

“The people of KwaZulu-Natal cannot wait to welcome international and national visitors during the World Table Tennis Championship in 2023.”

The MEC said they are excited that the championship will become one of the most important and “a must-see event” in the global calendar.

“Equally, we congratulate Germany, the country that has hosted the event on six previous occasions, including twice in the past eight years.”

Carrim said winning the bid took a great deal of effort and commitment from all parties and the reward was a combined effort and that the hard work to ensure it is a success starts now.

“I wish to thank the members of the ITTF for their trust and belief in our ability to host this global event. We thank them for their patience during the site inspection, which was followed by a video presentation on 21 September during to restrictions imposed as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic,” Carrim said.

He also thanked the Premier, his cabinet as well as Mayor Mxolisi Kaunda and MMCs of eThekwini for their unwavering support.

ITTF Deputy President, Khalil Al-Mohannadi, has congratulated both South Africa and Germany on presenting very strong bids to host the 2023 ITTF World Table Tennis Championships Finals.

“We are continuing to see benefits from the forthcoming changes to the format of the World Championships finals, which will be introduced from next year onwards, leading to more countries bidding from different regions of the world.

“This also reflects the ever-increasing international appeal of table tennis, which is extremely pleasing to see, as we continue to work hard to make the sport more global in the future.”

The ITTF is the world governing body for all 226 affiliated national table tennis associations and responsible for the organisation of numerous international competitions, including the World Table Tennis Championships that has continued since 1926.

The Embassy of Portugal has donated 25 laptops and 2 000 masks to support the phased-in reopening of schools during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“The COVID-19 essentials donation and ICT devices come from the people of Portugal. We warmly accept this act of solidarity amid the devastation caused by the COVID-19 global pandemic.

“This occasion today indeed reaffirms the importance of our bilateral relations, informed by the Memorandum of Consultations, signed in 2002,” said Basic Education Minister Angie Motshekga during the handover on Monday.

Motshekga said the donation comes at a time when the sector is tasked with ensuring that every school child has sufficient personal protective equipment (PPE), such as masks, to keep the virus at bay.

“These are key in promoting the COVID-19 pandemic compliance and protecting lives, while allowing schooling to continue.  As we know, PPEs are a key arsenal in an all-out war against the pandemic.

“This donation of masks will go a long way to help to meet the moving target of providing PPE to learners,” she said.

Despite the news that South Africa has reached the COVID-19 pandemic peak, Motshekga said the country remains at risk.

“The virus isn’t on level two or planning to go on level one. It is significant to note that our measures have yielded positive results, as we have enough hospital bed capacity, ventilators and oxygen tanks for the foreseeable long period of the pandemic.”

South Africa has a case facility rate of 2.1% – lower than the global rate, while Egypt has a 5.4% case fatality rate, higher than the global average of 3.5%.

“Our mammoth task now is the mobilisation of society for the behavioural change needed as we ramp up non-pharmaceutical interventions as a new way to coexist with the virus.

“Yet, we remain steadfast in our belief that there is a need to balance saving lives versus livelihoods. We remain committed to our moral and constitutional obligation to save lives, first and foremost,” said Motshekga.

Portugal was hailed for its early and effective response to COVID-19, as it managed to avoid a devastating peak like the one seen in neighbouring Spain. It is now dealing firmly with the remnants of the virus through various measures.

“I would like to reiterate my sincere gratitude to the people and the government of Portugal for their generous support to the phased-in reopening of schools in our country.

“These are challenging times, of fighting an invisible enemy that seeks to decimate lives and livelihoods. Thankfully, our response, together with the international community, has been marked by solidarity and cooperation,” said the Minister.

A total of 188 COVID-19 related deaths were reported on Monday, bringing the toll to 16 586 since the outbreak.

Of the additional fatalities, 178 were reported in the Free State, four in the Western Cape, three in the Eastern Cape, two in Gauteng and one in KwaZulu-Natal.

However, according to Health Minister, Dr Zweli Mkhize, there has been a “two-week delay” in the reporting of Free State deaths, as the province collated data from the various districts and verified this against Home Affairs data.

“This is part of efforts to improve the quality of data by aligning information from facilities with Home Affairs statistics. Data from post-mortem swabs also had to be collated and verified. This is in line with the recommendations of the Medical Research Council,” Mkhize explained, adding that the data are now up to date.

Also, the cumulative number of detected COVID-19 cases is 671 669 after 903 cases were identified.

Meanwhile, there are now 604 478 patients who have recuperated, which translates to a recovery rate of 90%.

This is information is based on the 4 152 480 test performed, 9 014 of which were conducted since the last report.

To date, over 32.7 million COVID-19 cases and 991 000 deaths have been reported to the World Health Organisation (WHO).

There were more than two million new cases and 36 000 new deaths reported between and 21 and 27 September 2020.

According to the agency, the cumulative deaths are expected to exceed one million in the coming week.

“The region of the Americas continues to carry the highest incidence of COVID-19 globally, reporting similar numbers of new cases and deaths as the previous week. The region accounts for 38% of all new cases and 52% of all new deaths reported in the past seven days.”

The Eastern Mediterranean region showed the greatest increase (9%) in cases in the past week, while the European region reported a substantial rise in deaths, with a 9% increase compared to the previous week.

Meanwhile, WHO African, Western Pacific and South-East Asia regions recorded decreases in the new cases and deaths.

South Africa continues to report the highest number of new cases and new deaths, followed by Ethiopia, Uganda, Algeria and Mozambique.

South Africa also has the highest number of cumulative cases and deaths per one million population in the region, followed by Cabo Verde, which has reported increasing numbers of cases, and deaths over the past month.

National Treasury is soliciting public comments on the second draft of the Conduct of Financial Institutions (COFI) Bill, which was published on Monday.

The first draft of the Bill was published for comment in December 2018.

The second draft of the Bill is accompanied by a Response Document, which explains key changes made to the first draft of the Bill, in response to comments submitted and engagements held.

In a statement, Treasury said it aims to finalise the Bill after taking into account the second-round comments. The Bill will then be sent to Cabinet for approval and tabling early next year.

“The COFI Bill is a key pillar in government’s Twin Peaks financial sector regulatory reform process, which aims to entrench better financial customer outcomes in the South African financial sector. It is a financial institution-facing law that sets requirements for financial institutions to meet and outcomes to deliver.”

The Bill aims to significantly streamline the legal landscape for conduct regulation in the financial services sector and to give legislative effect to the market conduct policy approach, including implementation of the Treating Customers Fairly (TCF) principles.

“These principles are currently not enforceable, and while customer outcomes may have somewhat improved, this has not been consistent across the sector. The COFI Bill will ensure that the TCF principles are legally binding and enforced on all financial institutions,” said Treasury in a statement.

Key changes

Key changes made between the first and second drafts of the COFI Bill include the application of the COFI Bill in relation to existing legislation.

In this regard, in response to comments and engagements that flagged potential inconsistencies and ambiguities with existing laws, the revised COFI Bill has proposed consequential amendments to the Financial Sector Regulation (FSR) Act.

The draft also proposes an approach to conduct standards.

“The first draft of the COFI Bill contained enabling provisions for making conduct standards in different chapters. These have been removed, and the standard-making provisions in the FSR Act have instead been strengthened.

“The FSCA will thus be empowered, through the conduct standard making provisions in the FSR Act, to set conduct standards under the COFI Act,” said Treasury.

Another key change will be the refined approach to licensing.

“Key enabling provisions have been proposed for inclusion in the FSR Act licensing chapter through consequential amendments. Provisions have been expanded and strengthened to provide for a more comprehensive licensing framework for the Twin Peaks regulatory authorities.

“The intended effect of this approach is that an entity will require a licence issued under the COFI Act, but the provisions that set out the framework for licensing are those in the FSR Act,” said Treasury.

Other key changes between the two drafts include:

• Focusing transformation to tangible targets: The revised draft of the COFI Bill attempts to strengthen the transformation in the financial sector. The requirement for financial institutions to have transformation policies are refined to require the policies to more closely align to the achievement of tangible targets. The revised draft also allows for the FSCA to issue directives in relation to transformation policies. It clarifies that the FSCA may use its supervisory and enforcement powers to ensure that a financial institution’s governance frameworks – including in relation to transformation – are adequate and adhered to.

• Approach to medical schemes sector: The first draft of the COFI Bill envisioned application of conduct requirements in relation to medical schemes and medical scheme administrators. This was in line with the provisions of the FSR Act, which define health service benefits provided by a medical scheme as financial products, thus bringing them under the jurisdiction of both the Prudential Authority (PA) and FSCA. A task team has been established between the National Treasury, Council for Medical Schemes (CMS), PA and FSCA to address issues of regulatory approach of the three regulators. The revised draft of the Bill thus removes all reference to medical schemes and medical scheme administrators until the work of this task team has concluded.

• Alignment to financial markets review: The potential for overlap between the revised draft COFI Bill and envisaged new Financial Markets Act (FMA) was the subject of further discussion during the process of refining the COFI Bill. As a result, activities defined in Schedule 1 of the Bill, (Licensing Schedule), capture certain of the new activities proposed to be regulated through the FMA review.

• Application to the non-retail market: A series of engagements were held to specifically consider the application of the COFI Bill to the non-retail environment. A new license activity of corporate advisory services has been included. This intends to better capture the activities undertaken by institutions such as investment banks, such as arrangement of debt and equity issues, advisory services and on- and off-balance sheet financing of transactions. A new license activity (called ‘lending’) has been added to capture the provision of non-retail credit, i.e. lending agreements that are not regulated in terms of the National Credit Act.

The Response Document accompanying the revised draft of the COFI Bill explains the changes made in greater detail, and provides an overview of other changes made to the Bill that aim to ensure technical accuracy of provisions.

Comments on the Bill will be accepted until 30 October 2020. Comments can be sent to marketconduct@treasury.gov.za.

President Cyril Ramaphosa says government has gazetted ministerial determinations that will enable the development of more than 11.800 megawatts (MW) of additional power generation.

This follows commitments government made in the State of the Nation Address (SONA) in February this year.

South Africa currently has in the region of over 30.000 MW of electricity available on the national grid each day.

President Ramaphosa said reliable, secure and affordable energy supply is the lifeblood of any economy.

“This new energy will be procured from diverse sources, including solar, wind, gas, coal and storage. While meeting our energy needs well into the future, this new capacity will also help us meet our international obligations to reduce carbon emissions,” he said.

The President said this in his weekly newsletter on Monday.

“As government we have decided that to grow our economy and attract investment, secure and sustainable energy supply is paramount,” he said.

Sustainable energy

To limit the impact of climate change, it is equally important that energy is sustainable and environmentally sound.

South Africa, he said, has one of the most energy-intensive economies in the world.

“While our energy sources have become more diverse than before with the increasing inclusion of renewable energy sources, we remain heavily dependent on fossil fuels, mainly coal. We are also a water-stressed country and coal power generation consumes vast quantities of water,” he said.

Electricity self-generation

President Ramaphosa said in an effort to facilitate electricity self-generation and as part of the reform process, government have removed the licensing requirement for self-generation projects under 1 MW.

“So far 156 self-generation facilities under 1 MW have been registered, with a total installed capacity of 72 MW.

“For facilities that can generate above 1 megawatt, the National Energy Regulator of South Africa is improving its licensing processes to improve turnaround time.

“So far, five such facilities, with total installed capacity of 25 megawatts, have been licenced. Further work is being undertaken to reform the regulatory environment to ensure that we make fuller use of the great potential in this country for self-generation among commercial and industrial users,” President Ramaphosa said.

Stabilising state-owned enterprises

President Ramaphosa said government is also working towards stabilising state-owned enterprises as an important part of the reform process.

“In this regard, we are working to restore Eskom’s operational capabilities and restructure Eskom to fundamentally change the way in which we generate and transmit electricity in our country.

“Our vision is to lead South Africa through a just transition which ensures that as many people as possible benefit from the investment, growth and job-creation that we can achieve through expanding our electricity generation capacity.”

He said progress is being made in overcoming the challenges faced by Eskom.

“As part of the necessary restructuring process, separate governance structures in the form of boards have been appointed for the power utility’s generation, transmission and distribution divisions, as we announced at the State of the Nation Address,” President Ramaphosa said.

The South African Post Office has assured recipients of social grants that South African Social Security Agency (SASSA) payments will not be affected by the current financial restrained experience by the Post Office.

“The funds for social grants come from National Treasury through the Department of Social Development and are not funded from the revenue of the South African Post Office.

“The SA Post Office experienced a dramatic reduction in revenue during the lockdown period and is currently looking at ways to improve cash flows,” the Post Office said in a statement.

South Africa has recorded 1 268 new COVID-19 cases bringing the cumulative number of detected cases to 670 766 on Sunday.

The Eastern Cape has recorded 88 892, Free State 46 128, Gauteng 219 039, KwaZulu-Natal 118 731, Limpopo 15 270, Mpumalanga 27 021, North West 29 012, Northern Cape 16 243 and Western Cape 110 430.

The cumulative number of tests conducted to date is 4 143 466 with 15 028 new tests conducted.

Twenty two more people have succumbed to COVID-19 related deaths, seven from Eastern Cape, five from KwaZulu-Natal, two from Gauteng, five from North West, and three from Western Cape.

“This brings the total number of COVID-19 related deaths to 16 398. We extend our condolences to the loved ones of the departed and thank the health- care workers that treated the deceased patients. Our recoveries now stand at 603 721 which translates to a recovery rate of 90%,” Health Minister, Dr Zweli Mkhize, said.

Five suspects arrested in connection with the alleged human trafficking are expected to appear in the Rustenburg and Kuruman Magistrate Courts today.

The five men were arrested on Sunday following a Hawks Northern Cape and North West Serious Organised Crime Investigation with the assistance of Crime Intelligence, K9, TRT, Crime Scene Investigation and the Department of Home Affairs.

The investigation saw law enforcement raid three brothels in Kuruman and Rustenburg, ultimately arresting the five.

According to Hawks spokesperson Brigadier Hangwani Mulaudzi, 11 victims of alleged human trafficking were also recued.

Search warrants were served at two guesthouses namely Birdsong B&B and Noble Guest House at Kerk Street, Rustenburg, which were used as brothels.

The two premises have since been closed.

“Another simultaneous operation also led to a closure of a house in Kuruman. Seven victims, a Zambian, Zimbabwean, three from Lesotho and two South Africans were rescued in Rustenburg,” he said.

Additionally, four South African women were rescued in Kuruman.

He said the arrest of the five suspects aged between 28 and 46, is part of a yearlong proactive investigation into human trafficking for sexual exploitation in the two towns.

The women aged between 20 and 39 years, were used as prostitutes on the premises after they were allegedly lured by the suspects with a promise of employment.

In addition, an undisclosed amount of money was seized at all premises. Receipt books and three vehicles that were used in the commission of crimes were also confiscated.

The five men are believed to be part of an alleged criminal group.

The National Head of the Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation ( DPCI) Lieutenant General Godfrey Lebeya welcomed the arrests and commended the role played by all units.

Lebeya also appreciated the role that was played by community members who reported the matter to the Hawks.

“I want to encourage all South Africans to continuously work hand in glove with the law enforcement agencies to combat the ongoing threat posed by organised criminal groups.”

Innovation will come to the fore when the Department of Trade, Industry and Competition (dtic), together with the South African Innovation Summit (SAIS), host a summit this week.

The two-day Innovation Summit, which will get underway on Wednesday, will bring together innovation leaders from different countries, backgrounds, disciplines and world views to create an innovative environment that will prosper the South African economy and have a positive effect on entrepreneurs’ competitive edge.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the summit will be held virtually.

As part of this year’s programme, an Inventors Garage competition will take place, with participants showcasing their creations at the summit.

The competition is a tribute to the spirit of innovation and the work of dedicated inventors, whose pioneering inventions provide answers to some of the biggest challenges of our times.

The Innovation Summit is a major public gathering on the South African calendar and showcases, connects, capacitates, and originates the best start-up talent from Africa to the world.

It has done so for 13 years and made possible deals worth billions for African entrepreneurs.

Dtic Deputy Minister Nomalungelo Gina says the department is excited about hosting the Inventors’ Garage competition. She said the competition will profile inventions of young South Africans, as well as the outputs of the technology incentive programme.

“During the summit, we will increase awareness of innovation and new digital technologies, especially to the existing black industrialists and grassroots innovators through collaboration with different economic actors,” said Gina.

The dtic will also be launching the Khoebo Innovation Promotion Programme (KIPP) during the Summit 2020.

“We have partnered with the Industrial Development Corporation (IDC) on the KIPP and implementation of the programme throughout the country will happen in line with the rural and township economic revitalisation focus of government.

“Support for grassroots innovators who wish to apply will be provided during the launch,” Gina said.

The KIPP will have two sub-schemes with the Small Medium Enterprise Growth Scheme, looking at enterprises already in existence and are looking to scale-up and penetrate new markets.

The second aspect is the Grassroots Innovation Funding Scheme (GIFS), where the focus will be on grassroots innovators that are at start-up phase or trading in a small scale.

The summit will conclude on 1 October 2020.

South Africa and Mozambique will on Tuesday host a two-day virtual Trade and Investment webinar.

The webinar will be held under the theme ‘Developing Afrocentric Solutions and Forging Partnership in Response to COVID-19’.

Trade, Industry and Competition Deputy Minister, Nomalungelo Gina and Mozambique Deputy Minister of Commerce and Industry, Ludovina Bernardo, are expected address the virtual seminar.

The webinar will focus on trade and investment opportunities available in Mozambique and also discuss strategic issues regarding Mozambique’s investment plans to stimulate the country’s economic growth amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

According to Gina, the webinar will build up on previous Outward Trade and Investment Missions held in Mozambique, which yielded significant results in terms of exposing South African companies to the Mozambican market, creating greater knowledge of South African capabilities, improving awareness of investment and trade opportunities.

“This webinar will focus on the status of COVID-19 in Mozambique and the country’s economic response plan, South Africa’s risk adjusted strategy, and opportunities to strengthen partnership in sectors like agriculture and agro-processing, energy and transport infrastructure,” Gina said.

Total trade between South Africa and Mozambique has been on an upward trajectory between 2015 and 2019.

In 2019, total trade between the two countries amounted to R66.20 billion with trade skewed in favour of South Africa.

The composition of South African exports to Mozambique include, amongst others, mineral products, machinery and mechanical appliances, base metals and articles of base metal, prepared foodstuffs, vehicles, aircraft, vessels and associated transport equipment and vegetable products just to mention a few.

The basket of South African exports to Mozambique is made up of value added goods.