Inside Covid-19: Moneycraft advice for the 89% of SAs worrying about paying bills; Habana steps up for sportsmen. Ep 45

In Episode 45 of Inside Covid-19, some solid practical moneycraft advice during a time when 89% of South Africans are worried how they're going to pay their bills; we hear from the Chinese owners of Village Main Reef on challenges the pandemic has brought for its deep level mines that are now in care and maintenance; retired rugby superstar Bryan Habana helps fellow athletes find a way to overcome the issues flowing from the pandemic; and insights into why coronavirus mortalities in some nations is far lower than others. – Alec Hogg

In the Covid-19 headlines today:

• South Africa's coronavirus mortalities hit a fresh high of 82 on Monday, taking the total beyond 1,000. Confirmed cases jumped by 2,500 taking the total to over 50,000, now the 11^th highest in the world. Meanwhile Brazil's government is facing allegations that it changed the way it counts cases to obscure how bad things are in the world's new coronavirus hotspot. Bloomberg reports that last week the country's health ministry removed the entire historic database from its website and said it would now only publish new cases and mortalities of the past 24 hours. Brazil tops the world's daily list of deaths, with 813 on Monday taking its total to 37,312 – third behind the USA and the UK, both of which are reporting significantly lower daily mortalities. Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro has not retracted his criticism of lockdowns imposed by state governors nor his statement that Covid-19 is merely "a little flu".
• Chinese-owned gold mining company Village Main Reef, which owns the shuttered Tau Lekoa mine in Orkney and the Kopanang mine in Klerksdorp, is hopeful that despite Covid-19 challenges, these mines will be able to reopen in two months' time. CEO Jeff Dong told Biznews despite having to invest R2.5bn into the operations since acquiring them for R2.2bn in 2015, a restructuring programme will keep them going for some years. But he says the coronavirus pandemic will mean things need to be done very differently in future.
• The Hasso Plattner Foundation, founded by the co-creator of global software group SAP, has donated R100m to the Solidarity Fund. Berlin-born Plattner, who with wife Sabine owns the Fancourt golf resort in George, has been closely connected with South Africa since the early 1990s with his foundation having supported HIV and TB related projects, education and youth care in the Eden District whose best known towns are George, Knysna, Oudtshoorn and Mossel Bay.
• After its 16^th day of no fresh infections, New Zealand today returned to pre-Covid-19 normality with rugby matches watched by full stadiums planned for the weekend. The country officially moved to Level One at midnight with no more social distancing and all precautionary measures removed at gyms and restaurants. New Zealanders say it is as though the lockdown never happened with society moving back to old habits although with a little more online shopping, Zoom conferences and working from home.