News Bulletin of 17 March 2026, 10am

Headline 1
National CleanTech Challenge calls SA innovators to improve Gauteng mobility
Story 1
The National CleanTech Innovation Challenge is inviting South African innovators to share ideas that could improve how people move around Gauteng, with applications closing on 21 April 2026.
The challenge encourages projects that support cleaner transport, including electric vehicles, ride-sharing, logistics solutions and data tools that can make city travel easier while cutting emissions.
The winner will receive R3 million, second place R2 million, and provinces will also award R1 million to support local projects.
Thirty semi-finalists will receive mentorship and guidance to help develop and scale their innovations.
The challenge is open to innovators, entrepreneurs, SMMEs, and university research teams.
Story 1 category
Headline 2
UCT Student builds home using soil and waste materials
Story 2
A University of Cape Town student, Matimba Mabonda, and his team built a home in Ennerdale using soil and waste materials.
The house, which includes four rooms and a garage, was completed in under a month.
The construction method reduces reliance on conventional building materials and offers a sustainable, low-cost housing solution.
The approach could provide a model for addressing South Africa’s housing shortage while lowering the environmental impact of construction:
*sound*
Story 2 category
Headline 3
Life Westville Hospital hosts Kidney AwarenesseEvent to promote community health
Story 3
To KZN, Life Westville Hospital hosted a Kidney Awareness event last Thursday to encourage the community to take steps to protect their kidney health.
Dr Priyesh Mody highlighted diabetes and high blood pressure as the main causes of kidney problems and urged people to get regular check-ups and consider organ donation.
Mody says small actions like screenings and managing chronic conditions can make a big difference in keeping kidneys healthy.
The event, part of World Kidney Day, aimed to empower residents with knowledge and practical ways to care for themselves and their families.
Story 3 category
Financial Indicators headline
Financial Indicators
Financial indicators
Your financial indicators for this hour:

The Rand is trading at 16.66 to the US Dollar, 0.00 to the British Pound, and 0.00 to the Euro.

Gold is trading at 5,023.49 dollars a fine ounce, Brent Crude Oil is at Error per barrel, and a Bitcoin will set you back 74,382.00.
Teaser / Tailpiece headline
Disney+ to release “Songs in Sign Language”
Teaser / Tailpiece story
Disney’s streaming service Disney+ will release “Disney Animation’s Songs in Sign Language” on 27 April to mark National Deaf History Month in the United States.
The project features three popular songs — The Next Right Thing from Frozen II, We Don’t Talk About Bruno from Encanto, and Beyond from Moana 2 — reimagined and animated in American Sign Language.
More than 20 animators worked with performers from Deaf West Theatre to turn the songs into sign language, focusing on meaning and emotion rather than translating every word.
A behind-the-scenes feature will also show how the team created the animations and worked together on the project.
Split analysis
Local: 99 words (37%), National: 166 words (63%), International: 0 words (0%)