News Bulletin of 13 September 2026, 11am

Finding work remains a major challenge for many South Africans living with blindness, but disability advocate Hein Wagner is working to change that. Wagner, who was born blind, is the founder of the Hein Wagner Academy in Worcester, which helps visually impaired South Africans develop skills and work towards economic independence. Among the academy’s programmes is training blind people to become cybersecurity analysts — an initiative Wagner describes as the only one of its kind in the world. The programme has been supported through corporate social investment partnerships, with companies including Primedia and Absa helping to fund the training and employing graduates based on merit.

South Africans are being encouraged to explore more of their own country through the Sho’t Left Travel Week campaign. The campaign offers discounts of up to 50 percent on a range of local travel and tourism deals. The initiative aims to boost domestic tourism and give local travellers more affordable options. South African Tourism’s Head of Domestic Tourism, Mashoto Mokgethi:
The campaign makes it more affordable for South Africans to explore local destinations, while supporting domestic tourism and businesses across the country

The SA20 has launched its Schools Derby Series, bringing rival school cricket teams together in a competition running from September to mid-March. The series was launched earlier this week, in Randburg, with SA20 Commissioner Graeme Smith, cricket officials and professional players attending. The SA20 school programme involved 561 schools across 15 regions last year, including more than 230 girls’ schools. The programme also included under-19 girls’ camps. The Derby Series forms part of the SA20’s effort to develop young players and strengthen the pathway from school cricket to professional cricket.