Tuesday, 11 August 2026

South Africa’s unemployment rate rose to 33.6%, or 8.5 million people, while the expanded rate hit 43.8%; youth unemployment was 47.4% and women’s unemployment 37.5%.

Analyst Duma Kubule called the jobs crisis a national emergency, said 360,000 jobs disappeared in six months, and argued xenophobic blame against foreign nationals was a “non-factor”.

The DA’s plan to let private firms help run municipalities was rejected as not convincing and unlikely to solve the real issue: bad people and poor ethics in local government.

A South African tech team showcased a multilingual humanoid chatbot designed to break language barriers, especially for grandparents and schoolchildren who struggle with English-only systems.

The KwaZulu-Natal cold snap remained severe, with snowfall, cut-off rural communities and reopened roads after closures; motorists were repeatedly told to stay indoors and avoid chasing snow.