The day Fifa gave Africa the nod

When, four years ago, Fifa President Sepp Blatter opened an envelope with South Africa's name on it, many believed it signified the beginning of new things to come - not just for South Africa, but for the continent. The excitement that has gripped the country ever since has been palpable.

World Cup lessons from 2006 hosts

Not for the first time, South Africa finds itself in the headlines for all the wrong reasons. Tensions are running high in Alexandra, Johannesburg after a series of attacks on immigrants in the township north of the city. There's no denying that South Africa faces formidable challenges in the post-apartheid era. But we're not alone.

Shell opens Cape Town call centre

Oil multinational Royal Dutch Shell has opened a global call centre in Cape Town, which will be used to service the company's customers in Belgium, Netherlands and Luxembourg, with centre operators conversing with their clients in Flemish and Dutch.

Limpopo lodge goes 100% green

Using decades of expertise as a chemical engineer, Dr Hans Hahn runs a Soutpansberg-based eco-tourism lodge that is detached from Eskom's grid and powered entirely by alternative, renewable and sustainable energy, from solar power to thermal gasification.

South Africa in a world divided

As centre of global economic power shifts eastwards and southwards, the gulf between the rich and the poor grows ever wider. This is the world in which ANC president Jacob Zuma recently landed on a whistle-stop tour of the UK, France and Germany.

IFC calls for private fixed investment

The International Finance Corporation has called for more private investment in South Africa's infrastructure sector, adding that it was ready to engage with stakeholders to find solutions to the country's power shortage and increase private investment in health, education and other social infrastructure.