September 25, 2014.
For Creamer Media in Johannesburg, I'm Schalk Burger.
Making headlines:

President Jacob Zuma tells the United Nations general assembly that Africa continues to lag behind in the MDGs.

The death toll from Ebola nears 3 000 as medics face bed shortages and resistance from locals.

And, water has been restored to most areas of Johannesburg and Ekurhuleni following shortages during the week.

President Jacob Zuma told the United Nations general assembly in New York that Africa continued to lag behind in the implementation of the Millennium Development Goals (or MDGs).

This was despite the continent's move to adopt the New Partnership for Africa Development, he said in a speech he delivered before the UN on Wednesday.

He acknowledged however, that South Africa had made significant progress in achieving the MDGs.

He said reducing by half the number of people earning less than a dollar a day had been achieved, while the share of those experiencing hunger had also been halved.

Zuma said the country had also achieved its goal of ensuring there was access to primary education for all.

At least 2 917 people have died of Ebola out of 6 263 cases in the five West African countries affected by the disease, the World Health Organisation said on Thursday.

The WHO said it still needed offers of 1 550 more bed spaces in Liberia, and there were reports from the Fassankoni area of Guinea that locals had set up roadblocks to intercept Ebola response teams trying to enter the area.

However, the spread of the virus appears to have stabilised in Guinea, where the outbreak originated, with a rising trend in the spread of the virus continuing in Sierra Leone and Liberia.

Water has been restored to most areas of Johannesburg and Ekurhuleni following shortages during the week.

Only two suburbs in Johannesburg – South Hills and Rabie Ridge – and two areas in Ekurhuleni – Bedfordview and Primrose – still had water shortages.

Ekurhuleni city spokesperson Themba Gadebe said on Thursday that there had been significant improvement in the situation.

He noted that, in Bedfordview and Primrose, there was still a shortage of water because they are high-lying areas, which the municipality was struggling with. However, in all other areas, water had been restored.

In order to assist with the problem, Gadebe said water had been diverted from two other reservoir systems. He could not say when water supply would be back to normal in the two suburbs.

Also making headlines:

The National Employers’ Association of South Africa has lodged an urgent application in the Labour Court to prevent the Metal and Engineering Industries Bargaining Council from requesting Labour Minister Mildred Oliphant to extend the wage settlement agreed to by the Steel and Engineering Industries Federation of Southern Africa and trade unions, in July, to nonparties.

International Criminal Court prosecutors have opened an investigation into allegations of murder, rape and recruiting of child soldiers in the Central African Republic over the past two years.

Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan told the United Nations General Assembly on Wednesday that authorities were still working to free some 200 girls abducted from a school by Boko Haram militants in April.

And, Trade and Industry Minister Dr Rob Davies believes South Africa should mimic the Japanese model of developing small manufacturing enterprises in close geographical proximity to large industries, thereby enabling small industrialists to supply inputs directly into the production networks of the larger entities.

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That’s a roundup of news making headlines today.