News Bulletin of 4 August 2026, 2pm

The 2025 SPAR Women's Challenge Tshwane has helped provide sanitary products for 4,000 girls, giving them the support they need to stay in school for another month.
The sold out event attracted 17,000 participants in Centurion and also raised more than R350,000 for organisations supporting women, early childhood development, education, gender based violence prevention and burn victim care.
The initiative forms part of SPAR's ongoing drive to end period poverty by 2030 while creating a lasting impact beyond race day.

A team of six South African learners has returned home after finishing fourth at the inaugural World Spelling Bee Championships in Shanghai, China, making South Africa the highest ranked African nation at the competition.
The team built on its earlier success after winning the African Spelling Bee title, with 13 year old Mbulelo Tolom finishing sixth in the individual competition against older learners from around the world.
Basic Education Minister Siviwe Gwarube has welcomed the team home, praising the learners for their outstanding achievement and for flying the South African flag high on the world stage.

The Gauteng Department of Health has launched its latest HPV vaccination campaign, offering free vaccines to eligible Grade 5 girls aged nine and older at participating primary schools across the province until October.
The programme aims to protect girls against the virus responsible for most cases of cervical cancer, with research showing South Africa's school based vaccination programme has reduced infections from the two highest risk HPV strains by 83 percent among young women.
Parents and guardians are being encouraged to return consent forms so more learners can benefit from the life saving vaccine.