Latest news with #R445
The Citizen
7 days ago
- The Citizen
Over R500 million spent by government on civil claims against police
Over 15 000 civil claims against police were lodged in the space of 12 months, leading management to increase training for officers. The state has parted ways with over half a billion rand in payments for civil claims against police in the space of 12 months. Data showed that the state and the police ministry were reluctant to settle matters, instead forcing the courts to grant payment orders to complainants. The police ministry noted that officers had been undergoing training in order to prevent situations that would cost the state down the line. Over 15 000 civil claims The minister of police was asked via a written submission in parliament about the scale of civil claims against police in the country. The ministry replied with the latest available figures, presenting the stats for the 2023/24 financial year as more recent claims were still in the legal pipeline. Data provided for the period mentioned, showed that 15 067 civil claims were made against police for wrongful arrest, as well as another 180 related to shooting incidents. The combined amount of the claims totalled R14.8 billion for arrests and detentions, and R741 million for the shooting-related civil claims. 'It must be noted that the above reflect the total number of new claims received during the 2023/2024 financial year and the amount claimed,' the police ministry noted. The respondents — the state and the police minster — settled the claims out of court roughly 5% of the time, with the remainder of claimants requiring a court order to force payment. For arrests and detention, the state paid out R466 million — R20.6 million through settlement and R445 million by court order. In civil claims related to shooting incidents, settlements accounted for R4.4 million, while court orders forced the payment of R57.8 million Reiterating national instructions The police ministry stated it was implementing several measures to help officers to avoid 'undesirable consequences'. These measures centre around 'mind-set changes' as well as the 'attitudes and behaviours' of officers through rigorous internal communications programmes. 'The issue of civil claims has been identified as a strategic risk for the department, requiring that specified risk owners implement specific actions to mitigate, or reduce the incidence of civil claims,' explained the ministry. A risk committee was set up to report mitigation measures to management and additional training on how to guard against civil claims was touted. Areas of police work mentioned as needing attention centred around the treatment of arrested people, dealing with domestic violence incidents and crowd management, among others. '[This includes] the drafting of and workshopping of members on specific instructions aimed at regulating the powers that are accorded to Saps members,' the ministry concluded. NOW READ: Police ahead! What to do at a roadblock
The Citizen
29-05-2025
- General
- The Citizen
Seven-year-old boy back at school after crocodile attack
Seven-year-old Johandré Blom has returned to school, showing incredible bravery and resilience after surviving a crocodile attack on Friday, March 21. Johandré was playing in shallow water during a family fishing trip at the Emanzini Fishing Resort at Roodekopjes Dam near Brits when a crocodile suddenly attacked, ripping off his arm. He was rushed to ICU in critical condition, and his family—who do not have medical aid—have been faced with mounting hospital and rehabilitation costs estimated at over R1 million. A BackaBuddy campaign was launched to help ease the financial burden, and so far, a total of R445,143 has been raised. The campaign continues as the family works to cover the remaining expenses. Now, just over two months after the life-changing incident, Johandré is back in the classroom at Laerskool Broederstroom—an inspiring milestone in his journey of healing and hope. His family shared a photo of him returning to school with the following post on Facebook: 'Just a quick update. 'Nine weeks after Johandré's victory over a crocodile, our little warrior is back at school!!! 'Johandré returned to school today and enjoyed every moment. 'He handled it very well and even missed doing homework! 'He's looking forward to going back tomorrow and seeing all his friends again. 'There's still a long road ahead filled with new challenges, but we are incredibly optimistic about his progress so far and so proud of our iron-strong boy. 'Every day is a blessing, and today reminded us of that once again.' Also read: Video: Seven-year-old boy recovering at home after crocodile attack Do you have more information about the story? Please send us an email to bennittb@ or phone us on 083 625 4114. For free breaking and community news, visit Rekord's websites: Rekord East For more news and interesting articles, like Rekord on Facebook, follow us on Twitter or Instagram or TikTok At Caxton, we employ humans to generate daily fresh news, not AI intervention. Happy reading!
IOL News
28-05-2025
- Business
- IOL News
South Africa's tourism sector works hard to shake off Covid-19 blues
South Africa's international tourism sector showed strong growth in early 2025, continuing its steady recovery from the pandemic downturn and reinforcing its importance to the economy. Image: Se-Anne Rall/IOL South Africa's international tourism sector showed strong growth in early 2025, continuing its steady recovery from the pandemic downturn and reinforcing its importance to the economy. In fact, the World Travel & Tourism Council expects South Africa's travel and tourism sector to 'reach a major milestone' this year and is set to support 1.9 million jobs, surpassing 2019 levels and marking an all-time high, underlining its role as a key employer and major source of opportunity, with the sector accounting for 11.3% of all jobs in South Africa. Yet, even as more tourists come through South Africa's airports, international visitor spending, while set to grow steadily, is likely to remain below pre pandemic levels at R128.4 billion, trailing 2019 by R37.7bn, the Council said. Domestic visitor spending continues to show stronger resilience, with the 2025 total spend forecast at R445 billion, 3.8% above 2019 levels. According to Statistics South Africa, 2.98 million travellers passed through South African borders in April 2025, marking a 21.4% increase compared to April 2024. This growth is part of a broader upward trend seen in recent months, with 2.84 million travellers recorded in March and 3.09 million in January 2025. World Travel and Tourism Council CEO and President, Julia Simpson, said, 'South Africa's Travel and Tourism sector is slowly turning the corner. Jobs are leading the recovery, with employment expected to reach new highs, showing the enormous human impact of the sector's growth.' Investec economist, Lara Hodes, said in a note that, despite the challenges facing the tourism industry, it remains a key sector for growth and job creation. Her calculations showed that tourist arrivals to South Africa rose by 5.7% year-on-year in the first quarter of 2025, with those travelling from overseas countries increasing by a modest 3.1% on an annualised basis, while overseas tourism declined by 0.9% as of March versus the same month last year. 'While the domestic tourism sector has rebounded notably from the devastation caused by the pandemic related lockdowns, it continues to face a number of challenges which weigh on optimal activity and investment,' said Hodes. Video Player is loading. Play Video Play Unmute Current Time 0:00 / Duration -:- Loaded : 0% Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently behind live LIVE Remaining Time - 0:00 This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Window Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Dropshadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps Reset restore all settings to the default values Done Close Modal Dialog End of dialog window. Advertisement Next Stay Close ✕ She pointed to key constraints including 'elevated operational costs, inadequate and poorly maintained infrastructure, high levels of red tape preventing the efficient and timely delivery of key services and critically, an excessive crime rate, which is a significant deterrent for visitors.' Yet, Statistics South Africa's latest print, for April, stated that 'a comparison between the movements in March 2025 and April 2025 indicates that the volume of arrivals, departures and transits increased for both South African residents and foreign travellers'. Although only 35% of those entering South Africa stayed for a while, and 32.3% entered multiple times, the accommodation sector is also growing, albeit a bit slower than in February. Hodes noted that income derived from the tourist accommodation industry, excluding restaurant and bar sales and other income, dropped to 6.9% year-on-year at the end of the first quarter, following February's 12.6% lift when compared to the same time last year. The largest category, hotels, was largely responsible for March's lift, on the back of growth of 8.5% year-on-year, she said. Tourism's contribution to South Africa's gross domestic product has grown, now estimated at 8.8%, supporting around 1.68 million jobs. IOL
IOL News
28-05-2025
- Business
- IOL News
South Africa's tourism sector works hard to shake off Covid-19 blues
South Africa's international tourism sector showed strong growth in early 2025, continuing its steady recovery from the pandemic downturn and reinforcing its importance to the economy. Image: Se-Anne Rall/IOL South Africa's international tourism sector showed strong growth in early 2025, continuing its steady recovery from the pandemic downturn and reinforcing its importance to the economy. In fact, the World Travel & Tourism Council expects South Africa's travel and tourism sector to 'reach a major milestone' this year and is set to support 1.9 million jobs, surpassing 2019 levels and marking an all-time high, underlining its role as a key employer and major source of opportunity, with the sector accounting for 11.3% of all jobs in South Africa. Yet, even as more tourists come through South Africa's airports, international visitor spending, while set to grow steadily, is likely to remain below pre pandemic levels at R128.4 billion, trailing 2019 by R37.7bn, the Council said. Domestic visitor spending continues to show stronger resilience, with the 2025 total spend forecast at R445 billion, 3.8% above 2019 levels. According to Statistics South Africa, 2.98 million travellers passed through South African borders in April 2025, marking a 21.4% increase compared to April 2024. This growth is part of a broader upward trend seen in recent months, with 2.84 million travellers recorded in March and 3.09 million in January 2025. World Travel and Tourism Council CEO and President, Julia Simpson, said, 'South Africa's Travel and Tourism sector is slowly turning the corner. Jobs are leading the recovery, with employment expected to reach new highs, showing the enormous human impact of the sector's growth.' Investec economist, Lara Hodes, said in a note that, despite the challenges facing the tourism industry, it remains a key sector for growth and job creation. Her calculations showed that tourist arrivals to South Africa rose by 5.7% year-on-year in the first quarter of 2025, with those travelling from overseas countries increasing by a modest 3.1% on an annualised basis, while overseas tourism declined by 0.9% as of March versus the same month last year. 'While the domestic tourism sector has rebounded notably from the devastation caused by the pandemic related lockdowns, it continues to face a number of challenges which weigh on optimal activity and investment,' said Hodes. She pointed to key constraints including 'elevated operational costs, inadequate and poorly maintained infrastructure, high levels of red tape preventing the efficient and timely delivery of key services and critically, an excessive crime rate, which is a significant deterrent for visitors.' Yet, Statistics South Africa's latest print, for April, stated that 'a comparison between the movements in March 2025 and April 2025 indicates that the volume of arrivals, departures and transits increased for both South African residents and foreign travellers'. Although only 35% of those entering South Africa stayed for a while, and 32.3% entered multiple times, the accommodation sector is also growing, albeit a bit slower than in February. Hodes noted that income derived from the tourist accommodation industry, excluding restaurant and bar sales and other income, dropped to 6.9% year-on-year at the end of the first quarter, following February's 12.6% lift when compared to the same time last year. The largest category, hotels, was largely responsible for March's lift, on the back of growth of 8.5% year-on-year, she said. Tourism's contribution to South Africa's gross domestic product has grown, now estimated at 8.8%, supporting around 1.68 million jobs. IOL
