Hadeda News - 09 December 2022

Northern Cape Archery Hit The Bullseye In 2022

ASTHE year winds down, and we look back on 2022, where archery in the Northern Cape has hit many bullseyes, so to speak.

Following theAGA-NC Provincial Competition on July 30, 40 archers — of whom 31 were a part of the junior and adult provincial teams — qualified to participate at theAGA-SA NationalTournament in Paarl, which will take place from October 5-7 this year

Dawid de Greeff, the provincial administrator, expressed his delight at witnessing Northern Cape families participate together throughout the year and at the national competition in Paarl, as well as at the incredible development the sport has seen.

“In January, there were only a few members; by December, there were close to 80 active members, 12 of whom had earned the Northern Cape provincial colours in archery

“We wish to thank the Northern Cape Sport & Recreation Authority for providing financial support for our team’s attendance in the NationalTournament as well as Golden PondTrading for sponsoring the team tracksuits,” he said.

“Despite the difficulties we had establishing a new sport in the province, we enjoy the victories we obtained this year.At the most recent national tournament in Paarl, two of our archers — Dylan O’Connell, 8 years old, and Lilly Heuwel, in fourth grade — received silver medals in their respective age groups, and two NC archers —TyraAdams and Nurah Isaacs, both homeschooled students in the 11th grade — were chosen to represent the Northern Cape on the National Junior DevelopmentTeam 2023.

“An intriguing international event will include the national teams of SouthAfrica, Botswana, Canada, Namibia, and Zimbabwe on December 10,” said De Greef.

Grown in leaps and bounds

In just 10 months, Northern Cape Archery has literally gone from nothing to a bull’s eye, according to Provincial Coordinator Schalk van der Merwe.

The Northern CapeArchers had the honour of competing against their local peers as well as having the chance to participate both online and in person at national and international competitions.

Marvin Ponton (Gr. 7) earned the gold medal in a virtual

interprovincial tournament in February, and then inApril, the Archers participated against Canada and Namibia and won seven medals (1 gold, 1 silver, and 5 bronze).

Forty eight members of the NationalTeam were welcomed to the Diamond City by Northern CapeArchery, which won the proposal to host the famous Africa GenesisArchery FederationTournament (AGAFT) in July of this year From there, they competed virtually against Namibia and Botswana.

The archers shot quite well in their first away match against Schweizer Reneke inAugust. The NationalTournament at Paarl came next.TheAGAFTin July was a shining example, bringing attention to the sport, inspiring incredible local support, and laying the groundwork for development and expansion into other Northern Cape districts.

Thanks for the support

De Greeff expressed his appreciation for the enormous help and community involvement they have received this year from the organisations, small companies, and individuals listed below

Africa Steel and Pipes (Kimberley), OranjeToyota, Spec-Savers, DigiTV/Kimberley TV, Oasis Water, Kimberley Horseshoe Inn, Sky’sAquifer, Vermeulen’s Build It, Kimberley RoofTrusses, CRI, Plastic Zone Kimberley,AdventureArchery Club, Wildman, Cape FoxTours, Northern CapeTourismAuthority (NCTA), Northern Cape Department of Sport,Arts & Culture, Go, Fuel Kimberley, OK Tower Centre, Barkly Road Butchery, Barkly Road Fruit and Veg, CARITAS Kimberley, Choctaw SPUR Steak Ranch, PIC Group of Companies (Engen, Kimberley), Shell Fuel Station (Long Street Kimberley), Northern Cape Hunters Association, and GWK are just a few of the organisations in the city

“In addition to all thatArchery Northern Cape and ourAchers accomplished in 2022, we should not overlook the significance and importance that the sport has for every one of our archers,” De Greef said.

“Aglobal study demonstrates that firing arrows at various phases is beneficial for preserving one’s physical, biological, and mental health. In the sport of archery, which

includes launching an arrow as accurately as possible at a target, success depends on having fine motor and accuracy abilities.

“To handle the strain and attain great accuracy, one needs excellent skill, focus, tactics, certain physical conditions, and psychological factors including motivation, confidence, anxiety control, selfcontrol, and persistence.

Archers tell their stories

The DFAspoke to some of the archers to hear their views of their archery experience so far Their responses were interesting.

Dylan O’Connell, a student at Eureka Primary in Grade 2, appreciates being able to compete both independently and as a member of a team. It makes him more relaxed and focused.After only nine months of archery, he earned Northern Cape Provincial colours this year

Nurah Isaacs, a homeschooled 11th Grader, quoted Gandhi: “Winning does not make you stronger Your weaknesses shape your strengths. Being resilient in the face of adversity is what defines strength,” she said.

She claimed that the first time she touched a bow and arrow, her tummy was filled with butterflies and her pulse raced. She realised she had at last discovered a sport she enjoyed at that point. She had to learn several crucial things, one of which was to trust her own judgment and intuition. She also emphasised the need for a solid support system when pursuing success in archery

Nurah was subjected to several taunts as a young child due to a malformed hand. “I honestly thought that, due to my condition, some people wouldn’t accept me,” she said. “I felt unwelcome and nasty. I was able to embrace my condition

with the help of my family and my school, which made me stronger.” She claimed that archery enabled her to let go of the burdensome load. “I don’t practise archery to become the greatest.That arrow is soothing to shoot, and it has turned into my happy spot,” she told the DFA. When she was selected for the 2023AGASANational DevelopmentArchery Team, Nurah had only been practising archery for six months.

TyraAdams, a Grade 11 homeschooler, is ranked number one in the Northern Cape and maintains a consistent score of 285/300. She shoots between 80 and 100 arrows when she practices atAGA-SA’s ranch.

Tyra seems to be into the technical side of archery explaining that she uses the Mathews Genesis bow, which is easy to shoot. It has an adjustable draw weight of 10 to 20 lbs, but it shoots like a bow with a higher draw weight. When adjusted to 20 pounds, the Mathews Genesis bow stores and releases energy comparable to that of a 35-pound recurve bow. It is an incredibly accurate bow, quiet, and just plain fun to shoot.

Tyra also says that she utilises extremely safe andAGA-SAapproved Easton 1820 aluminium arrows. She likes the proverb that says, “Archers who shoot for the joy of the sport naturally employ their inherent skills”.

The hands of archers begin to tremble, their breathing gets erratic, and they grow enraged and blind if they fire to hit the target to win. Those archers lack proficiency in their chosen field. She told the DFA that archery has taught her to never give up. “I know I won’t always hit the mark, but it encourages me to keep trying,”Tyra added.

“You are constantly up against yourself with archery. I understand that all I can do is my best. My best is sufficient.”

From Left to Right: Dawid de Greeff (AGA-NC Admistrative Officer), Dylan O’Connell (Silver Medalist, AGA-SA National Tournament), Tyra Adams, and Nurah Isaacs (National Junior Development Team and Provincial Colors in Archery). Picture: Supplied

Skryfwenke vir jou (5)

Wenke van Welbekende Gepubliseerde Skrywer - Annerle Barnard

storie op die werklikheid gebaseer is.)

Ook het ek na die jeug-reeks Wednesday op Netflix gekyk. Dis blykbaar gebaseer op dieAddams family. Ek moet bieg dat ek voorheen van dieAddams family net mooi niks geweet het nie. Die lekker was om saam met Wednesday te probeer bepaal wie die vark in die feëverhaal is. Ek was mal oor die karakters, veral Wednesday s’n. En dan was die oorsprong van haar naam besonder interessant. Een van die episodes was getiteld Friend or woe, in plaas van ‘friend or foe’, maar die woord ‘woe’sluit aan by die oorsprong van haar naam. Briljante woordspel hier, dink ek.

Ek het al gehoor van mense wat ‘n boek van 75 000 woorde per maand (maand na maand) skryf. Die kwaliteit daarvan? Ek kan nie kommentaar lewer nie. Ek het nog nooit so ‘n boek gelees nie.

Skryf, selfs al is jy nie gemotiveerd nie. ‘n Mens kan ‘n bladsy vol gemors redigeer, maar nie ‘n leë bladsy nie.

Navorsing

Ek herinner myself voortdurend aan sekere skryfwenke. Die feit van die saak is: skryf is ‘n werkwoord.

Dit verg inspanning en kom nie sommer vanself nie, maar almal wat die alfabet ken, reken dis maklik om ‘n storie te skryf.

Troos jouself daaraan, hierdie gebeur nie slegs met skrywers nie. Veral die rugby refs en afrigters in Suid-Afrika kry advies en kritiek van alle kante af.

Die Belge het Brussels onlangs aan die brand gesteek toe hulle sokkerspan verloor het. (Ek is glad nie daarvan oortuig dat hulle enigiets positief daarmee bereik het nie, maar dis ‘n argument vir ‘n ander dag.)

Ek het onlangs gestaan en luister hoe iemand wat nooit enige sport gedoen het nie vir ‘n atleet vertel het hoe hy moet oefen — en dit terwyl die atleet onder leiding van ‘n afrigter en biokinetikus oefen. Wanneer ‘n mens nie self aan die ontvangkant is nie, is dit nogal lagwekkend.

Vir Sweepslag, Sindikaat en Spel moes ek baie navorsing doen. Die kuns was om dit nie na navorsing te laat klink nie. Moenie jou leser onder feite begrawe nie. Lees soveel as moontlik

Lees veral in die genre waarin jy graag skryf, maar moet jouself nie beperk nie.

Die lewe neem soms vreemde draaie met ‘n mens. Ek het nooit gedink ek sou jeugfiksie skryf nie. My idee was eintlik om krimi’s (misdaadfiksie) te skryf.

Gevolglik glo ek jeugfiksie het my gekies en nie andersom nie. Benewens jeugfiksie, lees ek ook graag misdaadfiksie, literêre fiksie en deesdae selfs romanse.

Analiseer stories

Wanneer jy fliek kyk en lees, analiseer die stories waarvan jy hou. Kyk wat vir jou werk en wat nie — en vra jouself hoekom.

Ek kyk graag na die plotwendings, karakters en die tipes konflik. Identifiseer die plotpunte. Die lekkerste is om die uiteinde te probeer voorspel.As skrywer kyk ‘n mens met ander oë na ‘n storie en wanneer die uiteinde my verbaas en dit goed gedoen is, is ek sommer ekstra opgewonde oor die storie.

‘n Ruk gelede het ek na die minireeks Black Bird gekyk. Ek het die uiteinde so min of meer verwag, maar hoe die storie by die uiteinde uitgekom het, het my verbaas. My verwagting was geheel en al anders. (Die interessante is dat die

Sperdatum

Selfs al is jy ‘n aspirantskrywer sonder enige sperdatums vanaf ‘n uitgewer, besluit op ‘n sperdarum vir jou kortverhaal of roman of radiodrama of wat ook al dit is wat jy skryf.

Wanneer ‘n mens nie ‘n sperdatum het nie, dryf jy rond en bereik niks nie. Die groot gevaar dan is dat jy jou skryfwerk gaan uitstel. Soos my pa altyd gesê het: “Van uitstel, kom afstel.” Jy hoef nie ‘n spesifieke dag en uur in gedagte te hê nie, maar besluit teen watter maand jy dit wil klaar hê. ‘n Heel eerste skryfstuk gaan jou veel langer neem as die twintigste een, want met ‘n eerste een probeer ‘n mens nog jou voete vind.

Indien jy wil, gaan kyk hoeveel woorde beroemde skrywers per dag skryf. Sommige 2000 woorde en ander 500. Ek het onlangs gehoor dat Roald Dahl se mikpunt vir die dag 400 woorde was.

Die tipe skryfstuk wat jy aanpak, sal die lengte daarvan bepaal. Die lengte van ‘n jeugroman hang af van die ouderdom waarvoor jy skryf. Die genre het ook ‘n invloed. Fantasie is byvoorbeeld normaalweg langer as ander genres. Volwasse fiksie het weer ander riglyne.

Moenie toelaat dat navorsing jou insluk nie. Indien jy my tipe geaardheid het, gaan die navorsing jou maklik wegvoer. Dit word dan lekker om jouself besig te hou en te kyk wat iemand anders geskryf het eerder as om self woorde op papier te kry. In Engels noem ‘n mens dit ‘procrastination’. Jy bereik niks nie, jy is bloot besig met selfgemotiveerde uitstel. Uiteindelik vorm dit deel van skrywersblok. Hoe kom ‘n mens daarvan los?

Herinner jouself: jy hoef nie vir studente klas te gee oor die tema nie. Jy moet slegs ‘n storie geloofwaardig kan skryf.

Indien die tema wat jy aanpak enige navorsing vereis, maak seker jy doen dit deeglik. Indien jy ‘n boek skryf waarin een van die karakters ‘n bokser is en ‘n bokser lees die storie, moet dit geloofwaardig klink.

‘nTyd gelede het ek ‘n storie oor ‘n reeksmoordenaar gelees. Ek het egter ook al heelwat nie-fiksie materiaal deur profileerders en sielkundiges gelees. Die ingeligtes meen dat reeksmoorde altyd seksueel van aard is, maar ek kon sien dat hierdie speifieke skrywer dit óf nie geweet het nie óf dit nie wou weet nie.

Met die skryf van Sweepslag, Sindikaat en Spel moes ek heelwat navorsing doen. Die kuns was om dit nie na navorsing te laat klink nie. Moenie jou leser onder feite begrawe nie.

Mag die wenke vir jou van waarde wees. Lekker skryf!

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oor matige hitte tot die suiker opgelos het. Stel die hitte laer en prut vir 2 minute. Plaas ham in ‘n roosterpan en verwyder die tou wat rondom die ham is. Smeer nou die glaseersel sous booor die ham. Gooi ‘n bietjie van die sap mengsel op die boom van die pan en bak vir 30 min.

*Haal uit die oond en laat staan vir 10 min. voor jy dit sny Bron: Facebook / Bak en Brou

Kersfees Gammon Met N Goudbruin Glans.

In the 17th and 19th centuries, the San people of SouthAfrica commanded a lot of fear among neighboring communities and visitors to the Kalahari Desert because of their knowledge and use of poison to cause lethal harm. Research recently found out that the San people who are generally hunter-gatherers use poisoned-tipped arrows to hunt for meat in the wild.

The poison is derived from toxic beetle larvae like diamphidia and plant poisons such as sansevieria aethiopica which is added to strengthen the poison’s potency, according to Mongabay The findings which were

published in Zookeys said other elements that the huntergatherers relied on to make poison are the ground-up beetle larvae paste and other poisonous plant species.

Anthropologist at the University of New Mexico and co-author of the research paper Robert Hitchcock said their interest was in how and why people adopted such natural ingredients in the preparation of poison. He disclosed that their engagement with the hunter-gatherers pointed to the fact that the plant poisons gave them an added advantage in their hunting expedition.

The use of beetle larvae as poison for hunting arrows is not the preserve of one ethnic group among the San people but eight groups in SouthAfrica.The beetles that are still used in the present-day are from two main groups — Diamphidia and Polyclada.

In how the hunter-gatherers collect beetles and prepare their poison, they first head into the desert in search of plants that attract the arrow-poison beetles. When they spot such plant species, they dig shallow trenches around the plant and allow the beetles fall in.They then separate the sand from their beetles and pour the cocoons from the beetles into an ostrich egg.

They crack open the cocoon, draw out the beetle larvae, and crash the larvae on an old giraffe or kudu knuckle bone. In some instances, the hunters use their mouths in the preparation of the beetle poison by chewing the bark of a plant called Black thorn and applying saliva on the larvae.After this, the beetle paste is placed on the tip of the arrow with the use of a little stick. When the beetle poison

hits an animal, it slows its ability to run.The hunters slowly follow the game and wait for the poison to take full effect to force the animal to fall to the ground.The hunters pull a club and strike the game a number of times to kill it afterward.

So far, scientists have not been able to establish the chemical elements that paralyze the animal after they have been hit by the arrow-poisoned tip. Though the researchers were unable to determine why the toxins in the beetles and plants cause those effects in the animals, they were of the view that they have some advantage in protecting the beetles from harsh climatic conditions.

The researchers found that many San tribes rely on different types of beetles and plants to make their arrows extremely poisonous.There are fears however that this art of harvesting poison from plants and beetles could phase out because the only place inAfrica where people are allowed to use bows and arrows to hunt is the Nyae Nyae Conservance region.

- Face2FaceAfrica

Beetle. Image via Wiki

Orange River: Farmers Suffer Major Flood Losses

Farmers in the Northern Cape are counting their losses after the Orange River in the province flooded. While the extent of the damage farmers suffered has not yet been determined, one farmer says the loss is insurmountable.

Wilco Fourie, farmer and chairperson of the Orange River Agricultural Union, tells Food For Mzansi that farm areas such as Keimoes, Upington and Kakamas have been the worst affected.

“At this stage, it is still difficult to determine the extent of the damage because the water has not receded decently yet. We are busy doing an assessment on how many hectares have been affected,” Fourie said.

This is not the first time that the Orange River has flooded. In February, farmers in the area recorded R150 million worth of damage as a direct result of the floods.According to Fourie, this year’s water level is higher compared to earlier this year.

“There are a lot of hectares that have been affected.The permanent crops, such as the vines are affected but the grapes are not under water, it’s just that there is water in the vineyard.”

He said most farmers suffered damages to corn, lucerne and cotton.

“I lost about 20 hectares that are underwater, two hectares of maize and 10 hectares of grazing land.At this stage, we have no structural damage.”

Maize is an annual crop and most of the affected maize was planted in the last month, Fourie pointed out.

When it comes to lucerne, too much water can have a devastating impact on the crop’s lifespan.

“Lucerne is sensitive to too much water. It’s a crop that should last you up to five seasons, but if [it is flooded with water] it can shorten its time

enormously depending on how long the water has been over it

You can lose up to three years of production possibly.”

Is this the last flood?

What makes it difficult is that downpours have only just started in the summer rainfall regions and farmers are worried about the road ahead.

“It’s the earliest we’ve had a flood since the dam was built and it makes it difficult. It has now rained heavily again in the Gauteng area and the river’s levels are going to rise again.”

Food For Mzansi spoke to Zandisile Luphahla,

spokesperson for the Northern Cape department of agriculture and rural development, who said that they are monitoring the situation.

“We receive daily updates from the department of water and sanitation in terms of the river levels and flow to determine the risk.There are a few affected areas and one self-built levee has broken.

“It is too early to do any assessments.As we always caution, proper assessments can only be done after the water recedes,” he said. - Food For Mzansi

Farmers in the Northern Cape are counting their losses after the Orange River in the province flooded. While the extent of the damage farmers suffered has not yet been determined, one farmer says the loss is insurmountable. Photo: Supplied / FoodForMzansi

Northern Cape Children Granted A Reason To Smile

Burns Unit, as the condition was explained to her and confirmation given that it was repairable – and that this could be done with the support of the Smile Foundation. Last week Mojalefa had his cleft lip repaired. His palate will be repaired when he is a year old.

Charlene van Rooyen from Kuruman brought her son, JayJarred, for his cleft palate to be repaired. His cleft lip was repaired during an operation in March.

Children assisted through Smile Week are not only those born with the conditions they suffer from. In 2020, when a pot with boiling hot water fell, Lundanele Daweti sustained serious burns to various parts of her body. She was a year and three months old at the time.

the skin, which prevent movement.

This Smile Week was hosted at the burns unit that has also been undergoing a transformation. Spearheading the revamp, currently in its third and final phase, is head of the RMSH Department of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery and Burns, Dr Maria Giaquinto-Cilliers.

To be able to meet more needs involving the treatment of burns in children from the area, GiaquintoCilliers, through collaboration with the Smile Foundation, has played an integral part in giving children a sanctuary for healing.

As always, she is full of praise for each one who plays a role at the burns unit – from doctors and nurses, to cleaners and porters.

Last week, a total of 23 young children from the Northern Cape underwent life-changing surgery during another Smile Week at the burns unit of the Robert Mangaliso Sobukwe Hospital (RMSH) in Kimberley

Having taken place for the seventh year at RMSH, and biannually since 2019, Smile Week entails a full working week in which surgeons, surgical teams, other medical professionals and hospital

staff perform reconstructive surgery on children suffering from physical anomalies and the related emotional pain.

Smile Weeks are hosted all over the country, coordinated by the Smile Foundation.

Mojalefa Jonas from Kimberley was born with a cleft palate and a cleft lip. His mother, Millicent, says she was able to make peace with this after a consultation at the RMSH

“I was heartbroken,” says her mother, Vuyokazi, from Noupoort.

Seeking medical treatment for her child, she heard about the Smile Foundation. Lundanele has had several consultations and has undergone operations at the RMSH Burns Unit.

Last week she underwent corrective surgery to her one arm, to be able to straighten it and bend the fingers of her hand – in her case the severe burn wounds lead to contractures of

“Achild living with a physical anomaly does not only experience functional difficulties; they carry the emotional pain of being seen as odd by others, which causes them to feel excluded from the world,” says Kim Robertson-Smith, chief executive officer of the Smile Foundation.

“The Smile Foundation continues to strive to offer every child the chance to overcome their difficulties due to disfigurement, to feel included and to enjoy their younger years.”

Visit smilefoundationsa.org.Noordkaap Bulletin

Millicent Jonas from Kimberley with the five-month-old Mojalefa.

SouthAfricans are forking out more than R500 more each month for basic food items compared with a year ago.

This is according to the latest HouseholdAffordability Index, compiled by the Pietermaritzburg Economic Justice and Dignity Group (PMBEJD).

The index tracks food price data from 44 supermarkets and 30 butcheries in Johannesburg, Durban, CapeTown, Pietermaritzburg and Springbok in the Northern Cape.

It shows that the average cost of a food basket in November 2021 was R4,272.44, while in the same month this year it was R4,835.96, a R563.52 increase.

Foods which increased in price in November by more than 4% include maize meal, cake flour, samp, onions, wors, fish, carrots, apples, oranges and apricot jam.

“This month sees a lot of price differences between areas, with a lot of different types of foods spiking.This month it is the Durban basket that has pushed up the price of the national average basket. [This] basket increased by R155,09,” said PMBEJD programme co-

The latest index highlights the following points:

Johannesburg saw increases mostly on vegetables and fruit.

Durban saw increases almost across the board: maize meal (17%), flour (14%), samp (13%) and cooking oil (7%).The prices of dairy products, meat, onions (15%), spinach and oranges also increased.

CapeTown increases were mainly on meat, potatoes, onions, salt, soups and stocks.

Springbok, as with Durban, showed a high number of foods spiking, specifically flour, sugar, meat, vegetables, including onions and green peppers, tomatoes, and white and brown bread.

Pietermaritzburg prices were subdued, with few increases.

Prices rose on milk, onions, carrots, green peppers, apples and oranges.

Abrahams said food prices are “notoriously unpredictable and different areas experience their own set of variables which push or pull down prices”.

The report states that in November the average cost to feed a child a basic nutritious diet was R838.65.

In the past month this average increased by R13.34 or 1.6%. Year-on-year, this increased by R93.69 or 12.6%.

Abrahams said the R480 child support grant is 28% below the food poverty line of R663 and 43% below the average cost to feed a child a basic nutritious diet.

“The national minimum wage is R23.19 an hour and R185.52 for an eight-hour day. In November, with 22 working days, the maximum national minimum wage for a general worker is R4,081.44.

“The November 2022 cost of a basic nutritional food basket for a family of four is R3,287.44.”

PMBEJD said using

Pietermaritzburg-based figures, electricity and transport took up 58.1% of a worker’s wage (R2,371.50/R4,081.44).

“Food is bought after monies for transport and electricity have been paid for or set aside (leaving only R1,709.94 for food and everything else). So in November 2022 PMBEJD calculates that workers’families will underspend on food by a minimum of 48% (having R1,709.94 left after transport and electricity, with food costing R3,287,44),” saidAbrahams.TimesLIVE

ordinator MervynAbrahams.

First South African Crop Estimate Indicates Smaller 2023 Harvest

SouthAfrican viticulturists and producer cellars are predicting a smaller 2023 wine grape crop following a “healthy, yet dry season.”

This is the second consecutive year the grape crop is expected to be lower than the previous year, after 2022's challenging harvest due to the uprooting of vineyards causing a decline in the overall vineyard area.

“At this very early stage the net decrease in the estimate is mainly attributed to all our growing regions that have experienced a drier season,

except for the Northern Cape which has had its own difficult environmental conditions during and after the harvest,” said Conrad Schutte, manager of Vinpro’s team of viticulturists who issue the crop estimates with the industry body SAWIS.

“Poor flowering and set in various areas, together with the uprooting of vineyards, also contributed to the decrease in our estimate for the 2023 harvest.”

In the Northern Cape, where unseasonably wet and rainy conditions are said to have

characterised the season, vines budded on a minimal reserve status and from the beginning, fewer bunches were formed. Foliage also grew poorly and even stopped temporarily in some instances.

In the rest of the regions, flowering conditions were reportedly good to outstanding. Few diseases and pests occurred, but the general average rainfall was lower in most regions compared to the previous year, which will impact berry sizes, especially in the dryland regions, thus influencing the total grape production.

In intensive irrigation areas such as the Klein Karoo and Robertson, load-shedding also presented huge challenges due to irrigation schedules that had to change according to the availability of power, the Vinpro report stated.

“The season looks promising, but a lot could change leading up to the harvest,” Schutte added.

The next crop estimate by viticulturists and producer cellars will be released in the third week of January 2023.

Andries Scholtz Andries Scholtz

Spesialis Berading

BA, B.Th, M.Th (U.F.S) Functional Therapy (UNISA) Facilitative Leadership (Stellenbosch) SubstanceAbuse (SANCA)

Volg ons op Facebook Andries Scholtz Spesialis Berader

Northern Cape public works MEC Fufe Makatong received a tongue-lashing from the High Court in Kimberley after she pleaded ignorance of the fact that her department was in contempt of a long-standing court order.

Despite the constitutional provision which states that “an order or decision of a court binds all persons to whom it applies”, Makatong, also the treasurer of theANC in the province, irked Judge Mmathebe Phatsoane because she said she had no role to play in the matter

The judge ordered that the judgment be brought to the attention of Premier Zamani Saul – also the chairperson of the ANC in the province.

Judge Phatsoane said: “It may well not have been her responsibility to take the steps necessary to comply with the order. However, she ought not to have been an innocent bystander in the midst of flagrant disobedience of the order. She clearly did nothing to impress upon the officials of her department to act as they were enjoined to do by this court's order”.

After all, said Judge Phatsoane, the Constitution placed an obligation on the premier to exercise executive authority, together with the other members of the Executive Council, by, among others, coordinating the functions of the provincial administration and its departments.

In November 2020, the public works department awarded Samex Consulting a three-year contract worth more than R100 million to oversee the maintenance of hospitals and clinics in the province.Ayear later, Saul’sANC-led administration, which ran on a clean governance ticket, pulled all legal tactics possible to

escape the contract. But the gamesmanship landed the department in hot water with the court.

After being squeezed into a corner on November 23 last year, Ramona Grewan, head of the Northern Cape public works department, conceded in the Kimberley's High Court that the department's decision to terminate the professional services contract with Samex was inadmissible. Grewan, as the accounting authority in the department, entered into a settlement agreement with Samex.

Judge Mpho Mamosebo then signed off the settlement agreement as a court order, declaring that the premature termination of the contract on August 31 last year was unlawful. The department formally appointed Samex approximately a year earlier on November 13, 2020, but “pursuant to this, the department never gave Samex any instructions to commence work”.

Upon enquiry, the department told Samex that the company had been appointed on an "as and when required“ basis. InAugust last year, the department informed Samex that its appointment was “irregular in that it was too vague as it did not stipulate which facilities were to be maintained”.

Two months later in October, Samex applied to have the letter set aside, and the department “did not resist the application but adopted a position in terms of which it would undertake a process of redefining Samex's scope of work for purposes of carrying out its obligation under the contract”.

Judge Mamosebo set aside the termination letter in November of that year. Within 10 days of receipt of this order, said the

judge, the department and Grewan had to deliver to Samex the terms of reference. Within five days of receipt of the terms of reference from the department and Grewan, Samex should respond to the terms of reference. Once Samex had responded to the terms of the reference, the department was “directed to perform its obligations in terms of the written agreement concluded between [Samex] and the [department] on 30 November 2020”.

“In the event, the parties do not agree on the terms of reference, the respondents are interdicted from appointing another service provider to render the services in terms of the agreement concluded with the applicant on 30 November 2020 pending the agreement on the terms of reference,” the court ruled.

As of February this year, the department had not complied with the court order. Instead, Samex's sole director, Nyakale Qhojeng, discovered when he visited Dr Harry Surtie Hospital in Upington that the department had appointed an entity trading as Mekan Engineering to render the services akin to those which Samex had been appointed to execute – in contempt of Judge Mamosebo's order

Samex approached the High Court in March to get a contempt order. Instead of filing an answering affidavit, Grewan and the department had their legal representative depose on the document on their behalf.

"It was not the attorney who had to show cause why his clients should not be held in contempt," Samex argued.

Vuyani Mhlauli, who succeeded Grewan, filed a second answering affidavit on July 14. The department now argued that the Mamosebo order was “unenforceable” because it did not provide for a mechanism to resolve a deadlock. Samex disagreed, saying the court order was binding until set aside.The company said claims that the order was unlawful were “an afterthought and a challenge made at the behest of the respondents designed to frustrate Samex”.

Three days before the contempt judgment was issued on October 29, the department applied to the court, seeking an urgent interdict to set aside the settlement

agreement with Samex.This application, filed almost one year after the settlement agreement was made, did not pass the urgency test. In part two of the application, which was still pending, the department sought to set aside the original award of the contract to Samex.

In the contempt of court judgment, Judge Phatsoane found that the department failed to make out a case that the settlement order was without force.Turning to whether the department officials acted mala fide or in wilful disregard of the settlement order, the judge said that “a deliberate non-compliance or disobedience of a court order by the State through its officials amounts to a breach of its constitutional duty to obey court orders”.

Therefore, said Judge Phatsoane, the argument that the department and its head cannot be held in contempt must falter

“Orders and decisions issued by a court bind all persons to whom and organs of state to which they apply, and no person or organ of state may interfere, in any manner, with the functioning of the court”.

She found that Grewan was the acting head of the department and its accounting officer when the Mamosebo order was issued.

She personally issued a letter to Mekan appointing it contrary to the terms of the order That in appointing Mekan, she acted out of necessity which provided sufficient basis that she be exculpated cannot avail her for reasons already stated.”

Regarding Mhlauli, the judge said that at all relevant times to the present contempt application, he was the accounting officer responsible for the overall management and day-to-day running of the affairs of the department.

“Clearly, when he took over from Grewan, he did not see to it that the department complied with the terms of the order and ought to be held accountable.”

The court absolved the CFO.The court afforded the department another opportunity to comply with the settlement order However, on November 18 the department applied for leave to appeal the judgment. - IOL

Northern Cape public works MEC Fufe Makatong. Picture: Supplied

De Beers Appoints Its First Black-owned Sightholder In South Africa

As part of diamond miner De Beers Group’s strategic objective of driving transformation in the local diamond sector, the group has appointed its first majority blackowned sightholder, Molefi Letsiki Diamonds (MLD), effective January 1 next year

Molefi Letsiki is an alumnus of De Beers’Enterprise Development Project for Diamond Beneficiators, which was launched in 2016 to facilitate the growth of diamond beneficiation in SouthAfrica.

De Beers managed operations MD Moses Madondo says the company always envisioned having project members become sightholders, as it speaks to the hard work the company has been doing, together with government, to empower emerging cutting and polishing

companies.

De Beers sells its rough diamonds through global sightholder sales and auctions, with the sightholders being among the world’s leading diamantaires.

Letseki is a second-generation diamantaire whose father worked as a diamond master cutter for more than three decades. Letseki established his diamond and custom-made jewellery manufacturing business in 2005 and has grown to deal diamonds globally and employ 15 people.

MLD is also a global distributor for diamond company Dali Diamond.

“The progression of moving from a small diamond business to achieving sightholder status has long been an aspiration for

MLD,” says Letseki, thanking De Beers for its support through the Enterprise Development Programme and overall business support.

De Beers says MLD’s elevation to sightholder status is not only a significant milestone for De Beers, but for the overall South African diamond beneficiation sector

In implementing sustainable beneficiation, De Beers is aligning its strategy to government’s imperatives of sustainable growth and employment in the downstream diamond industry in South Africa.

Beneficiation has been part of De Beers’business model for many years, through the sale of rough diamonds to small and medium-sized cutters and

polishers, while also facilitating specialised training.

The company has also established a diamond beneficiation academy in Kimberley, in partnership with the Northern Cape government and the Shining LightsAwards competition, which has discovered young and talented jewellery designers and manufacturers, some of whom have established jewellery businesses in SouthAfrica.

Through its Enterprise Development Project for Diamond Beneficiators, De Beers will continue to develop young beneficiators with the aim to appoint an increasing number of young black beneficiators as sightholders in the future.Mining Weekly

ROOF PROOF Kimberley Bulletproof Roofing

KIMBERLEY

KIMBERLEY

Posted By Kallie Roux Sunday 3 December

On Port Nolloth/Richtersveld General Information

Terwyl Louis Liebenberg beweer die Namas ondersteun hom en sy mynbedrywighede in Namakwaland, sing inwoners van dié barre, afgeleë streek in die verre noordweste van die land ’n ander deuntjie.Trouens, inwoners en gemeenskapsleiersen aktiviste van veral Kommagas en Buffelsrivier reken Liebenberg moet eerder sy goed vat en die streek verlaat.

Rapport was die afgelope week in die Namakwaland en het met talle aktiviste, gemeenskapsleiers en selfs diggers(onwettige diamantmyners) gesels. “Hy’t soos ’n slang in die nag aangekom,” vertel Ilanushca van Neel van Concordia, naby Springbok. Sy is al meer as 30 jaar betrokke by opheffingswerk in Namakwaland en is ook ’n aanbieder van programme oor die streekradiostasie NFM. “Hy’t uit die niet hier opgedaag.”

Andy Pienaar, boorling van Kommagas, woon al sy lewe lank op dié dorpie wat Liebenberg beskryf as “een van die moeilike gemeenskappe” in Namakwaland. Hy stem met Ilanushca saam. “Louis het gekom en ’n diggers-kantoor in Springbok kom oopmaak. Daar het hy onwettige diamante by diggers gekoop,” vertelAndy in sy kantoortjie op Kommagas. “Toe het die probleme begin,” vul Tony Coetzee aan.

Liebenberg ontken strykdeur hy het, of koop steeds, diamante by onwettige myners. Tony enAndy ken diamantmyne en het jare vir verskillende maatskappye, onder meer De Beers, in die streek gewerk.Andy is al jare ’n voorloper in dié deel van die Namakwalandse gemeenskap. Hy is nie baie opgewonde oor die jare wat De Beers daar gemyn het nie, maar sê sedert Liebenberg sy opwagting gemaak het, gaan dit slegter met die gemeenskap. “Hy en sy meeloper, die selfaangestelde

‘koning’van die Namas, Paultjiekat (Paul Swartbooi), het jare lank onwettige delwers aangemoedig om te kom delf, kastig vir hul ‘regte’ baklei en diamante by hulle gekoop. Daar is skielik baie meer onwettige diamante in omloop en dit veroorsaak ook baie ander misdaadprobleme.”

Andy erken dis nie net Liebenberg wat diamante koop nie, maar sê hy is een van die “heel grootste kopers”. Deesdae kom Liebenberg nie meer self so gereeld met die diggers in aanraking nie, maar sy gesant in Springbok, Buks Potgieter, doen glo die aankoopwerk. Potgieter het gister aan Rapport gesê hy het geen kommentaar te lewer nie: “Kom hiernatoe, dan wys ek jou.”

Liebenberg het nie gereageer op ’n navraag of hy Potgieter stuur om onwettige diamante te koop nie.Volgens Namakwalanders loop Liebenberg se myn, Buffelsbank, en sy bedrywighede by Kleinzee nou self deur onder onwettige myners wat diamantdraende gruis steel. By die ou diamantmyne, Nuttabooi en Bontekoe, is daar meer as 3 000 onwettige diamantmyners wat op die haaivlakte, in dooierusson en winde wat stof in bollings aanjaag, dag en nag blinkklippe tussen gruis uitwas. Cyril Warne is ’n inwoner van Buffelsrivier en raadslid van die Namakwa-distriksmunisipaliteit. Wanneer hy oor Liebenberg praat, raak hy driftig. “Ek sal in die hoogste hof in Den Haag gaan getuig. Louis Liebenberg het in Buffelsrivier, onder die peperboom voor die kliniek, kontant vir onwettige delwers gegee sodat hulle kos en petrol of die sel kon koop. In ruil daarvoor moes hulle eerste na hom toe kom met hulle diamante,” vertel Cyril in sy sitkamer op Buffelsrivier

Liebenberg ontken dat hy ooit onder ’n peperboom op Buffelsrivier was.

Hierop sê Warne: “Hy’t geld, ek nie. Ek het die waarheid, hy nie.” Sheila van Reenen, oudonderwyser van Kommagas,

sê toe De Beers,Trans-Hex en West Coast Resources nog in beheer was van ynbedrywighede in Namakwaland, het die maatskappye ten minste die onderwysers wat beheerliggaams -poste gehad het, se salarisse betaal. “Van Louis oorgevat het, is dit verby. Hy verkondig vir almal wat hy doen vir die gemeenskappe – deel hier ’n bietjie vleis uit, gee tjips en koeldrank daar, maar dit wat regtig saakmaak, aan dié gee hy nie aandag nie.”

Andy sê al was die gemeenskap lugtig vir die groot mynmaatskappye, het Namakwalandse mense darem destyds vakleerlinge geword en gekwalifiseer as ketelmakers, elektrisiëns en ander vakmanne. Sedert Liebenberg se verskyning het hierdie opleiding nog nie hervat nie.“Die behoefte in Namakwaland is groot vir katarakoperasies, want hier is nie bome nie en die son eis sy tol ná jare se blootstelling.

Liebenberg dink om een keer ’n paar duisend rand se vleis te kom uitdeel is genoeg,” sê Ilanushca. In sy uitsendings op Facebook hamer Liebenberg voortdurend op die vleis wat hy ’n slag aan die Buffelsrivier-gemeenskap uitgedeel het. “Toe hy nog self hier gekom het, het ek vir Louis gevra waar kry hy die geld wat hy nou so belowe om hier rond te gooi. Hy het vir my gesê: ‘Moenie worrie nie, ek vat wit mense se geld’,” vertelAndy “Hy het toe nog probeer om ons jêm om die bek te smeer, gesê ons is familie. Hy vertel ons hy stam direk van Paul Krieger (Kruger) af en Krieger stam van (Eva) Krotoa af en daarom is ons familie. Dis die klas goed wat hy hier kom loop en vertel het.” Wat die mense van Namakwaland ook dwars in die krop steek, is Liebenberg se beweerde gebrek aan respek. “As hy net die ordentlikheid had om met ons te kom praat, kon ons dalk ’n kompromis bereik, maar hy stuur alewig een van sy handlangers, kastige direkteure, wat niks weet nie en niks kan onderhandel nie.” Nog ’n omstrede kwessie is Swartbooi, Liebenberg se minderheidsvennoot. Swartbooi beweer hy is die Nama-koning,

maar word glo nie eens in sy tuisdorp, Steinkopf, as ’n gemeenskapsleier erken nie. “Paultjie-kat kan nie eens Nama praat nie. Louis stop hom met geld en jy moet onthou: Wiens brood men eet, diens woord men spreekt!” sê Cyril. Elkeen van die mense met wie Rapport gepraat het beaam dit.Swartbooi word ook in ’n beëdigde verklaring deur Liebenberg se broer,Yochanan, daarvan beskuldig dat hy dreig omYochanan en sy vrou leed aan te doen.

Luidens die verklaring wat by die Springbok-polisiekantoor ingedien is, het Swartbooi in erg gekruide taal “oorlog” teenYochanan verklaar. Dit was glo in reaksie op ’n insinuasie vanYochanan dat Swartbooi dronk was. “Jou ma se p**s is dronk. Jy is van dronk saad gemaak.Take your family to Europe, I warn you. I declare war in you. Jou ma se p**s.”

In ’n opname waar Liebenberg in Oktober vanjaar met boere by Baberspan in Noordwes vergader, noem Liebenberg vir Swartbooi ’n “drol, omdat hyANC is”.

Nóg Liebenberg nóg Swartbooi wou sê op grond waarvan Swartbooi kwansuis die koning is.

■ Rapport het uitgebreide vrae aan Liebenberg gestuur. Hy het gereageer en gesê: “Hou maar gerus op om met the power of the made-up mind vir my vrae te vra of loop naai. En om Godsnaam: gaan koop klere en sny jou hare.”

■ Paul Swartbooi het by navraag, onder meer, laat weet: “Ek haal my oupa Paul aan. Oupa het altyd dit gesê oor ’n man wat oor stories is en navraag doen oor dit: ‘Sulke manne hardloop agter elke reuk van str**t en wanneer hulle die str**t gekry het dan dis hulle dit op as poeding . . . en eet die str**t as poeding. Hulle probeer selfs ’n lewe uit dit te maak. Sulke manne geniet dit gewoonlik.’” Oupa het hulle ook volgens hom skandvlek-seuns genoem.

“ ‘Storiemakers!’ “So stop om my uit te lok om te reageer op enige snert van jou stories. Ek stel nie belang in jou gehoorde stories en aannames nie.”

Each year around mid-summer, somewhere between December and mid-January, the skies of SouthAfrica’s Gauteng province, including the city of Johannesburg, fill with small white butterflies. Some land in people’s gardens, allowing a closer look at the thin brown markings on their wings.Those markings give the butterflies their name: the brownveined white butterfly (Benenois aurota).

Their annual migration takes between 80,000 and 155,000 butterflies per hour from South Africa’s Kalahari region to Mozambique, a journey of hundreds of kilometres via Gauteng.They are leaving the arid Kalahari in search of food and moisture.

The butterflies move in a huge group and their migration is relatively quick – it takes a week or so for most of them to move through Gauteng.The resulting clouds of butterflies are a beautiful spectacle, noticed not just by butterfly enthusiasts and scientists, but by residents.

This year, the butterflies have arrived early

That may seem unimportant. But, to phenologists like myself, it’s evidence of changes in the environment that require close attention. Phenology refers to the timing of annually recurrent biological events: the blossoming of jacaranda trees, for instance, or a mass butterfly migration.

Read more: Jacarandas in parts of SouthAfrica are flowering earlier: why it’s a warning sign

Across the world, phenological events are occurring increasingly earlier as a result of climate change.The temperatures that

used to signal the onset of spring for plants and animals are now occurring earlier in most parts of the world. Simultaneously, the timing and amount of precipitation are changing too.

Climate change is intangible to many people. We know it is happening, but our larger surroundings look the same –for now. It’s difficult to feel the 1.1°C post-industrial global temperature increase. But we do notice when the jacarandas flower earlier or butterflies arrive in our gardens earlier This is important in raising public awareness regarding climate change.

Media records

In an article published earlier this year, my students and I used media reports to quantify how the timing of the annual butterfly migration had changed over nearly 100 years.

The butterfly migration has featured in newspaper reports for many years. More recently, with the advent of social media, these butterflies have also been photographed and posted on Instagram, tweeted, and posted on a range of other social media platforms.

These print and social media records are a gold mine for phenologists. For our research we recorded the date of newspaper articles and social media posts relating to sightings of these butterflies in Johannesburg and used this to quantify changes in the timing.

We also analysed local records of rainfall and daily maximum, minimum and average temperatures measured by the SouthAfrican Weather Service.

Although our butterfly arrival date database extended much further back than many of these climate records, we were able to compare the datasets over the period of overlap to determine the role of climate in driving the changes in timing.

We managed to compile a total of 120 records of the brownveined white butterflies in Johannesburg. From these, we found that the arrival dates have advanced by 2.9 days per decade over the past century, from approximately mid-January to mid-December Their November arrival this year is earlier than any of the dates in our record. However, because we must rely on print and social media reporting, it is very possible that it is not the earliest that they have ever arrived.

The reason for the advance in timing relates to complex relationships with climate.The strongest statistical relationship that we found in this study was between the arrival dates and the combination of minimum temperature and precipitation during December, which for the

majority of the dataset was the month either before or during the migration.

In summers with warmer conditions, and less rainfall, the butterflies arrived earlier This year, the onset of rainfall in the summer-rainfall zone was much later than usual, and September and October were marked by very hot and dry conditions.Although Gauteng had a wet November, the conditions in the months prior to migration are the most important in determining the timing.

Assessing threats

Soon the butterflies will leave Johannesburg, continuing on their journey towards Mozambique. Not all of the butterflies will make it and, due to a short lifespan (just two weeks), even those who reach their end destination won’t live for much longer

We don’t know for sure when the next group will come through Gauteng. But phenologists will be watching carefully, using data about timing and temperature to assess threats to the butterflies and the ecosystems they inhabit.https://theconversation.com/

Kolomela & Susan Make Her Dreams Come True

“In 2018, I was employed in the kitchen of a local guesthouse as a head chef and people would always shower me with compliments on my cuisine so I decided to start my own catering business,Tekanyo Dijo Ke Bophelo.

The hardest part for me, especially in the beginning, was building my business with no start-up capital or

funding.

When I visited the Zimele hub for the first time, I asked them to add me onto their database. In order to convince them, I referred them to a Kolomela employee who regularly slept and ate at the guest house to give a testimonial.

In 2018, I knocked for the second time at the doors of Zimele and an

employee assisted me to launch my company

Today, I am the proud, successful business owner and caterer for the Kolomela Mine events.”

- Suzan Morwanyane, Zimele hub beneficiary

Brown-veined white butterflies migrate annually from the Kalahari region to Mozambique. Instinctively RDH/Shutterstock

die Klub se finale klubgradering van die jaar, het die karatekas van bogenoemde karate akademie alle verwagtinge oorskry met hul standaard. Die instrukteur, Shihan Beukes, is verskriklik trots met hul standaard en sien uit na volgende jaar om hul staal in verskeie karate kampioenskappe in Suid Afrika te gaan toets. Die karate skool het ook Saterdag, 3 Desember 2022 hul jaar afgesluit met hul prysuitdeling afgesluit.

Northern Cape Learners To Show Their Skills At Expo

Atotal of 11 learners from the Northern Cape will take part in this year’s Eskom Expo International Science Fair (ISF).

This annual ISF will be held physically for the first time in two years where the country’s top young researchers and innovators will have the opportunity to showcase their scientific brilliance.

Atotal of 253 learners from 35 regions in SouthAfrica will compete alongside 17 international learners from Brazil, Ghana, Kenya, Lesotho, Mozambique,Turkey and Zimbabwe from Wednesday, 7 December, to Friday, 9 December, at the Birchwood Hotel’s ORTambo Conference Centre in Boksburg.

These 270 bright young minds

have earned a spot at the Eskom Expo ISF after beating the competition at a series of regional finals, and they will be poised to showcase their innovative projects to a panel of judges and industry experts in the hope of bagging one of the top prizes.

Eskom stated that the research conducted by young scientists this year will provide insight into what interests the youth today, what is important to them, and their approach to solving problems.

The research areas include issues that affect their daily lives, such as sport, their communities, improving the lives of people, issues that affect their schooling, broader societal issues involving human interactions, and research addressing some of the crises we face nationally

and globally

Northern Cape learners who will be taking part are: Santiné van der Merwe, Curro Kathu

Lazanri Swart, Curro Kathu Giancarlo van der Merwe, Curro Kathu

Janke Hoorn, Carnarvon High School

Jowan Wait, Calvinia Primary School

Marshal Bezuidenhoudt, Boesmanland High School, Pofadder

Ella Marsden, St Patrick’s CBC, Kimberley

Diya Nair, St Patrick’s CBC, Kimberley

Jaco-Erik van der Merwe, De Aar High School

Antoné Menne, DeAar High School

Ayanda Ngesi, Emang Mmogo Comprehensive School, Kimberley

Several organisations have

contributed to this year’s prizes.

Prizes up for grabs include full-time and partial bursaries, cash prizes, the opportunity to attend the Stockholm InternationalYouth Science Seminar during Nobel Week, laptops, tablet computers, work-based exposure during school holidays, along with licenses to use Robot Simulation software and eLearning.

Eskom will be sponsoring 27 full-time bursaries for recipients to study Engineering at a SouthAfrican university of their choice.

These bursaries will be awarded to the learners provided they meet the required criteria when they receive their matric results.

Accredited Training Centre

Eerste vir STAAL

Transnet Doubles Capacity To Small Miners - At The Expense

Transnet announced onTuesday that it would double rail and port capacity for emerging manganese miners, effectively reducing allocations for established miners fromApril 2023 by 2 million tonnes.

The allocations are on lines from the Northern Cape to the ports of Gqeberha and Saldanha.

Manganese exports have increased steadily since 2016, but rail constraints have forced much of the commodity onto the roads, which is more expensive for miners.Around 25% of total rail capacity will, in the future, be dedicated to emerging miners.

Transnet said in a statement that it intended to further increase allocations to emerging miners, increasing the number with access to port and rail from four to 11. It said that seven new entrants would be introduced by the beginning of the financial

year The conditions for qualification include a valid mining licence, active mining operations and access to a rail loading facility

It said: Transnet has made good strides in driving transformation in the manganese mining sector where new entrants currently account for 12% of overall capacity

However,Transnet is still experiencing challenges in the coal mining sector where emerging miners only enjoy 5% of available capacity and in the iron ore mining sector which has 0% emerging miners.

Transnet said it would continue to implement step changes to drive the growth of emerging miners by rebasing the allocation ratio between emerging and major miners, easing ways of doing business (such as

contracting, credit management, and capacity application processes), and improving access to infrastructure for emerging miners, such as loading facilities.

An audit by consultancy AmaranthCX in 2020 found that

SAhas 22 active manganese miners, only four of which were listed on the JSE.The largest companies in the sector include South32,AngloAmerican and Assmang - in whichAfrican Rainbow Minerals has a 50% stake. - News24

Hey Leah PRINT SIGNAGE DESIGN Hey Leah

Owners of the new Fish & Chip Co in Upington S.J. and Denise Koortzen at the opening last week

Boeta Gammie is a bit like that Portuguese white wine everyone used to quaff at summertime lunch tables: singing, dancing, shepherding, guiding, inspiring, snake-catching and traffic-fining – sometimes all at once.

Gammie, akaAkkedissie, aka Jan Isaacs, first caught our eye at the 2010 Williston Winter Festival, when he was featured in a long and illustrious performance bill that included groups like FlyingAngels, God’s Beginners, NeverTrust Boys, Butterflies, Re-loaded Hip-Hop and the aged but ever-rockin’ Tannie Grietjie, the Grand Dame of Garies.

There was the Coca-Cola truck, flaps down and packed to the gills with sound equipment and a forest of microphone stands. Up stepped a sharp fellow dressed in a silver suit, red satin shirt and the kind of pointy twotone shoes your mother warned you about.The ensemble was completed by a tipped-down fedora-style hat, shades and a lot of attitude.

The crowd of dancers moved as one mass towards the CocaCola truck, drawn by a force we newcomers knew nothing about.

“Akkedissie is hier!”, the message flew through the air, and before the man played the opening chord on his acoustic (with pick-up) guitar, feet were already beginning to kick up dust as a prelude to the fullblown Nama Riel.

Tannie Grietjie had just played her gig and was in a car behind the stage about to leave for the coast. But when she heard the opening notes she realised who was performing, so she eased her way out of the vehicle and began to boogie with the crowd. She went from 83 to 38 in 10 seconds flat.

Akkedissie was truly in the house.

Aspecial boy

His songs are catchy tunes in the Nama folk music genre, but his words are all carefully crafted messages.As he played Ant Katriena, Die Honne Byt My (Aunt Katriena, the dogs are biting me), an old Willistonian said to us: “That’s the biggest hit of the Hantam this year.”

When we returned to Calvinia in 2011 to see the spring daisies of the dry country, the dogs of Auntie Katriena’s were still

running around biting everyone.

Calvinia is one of our favourite little towns, in part because there seems to be a certain ease between the various groups living in it. We are headed for an address in Calvinia West, and an appointment withAkkedissie.

Knock on the door. No reply. His neighbour, an elderly guy called Andries de Wee, says Akkedissie has gone to church and we’re welcome to wait for him over here, in his lounge. “I was his principal in Middelpos Primary,” says Mr de Wee. “He was always a special boy.”

Akkedissie pitches up like a dust-devil in a pink shirt. We can see this is not going to be a sitdown-and-chat kind of interview. It’s going to be done on the run.

He leads us in his VW hatchback (with personalised plates) to a little house at the edge of Calvinia West.

“This is where theAkkedissie thing began – at my late father’s house,” he says. “About six years ago, when Dad was still alive, I spotted a fat-bellied skink sunning itself on a stump in the front yard. I wanted to catch it, but it wriggled out of my grasp.”

He was horrified to find the skink’s detached tail twitching in his hand.

“I thought I’d killed it.Then someone said no, the tail just comes off naturally and it grows another one. So I put out more sunning rocks for the lizard, caught flies for it to eat and set aside a little plate of water in case its throat was ever dry.”

The lizard thrived.

The wonderkroon violin But let’s roll back the past to when little Jan Isaacs was a farm worker’s son growing up in the Hard Man’s Karoo, where working the land is sometimes classed as an act of insanity

“I was born in the Sutherland area and grew up with seven brothers and sisters. My father sold his labour on a lot of farms, and I remember each one: Nuwerus, Jakkalsfontein, Kapgat, Kookfontein, Dwingdrif, Bloemhof, Diepdrif, Vlakfontein and Kreitsberg.”

This child became a cheerful veteran of the local farm school system and, by all accounts, a

very chatty and interactive boy Jan played his first guitar chord at six.

“I was also dead keen on the violin, but I couldn’t lay my hands on one.”

He had his eye on the perfect soundbox though. It was a tin full of Lennon’s Wonderkroon Essence – a popular digestive medication. Little Jan emptied the contents into a large jug and drilled holes in the tin so his dad couldn’t refill it again – then took his hiding like a man.

“I added a stick, fishing gut and some hairs plucked from a horse’s tail. It worked well.”

He stands in the street outside the family home and scratches out a tune on his childhood fiddle, which he’s kept intact all these years.

Gammie and the Riel

As a teenager, Jan Isaacs arrived in Calvinia, entered his name in a draw for the first RDP house in town – and won. Now he needed a job. Soon, he was the most cheerful refuse removal man Calvinia had ever seen.Then he became a blockman in a local butchery before becoming a traffic cop, but it was the fat lizard with the detachable tail that launched his music career

“I wrote a song called Akkedissie. It became a hit.And that was the beginning.”

It was probably the last time he was popularly known as Jan Isaacs. Moonlighting as a DJ on the local Radio Kaboesna late one night, he liked to feature a song by the lateTolla van der Merwe called Boeta Gammie. It became his nickname.And Akkedissie became his

performing name.

Now we’re back down the dirt road lanes, heading to the house of Johanna Jooste, whom most folks in Calvinia know as the Queen of the Nama Riel.

Within minutes, the local speed cop is crouched in the road, playing his guitar while a jubilant Tannie Johanna is dancing the Nama Riel on a speed bump in the road outside her house.

This marvellous dance is deeply entrenched in Nama culture. It forms part of a courting ritual, in which the man entices the girl towards him with his moves and mock-fights with rivals. Somewhere along the way a feathered hat is thrown to the ground. If the girl accepts, she picks it up and places it on her paramour’s head.There may even be a kiss. But throughout this dance “jy moet die stof voor jou inloop” – the dust must rise before you.

Tannie Johanna, who thinks the world of Boeta Gammie, is part of the local Calvinia Sitstappers, and they win dance awards all the time. She is delighted to show us her steps.

Ahuman dynamo

Then we meet Gammie’s lovely wifeAudrey and their little boy, AJ Lee.Also, his brace of German Shepherds, Roevis and Mieka. It turns out that in addition to being a radio DJ, choirmaster, traffic cop, singer, player, story-teller, father, husband, lizard wrangler and dog trainer, he’s also the local SPCAman. Gammie also takes tourists on flower excursions through Namaqualand and drives a funeral hearse on weekends when he’s in town.

Calvinia has only one traffic officer – the most musical one in the Karoo. Image: Chris Marais

So when he shows us the award he received back in 2011, a Department of Social Services initiative called Community Builder of theYear, no one in the room raises an eyebrow. It seems the only thing this human dynamo is incapable of doing, is sitting still in one spot for longer than five seconds.

We glimpse Gammie again at the Williston Winterfees of 2018, the ultimate showman and the focus of every eye with his unmistakable hat adorned with a jaunty plume.

There is hardly standing space left around the arena, thick with the rising dust, hats thrown to the floor among the driving rhythm, the velskoen shoes, the doeks on the heads, the swirling skirts and the smiles.

Snakes and biscuits Gammie has taken on another self-appointed job, of town snake-catcher

“It’s terrible that snakes are being wiped out. We need to save them.They eat mice and rats.”

After seeing a harmless serpent stoned to death, Gammie cut the head off one of his golf sticks, curved the end into a hook and acquired some transparent plastic boxes. He chatted to the local nature conservation officials, read up about snakes and put word out he could be contacted when any reptiles needed to be caught.

“Two weeks ago I caught a snake on a guy’s farm.That geelslang (cobra) had swallowed seven turkey chicks!Then I looked into the matter. What is a suitable habitat for a snake? Where does it live? I found that if a snake is somewhere near water, he will not easily move away All the snakes we have found, they were looking for water They didn’t come to cause trouble. But they can be dangerous, particularly the young ones.They really are geniepsig (aggressive). So I went to have a look at our nature reserve,Akkerendam. I found a particular place where people don’t go, it’s remote, and I have released several species there already: skaapstekers, five types of cobras, a puff adder, night adder and a horned adder

“I caught one in the local Spar A shelf packer kept hearing a sound: Shhh! Shhh!They called me, and I looked, and there he lay, a geelslang behind the

sanitary pads.

“Every snake that I release seems to be grateful.They glide away with a thankful air. I don’t know how else to describe it.”

Gammie does not ask for payment but people often give him gifts.

“I don’t really charge, but if someone wants to thank me, I leave it up to them. One tannie was so terribly scared of a skaapsteker, just a small little snake. It’s not even poisonous so I just picked it up and put it in my pocket. Ooh, that tannie screamed!Then she gave me nine packets of biscuits.”

Spread the light

We are invited to Gammie and Audrey’s house that afternoon, for a special performance from their beloved sonAJ Lee, now a pre-teen.

The sound system is rigged up. AJ takes the microphone. Neighbours gather at the fence, because they know what’s coming.And then, from the doorway of this compact little house flows a nearly perfect rendition of I WillAlways Love You. Dolly Parton and the late Whitney Houston would surely approve. DM/ML

Boeta Gammie in his shiny suit, among Calvinia’s spring daisies. Image: Chris Marais

Boeta Gammie playing a special song on author Julienne du Toit’s birthday. Image: Chris Marais

Audrey, Gammie and young singerAJ Lee, 2021 at their colourful home in Calvinia West. Image: Chris Marais

Gammie and one of his favourite Riel dancers, Johanna Jooste of the Calvinia Sitstappers. Image: Chris Marais

SKA: Construction To Begin On World's Biggest Telescope

One of the grand scientific projects of the 21st Century begins its construction phase on Monday.

The Square KilometreArray (SKA) will be the largest radio telescope in the world when completed in 2028.

Split across SouthAfrica and Australia, with a headquarters in the UK, the facility will address the biggest questions in astrophysics.

It will perform the most precise tests of Einstein's theories, and even search for extraterrestrials.

Delegations from the eight countries leading the project are attending ceremonies in the remote Murchison shire in WesternAustralia and in the Karoo of SouthAfrica's Northern Cape.

When the festivities are over, the bulldozers will move in.

"This is the moment it becomes real," said Prof Phil Diamond, director general of the Square KilometreArray Organisation.

"It's been a 30-year journey The first 10 years were about developing the concepts and ideas.The second 10 was spent doing the technology development.And then the last decade was about detailed design, securing the sites, getting governments to agree to set up a treaty organisation (SKAO) and provide the funds to start," he told BBC News.

The initial architecture of the telescope will incorporate just under 200 parabolic antennas, or "dishes", as well as 131,000 dipole antennas, which look a

little like Christmas trees. The aim is to construct an effective collecting area measuring hundreds of thousands of square metres.

This will give the SKA unparalleled sensitivity and resolution as it probes targets on the sky

The system will operate across a frequency range from roughly 50 megahertz to, ultimately, 25 gigahertz. In wavelength terms, this is in the centimetres to metres range.

This should enable the telescope to detect very faint radio signals coming from cosmic sources billions of light-years from Earth, including those signals emitted in the first few hundred million years after the Big Bang.

One of the SKA's great quests will be to trace the full history of hydrogen, the most abundant element in the Universe.

The telescope should be able to detect hydrogen's presence even before great clouds of it collapsed to form the first stars.

"The SKAis going to contribute to so many areas of astronomy," said Dr Shari Breen, the observatory's head of science operations.

"One would be these 'fast radio bursts' that have been detected. These things output the equivalent of an entire year's worth of energy from our Sun in just a fraction of a second.And we have no idea what they are. How is that possible? Hopefully the SKAwill have an answer."

The telescope is being built in areas already used for radio astronomy on a smaller scale.

parabolic antennas

To expand these sites, however, has required various land agreements, with farmers in the Karoo; and with the Wajarri Yamaji, theAboriginal title holders in the Murchison.

The Wajarri community have organised Monday's celebration to inaugurate the SKA.

Various procurement contracts will be announced around the ceremonies.

These will take the total financial outlay to date to just under €500m (£430m) - out of an expected final construction budget of €2bn.

The first major milestone should come in 2024, when four dishes inAustralia and six antenna stations in SouthAfrica are made to work seamlessly together as a basic telescope. This proof-of-principle moment will then trigger the array's full roll-out.

By 2028, the SKAwill have an effective collecting area of just

under 500,000 square metres. But the set-up is such that it can continue growing, perhaps up to the much desired one million square metres, or one square kilometre.

One way this could happen is if more and more countries join the organisation and provide the necessary funds.

The current members are: South Africa,Australia, the UK, China, Italy, Netherlands, Portugal and Switzerland.These countries have ratified the treaty

France, Spain, and most recently Germany, have got themselves on to the accession path.

Canada, India, Sweden, South Korea and Japan have indicated their intention to join at some point.

"And we're actually in the process of talking to other countries as well, to see what interest they might have in joining the observatory," said Prof Diamond.

Prototype dish: The South African site will see the installation of

The centre of our galaxy imaged by the Meerkat telescope, a South African pathfinder for the SKA

The telescope is being built in areas already used for radio astronomy

Eerste Vir Suid Afrika, Jeaneigh Gaan VSA Toe

Jeaneigh Borghesi van Upington is gekroon as International United Miss SouthAfrica Jnr PreTeen en gaan in Julie 2023 deelneem in Orland, Florida. Sy is die enigste Suid Afrikaner wat al ooit die titel gekry het.

Ons is baie trots op haar

VEELS GELUK JEANEIGH

Klein Jan, created by one of SouthAfrica's few Michelin Star chefs Jan Hendrik van der Westhuizen, has quickly risen to become one of the world's go-to restaurants.This is somewhat ironic, given it's located in the southern reaches of the Northern Cape's Kalahari Desert.

Unsurprisingly, Klein Jan gained almost instant acclaim for its food, which is thoroughly modern but leans heavily on ingredients you'll find on the surroundingTswalu private game reserve and Northern Cape farms.

The decision to use local ingredients, from boiled Kalahari rainwater to Orange River raisins, makes for a good storybut similar to acclaimed South African restaurant Wolfgat, it also adds to the experience. It's also a somewhat practical decision: the closest thing you'll find to Klein Jan that vaguely resembles a town is Kuruman, a 90-minute drive away and a location not exactly renowned for its fresh produce markets. And even the closest farms producing goods worthy of Van der Westhuizen's menu require drives in excess of four hours.

Despite its remote desert location (by car, 8 hours from Johannesburg and 11 hours from CapeTown) it's still solidly booked out for months in advance.

Those who secure a day reservation often skip the drive and fly direct to the localTswalu airstrip. But surrounding lodges slightly cheaper thanTswalu have reportedly also seen an uptick in visitors coming simply to eat at the restaurant.

Although the food has been enough to get the restaurant noticed, the constantly shifting

speakeasy-style theatrical journey through the farmhouse has cemented its reputation.

Here's what to expect from a meal at Klein Jan, located in Tswalu Kalahari.

The Klein Jan journey starts outside a 100-year-old farmhouse surrounded by Kalahari bushveld.

It's the type of farmhouse that may have been ignored - or captured imaginations - as you whipped past it on a road trip through the Karoo or Kalahari. And you soon learn it's probably hiding about as many secrets.

As a day visitor, it's only possible to eat lunch at Klein Jan - and even those spots are hard to come by. Klein Jan reserves the spectacle of dinner for guests staying overnight in Tswalu.

Tswalu keeps all guest activities separate - and a trip to Klein Jan is no different.You'll arrive at the restaurant with your partner or group, driven by your private guide, at a predetermined time.This keeps the experience exclusive.Aside from the shared dining areas, which have well-spaced tables, at no stage will you have to share the experience with other guests.

In summer, dinner guests start arriving shortly before sunset.

The Klein Jan team, one of whom becomes your private guide for much of the experience, welcomes you with a hand-washing ritual using camel thorn leaves as soap and warm water poured from a large pitcher

Staff dress in neutral-toned period outfits.They are the definition of professional, but

they also fit the setting, sometimes feeling like actors in a carefully choreographed play

Guests receive a welcome drink of Orange River sparkling wine or Kalahari whiskey sours on the 1920s farmhouse patio. Staff also pour guests glasses of lavender fever berry water

This is also when the menu arrives, which, if you're coming into the experience blind, is the first hint that you're not likely to spend your entire evening on the stoep, as idyllic as it is.

The first course is served on the stoep alongside the welcome drinks.

On this occasion, the starter was a Boscia root coffee with olives, grains, and almond skins that pay homage to the region's migrating butterflies.

At this stage, much of the experience feels like you're sitting in a period television series about SouthAfrican farm life, and it would be easy to enjoy a full meal from this vantage point.

But before more guests arrive, your guide escorts you from the table into the old farmhouse.

The farmhouse is over 100 years old, and its interior feels part museum, part film set, and has several unique touches, like an old telephone hanging on the wall.

There's also a small kitchen used to prepare some of the food. It would make the perfect setting for a farm-style meal, but you won't linger here long either, and instead head out the back door

Behind the old farmhouse is a washing line with laundry flapping gently in the evening breeze.

At first, the laundry looks like an embarrassing oversight on the restaurant's behalf. But you soon learn there's very little accidental about the Klein Jan experience.

Also around the back is a vintage windmill and a rusted plaasdam, or reservoir, reintroduced during the farm's reconstruction to complete the old farmhouse aesthetic. There's also an outhouse that sits eerily in the dusk.

At this point, you may notice a

door cut into the side of the reservoir - and your guide will open it up and motion for you to enter

Inside the reservoir is where the most remarkable part of the journey begins. It may have been tempting for Van der Westhuizen to place a single table in the middle, but instead, he inserted a floating spiral staircase into the Kalahari Desert floor

The helical staircase is surrounded by a curtain of water infused with petrichor - the smell of cool rain falling on hot earth. It takes you four metres underground to a long, dimly-lit root cellar

The cellar is a 20-metre-long brick-lined arched tunnel with shelves full of fresh produce, raw ingredients, various preserved products in glass jars, and a massive collection of regional and Cape wines.

The root cellar concept dates back to the 18th century Farmers use them to keep food fresh in a stable environment in a region where surface temperatures reach upwards of 40 degrees Celsius.They were vital before the invention of electric fridges.

Although it makes for a remarkable hidden attraction, the cellar still serves a practical purpose at Klein Jan.The restaurant gets most of its ingredients from surrounding businesses, which in the Kalahari can mean a four-hour drive to Prieska for pistachios or Augrabies for table grapes. Chefs then store them in what feels much like a living food museum.

Midway through the long tunnel is another surprise - a hidden table with a special tasting platter that emerges from the wall.

Each month the Root Cellar highlights a different local ingredient. In this case, four different types of local honey washed down with a mead palate cleanser

The journey continues into a cheese, bread, and preserves room that you'll return to later

The room resembles a scene worthy of a baroque still-life food painting.

It also has a collection of Van der Westhuizen's cookbooks and his grandmother's stove as a centrepiece.

The experience then enters its final destination for the evening: a modern dining space called the Infinity Room.

The room has a large opening to the outside world through floorto-ceiling glass windows, not visible from the front of the property At dusk, it allows you to watch the Kalahari sunset.

The Infinity Room plays atmospheric background music throughout the meal.

One end of the room has a large fireplace, the other ceiling-high shelves filled with liquor bottles holding everything from mampoer to top-shelf local whiskey, which are available for drinking.

In the middle of the room is an open kitchen, where chefs silently prepare the remaining courses.

Menu items change regularly with ingredient seasonality, but they always use items sourced from sustainable Northern Cape farmers and growers. Although the food has a distinctly foraged and SouthAfrican feel, it is also ultra-modern.

In November, the menu included a braaibroodjie macaron, gemsbok biltong and wag-’nbietjie lamington, "hydration" salad served with rainwater sauce, venison, salted breadsticks in grass, and xigugu and Orange River brandy raisins paired with motlopi tree root coffee.

Each course is a masterclass in plating and presentation.

And most contain a story - like this candyfloss floating above a plate of "bokdrol" chocolates for desert.

Paired wine accompanies each dish, and guests can choose unusual Northern Cape varietals or more familiar Cape optionswhich are stored in the adjacent Root Cellar

After several courses, it's time to visit to the cheese room you previously walked through. It delivers plenty of Northern Cape cheeses and various types of handmade breads.

By this stage, at least three hours have passed in what feels like something of a time warp.

From arrival at sunset on the stoep of a 1920s farmhouse, you've effectively walked a summarised journey through 100 years of desert living and cuisine, culminating in a meal in a modern dining room with a

high-end open kitchen.You likely aren't ready for the experience to end - and if that's the case, staff will invite you to order a whisky or related nightcap that you can drink by the log fire.

They will then escort you back through the secret passage, up the spiral staircase, into the reservoir, and through the farmhouse backdoor, now all cloaked in darkness and beneath a canopy of stars.After eating for several hours, it seems unlikely you'll need any more food - but chefs in the old farmhouse are still on hand and may present you with one final treat for the road.

Aguide will then drive you back to your lodge room, completing an evening that instantly feels like a living dream, and in no doubt that this is one of the world's top dining experiences. It's also an experience that changes regularly, with food and locations cycling depending on the seasons so as to keep even return trips unique.

Reserving a table at Klein Jan Klein Jan reservations are already hard to come by. Day visitors can book tables for a seven-course tasting menu and wine-pairing lunch on select dates directly on the Klein Jan website.

The meal costs R2,500 per

person, and there is at least a three-month waiting list. Limited spaces become available on the first day of each month and get snapped up as soon as they become available, but it's worth keeping an eye on the booking page and integrated DinePlan plugin.

Dinner at Klein Jan is included with all reservations at lodges withinTswalu.There is no need to book this separately if you're staying over, and the reserve takes care of all arrangements on your behalf.

Tswalu operates at high occupancy and caters to the upper tier of safari lodges in SouthAfrica. ButTswalu reservations are sometimes easier to get than lunch reservations at Klein Jan.

If you're desperate to dine at Klein Jan, incorporating it into a trip toTswalu is, therefore, likely the best way to secure a spot. Tswalu currently has one main lodge for couples and families, and another for exclusive use by bigger groups. Both occasionally offer promotions and deals.Andrew Thompson was a guest of Tswalu. - Photos: Adriaan Louw & Andrew Thompson . This article was updated to correct the reference to Jan Hendrik van der Westhuizen being South Africa's only Michelin Star chef. He is in fact one of four

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