South Africa's President has skipped his visit to the World Economic Forum in Davos to deal with intense power blackouts crippling the continent's most industrialised economy.
Cyril Ramaphosa is facing growing public outrage and calls for mass protests as the country endures six hours or more each day without electricity.
Residents unable to light their homes or run their businesses blocked streets at the weekend in protest at rolling blackouts that by some estimates are costing the country $200 million daily.
With no quick fixes in sight, the issue is set to dominate next year's general election and become an electoral liability for the ruling African National Congress, the former party of Nelson Mandela.
Mr Ramaphosa had been scheduled to lead a delegation to the Swiss resort town to promote South Africa as an investment destination.
Instead, he will meet leaders of opposition parties, the national energy crisis committee and the board of Eskom, the state-owned national power generator.
Eskom was once judged one of the best power companies in the world, but years of underinvestment, corruption and failure to modernise have left its fleet of coal-fired power stations plagued by breakdowns.
The country began scheduled power cuts more than 15 years ago to protect the grid, but failed to heed warnings or fix the problem. Blackouts have since worsened to their highest level yet.
Opposition parties and energy industry experts have pleaded with the ANC to open up the industry to private generating companies and to invest in sustainable power sources like wind and solar.
Eskom has also been hobbled by years of systematic theft and looting and the company has become emblematic of corruption under the ANC government and its failure to deliver basic public services.
John Steenhuisen, leader of the opposition Democratic Alliance, said: “All Ramaphosa is going to do is make more excuses and false 'Ramapromises'.
“It's time for rolling mass protest action across the length and breadth of the country. The citizens of South Africa need to show this government that enough is enough.”
Public anger and disbelief at the blackouts has been compounded by a series of revelations about the challenges facing the company from Andre de Ruyter, the recently resigned chief executive.
He alleged that last month he had been poisoned by a would-be assassin slipping cyanide into his coffee, apparently because of his efforts to stamp out entrenched graft.
'They will make us sit in the dark'
The national energy regulator Nersa also provoked anger last week by announcing an 18.65 per cent tariff hike for the next financial year, despite the loss of service.
Mmusi Maimane, another opposition figure, said: “If we ignore four-hour hour load-shedding sessions, 12 hours a day of lack of power, this government will make us sit in the dark for the whole week soon.
“They are turning South Africa into South Zimbabwe through looting and incompetence and we can’t allow that.”
Mr Ramaphosa's announcement that he would cancel his Davos trip spooked markets and saw the rand plunge more than one per cent against the dollar in early trading on Monday.
Political parties and activists are expected to take Eskom to court for its failure to provide energy.
One local news agency on Monday listed dozens of businesses that had gone bust in the Soweto area due to the lack of electricity. Many small businesses cannot afford generators or fuel during the power cuts.
Many shops and restaurants close because cashiers are unable to take payments, and appliances do not work. Children cannot do homework at night and traffic lights switch off, causing long queues in urban areas.
Eyasses squad
Charlie Preston (captain) – goal shooter/ goalkeeper (Dubai College)
Arushi Holt (vice-captain) – wing defence / centre (Jumeriah English Speaking School)
Olivia Petricola (vice-captain) – centre / wing attack (Dubai English Speaking College)
Isabel Affley – goalkeeper / goal defence (Dubai English Speaking College)
Jemma Eley – goal attack / wing attack (Dubai College)
Alana Farrell-Morton – centre / wing / defence / wing attack (Nord Anglia International School)
Molly Fuller – goal attack / wing attack (Dubai College)
Caitlin Gowdy – goal defence / wing defence (Dubai English Speaking College)
Noorulain Hussain – goal defence / wing defence (Dubai College)
Zahra Hussain-Gillani – goal defence / goalkeeper (British School Al Khubairat)
Claire Janssen – goal shooter / goal attack (Jumeriah English Speaking School)
Eliza Petricola – wing attack / centre (Dubai English Speaking College)
The specs
- Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
- Power: 640hp
- Torque: 760nm
- On sale: 2026
- Price: Not announced yet
EGYPT SQUAD
Goalkeepers: Ahmed El Shennawy, Mohamed El Shennawy, Mohamed Abou-Gabal, Mahmoud Abdel Rehem "Genesh"
Defenders: Ahmed Elmohamady, Ahmed Hegazi, Omar Gaber, Ali Gazal, Ayman Ahsraf, Mahmoud Hamdy, Baher Elmohamady, Ahmed Ayman Mansour, Mahmoud Alaa, Ahmed Abou-Elfotouh
Midfielders: Walid Soliman, Abdallah El Said, Mohamed Elneny, Tarek Hamed, Mahmoud “Trezeguet” Hassan, Amr Warda, Nabil Emad
Forwards: Ahmed Ali, Mohamed Salah, Marwan Mohsen, Ahmed "Kouka" Hassan.
Honeymoonish
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'Skin'
Dir: Guy Nattiv
Starring: Jamie Bell, Danielle McDonald, Bill Camp, Vera Farmiga
Rating: 3.5/5 stars
NEW ARRIVALS
Benjamin Mendy (Monaco) - £51.75m (Dh247.94m)
Kyle Walker (Tottenham Hotspur) - £45.9m
Bernardo Silva (Monaco) - £45m
Ederson Moraes (Benfica) - £36m
Danilo (Real Madrid) - £27m
Douglas Luiz (Vasco de Gama) - £10.8m
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
SPECS
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Company%20profile
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Sarfira
Director: Sudha Kongara Prasad
Starring: Akshay Kumar, Radhika Madan, Paresh Rawal
Rating: 2/5
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
SPEC%20SHEET%3A%20NOTHING%20PHONE%20(2a)
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Labour dispute
The insured employee may still file an ILOE claim even if a labour dispute is ongoing post termination, but the insurer may suspend or reject payment, until the courts resolve the dispute, especially if the reason for termination is contested. The outcome of the labour court proceedings can directly affect eligibility.
- Abdullah Ishnaneh, Partner, BSA Law
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
ALRAWABI%20SCHOOL%20FOR%20GIRLS
%3Cp%3ECreator%3A%20Tima%20Shomali%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3EStarring%3A%C2%A0Tara%20Abboud%2C%C2%A0Kira%20Yaghnam%2C%20Tara%20Atalla%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3ERating%3A%204%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
The Perfect Couple
Starring: Nicole Kidman, Liev Schreiber, Jack Reynor
Creator: Jenna Lamia
Rating: 3/5
Infiniti QX80 specs
Engine: twin-turbocharged 3.5-liter V6
Power: 450hp
Torque: 700Nm
Price: From Dh450,000, Autograph model from Dh510,000
Available: Now
WOMAN AND CHILD
Director: Saeed Roustaee
Starring: Parinaz Izadyar, Payman Maadi
Rating: 4/5
Ukraine
Capital: Kiev
Population: 44.13 million
Armed conflict in Donbass
Russia-backed fighters control territory
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
ETFs explained
Exhchange traded funds are bought and sold like shares, but operate as index-tracking funds, passively following their chosen indices, such as the S&P 500, FTSE 100 and the FTSE All World, plus a vast range of smaller exchanges and commodities, such as gold, silver, copper sugar, coffee and oil.
ETFs have zero upfront fees and annual charges as low as 0.07 per cent a year, which means you get to keep more of your returns, as actively managed funds can charge as much as 1.5 per cent a year.
There are thousands to choose from, with the five biggest providers BlackRock’s iShares range, Vanguard, State Street Global Advisors SPDR ETFs, Deutsche Bank AWM X-trackers and Invesco PowerShares.
How to apply for a drone permit
- Individuals must register on UAE Drone app or website using their UAE Pass
- Add all their personal details, including name, nationality, passport number, Emiratis ID, email and phone number
- Upload the training certificate from a centre accredited by the GCAA
- Submit their request
What are the regulations?
- Fly it within visual line of sight
- Never over populated areas
- Ensure maximum flying height of 400 feet (122 metres) above ground level is not crossed
- Users must avoid flying over restricted areas listed on the UAE Drone app
- Only fly the drone during the day, and never at night
- Should have a live feed of the drone flight
- Drones must weigh 5 kg or less
The specs
Engine: 5.0-litre supercharged V8
Transmission: Eight-speed auto
Power: 575bhp
Torque: 700Nm
Price: Dh554,000
On sale: now
The%20BaaS%20ecosystem
%3Cp%3EThe%20BaaS%20value%20chain%20consists%20of%20four%20key%20players%3A%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EConsumers%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20End-users%20of%20the%20financial%20product%20delivered%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDistributors%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Also%20known%20as%20embedders%2C%20these%20are%20the%20firms%20that%20embed%20baking%20services%20directly%20into%20their%20existing%20customer%20journeys%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EEnablers%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Usually%20Big%20Tech%20or%20FinTech%20companies%20that%20help%20embed%20financial%20services%20into%20third-party%20platforms%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EProviders%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Financial%20institutions%20holding%20a%20banking%20licence%20and%20offering%20regulated%20products%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
