HERE’S WHAT’S HAPPENING IN SOUTH AFRICA TODAY

Fri 29 May 2026:

Here’s what’s happening in South Africa today:👇🏼

◼️ Sentenced offender numbers in SA prisons decline over 10 years: Prison overcrowding nationally sits at 58%, with roughly 169 000 inmates occupying spaces meant to hold 107 000 beds. The prison population had grown by roughly 12 000 inmates in the last 12 years, but the number of sentenced offenders has dropped. According to DCS figures, sentenced offenders numbered 113 659 in April 2014, while this week the department said the number stood at 106 280.
https://www.citizen.co.za/news/south-africa/how-much-sentenced-offenders-prisons-dropped-decade/

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◼️ IOL secures R200 million investment to become SA’s biggest digital publisher: The R200 million will be deployed across three core pillars: the build-out of IOL’s national digital infrastructure and AI-driven publishing technology; a major expansion and development of its editorial team; and the launch of The National, a new flagship publication targeting engaged readers across South Africa. Central to the strategy is a major journalism hiring drive. IOL intends to recruit at least 200 journalists, multimedia content producers, designers and digital experts.
https://iol.co.za/news/south-africa/2026-05-29-iol-secures-r200-million-investment-to-become-south-africas-biggest-digital-publisher/

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◼️ George salary hike haunts Didiza as MPs demand forensic probe: DA and EFF MPs have called for a forensic probe into the controversial way George’s salary has ballooned from R2.4m when he started working for parliament in June 2022 to just under R5m this year, under questionable circumstances. But Didiza was quick to point out that she was not speaker of parliament when George was appointed. However, she conceded that parliament may have to re-examine the process of recruiting and appointing its chief administrator.
https://www.timeslive.co.za/politics/2026-05-29-george-salary-hike-haunts-didiza-as-mps-demand-forensic-probe/

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◼️ New R3.2 billion private Afrikaans ‘university’: The R3.2 billion Akademia campus in Pretoria East is under construction and is set to open in 2028, accommodating over 5,000 full-time students. Development began in 2019, with construction officially starting in January 2026, and rapid progress has been made since then.
https://dailyinvestor.com/property/136195/new-r3-2-billion-private-afrikaans-university-is-taking-shape/

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◼️ Big changes for speeding fines: While most fines typically start at around R250 for speeds 10km/h to 20km/h over the limit, there is no standardised system for speeding fines in South Africa, meaning that rates can vary between municipalities. This is because almost every municipality in the country treats speeding as an offence under the Criminal Procedure Act. Under this system, motorists are “innocent until proven guilty” and are allowed to challenge fines in court if they choose to argue they are not guilty.
https://topauto.co.za/features/154604/big-changes-for-speeding-fines-in-south-africa-2/

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