NSPCA welcomes long-awaited reform for lion captivity breeding ban

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CAPE TOWN - The National Council of SPCAs (NSPCA) has  welcomed the announcement by Minister of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment, Dr Dion George, on the imminent publication of the Lion Prohibition Notice banning new captive lion breeding facilities.   This long-awaited reform marks a pivotal milestone in dismantling an industry built on systemic cruelty, reflecting years of legal action, public advocacy, and inspections by the NSPCA. The prohibition confirms what the NSPCA has long exposed: the captive lion industry has operated largely unabated for decades, inflicting severe animal welfare violations, damaging South Africa’s conservation reputation, and flouting constitutional obligations to protect sentient beings. While limited to new facilities, this ban sends a clear signal that the commodification of lions for tourism, hunting, and the bone trade is no longer defensible. The NSPCA’s decade-long investigations have laid bare the industry’s brutality. O...
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SANRAL announces toll tariff adjustment effective 1 March 2025

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PRETORIA – The South African National Roads Agency SOC Limited (SANRAL) has notified the public of the adjustment to the toll tariffs effective from 1 March 2025.

The tariffs are adjusted annually in line with the Consumer Price Index (CPI) as obtained from Statistics South Africa (Stats SA), according to SANRAL.

The annual toll tariffs will increase by 4.84%, as published in the Government Gazette of 7 February 2025. This rate is less than last year’s 6.25% adjustment.

SANRAL’s General Manager for Communications and Marketing, Vusi Mona, explained that toll revenue is necessary to maintain, operate and improve toll roads, as well as to service debt incurred to implement a toll road project.
“The funds go a long way towards ensuring that SANRAL fulfils its mandate of delivering quality road infrastructure that adds value to the lives of South African citizens,” said Mona.

He also said that key economic infrastructure, such as the national road network, is a precondition for providing basic services such as electricity, water, sanitation, telecommunications and public transport, and this road network therefore needs to meet industrial, commercial and household needs.

“SANRAL is empathetic to the South African public, considering the current state of the economy. However, it is equally important to introduce the adjustments to ensure that the agency continues to deliver safe and quality roads to the benefit of all road users,” concluded Mona.

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