Image of Lithops salicola from Wikimedia Commons In part one of our new mini-series focusing mainly on plant trafficking, we looked at the seriousness and the extent of the problem, which affects South Africa too, and the role that social media plays in enabling it. In this second part we take a high-level look at Read more >
Image of Conophytum tumidum from Wikimedia Commons They might look unprepossessing – tiny little fleshy plants, many of which closely resemble stones, nestling between the rocks in some of the most arid parts of South Africa. But for some time now, the country’s residents have been reading media reports about those very indigenous plants, particularly Read more >
Last week we reported on steps taken by South Africa to enable its removal from the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) grey list, to which the country was added in February 2023. The FATF is the international standard-setting body that oversees global compliance with anti-money laundering (AML) and counter financing of terrorism (CFT) rules. Its Read more >
South Africa hopes to move off the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) grey list this year. The country was grey-listed in February 2023, and has been working since then to resolve the eight strategic deficiencies, relating to combating money laundering and terrorist financing, that were identified in the FATF 2021 mutual evaluation review. The FATF is the Read more >
By Paul HoffmanFirst published on Daily Maverick Long ago, in a previous century and at a different time, the Durban Esplanade boasted a large pond in which small motorboats were available for hire by the public. Interested visitors paid for their numbered tickets and took a cruise around the pond in any direction they chose until Read more >
The Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) is in the news, and not for a good reason. On 10 February 2025, US president Donald Trump signed an executive order directing attorney-general Pam Bondi to pause enforcement of the FCPA until she reviews current policies and guidelines and issues new ones. It is not known how long Read more >
Global anti-corruption watchdog Transparency has warned against the use of its annual Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI), released on 11 February, as a cover-up for declines in democracy. The organisation was referring to countries who, it says, “leveraged their CPI rankings – or even stagnant scores – to present a misleading image of their governance.” The CPI serves as Read more >
“Nobody lives in a national address; everybody lives in a local address and it’s very important that we make sure that our local government works as it should, so that people can get the services that they deserve and secondly, so that the equitable share that is transferred to local government is used in the Read more >
Image: Raymond Joseph/GroundUp By Raymond JosephFirst published on GroundUp Former National Lotteries Commission (NLC) board chairperson Alfred Nevhutanda asked the State Security Agency (SSA) in December 2018 to investigate the leaking of documents that exposed lottery corruption. In an affidavit for the SSA, the NLC’s company secretary at the time, Nompumelelo Nene, listed media reports she Read more >