For Creamer Media in Johannesburg, I’m Thabi Shomolekae.

Making headlines: Govt writes off e-toll debt, but those who paid will not receive refunds; Treasury welcomes Fitch upgrade to BB with stable outlook; And, Nigeria plans five repatriation flights from South Africa

Govt writes off e-toll debt, but those who paid will not receive refunds

The Department of Transport welcomes Cabinet's approval of State-owned South African National Roads Agency Limited’s plans to close the Gauteng Freeway Improvement Project e-toll historical debt, which also sees the resolution of all outstanding litigation matters.

The closure of the e-toll debt is intended to provide certainty, resolve historical debt matters and support a sustainable approach to the funding, maintenance and improvement of South Africa’s national road network.

With Cabinet’s approval secured, outstanding and unpaid historical e-toll debt owed by road users will be written off and Sanral will not pursue any further collection of historical e-toll debt.

However, road users who lawfully paid e-tolls while the system was legally in force will not be refunded, as they were lawful levies at the time they were paid before the toll declarations were withdrawn in 2024.

Transport Minister Barbara Creecy and Deputy Minister Mkhuleko Hlengwa say the decision is a long-awaited step to close the e-toll matter in an orderly and responsible manner.

Treasury welcomes Fitch upgrade to BB with stable outlook

The National Treasury has welcomed credit rating agency Fitch’s decision to upgrade South Africa’s long-term foreign and local currency credit ratings to ‘BB’ from ‘BB-’ and to maintain its stable outlook.

The upgrade reflects South Africa’s record of prudent fiscal management and its progress on fiscal consolidation, despite weak economic growth and domestic and external shocks.

This, together with GDP revisions, leaves the government debt-to-GDP ratio well below levels anticipated at the time of the rating downgrade to ‘BB-’ in 2020.

This is Fitch’s first rating upgrade on South Africa in almost 21 years. South Africa is the second Group of 20 country to be upgraded by Fitch this year, Treasury notes.

According to Fitch, South Africa has transitioned from primary fiscal deficits to consistent and widening primary surpluses, alongside signs that government debt is stabilising amid improved revenue collection and disciplined expenditure management.

The long average-maturity of total government debt, at more than ten years, and low share of foreign-currency-denominated debt support the sovereign rating, it adds.

And, Nigeria plans five repatriation flights from South Africa

Nigeria will begin repatriating its citizens from South Africa this week, after anti-immigrant attacks and protests in the continent’s biggest economy.

The Nigerian government has scheduled the first flight from South Africa on Wednesday, a spokesperson for the ministry of foreign affairs said. More than 500 people have “been screened and cleared” for the flights.

South Africa has seen a surge in xenophobic protests in recent months, prompting President Cyril Ramaphosa to address the nation yesterday and outline steps his administration plans to take to address the issue. About 60 people died and 50 000 were displaced in a spate of attacks directed against migrants in 2008, and fears are mounting of renewed and intensified violence.

Nigerian carrier Air Peace will manage the repatriation flights, with the first one transporting 270 passengers.

At least 1 094 Nigerians have indicated their interest in leaving South Africa, according to the foreign ministry.

The South African ​authorities have agreed to waive penalties for visa violations ⁠such as overstays, though individuals facing criminal charges won’t be eligible to leave.

That’s a roundup of news making headlines today

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