Johannesburg - The date for South Africa's general elections has been set at April 22, President Kgalema Motlanthe announced Tuesday.

South Africans will be called to vote in their fourth national and provincial elections since the end of apartheid in the early 1990s.

Motlanthe told the National Assembly in Cape Town he had agreed on the date with the Independent Electoral Commission.

"With this coming election, the maturisation of our democracy receives yet another shot in the arm," Motlanthe said.

Johannesburg - South African President Kgalema Motlanthe warned Friday that the global financial crisis posed a serious threat to jobs in Africa's largest economy, where manufacturing and mining have shed thousands of jobs in recent months.

Delivering the president's annual State of the Nation speech at the opening of parliament in Cape Town, Motlanthe warned South Africans against underestimating the local fallout of recession in leading markets.

"The global economic meltdown does pose serious dangers for our economy, in terms of job losses and the quality of life of our people," he said.