South Africa’s Competition Tribunal on Friday approved a rescue deal for struggling airline Comair on condition that the carrier freezes job cuts for three years and investors allocate shares to a special purpose black empowerment vehicle, Reuters reported. Comair, which operates the British Airways franchise in South Africa and budget airline Kulula.com, was forced into a form of bankruptcy protection in May after South Africa’s coronavirus lockdown halted its operations two months earlier.

The South African government pledged to freeze public sector wages for the next three years to contain a yawning budget deficit but forecast that debt would peak at a higher level in a mid-term budget unveiled on Wednesday, Reuters reported. Africa’s most industrialised economy was already in recession before the COVID-19 pandemic struck, and one of the world’s strictest lockdowns has exacerbated its woes. The wage-freeze plan raises the risk of strikes by the country’s 1.3 million civil servants and follows a pledge in February by Finance Minister Tito Mboweni to curb a rising wage bill.

South Africa’s government said on Thursday it wanted its national airline flying again in the first half of next year, after giving it a 10.5 billion rand ($650 million) bailout in the mid-term budget, Reuters reported. The Department of Public Enterprises (DPE) said the latest cash injection meant a restructuring plan for state-owned South African Airways (SAA), which has been in a form of bankruptcy protection since December, can now go forward.

World Bank officials have told South Africa’s government it will need to reduce its wage bill to secure a loan and that it doesn’t want the money to be used to bail out insolvent state companies, a person familiar with the situation said, Bloomberg News reported.12 Those demands have stalled negotiations on the loan that began in April, the person said, asking not to be identified because the content of the discussions have not been made public.

South Africa’s Treasury is likely to announce additional funding for the state arms company and a government-owned agricultural lender in this week’s budget, people familiar with the situation said, Bloomberg News reported. Denel SOC Ltd., which makes attack helicopters and other weapons, will probably receive between 2 billion rand ($123 million) and 3 billion rand, the people said, asking not to be identified because the information hasn’t been made public. The Land and Agricultural Development Bank of South Africa will get 1.5 billion rand to 2 billion rand, the two people said.

South Africa should act to preserve its insolvent national airline and seek to partner the carrier with Ethiopian Airlines Group, according to a study commissioned for ruling-party lawmakers, Bloomberg News reported. The assessment, seen by Bloomberg, was prepared by African Aviation Services Ltd. and dated Oct. 4. It was presented to a group of African National Congress lawmakers on Monday, according to an ANC official who asked not to be identified because the information isn’t public.

South Africa’s National Treasury wants strict conditions attached to any guarantees it provides for loans to the country’s embattled state airline, according to two people familiar with the matter, Bloomberg News reported. Treasury and Department of Public Enterprises officials met Saturday to discuss ways to restart South African Airways, the people said, asking not to be identified because the talks are private. Representatives of two South African banks attended the talks, they said. SAA halted operations and sought bankruptcy protection in December.

South Africa has pledged 10.5 billion rand ($650 million) to South African Airways (SAA), one of the administrators of the ailing state-owned airline said on Friday, Reuters reported. The administrators took control of SAA in December after almost a decade of financial losses and have been trying to keep it afloat as the coronavirus pandemic compounds its longstanding problems. Administrators published a restructuring plan in June, but the more than 10 billion rand required for it to work has not materialised since the airline’s creditors approved it in July.

South African Rugby (SA Rugby) has placed the Southern Kings into voluntary liquidation because of debts of R55 million ($3.37 million) and no chance of generating any income this year, Reuters reported. The Kings, based in Port Elizabeth, were last month withdrawn from all competition due to their financial position following a failed takeover bid that forced SA Rugby and the Eastern Province Rugby Union to take control.

Woolworths Holdings is reviewing its South African clothing business and the food division of Australian unit David Jones to respond to fashion trends and stem losses amid a slump in earnings, its chief executive said on Thursday, Reuters reported. Roy Bagattini, who took over as CEO of the fashion and food retailer in February, is on a mission to improve the performance of the David Jones department store chain. His predecessor Ian Moir paid a premium to bulk up in Australia and turn the company into a leading southern hemisphere retailer.