December 11, 2012.
From Creamer Media in Johannesburg, I’m Motshabi Hoaeane.
Making headlines:

A leading business group forms a council to help the US compete in South Africa.

Ghana opposition contender Nana Akufo-Addo might challenge election results.

And, Public Services and Administration Deputy Minister Ayanda Dlodlo says South Africa’s corruption battle is everyone’s responsibility.

A leading US business group on Monday said it was creating a new body called the US-South Africa Business Council as part of a broader effort to respond to increased competition throughout Africa from China, Europe as well as other countries.

The initiative is the latest US effort to make up for lost ground in Africa, which is home to many of the fastest-growing economies in the world this year. It also comes at a time when South Africa continues to struggle with high unemployment and widespread poverty.

US Under Secretary of State Robert Hormats said that the goal of both countries is to create jobs and economic growth. He also said that both countries saw the new council as part of a two-way win-win process through which trade ties and investment could be strengthened.

Charter members of the US-South Africa Council include US beverage giant Coca-Cola, engineering and construction firm Black & Veatch, drug manufacturer Lilly and Co, as well as smaller firms such as Solar Reserve.

Ghana's main opposition challenger Nana Akufo-Addo said on Monday that his party might challenge election results in the courts. This comes after authorities declared incumbent president John Dramani Mahama winner of the December 7 poll.

Ghana's electoral commission said that Mahama, who replaced former president John Atta Mills after his death in July, had won 50.7% of the ballots cast, enough to avoid a run-off against his rival.

Akufo-Addo said that the opposition has serious reservations about the counting and the declaration of results.

However, the West African nation's non-partisan Coalition of Domestic Election Observers, which deployed more than 4 000 poll watchers, said the vote had been generally free and fair.

Public Services and Administration Deputy Minister Ayanda Dlodlo said at an International Anti-corruption Day summit in Pretoria, that the battle against corruption isn’t the responsibility of government only and that it should be supported by civil society as well as the private sector.

She said that the word corruption irritates her, and hoped it would also irritate more people and mobilise them to fight against it. She also said that South Africa had lost an unquantifiable amount of money as a result of corruption; money that could have been used to uplift the poor people.

Congress of South African Trade Unions general-secretary Zwelinzima Vavi, who was elected chairperson of the National Anti-Corruption Forum, said that the forum “fully supported” the Public Service Commission’s call for government officials to be banned from doing business with their employing departments.

Corruption Watch head David Lewis added that South Africa’s notion of innocent until proven guilty was null and void, as big fish were getting away with corruption, as was evident in the R10-billion social grants tender case.

Also making headlines:

Business seeks policy certainty and predictability from ANC’S Mangaung election conference.

UCT Graduate School of Business professor Mills Soko says the G20 is too ‘Eurocentric’ to assist Africa in achieving growth and overcoming its challenges.

And, Public Works renews the commitment to complete the immovable asset register of State-owned properties to combat fraud and corruption.

That’s a roundup of news making headlines today.