The Latest Breaking News from Johannesburg

TRAVEL FOCUS: Travelling through South Africa, Annabel Grossman finds that Soweto – a township often associated with crime and poverty – is worth far more than just a cursory glance, with a wealth of music, culture, history and food to be discovered

Johannesburg is weathering a storm of crises. Nowhere is its complex tangle of challenges more visible than in the inner city, where crime, overcrowding, and infrastructure collapse – such as roads literally exploding – paint a grim picture. Cultural institutions haven’t been spared either, with long-standing landmarks like the Johannesburg…

South African president Cyril Ramaphosa met senior leaders of Johannesburg and Gauteng, the province it’s located in, in March 2025 to discuss ways to arrest the steep decline in South Africa’s largest city.

The streets of Hillbrow, a tough downtown Johannesburg district more famous for its hijacked buildings, poverty and raging crime, came alive on this sunny Saturday morning as hundreds joined in a joyful street parade mixing music, art and performances.

Elon Musk sparked backlash online after sharing a message from a friend claiming that every traffic light in Johannesburg, South Africa is broken and a loaf of bread costs $50—claims that were quickly debunked by Grok and South African social media users.

Trump administration welcomes first batch of white Afrikaners while US cuts off refugee programmes to other countries.

A popular jazz venue in downtown Johannesburg is closing down

South African President Cyril Ramaphosa unveiled Wednesday a plan to revive South Africa's flagging local governments, weeks after publicly criticising the state of the financial capital Johannesburg as it prepares to host the G20 summit in November.

Issues around basic services, corruption and class trouble vibrant Johannesburg, which this year hosts the G20 summit