President Cyril Ramaphosa last night avoided a total ban of alcohol sales in the country during the Easter weekend following meetings with stakeholders but imposed restrictions on off-site consumption of liquor.

The opposition Democratic Alliance has tabled its Ease of Doing Business Bill which is aimed at cutting and reducing red tape associated with doing business in South Africa.

Non-government organisation the Healthy Living Alliance (HEALA) has called on Finance minister Tito Mboweni to double South Africa’s health promotion levy in his budget next week.

President Cyril Ramaphosa says that his government will look at the introduction of new regulations around the sale of alcohol in South Africa, but he may already have ready-made legislation waiting in the wings.

Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (Cogta) minister Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma has published a new gazette which provides further details around South Africa’s relaxed level 3 lockdown and the changes to some restrictions.

The National Consumer Commission’s warning comes amid investigations in to seven leading retail stores in the country, accused of price gouging on ginger and garlic.

With the South African Revenue Service (SARS) seeking to increase its revenue base, organisations with misconceptions about how certain payroll elements should be taxed, may unknowingly be exposing themselves financially.

South Africa’s e-commerce sector looks set for explosive growth. According to FNB, the average e-commerce spend already increased by 30% in the first half of 2020 compared to the year prior. Rand Merchant Bank expects the sector’s value to surge by 150%, to R225 billion, within the next five years.

Pick n Pay has launched its own mobile service, PnP Mobile, which will make use of MTN’s mobile network infrastructure to offer customers prepaid, SIM-based access to services including airtime and data.

The South African Reserve Bank (SARB), Financial Sector Conduct Authority (FSCA), Payments Association of South Africa (PASA) and the Banking Association South Africa (BASA) have jointly agreed that that the issuing and the acceptance/collection of cheques will cease from 31 December 2020.

The Commission for Gender Equality (CGE) has recommended that government look at further regulations around the sale of alcohol in South Africa in response to its high levels of gender-based violence.

Pick n Pay’s Smart Shoppers can now have their till receipts sent directly to their email instead of receiving a printed receipt. These will also be loaded onto customer’s PnP mobile app profile for 90 days so that they are conveniently saved in one place for easy access and review.