JOHANNESBURG – Unable to switch on lights or heaters, cook dinner or charge their phones, South Africans are spending their mid-winter evenings plunged in darkness and low-tech living. Power outages, known here as load shedding, intensified late last month after strikes erupted at the nation’s monopoly energy provider Eskom, leaving coal plants unable to operate…
Author: Linda Givetash
Linda Givetash is a Canadian-South African freelance journalist based in Vancouver, B.C. Her work has appeared in print, digital and broadcast media outlets around the globe.
Refugees in South Africa demand move over xenophobia
PRETORIA — A group of refugees in South Africa has been camped in front of U.N. offices since May, begging to be moved to a third country. The refugees from Burundi, Congo, Malawi and Rwanda say returning to their homelands is not safe and they no longer feel welcome in South Africa.
South African entrepreneur transforms plastic waste into playgrounds
JOHANNESBURG — Despite global efforts to curb plastic use, sub-Saharan Africa is predicted to see a sixfold increase by 2060, says the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. In South Africa, one man is trying to make a difference by creating jobs and transforming plastic waste into outdoor furniture and playgrounds.
Africa’s response to climate change
Persistent Drought in Ethiopia an Example of Climate Change, Experts Say GODE, ETHIOPIA — Drought is not new to the Horn of Africa, but experts say the record one killing crops and cattle across Ethiopia, Kenya, and Somalia has underscored the increasing frequency of drought due to climate change. In Ethiopia, the U.N.’s World Food…
Climate change robbing Ethiopia’s pastoralists of traditional livelihood
GODE, ETHIOPIA — The persistent drought drying out the Horn of Africa is a reflection of severe weather intensified by climate change. For Ethiopia’s pastoralists who have seen more than a million livestock perish, it is a signal their way of life cannot be sustained by the next generation. Camera: Michele Spatari
Largest aid convoy since truce arrives in Ethiopia’s Tigray region
SEMERA, ETHIOPIA — The largest aid convoy to reach Ethiopia’s conflict-ridden Tigray region since the declaration of a truce in March arrived this week. While the effort marked progress for aid organizations scrambling to respond to the region’s humanitarian crisis, resources are spread thin as neighboring regions also require aid due to the conflict and severe…
Child marriages rise in Ethiopia as desperate families seek drought relief
GODE, ETHIOPIA — The record drought in Ethiopia has led to a dramatic increase in desperate parents marrying off their children, says the U.N. Children’s Fund (UNICEF), with reported child marriages more than doubling so far this year. Aid groups are trying to get much-needed water and other help to drought-hit families to try to curb…
Drought prompts over 600,000 school dropouts in Ethiopia
GODE, ETHIOPIA — Drought has displaced hundreds of thousands of families and forced more than 600,000 Ethiopian children to leave school. Aid group Save the Children has built centers near displacement camps so children can continue their education. Linda Givetash reports from Gode, Ethiopia. Camera: Michele Spatari
KZN flood victims struggle with despair
DURBAN, SOUTH AFRICA — Wielding shovels, mallets and machetes, they worked for four hours to try to shift the muddy debris, hoping that vehicles could at last get through. In vain: A pick-up truck, stuck on the wrong side of the gigantic mound, was still unable to pass. Inhabitants of KwaNdengezi, a township west of Durban,…
South Africa declares national disaster after deadly floods
JOHANNESBURG — South African President Cyril Ramaphosa declared a state of disaster late Monday following deadly floods in the country’s eastern KwaZulu-Natal province. Record floods have left more than 440 people dead, an estimated 40,000 people homeless and damaged critical infrastructure and hundreds of schools. Recovery of South Africa Flood Victims Hampered by Rains DURBAN, SOUTH…
South Africa’s Ramaphosa asked to mediate Russia-Ukraine talks
World reflects on legacy of Archbishop Desmond Tutu
JOHANNESBURG — The world is reflecting on the legacy of South African anti-apartheid icon Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu, who died Sunday. The Nobel Peace laureate was known worldwide as a champion of human rights. Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu is being remembered for his efforts in transforming South Africa into the free Rainbow Nation it is today….
COVID Omicron variant discovered in South Africa prompts air travel bans
JOHANNESBURG — South African scientists are scrambling to determine how quickly a newly discovered variant of the coronavirus can spread and if it is resistant to vaccines. The new strain has led Britain to reimpose flights bans on six southern African countries, which could deal another heavy blow to their economies. Omicron More Transmissible but…
South Africa’s soaring unemployment hits women hardest
Videographer: Zaheer Cassim
Graft weakened S. Africa’s spy agency: Ramaphosa after unrest
JOHANNESBURG — South Africa’s intelligence agency became weakened by corruption under ex-president Jacob Zuma, his successor Cyril Ramaphosa said Thursday, weeks after unprecedented unrest overwhelmed the police and prompted deployment of the military. Ramaphosa told a judicial panel probing the plunder of state assets under Zuma: “We have been through a period of state capture that…
S.Africa’s Ramaphosa pressed to step up fight against party ‘rot’
South Africa’s embattled health minister has bowed to pressure to step aside over corruption allegations, but analysts say President Cyril Ramaphosa still has a mountain to climb to cleanse the ruling party of graft. President Cyril Ramaphosa came to power in February 2018 on a ticket to root out the plundering of state coffers that…
After riots tear through South Africa, the nation wonders: What now?
DURBAN, South Africa — The sense of shock was palpable as a handful of residents stared at a shopping center in ruins. Windows were smashed, the parking lot was filled with debris, and “Free Zuma” was spray-painted on the facade of The Ridge, a once-pristine center that sits on Shallcross Road, a major thoroughfare in Durban,…
Arrest of Eswatini lawmakers condemned by international community
Rights groups have condemned Eswatini’s arrest of two lawmakers this week and the use of force against pro-democracy protesters. The southern African kingdom, Africa’s last absolute monarchy, has been rocked by protests since June. Protests re-ignited Thursday in Eswatini, previously known as Swaziland, as two pro-democracy members of parliament appeared in court. Mthandeni Dube and…
South Africa riots reveal political failures
This month’s riots across South Africa have underscored concerns about inequality and stability after nearly three decades of democracy. In Soweto, owners of pillaged shops accuse the government of failing them. Mahamadali Randera watched helplessly from outside his electronics shop at a strip mall in Soweto as determined looters broke through its heavy metal gate….
Riots in South Africa have left people hungry — it’s the poorest who are worst hit
DURBAN, South Africa — South Africa was already beset by rampant poverty. The pandemic exacerbated the struggle for many of the country’s poorest. Now weeks of riots have left stores torched, shelves empty and many hungry. President Cyril Ramaphosa has reassured the country that “immediate food relief” was being distributed in the wake of deadly unrest that saw access to food disrupted after…