South Africa's central bank raised its main lending rate by a higher-than-expected 50 basis points to 7.75% in a decision announced on Thursday.

Western nations have promised $8.5 bln to kick-start South Africa's transition from polluting coal to green energy - but sources close to the plan say it needs five times as much.

This is the 49-year-old man accused of setting South Africa's parliament building on fire, which completely destroyed its lower house National Assembly chamber. The chamber was destroyed after flare-up on the second day.

South Africa's President Cyril Ramaphosa said on Sunday (November 28) he was "deeply disappointed" after rich Western countries for their knee-jerk imposition of travel bans after hearing about the new variant. Ramaphosa also said the country faced a fourth wave of COVID-19 within weeks, as the new omicron variant was driving a rise in infections in the most populated province of Gauteng. He said authorities would not be considering economic lockdown restrictions for the time being, due to the availability of vaccines for those aged 12 and over.

S.Africa's Ramaphosa welcomes Zuma's medical parole

South Africa plans to kickstart its Covid-19 vaccination campaign with Johnson & Johnson jabs after withholding a batch of AstraZeneca doses following doubts over the shot's efficacy. The country worst-hit by the pandemic in Africa had suspended its vaccine rollout - meant to begin with Oxford/AstraZeneca - after scientists found the shot failed to prevent mild and moderate illness caused by a local virus variant known as 501Y.V2.