Africa's biggest lender by assets Standard Bank said on Thursday its half-year profit rose by 4%, with performance supported by franchise growth in its banking businesses and by strong earnings growth in its insurance and asset management unit. Reuters’ Alice Rizzo has more.

China’s Confucius Institutes teach Chinese around the world, but there’s more to them than that. Kate Bartlett visited a new one that is hundreds of kilometers outside the capital in rural South Africa that’s also focusing on green technology.

Esteemed American astronaut, geoscience professor and artist Sian Proctor is touring South African schools to emphasize the importance of education in science, technology, engineering, art and mathematics. Her goal is to inspire students to pursue careers in the sciences and equip them for space jobs. Zaheer Cassim reports from Johannesburg.

Experts warn that the African penguin could be extinct in the wild by 2035. That’s why two environmental groups are taking legal action against the South African government to help save the species. Reporter Vicky Stark in Cape Town, South Africa, has the story.

South Africa’s newly-appointed minister of sports – a self-described former gangster – wants to promote a sport that has associations with South African gangster culture. The sport of “spinning” involves fast-moving cars and dangerous stunts, and as Kate Bartlett reports from Johannesburg, the way it’s conducted is not always legal.

South Africa reached their first-ever cricket World Cup final in June, marking a historic moment in the country’s cricketing history since joining the international cricket community. The Proteas, South Africa’s men’s national cricket team, decided to temporarily relax their quota system for the tournament held across the United States and West Indies, much to the delight of their supporters. In Johannesburg, South Africa, Zaheer Cassim takes a look at how cricket is shifting from a focus on race to one centered on merit.