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#SliceofLife: I uncovered a child sex trafficking ring in my grade one class

When a primary school teacher in the Western Cape suspected that one of her pupils was being sexually abused, she did everything she could to help. Here’s what happened next.
Face-off: South Africa argued for patients over profits at the first high-level meeting on tuberculosis. Will it be enough to fight the global scourge?

Showdown: SA takes on the US for cheaper drugs

When the US went to bat for Big Pharma in the fight against this killer disease, South Africa wasn’t having any of it. Here’s what happened next.

#SayHerName: The faces of South Africa’s femicide epidemic

This is an ode to the women whose names made it into news outlets between 2018 and 2020. It’s also a tribute to those who didn’t – the faceless, nameless women whose stories will remain untold. This project is a collaboration among Bhekisisa, Media Hack and the Canon Collins Trust.

‘Call me Tumi’: Meet the young woman who heads SA’s medicines regulator

Boitumelo Semete-Makokotlela leads the country’s medicines regulator, the South African Health Products Regulatory Authority (Sahpra), a public entity few people knew about until the COVID-19 pandemic hit. COVID triggered a noisy scramble for vaccines, tests and treatments that needed to be approved — often embroiled in politics.
'I could have died': Buhle Bhengu was duped into having an illegal abortion.

‘It didn’t take long for [the fetus] to come out. There was a human-like...

Left with little choice, many women turn to illegal abortionists to terminate their pregnancies.

A mezuzah, a Christmas wreath & rooibos with milk: Get to know this NICD...

Anne von Gottberg and Cheryl Cohen are two of South Africa’s foremost scientists. We’ve got them and their colleagues to thank for the country’s world class surveillance of SARS-CoV-2. But this powerful duo are also experts on how to bridge divides — and married.
Being bilingual is better for your brain. Now

Speak more than one language? This is what it does to your brain.

Speaking more than one language could lead to better tests scores and even being a more empathetic person.

#SliceOfLife: I took on Big Pharma and won

Around the time Phumeza Tisile was receiving treatment for extensively drug-resistant tuberculosis (XDR-TB), the cure rate for patients with that form of the disease was 15%. Tisile beat XDR-TB despite the odds, but not without a cost: she lost her hearing.

‘I missed a dose for the first time’: How the KZN floods derailed HIV...

The April 2022 floods in KwaZulu-Natal, left Mfundo Shezi without HIV treatment for two weeks. He had no way of getting more because the centre he frequents was closed for two weeks – and his ID book was washed away.

When there was no list of free abortion clinics, we made our own. Here’s...

How we found the country's 'missing' abortion providers – and mapped contraception services too.Bhekisisa has created #SizaMap, South Africa's first searchable map of free abortion providers....

Why these health workers are spending their lives in South Africa’s poorest villages

Rural hospitals and clinics struggle to attract or retain senior healthcare professionals. Health workers who grew up in rural towns can plug the gap as they are more likely to work at facilities in far-flung places than their urban counterparts.
Parents with mental illness

Growing up with a mother who has schizophrenia is tough on a child

When a parent is diagnosed with a mental illness, the chances of emotional support are decreased and the risk of family discord is high.
​Acid victim Hanifa Nakiryowa founded the Center for Rehabilitation of Survivors of Acid and Burns Violence.

Acid attacks: ‘I didn’t have the money to buy justice, but I had brains...

In the wake of acid attacks, victims — often women — can feel hopeless. Now, women around the world are fighting back.
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How these pupils from SA’s poorest schools became doctors

The Umthombo Youth Development Foundation provides bursaries and mentorship to health science students from poor, rural backgrounds. Despite humble beginnings, these students are achieving exceptionally high pass rates. Here’s why.
Less than half of designated public abortion clinics actually provide the service. Here's how we know that.

#SizaMap: Find a safe, legal abortion near you with this list of designated providers

Until now, the national and provincial health departments have not been able to say where services are provided. Here's how we found them.
More than half of men in Diepsloot report having sexually or physically abused a woman in their lifetimes

Diepsloot: Where men think it’s their right to rape

Crime stats released in 2015 reported a drop in rape cases, but experts say this is because fewer people are bothering to report rapes to the police.