Author: Staff Writer

South Africa’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) grew by 1.2% in the fourth quarter of 2021, Statistics South Africa (Stats SA) announced on Tuesday.

“The fourth quarter was upbeat, with personal services, trade, manufacturing and agriculture the key drivers of growth. An increase in demand for goods and services drove up the expenditure side of the economy, with exports and household expenditure the most significant contributors to growth,” said Stats SA.

The growth seen in the fourth quarter follows an upwardly revised 1.7% contraction (from 1.5%) in the third quarter of 2021.

Agriculture, forestry and fisheries led the growth statistics in that quarter by posting an increase of some 12.2% with the sector’s 2021 annual growth standing at about 8.3%.

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Photo: Unsplash

Due to further failures of generation units, power utility Eskom has escalated load shedding from Stage 2 to Stage 4 on Thursday.

The power utility had implemented Stage 2 load shedding on Monday after seven units lost generating capacity over the weekend.

Currently, unplanned breakdowns at power stations amount to some 15 439 MW of lost power with at least 5505MW of planned outages underway.

In a statement, Eskom said at least four units ran into challenges on Tuesday evening – necessitating the need to escalate the severity of load shedding.

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#POWERALERT1

Due to further failures of generation units, Stage 4 loadshedding will be implemented from 09:00 today until 05:00 on Friday in order to manage the emergency reserves pic.twitter.com/OMmqjLKIUX

— Eskom Hld SOC Ltd (@Eskom_SA) March 9, 2022

In recent weeks the world has witnessed the most tense moments in international relations since the end of the Cold War. This was evident in the deliberations and voting by members of the United Nations on resolutions calling on Russia to halt its invasion and withdraw its forces from Ukraine.

The events have also been a stress test for military and political alliances.

Africa yielded significant influence on the voting outcome with 54 countries, (27,97 % of all votes).

Click here to read more in The Conversation.

Breakdowns and shut downs at Eskom’s power stations has led to the implementation of Stage 2 load shedding.

According to the power utility, at least seven units were affected – putting the power grid under severe pressure.

“Medupi Unit 3 broke down, necessitating load shedding to be [implemented]…continuously until 5am on Saturday. This adds to the multiple generating unit failures that occurred over the past 24 hours and has severely reduced available generating capacity.

#PowerAlert1

Stage 2 loadshedding will be implemented continuously until 05:00 on Saturday@SABCNews @eNCA @Newzroom405 @ewnreporter @News24 pic.twitter.com/SvvjvmdysY

— Eskom Hld SOC Ltd (@Eskom_SA) March 8, 2022

Pope Francis during the Angelus appeals against the Russian attack that “sows death, destruction and misery”. He thanks journalists who risk their lives to allow us “to assess the cruelty” of what is happening in Ukrainian cities.

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President Cyril Ramaphosa has reiterated his call for the Russia-Ukraine conflict to be resolved through mediation, negotiation and peaceful means.

The President was addressing the nation through his weekly newsletter.

According to the United Nations, the conflict has led to hundreds of confirmed deaths, the internal displacement of at least 850 000 people along with at least 1.2 million people fleeing the Ukraine.

He said government remains resolute in its belief that the resolution of the conflict can be attained through negotiation.

“It is our hope that negotiations between Russia and the Ukraine yield positive outcomes that pave the way for the end of the conflict. Even though the pace of negotiations may proceed slowly, there is progress nonetheless. Every effort of the international community should be oriented towards supporting these talks, and to bringing the two sides together,” he said.

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