ForeRunner Magazine Issue 3

OPERATIONS AND MAINTENANCE PARTNER OF CHOICE

www.ingwenyamp.co.za

Republic of South Africa, Emalahleni (Witbank)

+27 13 656 2440 / 4758

info@ingwenyamp.co.za

A contractor of choice to the coal mining industry in the cost-effec�ve supply of coal processing plants, and opera�ng and maintaining them to a standard that meets the client’s throughput, quality and safety requirements.

OPERATIONS AND MAINTENANCE CONTRACTING

We operate and maintain DMS Plants with beneficia�on equipment: Drum, Cyclone, 3Product Cyclone and Larcodem.

We produce Powersta�on coal, RB1/RB2/RB3 and metallurgical sized coal.

We design and erect modular plants that are:

• Tailormade to suite client needs

• Cost effec�ve

• Flexible to treat any Seam or discard

• Easy to operate and maintain

Ingwenya Mineral Processing (IMP) Ltd is a South African-owned company with 52% black ownership based in Emalahleni, Mpumalanga Province. Since 2006 IMP has designed, built and commissioned successful coal processing plants. IMP is expanding its footprint beyond South African borders with opera�ons in Botswana.

IMP is equipped with a 4000m2 in-house workshop Bomax to build tailormade, easy-to-operate, modular plants with short lead �mes.

Engineering Design and Fabrica�on

Design and Build of Coal Processing Plants

Feasibility and Due Diligence Studies

Opera�ons of Processing Facili�es

Reliable. Tested. Safe. Radar for exact levels in bulk solids applications

From simple to challenging: With radar technology that is highly robust, flexible and economical all at the same time, VEGA is putting things on track to ensure more reliable and efficient production processes involving bulk solids – of any kind and any grain size.

Decades of experience means that we understand the requirements of the industry quite well. That’s why VEGAPULS level sensors are able to deliver exact measured values even when conditions get extreme because of dust, noise or buildup.

It’s about time. After years of silence and quiet diplomacy behind private doors, the patience of South African business leaders has run out.

Business leaders across different sectors have lately not been mincing their words when criticising the government over lack of leadership and direction, lack of action, slow implementation of programmes, and the absence of necessary reforms. It seems business leaders have concluded that if government does not start doing the right things now, it could soon all be over and South Africa will end up a failed state… and quite a few business figures are saying exactly this. Finally speaking truth to power. Although we regularly feature articles in this regard, we also touch on the subject –somewhat tongue in cheek – in this edition’s Boardroom Buzz.

Nonetheless, business has also been asserting its right to playing a bigger, direct role in saving the country and its economy. They want in as partners, knowing that they have far greater experience and expertise, as well as the resources, to fix and manage things like our crippled energy

sector, the problems in mining, the destruction of our railway network, and more. Soon water and water infrastructure will be our next Eskom with water-shedding the order of the day… unless the private sector is brought in immediately to fix what the politicians have neglected and messed up. There is no more time or water to waste.

The impatience and annoyance of business is not directed solely at the government, but also at the governing ANC’s two alliance partners, the South African Communist Party and the Congress of South African Trade Unions. There are far too many of their apparatchiks and nomenklatura in the current government and the governing party. They, and their outdated ideologies and stale intransigence bear much responsibility for the government’s inability to respond to the demands of a dynamic, modern economy, and for failing to bring about the social compact that President Cyril Ramaphosa has been promising us for a number of years. Without such a compact there won’t be any real reforms. Combine that with ugly internal divisions, large-scale corruption, and incompetence, and you have a recipe for disaster. It’s time to change that, and business can help – we hope government is listening.

We still have a vibrant, dynamic business sector brimming with talent, ideas and vision; in the larger political arena there’s also plenty of talent, vision and excellent leadership qualities to be found; so too in academia and other sectors. It’s high time the governing party and its president realise this, and open the door to all of this energy, expertise, talent and resources to help the struggling ANC get our country out of this mess. This country seriously needs a new deal.

Stef Terblanche Editor

Business gets tough with government – a new deal needed

BOARDROOM BUZZ

CEOs GO FROM GATKRUIPING TO GATVOL

If you want your pound’s worth, you have to be willing to roll up your sleeves and get your hands dirty. No more looking the other way or sitting on a comfortable fence. Perhaps the Democratic Alliance’s Education Minister in the Western Cape, David Maynier, summed it up nicely if not exactly politely: “So after years of gatkruiping, big business finally finds its voice in SA,” he tweeted in response to a recent Sunday Times news article. The newspaper reported that “CEOs of South Africa’s biggest companies are fed up and no longer pulling their

punches when it comes to the crisis the nation is in...”. About time. Maybe they could have saved themselves a lot of money if they spoke up sooner. But as the saying goes, better late than never. Luckily the rand has not yet rocketed through a Zimbabwe ceiling but it’s going there.

THE RUMBLE IN THE BANKING JUNGLE

South Africa’s Big Four (the bank variety, not the animals) are particularly concerned. Absa Group, Standard Bank, FirstRand and Nedbank Group have all raised the alarm on power

cuts – deviously misnamed “load shedding” by the powers that be – that have added to unbearable financial pressures. Absa said the combined impact of the worst power cuts in living memory (that means forever) and soaring interest rates, has left small and medium firms and consumers at risk of default. If that happens, the banks will be in trouble, and if they go, we all go - Absa didn’t say that last bit; we did. And we also know that already many small businesses are going under; others are hanging on by the skin of their teeth…in complete darkness, that is.

GET READY FOR MARS…

And then there’s MTN Group CEO Ralph Mupita, who added his voice of discontent just the other day, saying South Africa risks becoming a “failed nation state” unless the government resolved challenges including the energy crisis, corruption and extreme unemployment. Mr Mupita related how loadshedding shaved R695-million off cellphone giant MTM’s earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation last year. That’s probably enough money to buy his entire board seats on the next Spacex flight to Mars, where many of us will be going if things don’t change fast.

But just to be fair, Mr Mupita, SibanyeStillwater CEO Neal Froneman said it first. Already in March last year he said South Africa was practically a failed state with no leadership. He also slammed the incompetence in the department of one of the current three Eskom ministers, the verbose Gwede Mantashe who always has a lot to say but nothing to show apart from his expanding belly and greying bokbaardjie. Now there’s a CEO who doesn’t gatkruip or mince his words!

AND PRESIDENT RAMAPHOSA’S RESPONSE?

So, what has President Ramaphosa done about this sorry state of affairs? He started the year making more nice speeches – he’s good at that. You know, the kind of speeches in which the words have wings, and the promises are all empty. And

then he rearranged the deck chairs in his cabinet, you know, the one where “people must be allowed to eat a bit for the greater good”, as Andre de Ruyter was told. Problem is, Ramaphosa now has no less than three Eskom ministers in a bloated cabinet, hardly any functional Eskom, no Eskom CEO, an Eskom board whose members hardly know why they are there, still close to no Eskom electricity, no proper Eskom rescue plan, and no urgent Eskom action to save us from disaster. No wonder the CEOs and the banks are angry and booking their tickets to Mars.

DON’T BELIEVE THE CEOs, JUST LOOK AT THE FLOW

City Press has reported that over R100billion in South African shares and bonds have been sold by international investors since the start of 2023. They and their money are flooding out of South Africa at a pace that will

leave Noah and his Ark stranded on dry Karoo land. Like everybody else, these investors are simply gatvol of the spectre of a penniless, waterless, powerless, railwayless, roadless South Africa. DFM Global CEO JC Louw, reportedly blamed this negative investor sentiment on the electricity blackouts, the lack of reforms, and the infrastructure problems. Thanks for confirming, but we already knew that, didn’t we? As for foreign investors taking their money and allocating assets in other, more stable markets with a chance of better returns, it’s a case of bye-bye South Africa, it was nice while it lasted.

FIRE IN THE ESKOM HOLE MAKES MAKWANA HOPPING MAD

“Fire in the hole!” That means an explosion is about to happen in a mine. But in this case, it’s in the boardroom. The Eskom one. And it already happened. Yes, a right royal

boardroom upheaval and a bunch of hurt feelings is what the now departed Eskom CEO Andre de Ruyter seems to have caused with his eNCA interview in which he revealed the perverse criminality afflicting Eskom and the lack of political will or decency to deal with it in what he says is a corrupt, thieving government. This is why we continue to have devastating rolling power blackouts.

In the Eskom boardroom chairman Mpho Makwana is so hopping mad that his new nickname is ‘Jumping Jack’ Makwana. And he’s calling De Ruyter’s behaviour “reprehensible” – isn’t that what we should be calling Eskom’s devastating electricity blackouts dear Mr Makwana?

A NATION OF DIGGERS WE HAVE BECOME

It seems like everybody has been doing a lot of digging after De Ruyter spilled the rotten beans and are coming up with some astonishing finds. First the Daily Maverick uncovered no less than four sophisticated criminal cartels with, allegedly, high political involvement/ membership that are sucking Eskom and the country dry, stripping Eskom to the bone, and leaving us all without electricity. And then there was the Democratic Alliance’s John Steenhuisen who named recently departed Deputy President David Mabuza as the top dog sitting on this stinking pile. With his Russian connections and all there always were a lot of unsavoury whispers about this Mpumalanga boss man. And yet, when opposition parties wanted

an ad hoc committee to investigate all of this, the ANC blocked them, still choosing to sweep it all under their expensive (stolen?) carpet.

NAMING A POTHOLED ROAD AFTER ‘FOKOL’ MBALULA

Also, never one to miss a good party, ANC secretary-general Fikile Mbalula served court papers on De Ruyter, giving him seven days to respond. Really? Mbalula should rather go and reflect on the absolute mess he left behind in his now vacated ministerial transport portfolio which is in as bad a state as Eskom instead of wasting everybody’s time. Maybe the worst potholed road in South Africa should be renamed ‘Fokol Mbalula Boulevard’ in honour of this ignoramus. Or the trains that no longer run can be renamed the ‘Mbalula Express’. Thank goodness he’s out of the cabinet; now he can continue his incompetent destruction in his new job in the ANC.

“YOU MUST CELEBRATE STAGES 2 AND 3 LOAD SHEDDING” SAYS MAKWANA

Over at Megawatt Park, ‘Jumping Jack’ Makwana came up with a flabbergasting pearl of wisdom. He told South Africans to be happy and “celebrate” the few hours since November last year when the country only had Stage 2 or 3 load shedding, instead of complaining about Stages 7 and 8. Wow. Just how many hours of Stage 2 did we have in the last 5 months? And, we haven’t even had

Stages 7 and 8 yet unless you have been lying to us or you can’t count. It seems Mr Makwana has forgotten who the victims are, the ones with nothing to celebrate. Then he calls Andre de Ruyter’s behaviour “reprehensible”? For someone who sits at the head of the Eskom board table claiming to be trying to fix this mess, it seems he sure talks a lot of reprehensible mampara nonsense. Now, dear reader, can you see why Eskom will never get fixed? Go ahead, book your seats to Mars.

HOW NOT TO PEE OFF YOUR CUSTOMERS & LOSE BILLIONS

Pharmaceutical retail group Dis-Chem’s decision last year to ban employing and promoting white people – retracted under huge public pressure - was a gigantic mistake which ultimately cost the retailer millions in sales, billions in shareholder value, and the loss of a previously loyal client base.

Dis-Chem CEO Ivan Saltzman recently told investors that regular dispensary customers withdrew their scripts, while the new black chronic medication customers gained did not make up the loss. As a result, the group’s share price fell by around 25%, shaving off R6.9-billion in shareholder value. Okay, even if he was just trying to cash in on South Africa’s racial BEE laws and please the masters in the Union Buildings, why is Saltzman still in his job? Shouldn’t he have been the first white casualty of Dis-Chem’s racial policy? As the old saying goes, behind every unsuccessful Saltzman there’s black man waiting in the wings.

SEBONGI CONSTRUCTION

An Infrastructure Development Company In The Property, Roads, Mining & Energy Generation Sectors Of The Construction Industry, Specialising In Building & Civil Works.

It wasn’t until after 7 years of experience as a Quantity Surveyor that the idea to start my own company came about. I registered my company, Sebongi Construction and resigned from my place of employment.

Having worked in the mining sector, I already had knowledge on contractor compliance in this sector. I had registered the company myself with the help of Google the previous year, and with very limited funds, I knew would not afford to outsource any services need to get my compliance up to date.

My work experience, inquisitiveness, and computer skills proved an advantage over some start-ups like me. I started researching basic and elementary things such as how to get a BEE certificate, how to register as an employer with the Department of Labour, how to get a COIDA certificate, how to get a tax clearance, etc. I taught myself how to design logos, business cards, company profile, and everything necessary to make the company bigger than it was. Since the company was relatively knew and had no work experience, I used my credentials and work experience as the main content of the company profile, highlighting my qualifications and work experience. I enrolled for

many business development programmes in the area while also tendering.

In five years of existence, we have successfully completed various projects in Mining, General Building, Solar Energy & Roads sectors. The Solar Energy project is the biggest project to date with a manpower compliment of over 200 employees at peak. It involved the construction of a 211m high concrete tower. We are proud to have been part of this project mostly because we completed this high-risk project safely without any serious injuries or fatalities.

Contact Details: Tel: 053 714 9126, Cell: 072 860 6377, Address: Unit 05, Sediba Office Park 1, Kameeldoring Business District, Kathu, 8446. Website: www.sebongi.co.za

The New Scramble for Africa WHY IS SOUTH AFRICA HOLDING THE RUSSIAN BEAR’S PAW?

with some mumblings about possible consequences for South Africa.

Russia, India and China in the BRICS alliance.

• China, Russia and the United States are competing in a new “scramble for Africa”.

• South Africa seems to be siding with Russia’s Vladimir Putin in his war against Ukraine.

• With Moscow and South Africa’s governing ANC having historical relations going far back, how important is Russia to South Africa?

• What ramifications do these developments hold for South Africa in business, trade, investment, and development aid?

In January this year, news footage of a beaming South African international relations minister Naledi Pandor shaking hands with her happy-looking Russian counterpart, Sergei Lavrov, plus the announcement of joint naval drills between South Africa, Russia and China on the eve of the one-year anniversary of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, set some worried tongues wagging in Western capitals. This was a coup for the Russians to show the world that the Kremlin still had friends and global political reach.

Visits by US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz last year, and US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen this year, did not meet with a similar highly publicised warm reception. South Africa appeared to be Moscow’s useful idiots. What’s going on, was the question being asked from Washington to London and beyond, along

To find the answer, one must go back more than a century and consider the uneasy historical relationship between Europe and Africa. In effect, we are currently seeing the third major scramble for Africa. The first occurred between 1884 and 1885 when leaders of seven powerful European nations met in Berlin and divided Africa up amongst themselves, and colonised it. The second scramble for Africa occurred by the mid-twentieth century after most of these African countries had regained their independence. By now the Cold War between the Soviet Union (Russia) and the communist East Bloc on one side, and the United States and other Western countries on the other side, was in full swing, with Africa serving as their chess board where their proxy wars were being fought, until the Iron Curtain fell.

By the second decade of the current century, the third scramble for Africa began as three competing global powers – the US, Russia and China – turned their attention once more to Africa. All three countries were increasingly vying for the favour of African countries and dominance in the continent with trade, investment, development aid, treaties, and military ties.

It is against this background that South Africa underwent a marked shift in its international relations outlook after its democratic elections in 1994, moving increasingly away from its traditional Western allies and partners and into the embrace of Russia and China, as well as others like India, Brazil and Malaysia. South Africa joined Brazil,

By 2022 South Africa surprised many when it refused to condemn Russia’s devastating invasion of and war in neighbouring Ukraine, professing a neutrality that nobody in the West bought. Pretoria’s defiant pro-Russian stance was further cemented in 2023 when, on the eve of the one-year anniversary of the Ukrainian war, South Africa warmly welcomed foreign minister Lavrov despite Moscow’s pariah status in much of the world, topping it off with the joint naval exercises with Russia and China. The West didn’t take too kindly to this.

Let the numbers speak

What do the trade and investment numbers tell us about these relationships? Firstly, it should be noted that the hype is good for Russia with its current pariah status. A friend like South Africa allows it to show the West that it still has global reach and friends in all the corners of the world despite the West’s best efforts to isolate it. South Africa also provides a stepping stone into the southern continent – a prime area of Moscow’s focus - and a gateway to the rest of Africa. And being Africa’s most advanced economy with huge mineral resources on top of it, makes South Africa a friend with benefits.

But it’s the numbers that tell the real story and seem to contradict any rationale as to why South Africa is so enamoured with Russia.

United States

The United States, European Union (plus the UK) and China still remain by far South Africa’s biggest and most important trade and investment partners, with Russia coming in only in a very distant fourth place. South Africa is the United States’ largest trade partner in Africa, with $23bn worth of goods traded both ways. In 2012 the two countries signed a Trade and Investment Framework Agreement (TIFA) while South Africa also benefits from the US’ Africa Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) which gives it duty-free access to the US market for over 1,800 products, in addition to the more than 5,000 products that are eligible for dutyfree access under the Generalized System of Preferences programme. The United States is also the largest source of foreign direct investment in South Africa, valued at over$7.5bn in 2021, with approximately 600 or more American businesses operating in South Africa.

European Union

South Africa and the EU are preferential trading partners with the 2016 SADCEU Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) being the foundation of this relationship. The EU is South Africa’s most important development partner, and its €281 million bilateral cooperation programme is further complimented by grants for specific focal areas, while the European Investment Bank has made available €462 million in long-term loans. South Africa is the EU’s largest trading partner in Africa while Africa is also the EU’s fourth

largest trading partner. EU imports from South Africa stood at $24.59bn in 2021.

China

Over the last two decades or more, China, seeking to expand its economy and establish a bigger global role for itself, quickly became the dominant player in the African Continent. By 2014, the China-Africa trade volume had reached $75bn from a mere $10bn in 2000, and today it is much more. South Africa also accommodates China in numerous other ways, including its treatment of countries, entities or people disapproved of by China. In 2020, South Africa and China established the joint bilateral Comprehensive Strategic Partnership among various other agreements and accords. South Africa is China’s largest trading partner in Africa, with total trade valued at $54bn. South Africa has received a $5bn power and transportation sector loan from China. There is also a significant Chinese presence in South Africa’s digital sector that has raised some concerns around monitoring and surveillance.

Russia

This brings us to Russia, a country with a GDP smaller than Italy’s and only about 10% of that of the entire EU and shrinking because of the Ukraine war and sanctions. Its military sector is a major one, although the export of gas and oil previously stood out but has now been curtailed by sanctions and shifting geopolitical interests. Russia has tried to establish itself as a global

player in the tech and energy sectors, with diverse interests in mining to feed its domestic needs. It’s clear that any economic alliance with such a small –and currently beleaguered - economy would hardly be an attractive alternative to alliances with much stronger blocs like North America or the EU. Yet, that is exactly where South Africa is moving to. To facilitate this, South African International Relations Minister Naledi Pandor a year ago unveiled a new foreign policy framework making ‘national interest” its cornerstone, as opposed to its previous emphasis on human rights and international law. But is any significant national interest being served by this increasingly cosy relationship with Russia?

The two-way business conducted between South Africa and Russia is miniscule, hardly measuring up to anything the US, the EU or China are doing in Africa or South Africa. South Africa’s two-way trade with Russia amounted to a measly $1.46bn in 2021 and hasn’t moved since then, a fraction of the $54bn South Africa has with China, or the $23bn with the US, or the EU’s imports from South Africa of $24.59bn in 2021.

Investment in South Africa by Russian entities is also miniscule, and mostly in mining (vital raw materials extraction) and energy-related projects. There are far more South African companies invested in Russia than the other way around. In line with seeking a global role in the energy field, Russia pressured the Jacob Zuma administration to implement a R1-trillion-plus nuclear build deal. A tentative deal eventually fell afoul of a South African court judgement and remains in limbo.

But recently there has again been talk of the deal being revived, despite many rumours and possible signs of corruption being involved.

Russia is also seeking new markets for its oil and gas following EU, UK and US sanctions against it because of the war in Ukraine. In this regard it has recently been named as being behind the conversion of South African coal-fired power stations to gas-powered ones, again surrounded by rumours of corruption (see former Eskom CEO Andre de Ruyter’s recent shocking interview with eNCA).

What’s behind this?

So, just what is behind Pretoria’s showing its middle finger to the West upon which it is still largely dependent for trade and investment?

To some extent Russia’s President Putin and South Africa’s governing ANC both hark back to an era when communism topped their respective political agendas. Their historical relationship goes back many decades, forged under the umbrella of the anti-apartheid struggle. Ideologically they remain on the same page, even if both realise the world has changed irrevocably and adaptations needed to be made.

But the ANC also – like most of Africa – sees Russia as a country that was willing to assist the various African liberation movements, including the ANC, in their struggles for freedom and independence, while the West was viewed as being aloof, or hostile even. ANC cadres went to the Soviet Union

for military training and university educations. But perhaps this is just a smokescreen to justify their dislike of America and their former European colonisers because in reality Soviet Russia was hardly Africa’s benevolent benefactor. The Soviet Union viewed Africa as little more than a pawn and a source of vital mineral and other resources. In contrast the West poured significant development aid and investment into the continent as colonialism ended. The West also played a leading role with sanctions to end apartheid in South Africa.

In terms of the current relationship with Africa, it is often viewed as the price the West is paying for the colonisation of Africa by Western Europe over a century ago while America stood by and did nothing. There are of course other factors, deeper undercurrents and finer nuances involved. But generally speaking, this is the dynamic that will to a large degree continue to shape international relations between the continent and Russia, as well as with China and other non-Western countries, for the foreseeable future.

And Russia and China will continue exploiting this opportunity to the West’s detriment. Old animosities like old habits die hard. And this is also true of ANC-governed South Africa.

What does the future hold

South Africa finds itself somewhat between a rock and a hard place in the context of this geopolitical and economic competition. It does have a growing relationship with China

and Russia, also in the context of its membership of BRICS. But while the Chinese relationship may be beneficial to a degree, the Russian one is far less so, at least not in terms of economic traffic coming into South Africa. Pretoria also risks bedevilling its relationships with the EU, Britain and the US as a result of its increasingly hostile posture towards the West – still by far its biggest trade and investment partners. Already there are indications in Washington that the US Congress and the Biden administration may be reviewing its beneficial trade relations with Pretoria. In a worst-case scenario, Washington may even decide at some point to impose Russia/Ukraine-linked sanctions on South Africa.

On the other hand, Pretoria’s growing gravitation towards Russia and China within the context of current global geopolitical tensions, could in a more stable future situation result in greater benefits from China, particularly in respect of the latter’s Belt and Road Initiative. And the war in Ukraine must end sooner or later, and the Russian economy will have to be rebuilt. With South African interests already invested in Russia, and with Pretoria’s support for Putin and Russia, South Africa may be well positioned in the future to benefit from such a reconstruction.

But that’s pure speculation, and for now Pretoria’s growing hostility towards the West in favour of embracing Russia, continues to be a dangerous game.

By Stef Terblanche

HELPING PROTECT YOU AT WORK TO ENJOY

QUALITY

OF LIFE AT HOME

For unique workplace health solutions contact Sedulitas

S E D U L I T A S W e o f f e r t a i l o r m a d e s o l u t i o n s t o h e l p c l i e n t s i n a n y i n d u s t r y u n d e r s t a n d t h e w o r k p l a c e r i s k s t h e y f a c e .

W e t h e n p a r t n e r w i t h t h e m t o e n s u r e t h a t r i s k e x p o s u r e i s m i n i m i s e d a n d e m p l o y e e s r e m a i n h e a l t h y i n w h a t e v e r e n v i r o n m e n t t h e y a r e w o r k i n g i n .

HIGHLIGHTS FROM THE MINING AND ENERGY INDABAS

Two major conferences recently took place in Cape Town, South Africa. One was the Investing in African Mining Indaba held between 6 and 9 February at the Cape Town International Conference Centre, and the other was the 15th Africa Energy Indaba held from 7 to 9 March at the same venue.

RECORD-BREAKING MINING INDABA GRAPPLES WITH KEY ISSUES FOR THE FUTURE

In a final break with our recent Covid-19 past, this year’s Investing in African Mining Indaba was a record-breaking gathering in every respect. More than 8,100 delegates from more than 100 countries attended. Among them were more than 900 investors and dealmakers, more than 700 mining company executives, more than 470 executives from junior mining companies, more than 60 heads of state and ministers, over 25 ambassadors and more than 25 explorers. If you have even the remotest interest in mining, this was an event not to be missed. But if you did, the next one takes place between 5 and 8 February 2024 in Cape Town.

Nonetheless, this year some thoughtprovoking presentations and papers were delivered by eminent experts and leaders across a wide range of topics but all with a focus on the immediate challenges facing the broader mining community in the years ahead. Vigorous debate, probing questions and innovative proposals were the order of the day.

development of the industry’s current hottest minerals – Africa-based battery metals assets.

This is in stark contrast to the last super cycle where bulk funding for new projects was sourced from the highly liquid equity LSE/AIM, ASX and TSX capital markets, together with the vibrant banking institution-led project finance markets. Uit emerged that for now, much of the capital raised is being generated from strategic equity through off-takers, stream finance, loan finance connected to large trader offtakes, and selective project finance from banks.

Forerunner was proud to be a media partner to both events. Here are some highlights from both these important indabas.

The lively discussions on project finance – always a dominant discussion topic at all Indabas to date - and the changes it is undergoing, were a case in point. The nature of discussions reflected a definite swing in focus around this topic. The Capital Markets session in particular demonstrated that traditional capital markets (stock exchanges predominantly) have become ‘somewhat side-lined’ when raising cash for the

Coming at vital point in time for the global energy sector in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, and of particular importance also for host South Africa, which is experiencing its own energy crisis, it was no surprise that energy discussions took centre stage. And the ‘star attraction’ was none other than Andre de Ruyter, then still CEO of South Africa’s electricity utility, Eskom, and a man who has recently been a constant in the news headlines. It was clear from the different discussions and presentations that the energy crisis is very much top of mind for the mining industry.

The topic of energy at this year’s Mining Indaba took many forms – and was linked closely to the overarching theme of “Unlocking African Mining Investment: Stability, Security, and Supply”. In

Mining Indaba

addition to the loadshedding crisis currently plaguing the South African economy, which is impacting the mining sector – dialogue centred around the security of critical minerals needed to fuel the plant’s green transition.

Nickel, cobalt and copper were positioned as those most in dire need of supply. The consequent role Africa could play in helping meet demand became a natural talking point. The theme of clean energy extended into larger decarbonisation strategy outlines and in particular how hydrogen could be utilised effectively within this field. That said, coal was not completely off-topic.

The fossil fuel sat under the spotlight because energy supply constraints, fuelled by the Russian/Ukraine war, have seen demand escalate. And dominant market players in Africa have been quick to respond and positioned their statuses and strategies at the event –with regards not only to demand but how they too can play their part in a greener future.

Eminent speakers from the South African government included President Cyril Ramaphosa and Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources, Gwede Mantashe. President Ramaposa’s speech was well received as he emphasised and outlined ways in which the government and South Africa’s mining community can better work together to overcome current hurdles. The venue where Ramaphosa gave his speech was packed to the hilt with delegates.

President Ramaphosa dwelled on and gave recognition to the role the private sector can and is playing in

key areas where the government has been struggling to perform, admitting that in the past South Africa failed to reach its full mining potential as a result. He also expressed his concern about the current decline in South Africa’s mining production, with production for 2023 forecast to contract by 9% compared to the record previous financial year. President Ramaphosa identified four areas of particular concern that are impacting mining and the larger manufacturing economy dependent on it.

Minister Mantashe in turn used the occasion to give assurances that his department is finally ready to introduce an off-the-shelf cadastral system that is expected to be unveiled by the end of this year. Scepticism among the assorted media and mining representatives in the room was high. But if this goes ahead, it will finally enable mining exploration and will reduce the department’s backlog in processing mining and exploration licences by half, the lack of which at present is costing South Africa billions of rands. If introduced, this new system will also increase the prospect of South Africa attracting more investment in new mining projects.

“South Africa experienced more power supply disruptions in 2022. This led to a decline in mineral production across all commodities. It is estimated that loadshedding costed the economy about R1 billion a day. In November 2022, mining production contracted by 09% marking a 10th consecutive month of contraction in volumes produced,” Mantashe told the Indaba in his keynote address.

Meanwhile, the pre-Mining Indaba Ministerial Symposium also drew together a large contingency of mining ministers and deputy mining ministers from across the continent. They were joined by high level strategic private sector stakeholders and influencers. The platform offered the opportunity for ministers from the same regions to network and discuss issues of importance that encourage collaboration and alignment between countries.

They were also able to connect with mining companies operating in their regions to unpack relevant topics of importance. Thanks to the environment provided, conversations were positioned to place policy and regulations at the forefront – meaning future narratives for the mining sector will in part be shaped following this interactive day. One of the prevalent messages emphasised was the importance of creating additional mineral value in-country through downstream beneficiation and the manufacture of end-products.

While the private sector supports ministries’ ambitions in this regard, it was determined they still have a role to play in assisting to achieve this objective – particularly by strengthening capacity within the ministries – and assisting with the implementation of digital infrastructure and transparent and fast reporting.

The Mining Indaba also said farewell to one of South Africa’s, and Africa’s, renowned mining leaders - Roger Baxter, the outgoing CEO of the Minerals Council South Africa. Having championed positive change for the mining industry over the last few decades, tribute was made to Roger in a one-on-one

conversation with Mzila Mthenjane, Executive Head: Stakeholder Affairs at Exxaro Resources. Roger spoke about his views on the industry and the strategic role he has played in shaping the South African mining landscape – in some cases successful and others less so. (We featured an interview with Roger in our previous issue of Forerunner.)

His final stint on the Indaba’s Main Stage was for a fireside chat with former CEO of Eskom Andre de Ruyter where the two heads had the opportunity to ‘be frank’ about ‘all things energy related’

– the good, the bad and a bit of the ugly too, something Roger has been passionately vocal about for decades. Roger will be much missed by the industry but his parting words, “I’ll be back”, is clear indication we won’t have to wait too long to see Roger making waves in the industry, and at Mining Indaba, again.

And finally, there was the two-and-ahalf day InfraTech programme that delivered an array of technology focused sessions that not only showcased the mining industry’s willingness to adopt new technologies, but its

DRIVING INNOVATION AND GROWTH ACROSS THE CONTINENT’S ENERGY SECTOR

Like the Mining Indaba before it, the Energy Indaba 2023 was a well-attended successful event. The Indaba hosted synergistic discussions that unleashed insights and catalysed business opportunities

that will pave the way for a more secure energy landscape across Africa.

This year’s theme, ‘African Energy transitioning to a sustainable and

ongoing commitment post-Covid-19 to continue with the process catalysed by the pandemic. While the industry still calls for technology disruption to achieve true operation-enhancing effects, this can already be seen within the supply chain and emerged as discussion points with regards to space and deep-sea mining technology. And while technology is largely considered to be international experts’ domain, the programme emphasised the importance of technology adoption and partnerships amongst local African manufacturers.

prosperous future’, focused on how the energy industry plays a pivotal and transformative role in driving economic growth across the continent. The event, which ranks among the most significant energy conferences in Africa, attracted a broad spectrum of attendees, including government officials, private sector representatives, investors, and academia. The Africa Energy Indaba conference officially sold out before the event started.

Energy Indaba

A large number of important topics with particular reference to Africa’s energy sphere, formed the core of discussions at the Africa Energy Indaba. Interactive dialogues and key outcomes that emanated from these themes are set to provide business growth opportunities for Africa’s energy sector and inspire the necessary transformation within this realm.

It became clear that African energy ministers and leaders are proactively striving to improve aspects relating to three core dimensions: energy security, energy equity (accessibility and affordability), and environmental sustainability of energy systems, all of which require funding. Among the various thought-provoking themes discussed, were African Energy –Policies for Growth; Continental Power Systems Masterplan; a foundation for Africa’s Single Electricity Market; The Energy Transition in the Context of Africa; Is Climate Focused Funding Appropriate for Africa?; Getting the Most Value out of Africa’s Resources; and COP 27: The Africa COP – Outcomes and Implications; among others.

During this time of critical energy transition, the aim of the Africa Energy Indaba 2023 was to support African and international energy leaders to translate global objectives into regional and national business solutions in order to secure a more accessible, affordable and sustainable energy future for the African continent.

“Doing business is key to the discussions at the Africa Energy Indaba. Our focus is on exploring how, using the various discussions, business can access opportunities in the African energy sector, learn how to do transactions and unlock bottlenecks with energy project developments,” says Liz Hart, Managing Director of the Africa Energy Indaba.

“The event brought together some of the brightest minds from across the energy realm, and we are confident that the discussions and collaborations that took place will help to drive innovation and growth across the continent.”

With a significant number of decisionmakers in attendance, the conference

offered unparalleled influence and exposure. This year’s conference provided tailored opportunities and experiences to keep participants ahead of the industry’s curve and realise their business goals. The exhibition hall was a hub of activity throughout the event, with leading companies from the energy landscape showcasing their latest products and services.

Attendees had the opportunity to engage with industry experts, explore new technologies, and learn about prevalent energy trends and advancements. Once again, the B2B Connect Programme offered attendees the chance to tap into an exclusive network of dealmakers to secure funding or identify suitable partners for the progression of their ventures.

The success of the AE 2023 has paved the way for the 2024 event, which promises to be even more exciting and informative. “We look forward to building on that momentum as we await next year’s event which is scheduled to take place from 5 to 7 March 2024 at the CTICC in Cape Town,” said Ms Hart.

Jeehu (Pty) Ltd is a black women-owned multidisciplinary engineering company specialising in engineering and mining services. It provides quality upskilling short learning programmes in the fields of engineering, business management and life skills. These services are offered to industries, mining houses and government departments around South Africa and beyond—and particularly to youths, underdeveloped and developing communities.

OVERVIEW OF SERVICES

JEEHU ENGINEERING

Design

Design, refurbishing and supply of mechanical structures; Civil construction, concrete work and building work; Steel structural work; Pipe routing design and installation;

Electrical work—installation of HV, MV and LV and maintenance; General engineering and plant maintenance (manufacture and replacement of chutes, liners, belt splicing etc.);

General construction

Mining

Mine rehabilitation; Fluid management—slurry and dewatering;

Deep-well borehole equipping; Drilling;

Rendering of other mining services

JEEHU SUPPLIES

Oils and all lubricants; HDPE pipes and all dewatering accessories; Pumps, flow meters and valves

JEEHU MAINTENANCE SERVICES

Jeehu employs a team of dedicated researchers who take great care to search, document and implement the world best practice in the field of plant maintenance. Due to the calibre of staff, the identification of client problems, corrective action and execution of the required task according to international norms and standard is easily obtainable. The design team is well trained for any modification of plants, fabrication and installation of new designs.

JEEHU TRAINING CENTRE

Jeehu is dedicated to upskilling engineers, technologists, technicians, project managers and business managers. The Training Centre offers a range of well-researched and thought-out short courses that will contribute immensely to the professional development of thousands of individuals who will apply the expertise gained from these courses to their own systems and facilities.

Jeehu provides dedicated, effective and efficient engineering and mining services

THE INTERVIEW

A NEW PARTY, NEW POLITICAL CHALLENGES

BOSA LEADER MMUSI MAIMANE TAKES STOCK

He’s a politician, businessman, and leader of a new political party that hopes to make a major impact. He’s also a happily married family man. He previously served as leader of South Africa’s second biggest political party, the opposition Democratic Alliance (DA), and as Leader of the Opposition in the National Assembly, among other roles. On 24 October 2019, in a blaze of controversy and after months of speculation over his future, Mmusi Maimane resigned as leader of the DA and shortly afterwards launched the One South Africa Movement (OSAM), a civic organisation.

In September 2022 he founded the political party Build One South Africa (BOSA) and currently serves as the party’s leader. Editor Stef Terblanche posed some questions to Maimane about his new party, his political vision, his views on some of our major challenges, as well as his vision for the future of South Africa.

ST : Congratulations on your new political party, Build One South Africa (BOSA). How are you and the party doing right now?

MM : Thank you. We are doing well and we are excited about the future. Our membership is growing and our builders have hit the ground running engaging communities and highlighting issues that we are addressing whilst we continue to grow the movement. We are now established in all 9 provinces and have been receiving a lot of positive feedback and support.

ST : In your view, why should voters vote for your party, BOSA, in the elections next year?

MM : BOSA is dedicated to building a united,

prosperous, and non-racial South Africa rooted in the African values of Ubuntu. We believe that existing political parties in the country have failed to address the needs of the people, and a new approach is required to bring about real change and hope for the nation. Our vision is to create a society where every citizen has access to quality education, healthcare, basic services, and employment opportunities, with an emphasis on public-private partnerships. We recognise that local communities are essential to this vision, and our radical-centric approach is to empower communities to directly elect candidates who will represent them and give communities a critical role in the democratic process, ensuring that their voices are heard.

ST : Can you briefly describe the focus, aims and goals of your party?

MM : Our goal is to create an inclusive and prosperous South African society that provides quality education, healthcare, and economic opportunities to all citizens, including the marginalised and disadvantaged. We believe in a pragmatic approach that blends market-focused solutions with state-sponsored initiatives, which we refer to as “radical centralism.” Our leadership style is citizen-centred, focusing on our 10 Big Ideas that address immediate issues affecting people’s lives and can be easily adapted as circumstances change.

ST: How does this vision differ – in broad terms –from the raison d’être of any number of other small opposition parties? Over the last three decades we have had a succession of such parties – UDM, COPE, FF+, ACDP, ATM, GOOD, NFP, AIC, and about 30 more, none of which have made much of an impact.

MM : The difference between BOSA and other small opposition parties is our radical-centric approach. We are not simply another opposition party that is looking to play the same game that has been played for the past 27 years. We believe that the current political system in the country is broken and that there is a need for a new approach and new ideas that will bring meaningful political change to the country.

ST: What are the chances of pulling some of these parties – those broadly sharing the same vision - together with BOSA into a stronger, bigger entity that might make a bigger impact in Parliament, provincial legislatures and/ or municipal councils?

MM : Coalitions have become a new reality in South African politics, and we continue to learn from local government formations of their impact, importantly on service delivery. For BOSA, coalitions need to be structured to prioritise and serve the people. This means building a credible plan with citizens at the centre. We believe that BOSA is uniquely positioned to take the lead in creating functional and cooperative coalitions focused on citizen delivery.

ST: Similarly, when you and Mr. Herman Mashaba left the DA, the two of you seemed to be pretty close and like-minded on a number of issues – why then the need for two new opposition parties in what is already a crowded opposition arena?

MM: BOSA advocates for a distinct political approach that sets it apart from other parties in South Africa. The values on which we are founded distinguish us from other parties and guide BOSA’s political direction.

ST: Given this de facto status, is what South Africa then needs at this junction, not perhaps a movement similar to the erstwhile UDF of the 1980s/90s that groups together the many small opposition parties into a more formidable force that can actually take on the ANC, DA and EFF on more equal terms, even becoming the next government?

MM : We believe that what South Africa needs right now is a new political force that can bring about real change in the country and remove the current government from office. BOSA is not just another opposition party, we are a new political force that is committed to building a united, prosperous and non-racial South Africa. It is important to note that the challenges facing South Africa are complex and multifaceted and there may be multiple strategies and approaches needed. But it is possible that a movement similar to the UDF of the 1980s/90s

could be a more formidable force to take on the ruling ANC, DA and EFF. However, such a movement would require a clear and compelling vision for the future of South Africa, as well as strong leadership and effective organization.

ST : If election / representative thresholds were to be introduced in parliament and /or other legislatures and councils as quite a number of people are now agitating for following recent coalition fiascos, where would it leave these small parties, and possibly BOSA too?

MM : As a political party in South Africa, BOSA recognizes that the introduction of election/representative thresholds could have implications for small parties like ours, as well as others in the political landscape. However, BOSA’s radical centrist approach is based on a commitment to finding common ground and building bridges across different political divides. We believe that it is possible to work collaboratively with other parties to achieve our shared goals, even in a context where representative thresholds may be in place.

ST: Looking at your 10 Big Ideas, I was struck by 2 seemingly glaring omissions: an economic policy to underpin your ten big ideas and dealing with Eskom and SA’s energy crisis beyond your commitment to build five 4000 MW to 5000 MW nuclear power stations. Firstly, can you please elaborate on your economic vision?

MM: Our 10 Big Ideas form the basis of our policies and programme of action. Our economic vision is to create an economy that is focused on job creation, entrepreneurship and innovation. Embedded in our 10 Ideas is our economic vision that will:

• Reject any new taxes or increases to VAT, income tax, or fuel taxes.

• Cut fuel levies and freeze NERSA’s 18.65% increase in energy prices to ease the burden on consumers, particularly the poor.

• Introduce a pilot Basic Income Grant for indigent citizens to provide an unconditional cash grant to young people struggling to make ends meet, allowing them to find training and work opportunities.

• Widen the expanded public works program to give more people the opportunity and dignity of earning an income to supplement what they receive from government grants.

• Propose a minor tax rebate for those who support family members in what is colloquially termed “black tax” to ease the burden on new, mainly black entrants to the economy.

• Finance these interventions by selling government shares in private companies, downsizing Cabinet to 10 super-ministries, cutting VIP protection, travel and catering costs, and recouping stolen monies through legal action.

We believe that the private sector has a key role to play in driving economic growth and that the government should create an enabling environment for businesses to thrive.

ST: Turning to Eskom, building those 4000 MW to 5000 MW nuclear power stations will take time and money –South Africa has neither. So, what would you propose should be done about our current energy crisis in the meantime? You have opened a criminal case to legally compel both Mr Andre De Ruyter and Minister Pravin Gordhan to divulge all they know about the corruption at Eskom and in government, but you don’t deal with or offer any proposed remedies for dealing with the many issues and problems Mr De Ruyter raised in his eNCA interview. Some people would therefore suggest your opening of the criminal case is little more than a publicity stunt. Obviously you wouldn’t agree with them, so just how do you see South Africa dealing right now with Eskom and the current power crisis, and what would be your long-term solution to these problems?

MM : BOSA recognises that the construction of nuclear power stations takes time and significant funding, which South Africa currently does not have. Therefore, we propose a radical-centric approach that involves an energy mix including privately funded green energy and gas as being important in dealing with the energy crisis. We take corruption very seriously and believe that all who are involved in corruption at Eskom must be held accountable. That is why we have taken legal action to compel both Mr. Andre De Ruyter and Minister Pravin Gordhan to divulge all they know about the corruption at Eskom and in government. It’s not a publicity stunt; instead we see it as an important step towards addressing the issues and problems that have been raised at Eskom.

ST: In your 10 Big Ideas I don’t see any mention of the many problems in local government or the public service – both critical for sustainable and effective

service delivery. Those are arguably two of our biggest problems, apart from Eskom. What do you propose?

MM: BOSA recognizes the critical role that local government and the public service play in delivering essential services to South Africans. We acknowledge that there are significant challenges dealing with corruption, inefficiencies, and a lack of accountability at the local government level. One of our key proposals to address these issues is to prioritise candidate selection of leaders from within local communities, electing them to represent them in government. We believe that this will help local needs and perspectives to be adequately represented, and that there is greater accountability and transparency.

ST: Your party says it believes that “by constructing a robust and sustainable economy, we can generate employment, upgrade education, ensure access to healthcare of high quality, ensure the provision of basic services, and put an end to the persistent load shedding, crime and corruption”. You also emphasise public-private partnerships. Can you please elaborate somewhat more?

MM: BOSA’s economic vision for South Africa is anchored in the principles of free-market capitalism, coupled with a strong emphasis on public-private partnerships. By collaborating with the private sector, we aim to foster an enabling environment that promotes investment and facilitates job creation. To achieve our goals, we have proposed several public-private partnerships, focusing on infrastructure development, renewable energy, and job creation. Our 10 Big Ideas and interventions aim to create a combined two million jobs, with the private sector and government each creating 1 million sustainable jobs. We are committed to eliminating the barriers to entry for small and medium-sized businesses and establishing township economic zones to stimulate economic growth in townships.

ST: And lastly, in your view, what future lies in store for South Africa.

MM: In our view, the future of South Africa depends on our ability to create a robust and sustainable economy that generates employment and promotes social justice. Our people are resourceful and resilient. We believe that by working together and building a society that values transparency, accountability, and innovation, we can create a future that is prosperous and equitable for all South Africans.

SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT IS OUR PASSION

With 15 years of experience in the renewable energy space in south Africa, CAPEAFRICA has grown from Met Mast installations to technology driven centre providing technical development and support to the renewable energy sector in South Africa and now assisting European companies entering the South African market. We are strategically placed in the Western Cape, South Africa and work throughout Africa.

CEO – YATS GOPAUL: yats@capeafrica-res.co.za | johan@capeafrica-res.co.za | www.capeafricares.co.za

CAPEAFRICA AS A COMPANY:

• 100% South owned and managed

• BBBEE level 1

• Iso 9001: 2015 compliant & certified

• Over 15 years in the renewable energy space in Africa

• Members of SAWEA and SAPVIA

• A contributor to the training & development through Merseta and in partnership with Northlink College

SCOPE OF SERVICES:

MET MAST INSTALLATION:

• Supply mast & instruments and install to clients specifactions

• Wind & solar resource assessment

• Mast placement recommendations

• CAF applications

• Monthly data reports to clients’ requirements – including adhoc reports as required by clients

• Maintenance of sites

DEVELOPMENT SERVICES:

Early-stage screening:

• Resource assessment and preliminary report

• EIA screening

• Potential size of farm with respect to mw capacity

• Land securing and lease agreements

• CAA applications

STUDIES:

• Wind & solar resources

• ESIA

• Other relevant

COMPLIANCES:

• SPLUMA registration

• Grid servitude registrations including leases

• Water rights usage

ALL LEGAL COMPLIANCES

POST STUDIES:

• CFD modelling

• Wind & solar farm design

• Financial projections

DEVELOPING RENEWABLE ENERGY SOLUTIONS FOR AFRICA.

COMPANY STATUS

• 100% South african owned and operated

ABOUT RISE RENEWABLES

Rise renewables – developing renewable energy solutions for africa. Rise has entered into a partnership venture with capeafrica and have launched a south african renewable energy development company – rise renewables (pty) ltd. The african market for energy is huge and we believe that with the technical support from the technical partner (capeafrica) and the development strength of rise renewables – we shall together develop renewables to deliver to this huge demand.

• BBBEE level 1

• Strong fund management & development background

• Team has an excellent track record with respect to investment and roi for the respective funds

• The team has over 25years of experience in the investment and structured finance space

SCOPE OF WORK

• Early-stage development funding through capeafrica in solar and wind farm development to fully permitted stage – bid readiness. Including land leasing negotiations

• Private ppa structured funding to clients’ specific needs (from a 100kw system to a 200mw system) – wind and solar or hybrid solutions including batteries

• Sourcing and fund management for larger scale development through expansion into the african market and sub-saharan region

PIPELINE OF PROJECTS

In partnership with capeafrica rise renewables has over 10,000 mw of renewable energy projects under development. These projects are being development in:

• SOUTH AFRICA - > 8000MW

• NAMIBIA - > 2000MW

• MAURITIUS – 100MW

• ESWATHINI & LESOTHO - > 500MW

FUTURE PLANS

• Rise renewables shall enter the reippp market within the next 2 years

MANAGING DIRECTOR

DUANE GILBERT

DGilbert@rise.co.za

info@riserenewables.co.za

www.riserenewables.co.za

• Plan to have 2 plants dedicated to green hydrogen production by the year 2025:

• One in the western cape 50mw solar to produce in the region of 20mw –25mw green hydrogen. This is in collaboration with a japanese company

• 500mw – 600mw solar pv plant in namibia to produce at least 300mw of green hydrogen

• To have at least 3000mw fully permitted with respect to reippp requirements by august 2023 (studies all wip and at nearly 60% – 70% stage

INVESTING IN JOBS & THE MARKETS OF TOMORROW UNDER THE SPOTLIGHT AT THE WEF

In January, business and political leaders, industrialists, financiers, economists, journalists, and a variety of activists – all in all over 2,700 invited leaders from 130 countries – once again gathered in Davos, Switzerland for the annual World Economic Forum (WEF) event.

As always, it was an impressive affair with weighty topics being vigorously debated. These ranged from global economic recovery to the looming spectre of a world recession, climate change, global fragmentation, energy transition, new technologies, and a variety of uncertainties and global problems that need urgent attention and were grouped together under the new umbrella buzzword “polycrisis”.

Just prior to the gathering, the WEF published two very insightful reports on critical future developments relating to the jobs environment and new markets. In one report, the opinions of 12,000

global executives were recorded in respect of technologies in agriculture, education, and energy as being the ‘most strategically important’ for economies and societies over the next decade. In the other, it was shown that there is an unmet need for 76-million new jobs in green and social sectors.

The findings discussed in these two reports are of particular importance for South Africa, as in all the vital areas surveyed, South Africa is among the worst 3 or 4 countries lagging the most. Together, the reports – Markets of Tomorrow Report 2023: Turning Technologies into New Sources of Global Growth and Jobs of Tomorrow: Social and Green Jobs for Building Inclusive and Sustainable Economies – call on government and business leaders to double down on deploying technologies to create the markets and jobs of tomorrow.

The two reports show how improved

public-private collaboration can drive investment to build new markets and create high-quality jobs while making progress towards societal and environmental goals.

The research found that agritech, edtech and energy-related technologies are seen by businesses as the most strategically important over the next 10 years in over 120 economies. It also finds that 76 million additional jobs are needed by 2030 in green and social sectors including agriculture, education, health and energy.

Drawing on more than 12,000 responses from over 120 economies to the World Economic Forum’s Executive Opinion Survey, Markets of Tomorrow examines the technologies and sectors that are set to create new sources of growth.

It finds that agricultural technologies are considered the most strategically important technologies for economies in the next decade. Ranging from lowtech irrigation methods to precision agriculture and farming drones, emerging agricultural technology is unleashing efficiency gains, boosting agricultural output and creating new green jobs.

Education and workforce learning ranks second, where emerging digital tools and platforms, including metaverse learning, artificial intelligence and ubiquitous computing, are driving

innovation. The sector is experiencing an accelerated rollout of education technologies after the COVID-19 pandemic caused a historic loss of education globally.

Finally, power storage and generation technology scored third in the global ranking, reflecting the increasing urgency of transitioning to low-carbon energy systems. Battery and other storage technology holds the key to integrating renewable energy generation at scale into energy grids globally and this represents a significant area of current innovation and investment.

These findings are generally consistent across low-and highincome economies, with four of the top five priority technologies shared across all income groups. However, climate change mitigation technology strikes a notable difference, ranking as the most important technology in high-income countries but eighth across all other income groups.

In parallel, new World Economic Forum analysis, in collaboration with Accenture, found that an additional 76 million jobs in green and social sectors are needed by 2030 across 10 economies alone: Australia, Brazil, China, Germany, India, Japan, South Africa, Spain, the United Kingdom and the United States. For South

“Agricultural technologies are the most strategically important for economies in the next decade…”

Africa, with one of the highest unemployment rates in the world, this could be a critical game changer.

Highlighting the wider job-creating potential of proactively building the markets of tomorrow, Jobs of Tomorrow quantifies for the first time the number of green and social jobs needed to help create socially inclusive and environmentally sustainable societies.

currently represent just 1% of the surveyed workforces. An additional 12 million green jobs are needed to make progress on environmental objectives, representing a 66% increase on current numbers.

Social jobs, defined as occupations within education, healthcare and care, represent 11% of the total workforce in the 10 assessed economies. But the report finds that countries will need to increase the number of social jobs by 37% (64 million jobs) to make progress on inclusion and social mobility goals.

Occupations with the greatest unmet need are personal care workers in health services (18 million), childcare workers, teacher aides and early childhood teachers (12 million) and primary and secondary education teachers (9 million), each sector with vast potential to be supported and augmented by technology while centralizing the role of deeply human skills and traits. Currently, the greatest unmet need is in South Africa, followed by Brazil and Spain.

To meet the goals of a green transition, a labour force with green skills will be essential. But green jobs,

Green jobs with the greatest unmet need include agricultural, forestry and fishery workers (11 million), environmental construction roles (80,000), and environmental, civil and chemical engineers (70,000), with South Africa, China, the United Kingdom and Brazil experiencing the greatest shortfalls.

Rethinking investment, industrial policy and publicprivate cooperation

Skills and talent, infrastructure and initiative from the public sector are cited as the three biggest bottlenecks to creating the markets of tomorrow.

At the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting 2023, leaders gathered there discussed how to create the investment needed across advanced, emerging and developing economies to build the markets of tomorrow and boost their job-creating potential.

“In the current economic and geopolitical context, a short-term and crisis-driven approach towards economic policy risks is becoming permanent. Instead, to leap forward, leaders must align on a new growth and jobs agenda and governments must enable wider private sector interest and innovation towards these shared goals. Too many new technologies continue to serve niche markets – with the right investments and incentives they can unleash prosperity for those who need it most,” said Saadia Zahidi, Managing Director at the World Economic Forum.

Taking the topics of these two reports further, leaders at WEF23 discussed public and private sector alignment on long-term strategic goals for purposedriven market creation, good jobs and re-starting higher quality growth. Key coalitions at the gathering included the Jobs Consortium, a coalition of leaders championing investment in “good jobs” for economic recovery and the Market Creators Alliance, a coalition of businesses and public sector leaders working together to design and pilot principles for fairer and more effective public-private partnerships for innovation and industrial policy.

“South Africa has the greatest unmet need for new jobs in the world…”

CRUSHING & SCREENING MATERIAL HANDLING CONSTRUCTION PLANT HIRE MINING

ATTYS PROJECTS (PTY) LTD is a 100% black owned company It’s an emerging Mining and Construc on company which envisages being the leading company in the mining and construc on industry. The unstable South African economy has shaken the very fabric of the economy contribu ng to the high unemployment especially among youth. The A y’s projects seek to correct this anomaly The forma on of this corpora on ushers a new era of systema c and intelligent maximum u lity of resources and skills to a ain predetermined goals.

ATTYS PROJECTS (PTY) LTD will be structured with detailed analysis, planning, organising, leading, and controlling. Our corpora on seeks to empower youth in par cular by crea ng sustainable opportuni es and set record standards in the process. The corpora on would formulate key performance standards such as produc vity standards and staff development standards. This will result in the emergence of developed youth around our communi es and will be achieved through partnerships we want to enter into

OUR OBJECTIVES

•To promote an efficient customer care

•To iden fy and promote areas of exper se

•To facilitate an environment conduc ve to efficient and commercially viable investment

•To develop compe ve skills towards compe ve world.

GUIDING PRINCIPLES

•Our number one priority is safety and customer care

•Excellence is the order of the day

•Team work is our way of life

Private Sector Public sector

WHY CHOOSE US

01

•To provide innova ve business for the en re private and public sectors

•To provide compe ve quality service to the clients

03 MISSION

02

•Cost effec veness and always strive for improvements

•To alleviate poverty through job crea on

SETTING COURSE… The SONA, the Budget and the Cabinet Reshuffle

Seriously disturbed by the country’s many ongoing challenges - Eskom, loadshedding, inflationary prices, crime, cor-ruption, poverty,unemployment,and the shock of a 1.3% gross domestic product (GDP) decline in Q42022 - South Africans have been pining for some positive, direction-giving gestures from government.

All eyes, especially those of the business sector, were therefore firmly fixed on the recent ‘big political events’ for any signs of hope, any signals from President Cyril Ramaphosa and the governing African National Congress (ANC) that would set the country on course towards a better future.

In our previous edition we discussed the ANC’s disappointing national

conference and January 8 Statement; in this edition we look at the president’s state of the nation address (SONA), the budget speech delivered by his finance minister, and the president’s long-awaited cabinet reshuffle.

Much of the content of the three events was interconnected; much of it centred around South Africa’s energy crisis and devastating loadshedding,

as it should be. Perhaps that, however, distorted things a bit, creating an impression that some other very important issues had been neglected.

The big question therefore is: did these three milestone events set a new course for a battered South Africa? Did they signal any movement towards generating improved prospects for economic growth, for energy security, for bringing more investment into the country, and for creating jobs and alleviating poverty?

The SONA

When President Ramaphosa delivered his SONA on 9 February at a joint session of both houses of parliament, all eyes were on him. Naturally the big question on everyone’s lips was whether he would come up with a plan that could effectively arrest the decline at Eskom, end loadshedding and restore the energy security that is so vital for investment and growth.

His plan, it seemed, was to announce that he was creating a new ministry of electricity and would appoint a minister in due course. This, it appeared, was meant to give more implementation muscle to the Energy Action Plan that Ramaphosa had already announced in July last year. There was no new plan. And then Ramaphosa kept the country in unaffordable suspense for another whole month before he announced the name of this electricity minister as part of his cabinet reshuffle.

The Energy Action Plan of last year promised to improve the performance of existing power plants while focusing also on alternative clean energy sources, and would add 6000MW to the grid, thus reducing the need for loadshedding. But instead, by December – six months later - the situation had dramatically

deteriorated, and South Africa had already started going into its longest spell of continuous loadshedding at higher levels than ever before. And it still continues. Could this new electricity minister make any difference? The country had to wait for the cabinet reshuffle to learn more.

Many of Ramaphosa’s senior colleagues in government and the ANC were caught completely off-guard, and his announcement clearly set a cat among the political pigeons of the ANC. South Africa already had two seemingly underperforming ministers in charge of Eskom and electricity; would they be axed, and their portfolios scrapped, or would a third minister simply be added? How would their powers and functions be divided? If two ministers couldn’t come to grips with the problem, why would three ministers do the trick? What difference could this possibly make?

The one who seemed most at a loss for words and explanation was Ramaphosa’s powerful ally, Gwede Mantashe, the minister of energy and mineral resources. Before Ramaphosa’s announcement, there had been considerable pressure on him from within the ANC to shift that part of Eskom for which Minister of Public Enterprises Pravin Gordhan bore responsibility, to Mantashe’s portfolio. That didn’t happen… thankfully so.

Both ministers were still in their jobs, and Mantashe and the ANC’s secretary-general, Fikile Mbalula, speculated publicly that the new electricity minister would be a rather minor and temporary “project manager” focused solely on managing loadshedding. Really? Was a new minister with his own costly bureaucratic infrastructure needed just for that?

The problem with this analysis was –the power experts would tell you - that you cannot separate Eskom’s physical

reconstruction and the multitude of problems that preceded loadshedding, from loadshedding itself. It’s a total package that needs to be approached holistically if it is to be fixed. And if two ministers previously couldn’t work together on this, how would three ministers accomplish that? But of course, moving or axing ministers that have previously had his back, could create unwanted internal political problems and threats for Ramaphosa inside his own volatile party.

So, already with this announcement, Ramaphosa seemed to have gone against a national conference resolution that all responsibility for Eskom should be moved under Mantashe, the responsible line minister, and that this was also to be duplicated by all other state-owned enterprises and their ministers. That would have left Gordhan without a job, which probably was the intention. This move by Ramaphosa could have come back to haunt him as he could be accused of not implementing resolutions of the national conference – something he has previously been accused of in respect of the ownership and mandate of the SA Reserve Bank, implementation of ‘radical economic transformation’, expropriation of land without compensation, and other matters.

But in a subsequent statement made in Parliament, Ramaphosa deftly sidestepped any such notion. He announced that the Department of Public Enterprises (DPE) would cease to exist in the future as state-owned entities are planned to revert to their respective departments, grouped together under a new, as yet to be established holding company. If implemented effectively and correctly, it could help to vastly improve the current negative situation around state-owned entities.

In his SONA, Ramaphosa also tried to allay some of the uncertainty by saying the new electricity minister would focus full-time and work with the Eskom board and management on ending loadshedding and ensuring that the Energy Action Plan is implemented without delay. He added that, to remove any confusion, the Minister of Public Enterprises will remain the shareholder representative of Eskom and steer the restructuring of Eskom. He did not clarify Mantashe’s further role. But he did also add that the government continue with the just transition to a low carbon economy at a pace the country can afford and in a manner that ensures energy security – something on which Mantashe has not seen eye to eye with his colleagues.

Later, when announcing his new cabinet, Ramaphosa said he will use Section 97 of the Constitution to transfer “certain powers and functions” from Mantashe’s department to the new electricity minister.

“To effectively oversee the electricity crisis response, the appointed (electricity) minister will have political responsibility, authority and control over all critical aspects of the Energy Action Plan. This will help to deal with the challenge of fragmentation of responsibility across various departments and ministers

one might ask.

Other matters announced by Ramaphosa in his SONA included the proposed rollout of rooftop solar panels for households and private energy tax incentives for businesses, and other forms of private electricity generation. Details were sketchy and Ramaphosa said the Budget would provide more insight.

Meanwhile, also as part of getting a grip on the energy crisis, Ramaphosa announced another state of disaster (SOD) but which also left unanswered questions. For instance, what exactly would its scope and rules be, and would the president replace the responsible minister, Minister of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (COGTA) Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, with someone else in a cabinet reshuffle. Dlamini-Zuma had openly crossed swords with Ramaphosa and surely he could not trust her. But she too had powerful political backing in the ANC and removing her could be risky for Ramaphosa and could further upset the balance of forces in an already unstable and factionally very divided ANC. The answer to this one would come later with the cabinet shakeup. Ramaphosa acknowledged that Parliament was gathered at “a time of

SONA failed to do that, that it didn’t provide a clear and concise map that allowed for setting the course South Africa needed to sail.

Other matters that Ramaphosa touched on included unemployment, poverty, the rising cost of living, crime and corruption. No firm action plans were provided for any of these. Ramaphosa acknowledged the failure to secure a social compact to rebuild the economy and enable higher growth but again promised that it was still on the cards, adding to a series of unfulfilled previous promises in this regard. The problem is the vast ideological divides between the social partners – the ANC government, organised labour, and the business sector. Not even inside the ANC has consensus been possible due to the ideological divide between the ANC and its formal alliance partners, the socialist Congress of South African Trade Unions (COSATU) and the South African Communist Party (SACP). This won’t change anytime soon.

So, in the final analysis, while providing a glimmer of as yet untested hope in respect of Eskom, electricity and state-owned companies, the SONA and subsequent statements failed to provide any clear and concise signals concerning the multitude of other challenges in moving the country forward.

The Budget

which, while appropriate under normal circumstances, is not conducive to a crisis response,” said Ramaphosa. So why not just scrap the Eskom-related roles of Mantashe and Gordhan altogether,

crisis” but also said that he pinned his hope on the nation being defined by hope and resilience to “steer our country out of turbulent waters to calmer seas”. Most would probably agree that the

When two weeks later, on February 22, Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana delivered his 2023 Budget speech it was supposed to add crucial flesh to the things promised by Ramaphosa in the SONA. It ended up being such a neutral, rather uninspiring Budget that it met with very little reaction, good or bad. Usually, Budget speeches have in the past elicited either passionate praise or fiery attacks. This one resulted in

“The new electricity minister would focus full-time and work with the Eskom board and management on ending loadshedding…”

neither, just some cautious receptions. Without taking party political sides, perhaps the Democratic Alliance’s (DA’s) shadow Minister of Finance, Dr Dion George, summed it up reasonably well when he said “there is nothing bold about this budget. The Minister has failed to announce any meaningful structural reforms that could drive economic growth, incentivize domestic savings, attract foreign capital, and protect vulnerable South Africans”.

That having been said, again as with the SONA, there was a strong focus on Eskom and the energy crisis. This

base against such massive demands made for a rather hazardous budgetary exercise. And Eskom was – and should have been – priority number one.

The big announcement was, therefore, that the Treasury would provide debt relief of R254bn to Eskom out of its total debt of R422bn. This was met with mixed reaction as it signalled both good and bad prospects. While Godongwana’s fiscal metrics were well received, with the budget deficit being smaller than what was the case in last year’s mediumterm budget policy statement, there was still significant downside risk. The

relief… with perhaps the exception of Eskom. But as for the latter, only time will tell if it was money well spent. In the meantime, this Budget, read together with the SONA, won’t open doors, it won’t unlock investment, grow the economy, create jobs, alleviate poverty, reduce the high cost of living, or help to fix education, health, crime, or any of the many other problems. Despite a few limited concessions here and there, there simply was or is no real capacity for any of that.

perhaps underscores an important point: a realisation in government (at last) that if they don’t get the energy crisis under control now once and for all, they can forget about attracting investment, growing the economy, creating jobs, alleviating poverty, getting government finances under control, and consequently start bringing crime down as well. And addressing a host of other problems too. The question remains, however, whether government has a feasible, sustainable plan. Neither the SONA nor the Budget provided any real assurances on almost all of that. The outlines of a plan, yes, but will it be implemented and can it work?

From a purely economic point of view, the Budget offered a few praiseworthy things given the difficult circumstances. From a political point of view, it did little or nothing to restore hope or confidence. But then again, in his defence, Finance Minister Godongwana had very little to work with – coming off such a low

risk of a debt spiral remains high seen against the government’s debt servicing costs having increased to R1 billion per day. Government’s increased funding requirements caused by this bailout, may bring about other pressures – should Eskom fail as an entity, government would still have to repay the loans it took to pay for the bailout.

Overall, however, it seemed that minister Godongwana had allayed market fears of South Africa’s debt trajectory spinning out of control. Most analysts and economists cautiously approved of his Budget, even if with some qualifications attached, and it caused rallies in the rand and the domestic bond and equities markets, another sign that it generally but cautiously got the thumbs up.

Yet not to be missed when viewing it through the political lens, is that in many ways the Budget reflected everything that is wrong in South Africa, without providing any meaningful avenues for

This Budget, like its predecessors, remained hemmed in by poor political vision and leadership, implementation and delivery failures, a governing culture marked by corruption, theft and destruction, differences and divisions in the ruling party, and an irrational adherence to some very outdated ideological preferences. On top of that the debts were piling up and despite a smaller deficit revenues were still under pressure. It didn’t leave Godongwana with many tools to break South Africa free from its depressing bonds.

So now it was two key events down, one to go, and still no answers, no clear course being set. It was now all up to the much anticipated and speculatedabout cabinet reshuffle, which came a month late on March 6.

The Cabinet reshuffle

While overall the latest cabinet reshuffle again bore the hallmark of the one following the devastating riots of July 2021 – largely a window-dressing rearrangement of the deckchairs – it did have one significant feature: the announcement of Kgosientsho “Sputla” Ramokgopa as the new electricity minister.

Gwede Mantashe remains in place as energy minister, even if many of

“Treasury will provide debt relief of R254bn to Eskom out of its total debt of R422bn”

his powers and functions are being transferred to Ramokgopa who will remain in this position for as long as is required, according to Ramaphosa. So, Eskom and loadshedding again featured front and centre. Pravin Gordhan also remains in his position as representing government as Eskom’s sole shareholder. How this tripartite arrangement will work out in practice, remains to be seen. But Gordhan’s Public Enterprises department is now in line to be dismantled.

But for now, it was as much a political decision for Ramaphosa – keeping two of his biggest ANC allies in the cabinet – as it was to steer Eskom and loadshedding towards a solution. In the latter instance, Ramokgopa may well be a good choice for the job and is suitably qualified: he holds a Bachelor’s degree in civil engineering, a Master’s

factional divisions in the ANC ahead of next year’s crucial elections, but it also seems to offer some protection to Ramaphosa’s own political position.

Nonetheless, this mostly uninspiring cabinet reshuffle is unlikely to produce the mojo required to save the ANC in the 2024 elections, and it looks ever more likely the ANC may have to govern in a coalition with another party or parties thereafter. And the elevation of ANC deputy president Paul Mashatile to being the country’s deputy president, takes the ANC closer to collaborating with the EFF in a coalition. Mashatile, together with Gauteng premier Panyaza Lesufi and others, have already been working in that direction in Gauteng in respect of seizing control of the province’s metros. It is a recipe they will easily and happily extend to the

(incidentally a big part of Eskom’s problems too).

To a large degree Ramaphosa’s cabinet choices reflect the loss of leadership depth, skill and talent in the ANC in the last decade, mirrored also in the earlier election of the ANC’s recycled national leadership. But to be fair to the many ‘new’ and/or lesser-known individuals who now fill cabinet seats, plus their army of mostly less familiar deputy ministers, one should give them time to settle into their new jobs and see if –hopefully – they don’t surprise the many sceptics. Most of the new ministers are not really all that new – just more obscure than some of their veteran colleagues in the cabinet but have been around as deputy ministers and in other senior capacities for some time.

degrees in public administration and business leadership, and a PhD in public affairs. In 2019 Ramokgopa was appointed head of the new Investment and Infrastructure Office in the Presidency, a position close to Ramaphosa. His otherwise fairly unremarkable but solid career had, however, been somewhat tarnished by a costly botched prepaidmeter debacle when he was mayor of Tshwane. But this one mistake hardly defines his entire career.

Overall, President Ramaphosa clearly opted for politically the safest and potentially least disruptive approach to reshuffling his cabinet. Not only would it serve not to stir up anew the

rest of the country. Ramaphosa opted to fire Tourism Minister Lindiwe Sisulu who had openly challenged him, as she has no power base and poses no threat if he did. But he retained COGTA minister DlaminiZuma who had also crossed swords with him, albeit in the demoted position of Minister of Women, Youth and People With Disabilities, as she has a powerful political base in KwaZulu-Natal aligned with former president Jacob Zuma. Also, because of seemingly political considerations, he retained incompetent and failed ministers like Police Minister Bheki Cele, so don’t expect any improvements in respect of South Africa’s massive crime problem

Meanwhile, Ramaphosa further expanded and strengthened his already powerful Presidency with more ministers and changes, building further on creating a core executive within the larger executive. But even with such tweaking, the reconfigured cabinet is unlikely to instil national confidence or trust in government following a period that has produced South Africa’s deepest crises since 1994. These three key political events have focused largely on Eskom, and the proof will be in the pudding if it brings about the required relief. But as for all South Africa’s other major challenges, these three events offered little or no promise of bringing about any significant relief.

By Stef Terblanche

President Ramaphosa clearly opted for politically the safest and potentially least disruptive approach to reshuffling his cabinet

Q&A – ZANDILE MDANDA, CEO OF BLACK ROYALTY MINERALS KOORNFONTEIN

2. What do you feel is the biggest strength of the company

a. I really think that our biggest strength is our people, starting from our leadership team, and in particular our founder, Mr Ndavhe Mareda. Through his vision and under his guidance, we have been able to identify the right people to convert complex opportunities into real successes, like we have done with Koornfontein, which was acquired out of a difficult business rescue process, but now is operational and will be making a great contribution to various stakeholders. One of the lessons I have learnt from Ndavhe is to create strong teams, have belief in them and give them the freedom to build. This has allowed us to be agile and decisive.

b. It also requires us to pay very close attention to detail. Trust is earned, and in any industry, but mining in particular, it is critical that everyone remain focussed and on top of the details. Black Royalty Group prides itself on this aspect.

c. I also believe that notwithstanding that we are a relatively new, unique and aggressive mining house, we have managed to build significant resources, and not just from a mining perspective, but also in financial and human capital terms.

3. What goals do you have as CEO

a. We want to continue to build on our successes in South Africa, and to continue to grow our footprint in the rest of Africa across a diverse range of commodities. Ultimately, we want to create a company that stands as a South African champion and has the potential for a future listing.

1. Describe your journey, making it in a man’s world. And why the mining sector?

a. The starting point of my professional journey, and one which I adhere to today is hard work. I was able to enjoy a career in the mining industry because I was doing well at high-school and a large mining house provided a bursary for me to study something in mining. While I was fascinated by the mining industry, which plays such a large part in the South African opportunity, I didn’t necessarily have a career in mining in mind at that stage. I did however realise that it was a great opportunity, so I grabbed it and went on to study geology. On reflection years later, I realised that mining companies can contribute in so many ways for the benefit of various stakeholders. I feel fortunate to be in the position to have this realisation, as it is sadly almost unique for black girl children from rural areas in South Africa to have this experience.

b. The journey has been challenging, and punctuated by good times and tough times, particularly as a woman in a male dominated industry. Over the course of my career, I have had to help force change. In addition to the obvious professional and corporate change required to meaningfully include women in the industry, there were seemingly minor but significant changes that were required for women. An example is that when I started out in the industry basic things like PPE were purely male focussed. Onepiece overalls designed for men created difficulties for women, and we needed to change this. We now have two-piece PPE, which provides dignity and safety for women in the industry.

c. As part of my journey, I also realised that I needed more than a technical degree if I was going to rise to greater heights. As such, I decided to complement my geology degree with a business degree, which provided me with a holistic view of the business of mining. Clearly, education can unlock many doors. In addition, I have had very strong mentors, which I am very grateful for. I am a firm believer in the mentor-mentee relationship through different stages of one’s career.

4. How do you survive and thrive in this business?

a. To survive, I believe that you need to have good relationships, and pursue activities to enhance a healthy mind and body. Without that, it is difficult to apply yourself fully to a very demanding role. Personally, I like to meditate and exercise.

b. To thrive, one must work in a team where there is belief, trust and respect.

5. Who or what inspires you?

a. My mother, Makhosi. She is the epitome of resilience and selfless love, having raised my brothers and me in and around KwaZulu-Natal. She is a teacher by profession and a dedicated community worker whose example and leadership qualities I seek to draw from and emulate. She has inspired me to be a better individual.

6. What are the current and future trends in your sector?

a. Environmental Social and Governance issues remain at the forefront of the trends in the mining sector. Black Royalty Minerals continues to invest both time and capital in investigating, developing and implementing technology, procedures and practices to be a sustainable and responsible mining house.

b. I believe that we need to continue to work on finding better funding solutions for mining companies and in particular black owned junior miners, which will allow us to meaningfully unlock transformation in the industry.

c. Finally, we need to continue to work on finding realistic and sustainable ways to deliver commodities required today, and to develop sustainable practices to deliver commodities of the future. An example of this is how coal has come to the forefront following the global geopolitical unrest. Clearly, we need to focus on ways to deliver and use commodities like coal to provide energy in a more sustainable way regarding climate change.

Black Royalty Minerals (BRM), part of the Black Royalty Group, is a diversified South African 100% black-owned company with a proven track record in mining, commodities trading, logistics & infrastructure and property development. The group is built on a foundation of serviceexcellence, pride, reliability, evolution and responsibility, with a vision to provide clients with market-leading quality products and services.

BRM's asset base includes mining and development assets across various commodities, including gold, coal, iron ore and graphite across southern Africa. Although a relatively new entrant into the mining industry, BRM has established itself as a prominent industry participant with an appetite for and proven track record of successfully executing complex Mergers and Acquisitions (M&A) transactions.

BRM's acquisition of Koornfontein Mine in 2020 reflects its M&A track record, and its vision and ability to deliver operational assets. Since BRM acquired the mine, it has created over 420 full-time employment opportunities and, despite it being in ruins following a period of neglect and vandalism during the business rescue process, has refurbished critical infrastructure to restore the production value chain:

• refurbished the Rapid Loading Terminal enabling BRM to purchase coal to supply its customers via the Richards Bay Coal Terminal (RBCT) and to extend the facilities to other clients requiring access to RBCT.

• establishing the opencast operation (expected to be completed in late 2023) to allow for steady state mining of three coal seams.

• refurbished the processing plant in September 2022 resulting in the plant being commissioned and ramped-up.

• re-establishment of (i) the underground operation to return the no. 4 seam Blinkpan shaft to operation, and (ii) the associated infrastructure to allow mining to take place. Production is expected to commence in late 2023.

With an established South African base, BRM continues to develop its activities across Southern and East Africa, with the ambition of being a prominent African mining house servicing global customers and meeting the evolving needs of its stakeholders.

BRM's foundation is based on current critical commodities required to serve the needs of stakeholders today. Yet, it is equally focussed on and continues to invest in commodities required for future-technologies to serve the needs of tomorrow's stakeholders. Constant is BRM's commitment to, and investment in, investigating, developing and implementing technology and practices to be a sustainable and responsible mining house.

AFRICAN STARTUPS BUCK THE GLOBAL TREND But SA startup sector loses out

As tech start-ups battened down the hatches last year in what was a difficult funding year, most regions around the world experienced double-digit declines in start-up funding. In Asia Pacific start-up funding was down 39% and in Latin America it fell by a whopping 62%.

The one bright star bucking this negative trend was Africa, where start-up funding actually grew by around 5%, with most funding still going to the ‘Big Four’ – South Africa, Kenya, Nigeria and Egypt. The continent posted gains in total investment volume, deals and number of investors. But sadly, however, despite Africa’s resilience,

South Africa’s performance also took a serious dive.

An Economic Update report for Africa researched and published by the Oxford Business Group (OBG), found that while rising borrowing costs and recession concerns weighed on global venture capital investment in 2022, Africa’s

start-up ecosystem attracted record funding. The report says that while most regions experienced double-digit declines in start-up funding last year, Africa posted gains in total investment volume, deals and number of investors. Start-up funding on the continent grew by roughly 5% in 2022, compared to the declines posted in regions like Latin America and Asia Pacific.

Globally, venture capital funding was down 35% at $445bn, albeit still well above the levels posted in the years prior to the Covid-19 pandemic, according to the OBG report.

Total funding for the continent passed the $3bn mark for the first time and hovered around $4.8bn-5.4bn by

the end of the year. It is hoped that continued capital flows to the startup ecosystem will support broader development goals, ranging from increasing financial inclusion to enabling digital transformation and the energy transition.

Africa’s Big Four get lion’s share

Quoting market analysis company Briter Bridges, OBG reported that Nigeria, Egypt, Kenya and South Africa continued to attract the lion’s share of funding to African start-ups, accounting for around 75% of the 2022 total. Africa’s biggest economy, Nigeria, received the most funding, at more than $1.2bn, or approximately 28%

of the regional total. This is partly thanks to the number of start-ups in the country, with 209 in Lagos alone. Nigeria’s large population and rising measures of inclusion are driving the success of financial technology (fintech) start-ups in particular, with payment solutions such as “buy now, pay later” micro-loans and cryptocurrency continuing to grow.

After becoming Africa’s fourth unicorn in 2021, fintech firm Flutterwave raised $250m in February of last year – its biggest funding round to date – bringing its total valuation to over $3bn. Kenya was the only other African market to see more than $1bn in funding, doubling its 2021 total. The East African country has stood out in

recent years thanks to developments in clean energy, which accounts for 90% of its power supply.

Clean energy technology attracted the greatest share of Kenya’s 2022 funding, with off-grid solar power company Sun King raising $330m in its latest Series D funding round. The company provides direct-to-consumer, pay-asyou-go solar networks, expanding solar power accessible to some 165,000 homes across eight African countries. Financing company M-KOPA, which started out providing pay-as-you-go solar-panel home systems, also raised $75m in its fifth equity round, bringing its total funding raised to $190m.

Thanks to its dynamic tech ecosystem, Egypt has experienced considerable growth since recording the highest number of funded start-ups on the continent in 2019. The $811m raised by Egyptian tech start-ups in 2022 represents an 81.2% increase from 2021, which in turn was up 215% on 2020.

The fintech segment accounted for approximately half of funding in Egypt this year, well above the share received by the e-commerce segment, which is typically more active. In May fintech firm PayMob secured $50m in a Series B round, reportedly the most raised by an Egyptian firm in the segment to date.

On a sad note for the domestic market, though, OBG reports that while South African tech start-ups secured 12.3% of total funding on the continent in 2022, both the number of backed firms and the volume of investment declined over the past year. Alongside the typically dominant fintech segment, however, e-health and artificial intelligence firms are attracting growing interest.

But more than just the Big Four…

However, activity in 2022 stretched beyond just Africa’s Big Four, with deals being concluded in 27 countries on the continent. Ghana, Morocco and Tunisia attracted significant funding, while

Côte d’Ivoire, Senegal, Tanzania and Uganda also saw notable investment activity in 2022.

Although Ghana remains below the big four in terms of funding volume, firms in the West African country raised $149m in 2022, a 652% increase from the year before. Tunisia also witnessed strong growth, with 28 funded firms giving it the fifth spot on the continent’s rankings for this metric despite the relatively small size of its market. Central Africa, which has historically received the least funding of any subregion, raised almost double the amount it received in 2021, attributed mainly to the growth of web3 company Jambo. Based in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Jambo has raised $7.5m in seed funding to build a web3 user portal, helping to unlock play-to-earn income opportunities.

Sources of funding

The investment flowing to Africa’s start-up ecosystem comes from a wide variety of sources, with at least 987 disclosed investors present in the market in 2022. Local and international early-stage funds – including Launch Africa Ventures, the continent’s most active investor backing 45 start-ups − and accelerators are the primary sources of investment. Venture capital firms and large investment groups such as Tiger Global, Sequoia Capital and SoftBank are increasingly active in Africa, as are African entrepreneurs.

Since 2015, funding for the continent’s tech start-ups has risen by more than 1000%, while the number of funded start-ups has increased by 406%

Harry Van Schaick, Managing Editor Africa, Oxford Business Group

AFRICAN MARITIME LEADERSHIP CONFERENCE

Fostering Synergies and Collaborative Agendas

There has been strong political support for developing the ocean economy in Africa. The South African International Maritime Institute (SAIMI) explores avenues for strengthening the visibility and implementation of transforming Africa’s ocean economy during the upcoming high level African Conference, which will be taking place at the Boardwalk Hotel Convention Centre in Gqeberha, South Africa, from 24th – 26th May 2023.

The Conference’s central theme is Taking Africa’s Ocean Economy and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development to the Next Level Through Policy, Collaboration and Education. The Conference will provide numerous opportunities for knowledge, idea and skills sharing, discussions, debates

and networking. The Conference aims to find and explore synergies between various stakeholders to promote strengthening existing infrastructure and capacity to achieve various priorities. The discussions will be focused on four key thematic areas namely:

THEME 1: POLICY, STRATEGIES AND AGREEMENTS

THEME 2: OCEANS ACCOUNTING

THEME 3: TECHNOLOGY AND INNOVATION

THEME 4: SKILLS DEVELOPMENT TO ACCENTUATE MARITIME EXCELLENCE

SAIMI believes that it is through the strategic alignment of these thematic aspects that optimisation for an African thriving maritime sector can be achieved.

Boardwalk Hotel Convention Centre

GQEBERHA

annually over the same period. But here’s the downside. Despite promising growth prospects, African start-ups raise the least funding of any region, at around 1.2% of the global total, despite representing approximately 3% of GDP and 17% of the population. This underscores significant potential for increased investment, especially given the continent’s demographic growth trajectory over the coming years, says the OBG report.

Disrupt Africa reports phenomenal growth

Disrupt Africa, a one-stop-shop for news, information and commentary pertaining to the continent’s tech startup and investment ecosystem, released the same findings in its ‘African Tech Startups Funding Report 2022’. Citing extraordinary growth across Africa in the last few years, this report hailed 2022 as being another record year for funding activity in the African tech startup ecosystem, with, as already pointed out, total investment passing US$3 billion. According to Disrupt Africa, the sector has undergone extraordinary development since it first started tracking investment in 2015. But 2022 again took things to a new level, it says.

In 2015 the first Disrupt Africa Startups Funding Report found that 125 tech startups had raised funding amounting to US$185,785,500. In 2022, it reported, 633 startups raised US$3,333,071,000, also a new record.

per cent since we began our work in 2015. Though the bulk of funding activity continues to take place in the ‘Big Four’ markets of South Africa, Nigeria, Kenya and Egypt, there is growth in activity across many other ecosystems, while acquisitions are becoming a regular feature of the ecosystem,” says Disrupt Africa.

2021 was a landmark year for the African tech space, with unprecedented growth seeing the sector pass both the US$1 billion and US$2 billion marks for the first time. The number of funded startups increased by 12.2 per cent on 564 in 2021, while the total secured funding jumped 55.1 per cent on US$2,148,517,500 in 2021. The number of startups to secure funding has continuously increased each year since 2015. In all, the number of African startups securing investment each year has increased by 406 per cent since 2015. Although the rate of growth slowed to 55.1 per cent in 2022, African tech startups still banked an impressive US$3,333,071,000.

“At a time when global venture capital investments are on the decline, posting an increase of more than 50 per cent to pass the US$3 billion mark for the first time represents an above-expectation year for the sector. Total annual funding for African tech startups has increased by over 1,000 per cent since 2015.

South Africa’s decline

startups receiving investment, and in the total amount of funding raised. In 2022 a total of 78 startups secured backing (12.3 per cent of Africa’s funded ventures), together raising US$329,707,000 (9.9 per cent of Africa’s total). These figures meant South Africa fell to fourth position on both measures.

Prior to this year, the total amount of funding in South Africa had been growing nicely year-on-year, and 2022 marks the first time the country’s numbers have failed to increase, let alone going into decline.

Fintech continues to be the dominant sector in South Africa. However, its lead is in general being squeezed, with other sectors gaining ground year-onyear. In 2022, there were 28 fintechs that received investment (31.5%); they raised a combined US$132,582,000 (40.2%). Beyond fintech, South Africa sees activity spread across a broad span of sectors. When it comes to the number of startups backed, this year the e-health sector and the AI sector both stood out, with 14 (15.7%) and eight (9%) ventures funded respectively.

“That means total annual funding flowing into African tech startups has grown by an extraordinary 1,694

According to Disrupt Africa, once the “wonder child of African startup funding”, South Africa’s share declined year-on-year, both in the number of

When viewing across total funds, e-commerce and retail-tech were the only other sectors worthy of mentioning, securing US$97,750,000 (29.6%), while other investments were spread around sectors. The average ticket size in South Africa was nonetheless up when compared to the previous year, at US$4,227,013, speaking to a higher number of larger ticket sizes.

AMAPAYIPI Hose Solutions

Supplier of Quality South African Manufactured Hose

MINING HOSE - QUALITY REINFORCED PVC

SANS 1086/2007 COMPLIANT. DESIGNED FOR TOUGH CONDITIONS & A WIDE RANGE OF APPLICATIONS.

Heavy

FEATURES

• Excellent Cut & Abrasion Resistant

• Withstands Temperatures from 0oC to 50oC

super flexible mining hose, suitable for colder conditions.

APPLICATIONS

Orange Heavy Duty super flexible mining hose, suitable for colder conditions.

-10O C to +50O C.

Green Heavy Duty super flexible mining hose, suitable for colder conditions.

Heavy Duty super flexible mining hose, suitable for colder conditions.

Hose. Heavy Duty Ultra High Pressure Hose.

C to +50O C.

Loading Hose.

and Semi conductive, complies with SANS 2878:2011

TOTAL DUST MANAGEMENT

ABOUT US:

Dust-A-Side is a South African international company which has channeled more than 40 years of experience in Total Dust Management. Our Total Dust Management services include dust and road management for opencast and underground mines, treating in excess of 13 000 000 m² of mine haul roads. We offer full dust suppression services for material handling applications.

TOTAL DUST MANAGEMENT

Our Dust Control Management System consists of a range of environmentally friendly dust suppression products, with a comprehensive stabilization and continuous maintenance programme catering to our pit port requirements.

EXPERTISE

The robust sealed haul road surfaces allow optimal production for haul trucks and other vehicles to operate safely in all weather conditions. This is achieved with greater fuel efficiency, safety, and mechanical wear. Water saving remains one of the biggest benefits in employing Dust-A-Side and in excess of 90% saving has been recorded on certain mines

WHY CHOOSE US

A safer working environment

Effective dust suppression

>90% water savings

Reduced rolling resistance

Decreased diesel consumption

Increased tyre life

Improved hauling cycle time

Reduction of HME repairs and maintenance budget

No recapping required

Reduced production downtime after rain

No investment in road maintenance equipment

Increased productivity

Proven return on investment (ROI)

CONTACT US

Dust-A-Side

Menlyn Piazza 2nd Floor, Cnr Glen Manor and Lois Avenue, Menlyn, Pretoria, 0063, RSA

(0) 12 648 8900 | info@dustaside.com

TOTAL DUST MANAGEMENT

Dust-A-Side has a complete range of dust suppression products to provide a sound solution across any operation. They can be used – effectively and economically – in a wide range of applications such as primary haul roads, semi-permanent roads, temporary roads, underground work areas, process plant roads, construction sites and more

DUST-A-SIDE PRODUCT

- Based on Bitumen emulsion technology

- Creates a sealed, dust free and all weather haul road surface

HYDROTAC

- Based on Lignosulphonate technology

- Creates a bound crusted road surface

- Based on Bitumen emulsion technology

- Creates a sealed, dust free and all weather haul road surface

DAS BIO

- Based on Bitumen emulsion technology

- Creates a sealed, dust free and all weather haul road surface

HYDROSPERSE

- Based on a blend of Bitumen emulsion and Lignosulphonate technology

- Creates a semi-sealed road surface

THERE ARE TWO DISTINCT PHILOSOPHIES TO CONTROL DUST WITH WATER SPRAYERS DURING MATERIALS HANDLING PROCESS.

Dust prevention and dust suppression systems are not mutually exclusive and many operations will require both to effectively control dust.

- Low pressure (< 10 bar) and high water volume systems are employed. This treatment philosophy is referred to as dust prevention. The spray system discharges water directly on the material at the beginning of the transfer point. Being low pressure, the flow of water and droplets sizes are much bigger and hence referred to as wetting systems.

- Dust suppression systems (or high pressure misting systems) employs high pressure (> 50 bar) and low volumes of water to form a fine atomised mist that captures airborne dust and brings it back to the source via the force of gravity.

While dust prevention can be used in materials handling operations, dust suppression is the preferred option, owing to low water consumption, especially in areas where water is scarce. This option also minimizes water costs, water addition to material, and blockages on conveyors and chutes.

- Based on Polymer technology

- Creates a hard and stabilized surface

- Increase load bearing capacity

- Mostly used for hard-park areas

ACRIBIND

- Based on a blend of Polymer and Lignosulphonate technology

- Creates a partially sealed road surface

HYDROWET

- Based on Surfactant technology

- It is an excellent wetting agent

- Very low dosage required

quarries, construction sites, demolition sites and other industrial areas.

A fog cannon pumps highly pressurized water through a series of jet nozzles, turning water into mist through atomization which is dispersed through the air by a powerful fan.

BENEFITS OF USING DUST-A-SIDE

FOG CANNONS

-Suppresses airborne dust

-Significant reduction in water usage  compared to low pressure watering systems

-Ensures coverage of large areas

-Easy to install and position, portable and oscillating

-Very effective at supressing airborne dust

FOG CANNON SYSTEMS FOR MINING AND INDUSTRIAL PROCESSES

SA TOURISM’S RECOVERY ON TRACK, BUT SOME DISTANCE STILL TO GO

Expensive sponsorships of English soccer clubs aside, the South African tourism sector - like the tourism sectors of most countries around the world - is steadily but slowly making a post-Covid-19 comeback. However, when comparing it to the tourism statistics of 2019 – the last normal year not affected by the pandemic – there is still a very long way to go to get back to previous levels.

South African Tourism (SA Tourism) earlier this year released its latest statistics in a report covering the third quarter of last year, which provides an interesting bird’s eye view of just where we are at. In an explanatory note, SA Tourism states that the report was prepared by SA Tourism’s Analytics and Insights Unit and is based on its Departure Survey conducted monthly at South Africa’s two main international airports (Oliver Tambo International and Cape Town International) as well as the 12 main land border posts.

The survey aims to track tourist travel behaviours, expenditures, accommodation usage, experiences, as well as satisfaction of South Africa as a holiday and business destination. Because recovery statistics in 2022 were still at low levels, the latest

statistics are compared to 2019 statistics rather than comparing them to 2021, which would have painted an overly optimistic picture. This comparison shows whether tourism has returned to pre-Covid-19 levels or not.

Another report released recently, the Tourism Satellite Account (TSA) for South Africa report, also sheds more light on just how devastatingly bad the pandemic affected the tourism sector.

Commenting on this report, South Africa’s new Minister of Tourism, Patricia de Lille, said that “during the COVID 19 pandemic, the tourism sector was one of the most vulnerable sectors of the economy and the impact could be seen in most of the tourism-related industries that are operating within the tourism value chain at a global and national level (UNWTO, 2022). This was evident when key indicators used to monitor the performance of the tourism sector were analysed.

One of the highlights of the SA Tourism Q3 2022 report shows that international tourist arrivals in South Africa during the third quarter of 2022 were still down by -35.0% compared to Q3 2019, and

amounted to 1.6 million tourists arriving here. Nonetheless, this recovery represents a big improvement compared to Q3 2021, when arrivals dropped by -78.0% when compared to Q3 2019, according to Statistics SA.

South African arrivals for September (down -31%) are relatively on par with the rest of Africa, the Americas, as well as the global average and continue to be far better than those of Asia. However, South Africa is still far from Europe’s recovery as well as that of the Middle East. Providing hope for other regions, the Middle East is the first and only region to date to show positive growth over 2019 since the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic.

African arrivals

Africa land tourists amounted to 1.17-million and continue to constitute the overwhelming majority (72.8%) of all arrivals, even more so than they did before in Q3 2019 when they amounted to 72.1%. However, taken on their own, Africa land arrivals are still -34.3% lower than Q3 2019 levels, yet marks a major improvement compared to the -75.5% of Q3 2021. Africa air arrivals

amounted to 50,761 and a 3.2% share, after having declined by -36.4% over Q3 2019. The respective result in Q3 2021 was -75.4%.

European arrivals totalled 215,184 and showed a 13.4% share improvement compared to Q3 2019. European arrivals declined by -34.6% over Q3 2019 compared to -88.2% in Q3 2021. The UK continued strengthening its position as first among European sources with an even greater share of arrivals (29.9% vs. 25.8% in Q3 2019).

Travel from the Americas amounted to 97,056 and reflects an improved share of 6.1% compared to Q3 2019. This represents a significant recovery of -34.3% compared to the -79.0% in Q3 2021. The USA’s -23.2% decline rate is the smallest in the region. The USA now accounts for 81.5% of all Americas’ arrivals (+11.8%). Travellers from Asia are down -56.8% compared to Q3 2019 and amounted to 33,226 tourists. Their share remains a low 2.1% (3.1% in Q3 2019). Chinese arrivals are only -26.3% down and they now account for almost half of all Asia arrivals (46.9%). India has the highest decline rate at -84.9%, and has lost significant share (11.2% compared to 31.9% previously).

Australasian tourist arrivals are still substantially down on 2019 at -47.4% but this segment’s recovery when compared to Q3 2021 is the highest of all regions as was the case in Q1-Q2 2022. Australasian arrivals amounted to 18,085, or a 1.1% share. Australia continues to be the major contributor at 80.4% of the total.

Arrivals from the Middle East have fully recovered and have surpassed Q3 2019 levels with a +2.3% increase. They now stand at 18,335, reflecting an improvement of 1.1%. These patterns are similar to those seen in Q2 when the region decline the least (-28.5%).

According to the report, travel behaviour continues to return to pre-Covid-19 patterns. VFR (visiting friends and relatives) and holiday visits dominate with 43.4% and

16.8% respectively. Compared to the Q3 2019 figure, VFR has surpassed it by +2.1%, whilst holiday is almost there at -5.2%. Business travel has declined to a 7.8% share. Foreign spend by international tourists has recovered significantly, last year down by just -20.3% compared to Q3 2019 and equalled R15.5-billion. This is a is a vast improvement compared to the -75.2% of Q3 2021 compared to Q3 2019.

Length of stay is down by -3.2% with 11.6 nights compared to 12 nights in Q3 2019. This marks a return to pre-Covid-19 days. Bed nights have also recovered somewhat but not to Q3 2019 levels and now amount to 18 million, representing a -37.0% decline. International tourists’ satisfaction with South Africa remains at 4.5 out of a maximum score of 5, the same as in previous years.

The global picture

According to the November 2022 Tourism Barometer compiled by the UN World Tourism Organisation (UNTWO), an estimated 700 million tourists travelled internationally between January and September, more than double (+133%) the number recorded for the same period in 2021. This is in line with the UNWTO’s scenarios and the expectation that international tourism is on track to reach 65% of pre-pandemic levels by the end of 2022. Results were boosted by strong pent-up demand, improved confidence levels and the lifting of restrictions in an increasing number of destinations. The Barometer’s results reveal that monthly arrivals were 64% below 2019 levels in January 2022 and had reached -27% by September.

An estimated 340 million international arrivals were recorded in the third quarter of 2022 alone, almost 50% of the ninemonth total. Europe continues to lead the recovery as the region welcomed 477 million international tourists in JanuarySeptember 2022 (68% of the world total), hitting 81% of pre-pandemic levels. This was more than double that of 2021 (+126%) with results boosted by strong

intraregional demand and travel from the United States.

Europe saw particularly robust performance in Q3, when arrivals reached almost 90% of 2019 levels. At the same time, the Middle East saw international arrivals more than triple (+225%) year on year in January-September 2022, climbing to 77% of pre-pandemic levels. Africa (+166%) and the Americas (+106%) also recorded strong growth compared to 2021, reaching 63% and 66% of 2019 levels respectively. In Asia and the Pacific arrivals more than tripled (+230%) in the first nine months of 2022, reflecting the opening of many destinations, including Japan at the end of September. However, arrivals in Asia and the Pacific remained 83% below 2019 levels. China, a key source market for the region, remained closed.

A clear recovery is evident for all priority African markets throughout 2022 thus far, and especially so during the third quarter. African priority markets’ recovery in Q3 2022 is led again by the same countries as in the previous quarter of 2022, namely Zambia, Namibia, Mozambique and Kenya, but are also joined this quarter by Zimbabwe. All five countries are showing decline rates better than the African priority markets’ average for September 2022.

In this period, Mozambique continues to show the greatest share increase (+4.0%) very similar to its share gain in Q2 2022 (+4.2%). Mozambique now accounts for 21.9% of priority arrivals compared to 17.9% prior to the Covid-19 pandemic. The decline in Q3 2022 was led once more by Nigeria (- 45.9%) and Botswana (-44.6%), but also by Lesotho (-40.8%) as well as eSwatini (- 37.5%).

16th most appealing destination

Despite the slow recovery, South Africa still offers exquisite, unparalleled experiences and value for money, which is why the recently released Tourism Sentiment Index® for Q3 2022 ranked South Africa as the 16th most appealing destination in the world.

The Tourism Sentiment Index® is an independent global initiative offering destination marketers unique real-time insight into their customers and the conversations they are having online about tourism destinations. According to the Index, South Africa is ahead of India, Mexico, China, Denmark, Norway, Thailand, Spain and The Netherlands, to name a few. South Africa notched up a Tourism Sentiment Score® of 23.6, 4% higher when compared to Q3 2021. South Africa also outperformed the global benchmark of 21.2. This is no small feat, as the Index analyses 625 million online conversations across 100 tourism destinations globally, according to the TSI South Africa rankings report.

Thus far, it is the only one of its kind in the world for two reasons: It is purpose-built for destination marketing. Customers get access to data from thousands of other destinations around the world. According to the report, the top contributors to South Africa’s overall performance were: wildlife viewing (15%), restaurants plus dining (12%), and festivals, events and concerts (10%). Wildlife viewing in South Africa generated 28% more positive sentiment than half of the destinations worldwide, placing South Africa in the top 10 in the world for this tourism asset, says the Tourism Sentiment Index® report.

“This is an important milestone for SA tourism,’ said South Africa Tourism Acting Chief Executive Officer, Themba Khumalo. Khumalo says the Index’s favourable score follows on efforts since the global marketing campaign dubbed Live Again, was launched.

Apart from wildlife or dining in top-class restaurants scored high as South African attractions, other aspects such as, for instance, diving and snorkelling along the country’s immense coastline, also did well, getting a score of 35, giving South Africa second place in the world for this great tourism asset. And topping it all was South Africa’s renowned wine industry, ranked number one in the world.

Tourism a potential game changer

Commenting on these various reports, Tourism Minister De Lille said that as a strategic pillar of South Africa’s economy, tourism has the potential to address the triple challenges of unemployment, poverty, and inequality through the creation of decent jobs. Apart from generating revenue, it provides economic opportunities for women and youth, and supports the development of SMMEs through enterprise development.

Nonetheless, during the COVID 19 pandemic, the tourism sector was one of the most vulnerable sectors of the economy and the impact could be seen in most of the tourism-related industries that are operating within the tourism value chain at a global and national level. The tourism sector directly employed 459,533 persons in 2020 which was a decrease of 41.1% or 320,563 employees compared with 2019, while tourism’s share of total employment decreased from 4.8% in 2019 to 3.1% in 2020. The direct contribution of tourism to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP)

decreased from R208,316-million in 2019 to R123,616-million in 2020, which was a decrease of 40.7%.

According to Minister De Lille, in response to these decreases, the Department of Tourism, working together with the industry, developed a Tourism Sector Recovery Plan which is an integral part of the South Africa’s Economic Reconstruction and Recovery Plan announced by President Cyril Ramaphosa in October 2020. The robust Tourism Sector Recovery Plan outlines a set of interventions to ignite the recovery of the tourism sector and to place it on a path to long-term sustainability.

Minister de Lille continued: “My focus in this new role is to drive greater implementation of the Tourism Sector Recovery Plan, to drive destination development and marketing and accelerate efforts on all fronts to help the sector create more jobs. There is so much untapped potential in our country, and we will be working harder to see more travellers visit our shores”.

FROM SHOPPING MALLS TO ONLINE SHOPPING TO OMNICHANNEL EXPERIENCES

would have thought that the retail landscape would have been filled with mothballed shopping malls, cobwebbed reminders of a bygone era. But not so. Against all odds, last year saw a mall-build boom of hundreds of thousands of square meters, costing billions of rands, and it continues this year. It’s clear, South Africans – and their wallets - have not lost their appetite for physical shopping.

In a world now firmly glued to the wonders of online shopping from home – helped in no small way by the lockdown restrictions caused by Covid-19 – brick and mortar shopping malls are defying the odds and are making a big comeback. Not only have many of the older malls had refreshing facelifts, but something of a boom has been taking place with new shopping malls rising across South Africa.

Just like television series or Netflix could never quite replace a Saturday night at the movies, an online catalogue does not have quite the same allure as browsing from store to store in a big mall. For many it’s a whole-day or weekend outing.

Yet at the same time e-commerce – bolstered immensely during the pandemic period – continues to boom and a complete return to the prepandemic bricks-and-mortar norm seems unlikely. This phenomenon coupled to the enormous growth of the digital smart-phone-linked retail universe, has given rise to a new retail

approach called omnichannel retail. According to the market research group Frost & Sullivan, omnichannel is defined as “seamless and effortless, high-quality customer experiences that occur within and between contact channels”.

In more simple language that refers to retailers engaging customers through multiple digital and physical touchpoints or experiences, creating a consistent, on-brand experience from start to finish. As a practical example, a clothing boutique may sell its products through its online store, through Instagram, and in its physical store, combining all the elements of the experience.

Malls remain popular

First, let’s go back to the malls - still the favourite home of physical shopping experiences. After the pandemic years of isolation and the rise of online shopping, followed by the current globally tough economic conditions and the rising cost of living, one

But the malls and their retailers nonetheless compete in a tough environment. Online shopping provides convenience, a wider selection as retail groups merge their offering onto one online platform, and give shoppers access to multiple global fashion brands that are now available in South Africa. For instance, The Foschini Group (TFG) now conveniently sell all the group’s brands in one online store called Bash.

After the departure of once well-known retail brands such as Stuttafords and Edgars, the vacuum was quickly filled by smaller innovative new brands and global fashion brands. These now offer brick-and-mortar shoppers next level shopping experiences that cannot be duplicated online. And malls are following suit. Concept stores have also become a big thing, where likeminded shoppers meet and buy into a lifestyle.

Against this background the malls that fell quiet when Covid-19 arrived, are humming with feet and business again. Not only have the well-known malls that existed before Covid been revived, but since last year new ones are being added as well.

Consumer landscape research data published in BrandMapp 2022 by WhyFive shows that despite the growing popularity of online shopping, consumers still like their brick-andmortar mall shopping experiences. The research has revealed that middle-class residents of Gauteng on average visit almost four different malls on a regular basis; in Cape Town 2.7 malls are visited and in KwaZulu-Natal it’s 2.4 malls. Against this background it has been reported that some 200,000m2 of regional shopping space was developed during 2022, with more being planned or added this year. Meanwhile the old icons of mall shopping – Canal Walk, Mall of Africa, Sandton City, The Pavilion, Menlyn Park, Victoria Wharf, and Gateway among others – remain firm favourites.

The online invasion

Almost overnight in March 2020, our malls ran empty as the Covid-19 pandemic caused most of the world to go into serious lockdown. No longer able to visit their favourite stores and malls, people around the world resorted to online shopping and home deliveries. In South Africa leading online store Takealot propelled itself into every home. Here one could order anything from shoes to TVs to hardware and much, much more.

In no time supermarket chains like Checkers and Pick ‘n Pay cottoned on to the immense new opportunity created by the pandemic, and a boom in home deliveries quickly followed. Among the top performers were Checkers’ Sixty60 service, Pick ‘n Pay’s ASAP, while retailers like Mr Price also cashed in. Research done by World Wide Worx showed that their online growth continued through last year, and the total growth in online retail in South Africa for 2022 was 35%, bringing the value of the country’s online retail sector to R55-billion.

From July 2021 to July 2022, Checkers Sixty60 grew its turnover by 150%; Pick ‘n Pay reported for the year ending in February 2022 that online sales had achieved annual compound growth of 72.5% over the previous two years; and Mr Price reported that its online retail sales was up 48.2% for the year to April 2022.

Adding choice to the online mix were app services ranging, for example, from Uber East to Bolt Food, Takealot, Dis-Chem, Superbalist, LightInTheBox, Mr D Food, Shopify, Zando and many more. The experience of these online stores and delivery services showed that consumers wanted choice, efficiency, fast delivery and security.

The research by World Wide Worx, with findings compiled from accumulated figures and projections from listed companies, interviews with unlisted online retailers, and data on card transactions, found that in 2021 the online total of R42.3-billion constituted just 4% of the total retail value of R1.166-trillion. It nonetheless represented good growth from the 2.8% recorded in 2020.

Enter the omnichannel experience

The return to ‘normality’ after the impacts of the coronavirus had faded, did not, however, herald a trend of consumers returning all-out back to physical shopping in malls and stores. What remained in the wake of Covid-19 was a demand for greater seamless shopping experiences across channels. Enter the omnichannel marketing strategy.

Omnichannel is also described as ‘seamless commerce’ or ‘unified commerce’, while a complete omnichannel marketing strategy for a brand usually includes a two-way integration between online channels and a physical location, plus handoffs between online channels.

The BigCommerce blog describes it as follows: “Omnichannel retail is a form of integrated multichannel commerce that enables data synchronization between channels. Omnichannel retail typically refers to the practice of linking a store’s brick-and-mortar operations with its online business. It can be part of a larger commerce and marketing strategy that connects the various touchpoints of customer and brand interaction and ensures that information is handed off between touchpoints.

“An omnichannel strategy focuses on how multiple channels interact

with each other and the customer. A successful omnichannel setup keeps customer data and product data synced across channels. The ultimate goal is to maximize convenience for the customer so that every interaction with a brand across different channels feels like it’s part of one seamless experience.”

Basically the emerging consumer trend is for consumers to expect an omnichannel shopping experience that allows them to pick up where they left off on one channel and continue the experience on another. This creates plenty of scope for innovative new developments in the retail space.

Among the leading global omnichannel practitioners doing business in South Africa, are two beauty products retailers – usually referred to as luxury beauty destinations – namely Sephora and ARC. Bucking the trend or order of things, ARC Store launched their e-commerce store in April 2021, at the hight of the pandemic, just months after they brought their online offering to these shores. Usually, it’s done the other way around.

Research shows that omnichannel retail now forms a vital part of most retail strategies, catering to the 73% of customers who use multiple channels to research products, look for discounts, or compare prices.

According to TWICE, part of Future plc, an international media group and leading digital publisher, the 2023 retail landscape will feature a few consistent trends that put the customer at the forefront, comply with regulations, and embrace cuttingedge technological developments. For 2023, the experts predict that the four trends that will take hold across the retail landscape, are: next-level hyper-personalization, omnichannel shopping experiences across all retail areas, a renewed focus on tracking technologies in retail, and a boost in popularity for livestream shopping.

So, there you have it –happy shopping, whatever your preference.

SAFIRI

Interceptor by HI-TEC, answers to the end-user’s demand in providing high quality safety footwear with features that include a range of leather uppers, toe caps and specialised sole constructions. Interceptor will continue to push the boundaries of industry leading design and innovation by exploring the varied dangers inherent in an industry.

Interceptor Safiri

Interceptor by HI-TEC, answers to the enduser’s demand in providing high quality safety footwear with features that include a range of leather uppers, toe caps and specialised sole constructions. Interceptor will continue to push the boundaries of industry leading design and innovation by exploring the varied dangers inherent in an industry.

Designed for both indoor and outdoor working conditions. This ultra-comfortable boot offers great stability and comfort. Specially constructed to perform with features like a full grain crazy horse leather upper for durability and style, a padded collar and padded tongue for extra comfort, a full moisture-wicking lining to help

wick sweat in a busy day and a new improved moulded, padded and removable sock liner that offer extra cushioning for greater comfort. A steel shank, a 200j impact resistant steel toe cap and dual-density PU sole offers your feet the protection they need!

All Interceptor footwear offered are tested and certified according to the National Regulator for Compulsory Specifications and the South African Bureau of Standards. In this way, Interceptor ensures that all products released into the market performs with the purpose for which it was constructed.

POLITICUS

RAMAPHOSA CREATES NEW MINISTRIES TO DEAL WITH BIG PROBLEMS

President Cyril Ramaphosa held a press conference at the Union Buildings in Pretoria last week to announce the latest addition to his very big cabinet – the newly-created Minister of Game and Rare Cattle Farms, also to be known as the Phala Phala Minister for short.

The president announced that the renowned former Chinese Somalian cattle breeder and trader, Mr ‘Dollar’ Moo Beefhorni would be the first minister to be appointed to this new and important position.

Before the conference an upbeat President Ramaphosa was was cheerfully handing out wads of dollar notes to the assembled journalists and TV cameramen. Politicus managed to grab three bundles of notes and immediately after the press conference set off to the nearest branch of Cash Converters where he became the

proud owner of a life sized stuffed Ankole cow that had once belonged to the jailed swindler, Bernie Madoff. Said stuffed cow now proudly stands – and has been heard to moo late at night - besides Politicus’ desk while the unstuffed versions of rare Ankoles roam freely on the president’s Phala Phala farm under the watchful eye of Minister Moo Beefhorni. The reason for the president’s cheerfulness and his new ministry soon became apparent:

“As you may be aware, the Acting Public Protector has now cleared me of any wrongdoing relating to my Ankole cattle and the dollar notes stuffed into furniture in my house on my Phala Phala farm, which was the target of a mysterious robbery,” said the president. “As you can imagine, it is a huge relief for me. But to finally put this problem to rest as some critical issues are still unresolved,

and to prevent any such unfortunate misunderstandings and problems in the future, I have decided to create the new position of Minister of Game and Rare Cattle Farms, with Mr ‘Dollar’ Moo Beefhorni as its first minister,” said President Ramaphosa.

“I do this in keeping with my recent cabinet reshuffle which further enlarged my already bloated cabinet and the precedent that I set that in future we will fast-track solving critical problems by creating a ministry to deal with each problem. That is why I created the new Ministry of Electricity and now the Phala Phala Ministry.

I will soon also be announcing details of more new ministries, namely the Ministry of Copper Cable Theft, the Ministry of Potholed Roads and the Ministry of Construction Mafia. When I became president I reduced the number of ministries from 34 to 28 – we are now back to 30 and when the other 3 are added it will be 33 ministries, still one less than the number under my predecessor. So, I am sticking to my undertaking to reduce the cabinet. I thank you.”

Phew! That was a close shave. The city of Tshwane almost had an unrehabilitated insolvent as its mayor… or differently put, Tshwane almost had no mayor at all. Because – heavens forbid – the city’s latest mayor, Councillor Murunwa Makwarela of the Congress of the People (COPE), was thought to be an unrehabilitated insolvent and was unceremoniously removed from this position by the Independent Electoral Commission (IEC). The elders who rule over our capital city thought even having no mayor would be better than having an insolvent mayor.

But then lo and behold, Cllr Makwarela (not to be confused with the dance called the macarena, although his moves are as nifty) managed to provide a letter of solvency to the municipality’s City Manager and he was quickly reinstated. But the good mayor’s Makwarela was soon to be cooked when it turned out

the letter of solvency was fake, and he had to resign. Problem is, how do you resign from a job that was never yours legally? Shouldn’t he just have been removed in chains and orange jumpsuit?

The sorry saga began when Cllr Makwarela was elected mayor in the latest round of musical chairs in the Tshwane metro council as the evershifting varieties of coalitions battle it out for control of this and other metro councils across Gauteng. Who needs elections if you can just connive and conspire your way in and out of power? Gauteng’s major metros have had so many different mayors and speakers over the last year that no-one can keep count. Politicus heard the province has advertised for a dedicated mayor counter to be employed.

What Politicus also learnt from this affair is that the rules for membership

of a municipal council -basically the same as those for the National Assembly - clearly stipulate if you have been guilty of the dastardly act of being declared insolvent and have not been rehabilitated you need not apply for the job and won’t be eligible to be a councillor, let alone a mayor.

Take your things and voetsek! But if you are a rapist, a robber, a hijacker, a murderer, a drug dealer, a thief, a corrupt swindler, or any other kind of convicted criminal, it’s all okay –you may be a councillor or even a mayor (or a member of the National Assembly). As long as your prison sentence did not exceed 12 months without the option of a fine. And if it did exceed 12 months, but you paid an optional fine instead, you are still welcome. You don’t even have to be rehabilitated.

Money talks. As long as it’s not coming from an insolvent bank account. It’s just those bloody unrehabilitated insolvents that our Constitution, our councils and legislatures don’t like. Haibo! Siesa Wena man, don’t come here with that insolvent attitude!

South Africa’s new Minister of Electricity in the Presidency, Kgosientso Ramokgopa, says he knows exactly how he is going to end Eskom’s woes and loadshedding – by installing pre-paid electricity meters in every home across the length and breadth of the country.

Ramokgopa, who holds a Bachelor’s degree in civil engineering, Master’s degrees in public administration and business leadership, and a PhD in

public affairs, has exactly the right experience for such an undertaking. While mayor of Tshwane in 2013, Ramokgopa oversaw a project to rollout smart prepaid electricity meters across the city under the Security of Revenue Project. The contract was awarded to PEU Capital Partners but was challenged in the courts by opposition parties as having been awarded irregularly and the project failed, but not before it cost the city billions of rands.

But Ramokgopa says the project taught him important lessons that he can now put to good use. With each prepaid meter every household will also be supplied with an Eskom cellphone.

When national power supply comes under strain due to low capacity and high demand, Eskom will phone each household on its supplied Eskom smartphone, instructing it to switch off the mains on their prepaid meter box until further notice. That way, says Ramokgopa, it won’t be necessary for Eskom to pull the loadshedding lever as households will themselves be in charge of switching off their power, thus putting an end to loadshedding.

RAPISTS AND MURDERERS CAN BE MAYORS BUT NOT A DASTARDLY UNREHABILITATED INSOLVENT

NEW MINISTER OF ELECTRICITY SAYS PRE-PAID METERS WILL SOLVE ESKOM’S PROBLEMS

TRANSFORMERS ACEM

ACEM Transformer Product Offers Include:

Oil Immersed Transformers from 50kVA-3150kVA; 33kV

Dry Type Transformers From:

15kVA-3150kVA; 33kV

Distribution and Auxiliary Transformers

NERCT’s

Reactors & Coreless Reactors

Auto Transformers

Step-up & Step-down transformers

CONTACT US

+27 11 763 2351

sales@armcoil.co.za

THE SPOTLIGHT

In every edition of Forerunner, we shine a spotlight on some of the most exceptional and enjoyable things in life. In this edition we showcase the brand-new Mercedes-AMG SL 43 roadster and Flowstone’s double-gold award-winning Snuffbox Gin.

SL 43 Roadster

From the moment you settle into the plush leather-clad driver’s seat with the top down in MercedesBenz’s brand-new AMG SL 43 roadster with its 2.0-litre in-line fourcylinder engine with electrically assisted exhaust gas turbocharger, you know you are in for an exceptional ride.

Mercedes-AMG will be launching their SL 43 roadster in South Africa in the second quarter of this year, but is ready

to take your orders now. The local price is yet to be announced.

This new technically innovative entrylevel model of the newly developed roadster icon follows on the two earlier variants with V8 engines. In the 70 years of its development history, the SL has been transformed from a thoroughbred racing car to an open-top luxury sports car, earning itself legend status. This release marks another milestone in

the model’s history.

For the first time ever, an electric exhaust gas turbocharger is being used in a production vehicle, utilising a unique technology transfer directly from Formula 1™. The operating principle of the electric exhaust gas turbocharger is based on the same technology used by the Mercedes-AMG Petronas F1 Team. These and other features combine the distinct sportiness of the

Mercedes-AMG

Mercedes-AMG SL 43 technical data at a glance

Engine:

2.0-litre in-line four-cylinder engine with electrically Assisted exhaust gas turbo charger

Displacement: 1,991 cc

Max. output : 280 kW (381 hp) at 6,750 rpm

Peak torque: 480 Nm at 3,250–5,000 rpm

Drive system: Rear-wheel drive

Transmission: AMG SPEEDSHIFT MCT 9G

Combined fuel consumption: 2 9.4–8.9 l/100 km

Combined CO2 emissions: 214–201 g/km

Acceleration: 0–100 km/h 4.9 s

Top speed: 275 km/h (electronically limited)

Kerb weight acc. to EC: 1,810 kg

original SL with the unique luxury and technological excellence of the modern Mercedes-AMG models. Yet, the new SL of the R232 series is based on a completely new vehicle architecture developed by Mercedes-AMG.

The extensive standard equipment includes the electrically operated

multilayer fabric soft top, 19-inch AMG alloy wheels, digital light, the AMG high-performance composite braking system and the airpanel active air control system. Added to this are the active rear spoiler, the “hyperanalogue” cockpit with MBUX infotainment system and tilt-adjustable multimedia touchscreen, as well as comfort seats

with Artico man-made leather and fabric. The numerous options allow for a wide range of possibilities for individualisation.

The AMG 2.0-litre four-cylinder engine develops 280 kW (381 hp) and provides a maximum torque of 480 Nm. The electric exhaust gas turbocharger guarantees particularly spontaneous responsiveness across the entire rev range. The turbocharger is powered by the 48-volt on-board electrical system, which also feeds the belt-driven starter generator that provides an additional boost of 10 kW (14 hp) for a short time. Accelerating from 0 to 100 km/h takes just 4.9 seconds, while the top speed is limited to 275 km/h.

The exterior design of the SL 43 differs in individual details from the two eightcylinder models. The defining features of the SL body design include the long wheelbase, the short overhangs, the long bonnet, the passenger compartment set further back with steeply raked windscreen, and the powerful rear end. This results in the typical SL proportions. Opening and closing the three-layer fabric soft top takes only about 15 seconds and is possible up to a speed of 60 km/h.

This new entry-level model of the 2+2-seater roadster is also aimed at particularly tech-savvy buyers with its combination of a lightweight fourcylinder engine on the front axle and rear-wheel drive that permits the SL 43 to display very particular handling characteristics.

What do you buy for the gin lover who has everything?

Released once a year in small batches, Flowstone’s double-gold award-winning Snuffbox Gin draws its intriguing complexity from an

indigenous botanical source found in the Cradle of Humankind.

With big aromas, including hints of citrus and spice, each sip is a journey of discovery – the palate offers a superb balance of botanicals, with

gentle juniper tantalising flavours that hint at burnt caramel, cacao, chocolate and an edge of vanilla, all leading to a malty finish.

It is perfect as a sipping gin, over ice. For a festive serve, add a splash of tonic water and float miniature red carnations on top – they add a scent reminiscent of cloves, which complements this gin superbly. Cornflowers are another great garnish for Snuffbox Gin. Their startling blue is exquisite (drop in a clove and three warmed coffee beans for a truly unique gin experience).

To craft their gins, Flowstone uses the Bushveld botanicals that grow wild in and around the Cradle of Humankind where their distillery is located. These are sustainably hand-harvested by members of the local community each October while additional trees are planted each year to ensure a thriving local population.

All ingredients used in Flowstone gins are renewable, including the water. “The area was traditionally known among some people as Malmani – the place of water,” distiller Mark French explains. “We have a natural spring on the property that is perennial except in very dry conditions, and even then it continues to seep.”

Befitting its status as the very limited, collector’s edition of South Africa’s highest awarded gin range, each bottle of Snuffbox Gin has a striking label, a unique, handwritten series number, and comes elegantly presented in black, gold and white packaging. A rare and very precious gift.

Flowstone’s double-gold award-winning Snuffbox Gin

The company’s team of highly- skilled technicians are fully trained in the repair & maintenance of variety of internationally branded machines.

In particular we offer expert services in the repair of components for New Holland Flameproof Tractors as well as Clark & Spicer.

K U B U S C I E N C E K U B U S C I E N C E & T E C H N O L O G Y & T E C H N O L O G Y

I N S T I T U T E I N S T I T U T E

" U n i t e d i n E x c e l l e n c e a n d I n n o v a t i o n "

" U n i t e d i n E x c e l l e n c e a n d I n n o v a t i o n "

H e a l t h & L e a d e r s h i p M a n a g e m e n t

H o s p i t a l D e s i g n

F i n a n c e M a n a g e m e n t i n H e a l t h

H o s p i t a l O p e r a t i o n s M a n a g e m e n t

E m p l o y e e A s s i s t a n c e P r o g r a m m e s & P I L R f o r H e a l t h W o r k e r s

M e d i c a l N e g l i g e n c e , M a l p r a c t i c e , & H e a l t h S e c t o r M e d i c a t i o n

H e a l t h S y s t e m , H e a l t h i n f o r m a t i c s & Q u a l i t y I m p r o v e m e n t

M e n t o r i n g f o r P e r s o n a l D e v e l o p m e n t

L e a d i n g a H o s p i t a l M a n a g e m e n t T e a m

S u p p l y C h a i n M a n a g e m e n t f o r E n t r e p r e n e u r s

R e s e a r c h & D e v e l o p m e n t

M o n i t o r i n g & E v a l u a t i o n

I n f e r e n t i a l S t a t i s t i c s ( R S t u d i o & S t a t a )

D e s c r i p t i v e S t a t i s t i c s ( R S t u d i o & S t a t a )

Q u a l i t a t i v e R e s e a r c h M e t h o d s

E p i d e m i o l o g y

A d v a n c e d E p i d e m i o l o g y

C r e a t i v e & A r t s B a s e d R e s e a r c h M e t h o d s

A r t s

A c t i n g T e c h n i q u e f o r S t a g e & F i l m

A p p l i e d T h e a t r e F a c i l i t a t i o n T e c h n i q u e s

A r t s & C u l t u r e E n t r e p r e n e u r s h i p

C r e a t i v e A r t s B u s i n e s s A d m i n i s t r a t i o n & O p e r a t i o n s M a n a g e m e n t

P e r f o r m i n g A r t s A u d i t i o n T e c h n i q u e s

M u s i c f o r D a n c e

D a n c e T e a c h i n g

D a n c e P e d a g o g i c a l S t u d i e s

D a n c e A n a t o m y & K i n e s i o l o g y

D a n c e C o m p o s i t i o n & M o v e m e n t A n a l y s i s

C o m p o s i t i o n & L y r i c W r i t i n g

D i r e c t i n g & S c r i p t W r i t i n g

M u s i c T h e o r y

C l i n i c a l M a n a g e m e n t

N u r s e I n i t i a t e d & M a n a g e m e n t o f A R T ( N I M A R T ) S c h o o l H e a l t h P r o g r a m m e I n t e g r a t e d M a n a g e m e n t o f C h i l d h o o d I l l n e s s e s

S u r v e i l l a n c e o f I n f e c t i o n s & O u t b r e a k M a n a g e m e n t

H o s p i t a l W a s t e M a n a g e m e n t

G o o d C l i n i c a l P r a c t i c e

E t h i c s f o r H e a l t h c a r e P r o f e s s i o n a l s ( E t h i c a l D i l e m m a s )

A n t i m i c r o b i a l R e s i s t a n c e & C l e v e r D o s i n g

L e a d e r s h i p & M a n a g e m e n t

P o l i c y F o r m u l a t i o n f o r t h e P u b l i c S e r v i c e

P u b l i c T r a n s f o r m a t i o n i n P u b l i c H e a l t h

I n t r o d u c t i o n t o P u b l i c A d m i n i s t r a t i o n & t h e L e a r n i n g

O r g a n i s a t i o n

S t r a t e g i c M a r k e t i n g & C o m m u n i c a t i o n

F i n a n c i a l M a n a g e m e n t & E c o n o m i c s f o r E n t r e p r e n e u r s

L e a d e r s h i p D e v e l o p m e n t f o r E n t r e p r e n e u r s

T h e A r t s & L e a d e r s h i p D e v e l o p m e n t

T e a m L e a d e r s h i p t h a t B u i l d s P r o f e s s i o n a l E t h i c s

G o v e r n a n c e & L e g i s l a t i o n

E d u c a t i o n

C u r r i c u l u m S t u d i e s

E n g l i s h F A L T e a c h i n g

F o u n d a t i o n s o f E d u c a t i o n

H o m e L a n g u a g e T e a c h i n g ( E n g l i s h / A f r i k a a n s / i s i X h o s a

E d u c a t i o n )

M a t h e m a t i c a l E d u c a t i o n

T h e P r o f e s s i o n a l T e a c h e r : C r e a t i n g S u c c e s s f u l

C l a s s r o o m s : P e d a g o g y & C l a s s r o o m s a s C o m m u n i t i e s

L a n g u a g e f o r C o n v e r s a t i o n a l P u r p o s e s

( A f r i k a a n s / i s i X h o s a )

S c h o o l B a s e d W o r k I n t e g r a t e d L e a r n i n g

2 0 2 3

S H O R T C O U R S E S

K U B U S C I E N C E A N D K U B U S C I E N C E A N D

T E C H N O L O G Y I N S T I T U T E T E C H N O L O G Y I N S T I T U T E

T h e h o n o u r a n d p l e a s u r e I f e e l a t t h i s o p p o r t u n i t y t o l e a d t h e K u b u S c i e n c e a n d T e c h n o l o g y I n s t i t u t e a s C E O i s i m m e a s u r a b l e H a v i n g b e e n p a r t o f t h e h i g h e r e d u c a t i o n a l l a n d s c a p e o f S o u t h A f r i c a f o r t h e b e t t e r p a r t o f t w o d e c a d e s , a n d b e i n g a p a r e n t f o r m o s t o f m y a d u l t l i f e , I h a v e s e e n i t a l l b o t h f r o m w i t h i n a n d o u t s i d e I h a v e s e e n t h e c o n f i d e n c e a n d h o p e o f t h e e a r l y y e a r s o f d e m o c r a c y y i e l d t o t h e f r u s t r a t i o n s a n d d e s p a i r o f r e c e n t y e a r s A c r o s s t h e g l o b e , f a r - r e a c h i n g c h a n g e s h a v e o c c u r r e d t h a t b o t h c h a l l e n g e a n d m o t i v a t e u s , b r i n g i n g u s t o t h i s c r o s s r o a d s w h e r e a d e f i n i t e a n d c o n c r e t e i n t e r v e n t i o n c a n n o l o n g e r b e a v o i d e d K u b u S c i e n c e a n d T e c h n o l o g y I n s t i t u t e ( K S T I ) i s h e r e t o c o n f r o n t t h o s e c h a l l e n g e s h e a do n b y d e p l o y i n g t h e l a t e s t t e c h n o l o g i e s a n d i n n o v a t i v e p r a c t i c e s i n t h e e d u c a t i o n a r e n a S o u t h A f r i c a i s a t a s t a g e w h e r e t h e m a j o r i t y o f y o u t h a r e d e s i r o u s o f h i g h e r e d u c a t i o n a l q u a l i f i c a t i o n s b u t a r e h a m p e r e d b y i n t r a c t a b l e o b s t a c l e s , n o t t h e l e a s t o f w h i c h a r e h i g h r a t e s o f p o v e r t y a n d u n e m p l o y m e n t

K S T I ’ s p a r t i c u l a r a p p e a l i s i t s p r o - y o u t h f o c u s a n d i t s c a r e f u l p o s i t i o n i n g t o b e a t t h e f o r e f r o n t o f t h e w a r s a g a i n s t i n e q u a l i t y , p o v e r t y a n d u n e m p l o y m e n t i n S o u t h

A f r i c a F r o m t h e o u t s e t , K S T I a d o p t s a n e n t r e p r e n e u r i a l m o d e l t h a t f r o n t a l l y a t t a c k s t h o s e f a c t o r s t h a t n o t o n l y p r e v e n t y o u t h f r o m a c t u a l i z i n g t h e i r d r e a m s , b u t f r u s t r a t e s a d u l t s a n d p a r e n t s f r o m k e e p i n g t h e i r w a r d s i n s c h o o l u n t i l t h e s u c c e s s f u l c o m p l e t i o n o f t h e i r p r o g r a m m e s W e w i l l n o t o n l y e m p o w e r s t u d e n t s a n d y o u n g p e o p l e , w e w i l l a f f o r d l i f e l o n g o p p o r t u n i t i e s f o r l e a r n i n g f o r t h o s e w h o m u s t c o m b i n e l e a r n i n g w i t h l i v e l i h o o d p u r s u i t s E n t r e p r e n e u r s h i p i s e n c o u r a g e d a n d n u r t u r e d t h r o u g h a n e c o s y s t e m t h a t i n t e g r a t e s t e a c h i n g , r e s e a r c h , a n d i n d u s t r y n e e d s , c o n s t r a i n t s a n d p r o s p e c t s . S t a f f m e m b e r s o f K S T I a r e c o m m i t t e d t o t h e i r r o l e s o f e n s u r i n g t h a t t h e

I n s t i t u t e i s e n t r e p r e n e u r i a l b y s y s t e m a t i c a n d p u r p o s e f u l e x p l o i t a t i o n o f f l e x i b i l i t i e s i n t h e e x i s t i n g c u r r i c u l a

E n t r e p r e n e u r s h i p d e v e l o p m e n t i s e m b r a c e d a t t h e e x e c u t i v e l e v e l a n d i s s p e l l e d o u t i n t h e v i s i o n o f t h e i n s t i t u t e O u r e f f o r t s i n t h e e s t a b l i s h m e n t o f T e c h n o l o g y T r a n s f e r I n c u b a t i o n C e n t r e ’ s a n d I n n o v a t i o n H u b s i s o n e a v e n u e t h r o u g h w h i c h s u p p o r t i s e x t e n d e d t o t h e p r o s p e c t i v e e n t r e p r e n e u r s O u r v i s i o n i s b e i n g r e a l i s e d b y p u r s u i n g a n d m a i n t a i n i n g e x c e l l e n c e t h r o u g h g r o u n d b r e a k i n g t e a c h i n g , r e s e a r c h a n d i n n o v a t i o n

L a n d i n g o n t h e s c e n e a t t h e d a w n o f t h e F o u r t h I n d u s t r i a l R e v o l u t i o n , K S T I i s o p t i m i z i n g t h e u s e o f s c i e n c e a n d n e w t e c h n o l o g i e s t o d e m o n s t r a t e t h e w i n - w i n n e x u s a m o n g e x c e l l e n c e , i n t e g r i t y , e n t r e p r e n e u r s h i p , i n n o v a t i o n a n d s u s t a i n a b i l i t y

K S T I i s f o c u s i n g o n H e a l t h a n d E d u c a t i o n S c i e n c e s , M a n a g e m e n t S c i e n c e a n d L a w , S c i e n c e a n d A g r i c u l t u r e , A r t s , T e c h n o l o g y a n d E n g i n e e r i n g T h e y e a r 2 0 2 3 w i l l s e e K S T I o f f e r i n g s h o r t c o u r s e s i n t h e s e f o c u s a r e a s O u r m e t h o d o l o g i e s a r e i n n o v a t i v e a n d d e v e l o p s t u d e n t s ’ c r i t i c a l t h i n k i n g , p r o b l e m s o l v i n g , i n d e p e n d e n t t h i n k i n g a n d f u n c t i o n i n g , e f f e c t i v e c o m m u n i c a t i o n a n d s e l f - d i r e c t e d l e a r n i n g , w i t h i n a n e n t r e p r e n e u r i a l s p a c e O u r e s t a b l i s h e d s c h o o l o f p o s t g r a d u a t e s t u d i e s i s d e s i g n e d t o a s s i s t M a s t e r s a n d D o c t o r a l s t u d e n t s f r o m a l l w a l k s o f l i f e t o c o m p l e t e t h e i r s t u d i e s o n t i m e T h e s e s t u d e n t s a r e n o t n e c e s s a r i l y K S T I g r a d u a t e s W e c o n t i n u e t o f o r m i n t e r n a t i o n a l p a r t n e r s t o e x c h a n g e o u r t e a c h i n g s t a f f f o r c u r r i c u l u m a n d s k i l l s e n h a n c e m e n t

A t K S T I , C o m m u n i t y E n g a g e m e n t d o e s n o t m e r e l y s p r i n g f r o m a f e r t i l e i m a g i n a t i o n t o i n t r o d u c e w h a t d r a w s t h e m o s t a p p l a u s e , b u t i s a n c h o r e d o n s o u n d s c i e n t i f i c e n q u i r y a b o u t l o c a l n e e d s w h e r e m a r k e t s h a v e f a i l e d t o p r o v i d e s o l u t i o n s W e a l l o w t h e s e i d e a s t o e m e r g e t h r o u g h t h e q u a d r u p l e h e l i x o f s c i e n t i f i c r e s e a r c h f i n d i n g s , c o m m u n i t y e x p r e s s e d n e e d s , b u s i n e s s f a c i l i t a t i o n a n d g o v e r n m e n t p o l i c y T h i s e n s u r e s t h a t d u p l i c a t i o n s a r e e l i m i n a t e d a n d t h a t e v e r y a c t i v i t y f i t s i n t o t h e b r o a d e r d e v e l o p m e n t p r o g r a m m e o f S o u t h A f r i c a I n a w a y , w e u s e o u r C o m m u n i t y E n g a g e m e n t P r o g r a m m e s t o f o r g e a n d s t r e n g t h e n t h e m u c h - d e s i r e d p a r t n e r s h i p s a m o n g a l l s e g m e n t s o f s o c i e t y a s e n v i s a g e d i n t h e S u s t a i n a b l e D e v e l o p m e n t G o a l s a n d i n l i n e w i t h t h e p r i o r i t i e s o f t h e S o u t h A f r i c a n G o v e r n m e n t

I l o o k f o r w a r d t o o u r p r o d u c t i v e c o l l a b o r a t i o n a s w e g i v e v o i c e a n d e f f e c t t o o u r m o t t o “ U n i t e d i n E x c e l l e n c e a n d I n n o v a t i o n ”

P r o f e s s o r E u n i c e S e e k o e

C E O , K u b u S c i e n c e a n d T e c h n o l o g y I n s t i t u t e

- 7 JUNE 2023 www.juniorindaba.com

FOR EXPLORERS, DEVELOPERS & INVESTORS IN JUNIOR MINING

Resources 4 Africa is pleased to announce the 9th edition of its annual Junior Indaba, a popular meeting place for junior miners which is enjoyed by all for its incisive, informative and frank discussions tackling the challenges and opportunities for exploration and junior mining companies in South Africa and elsewhere in Africa. Discussion topics this year include:

• What will it take for junior mining in South Africa to succeed?

• What is needed to create a conducive policy and regulatory framework for junior miners in South Africa?

• How are commodity prices faring in 2023 and what will this mean for juniors?

• Do we have the geological endowment to support junior mining in South Africa?

• What lessons can be learned from successful junior miners who are already operating in SA and beyond?

• The battery hype: should miners go beyond mining?

• Experiences of juniors in South Africa, Botswana, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Namibia, Côte d'Ivoire, Burkina Faso and Tanzania

• And much more…

We will feature a number of junior mining success stories, as well as our regular features - Myth Busters and a showcase of presentations from junior miners across the continent. Early confirmed speakers include representatives from: Minerals Council South Africa, DMRE, Council for Geoscience, Wood Mackenzie, DRA Global, Afrimat, Orion Minerals, Osino Resources, Andrada Mining, Botswana Diamonds, Cape 360, Manganese Metal Company and more…..

Mining Industry Partners: Sponsor: Lead Sponsor: Contact us about sponsorship opportunities: sponsorship@resources4africa.com

For more information please contact,

Carina Willemse: Tel: +27 (0) 61 421 9492 Email: carina@resources4africa.com or Stuart Alderson-Smith: Email: stuart@resources4africa.com

The 2023 Junior Indaba, for explorers, developers and investors in junior mining, is brought to you by Resources 4 Africa, the organisers of the Joburg Indaba.

C E N T R E S & U N I T S C E N T R E S & U N I T S

C e n t r e f o r T e a c h i n g a n d L e a r n i n g K u b u C e n t r e f o r C o n t i n u o u s E d u c a t i o n ( K C C E )

A t K S T I , t h e s t u d e n t s t a k e r e s p o n s i b i l i t y f o r t h e i r o w n l e a r n i n g ( s e l f - d i r e c t e d l e a r n i n g ) S t u d e n t s l e a r n a t t h e i r o w n p a c e , m a k i n g u s e o f t h o s e s t r a t e g i e s t h a t t h e y f i n d b e s t L e a r n i n g m a t e r i a l a r e p r o v i d e d i n d i f f e r e n t f o r m a t s , i n o r d e r t o a c c o m m o d a t e d i f f e r e n t l e a r n i n g s t y l e s . S t r u g g l i n g s t u d e n t s a r e i d e n t i f i e d a n d p r o v i d e d w i t h m u l t i f a c e t e d , s t u d e n t - c e n t e r e d c oc u r r i c u l a r e n g a g e m e n t o p p o r t u n i t i e s a n d p r o f e s s i o n a l s e r v i c e s

S c h o o l o f P o s t G r a d u a t e S t u d i e s

K u b u S c i e n c e a n d T e c h n o l o g y

I n n o v a t i o n H u b ( K S T I I H )

K S T I I H i s a p h y s i c a l c e n t r e w i t h i n K T S I t h a t i s d e s i g n e d t o b r i n g t o g e t h e r r e s e a r c h e r s , c r e a t o r s , a n d i n n o v a t o r s t o n u r t u r e i d e a s i n t o i n d u s t r y c h a n g i n g p r o d u c t s a n d s e r v i c e s R e s e a r c h e r s a n d e n t r e p r e n e u r s d e v e l o p d i f f e r e n t t y p e s o f i n n o v a t i o n s u c h a s d e s c r i p t i v e , i n c r e m e n t a l , s u s t a i n i n g a n d r a d i c a l o n e s .

T e c h n o l o g y T r a n s f e r O f f i c e ( T T O )

K u b u C e n t r e f o r C o n t i n u o u s E d u c a t i o n ( K C C E ) i s a s u b s i d i a r y o f K u b u S c i e n c e a n d T e c h n o l o g y I n s t i t u t e ( K S T I ) T h e c e n t r e h a s b e e n c r e a t e d t o f o c u s o n d e v e l o p m e n t a n d o f f e r i n g o f c o n t i n u o u s ( S h o r t L e a r n i n g p r o g r a m m m e s ) t o p r o v i d e a l r e a d y w o r k i n g a d u l t s w i t h n e w u p g r a d e d k n o w l e d g e a n d s k i l l s i n p a r t i c u l a r a r e a s t o u p d a t e t h e a b i l i t y t o c a r r y o u t p a r t i c u l a r s k i l l s o r s p e c i a l t a s k s . T h e P o s t g r a d u a t e S c h o o l e x i s t s f o r i n d i v i d u a l i s e d a n d p e r s o n a l i s e d s u p p o r t s e r v i c e s t o M a s t e r s a n d D o c t o r a l s t u d e n t s f r o m a l l H i g h e r E d u c a t i o n I n s t i t u t i o n s , i n c l u d i n g t h o s e t h a t s t u d y a t K u b u . T h e S c h o o l p r o v i d e s t i m e - s a v i n g s e r v i c e s s u c h a s s t a t i s t i c a l a n a l y s e s o f s t u d y r e s u l t s , e d i t i n g a n d p r o o f r e a d i n g , b u t s o a l s o r e a d f o r c o n t e x t u a l q u a l i t y o f w o r k , i n a d d i t i o n t o w h a t i s o f f e r e d b y u n i v e r s i t i e s i n t e r m s o f s u p e r v i s i o n

C o m m u n i t y E n g a g e m e n t

C o m m u n i t y E n g a g e m e n t i s i n t e g r a t i n g c o l l a b o r a t i o n w i t h i n d u s t r i e s , g o v e r n m e n t d e p a r t m e n t s , c o m m u n i t i e s a n d t h e i n s t i t u t e t o f o r m a q u a d r u p l e h e l i x m o d e l .

T e c h n o l o g y T r a n s f e r o f f i c e o f K S T I m a n a g e s a n d t r a n s f e r i n t e l l e c t u a l p r o p e r t y o f s c i e n t i s t s I t f a c i l i t a t e s c o m m e r c i a l i s a t i o n o f i n t e l l e c t u a l p r o p e r t y g a t h e r e d b y r e s e a r c hb a s e d r e s u l t s t h r o u g h l i c e n s i n g , p a t e n t i n g , o r m a n a g e m e n t o f s p i n - o f f c r e a t i o n s

Dear Fellow South Africans,

We would have stood today at what was supposed to be a difficult juncture in our democratic history. Yes, it is true, we have been at many difficult junctures since 1994, and most of them are still difficult and still unresolved. It is not that we are not trying, but these things take time, patience and careful consideration. But I am happy to report that the latest difficult juncture is no longer a juncture, and it’s no longer difficult either. It’s now regarded simply as a flop.

I am referring of course to the red wave that was supposed to have spilled across South Africa and bring the country to a standstill. Shut it down. Well, allow me a chuckle of relief; that didn’t happen, thanks to my government and our security forces.

The wave became a trickle, and the country continued with business as usual, well, at least for the small minority who have business to conduct, jobs to go to, or classes to attend.

Many of you, I am told, took the Monday off and turned it into a long weekend, while the majority also stayed at home just like they do every day of the year waiting for their next welfare cheque from the South African Social Security Agency (SASSA).

That shows me that our system of providing more than half of South Africa with social welfare grants is working well. By the way, I was also planning on taking the day off, and collecting a Sassa cheque or two, but unfortunately I had to be on my Phala Phala farm to attend to some foreign game and cattle buyers and collect some dollars instead.

Support for the ANC

Nonetheless, despite the red wave drying up almost before it began, I still face a serious dilemma. Next year my party, the African National Congress (ANC), will contest national and provincial elections along with all the many other political parties that receive huge electoral grants from our benevolent taxpayers for doing absolutely nothing. Do you think democracy is worth it? Anyhow, our new secretary-general Fikile Mbalula has informed me that the ANC’s latest internal research shows that we will only manage to win 37.63% of the vote – not enough to remain the government. But enough to form a coalition government with another large party.

How thankless is that for the voters showing

From The President’s Desk

their gratitude to the ANC for almost 30 years of governing excellence and progress? Governing excellence that saw us keeping some of our state-owned enterprises running; that saw us preventing the unemployment rate from reaching 40%; that managed to keep our credit rating just inside the junk band without sinking further; that managed to keep South Africa’s murder rate in third place – not first - behind Jamaica and Honduras; that managed to contain the July 2021 riots so that only two provinces, KwaZulu-Natal and Gauteng, got trashed and destroyed and not all nine; and so forth. Yes, the ANC has done a marvellous job.

Be that as it may, everybody knows the ANC could never enter into a coalition with the Democratic Alliance (DA). For one, they

have far too many white supporters and even if we say we are a ‘non-racial’ party, we don’t much like whites. That’s a fact. Or any other minority groups, or even black African foreigners, for that matter. We love the Chinese though, and the Russians. But more importantly, if we were to be in a coalition with the DA, heaven forbid, their governing efficiency, and their habit of getting things done, on time, will make us, the ANC, look silly and everybody will forget

all the good things we have achieved. So that’s a definite no-no.

As the oldest political party in South Africa, the ANC can never agree to such an arrangement. Which is why we have decided we will enter into a coalition arrangement with the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF). After all, they were spawned by the ANC, and like us they have been accused of being corrupt, and of all sorts of other bad things. They

“… we have decided we will enter into a coalition arrangement with the Economic Freedom Fighters - after all, they were spawned by the ANC…”

face many of the same challenges as us. But most importantly, they won’t outperform us in government because they are just as… well, let’s just say, unaccustomed to governing as us. Apart from our glorious achievements, that is.

Sharing power with the EFF

But, as I already mentioned, we are faced with a dilemma. You see, when Julius Malema and his red Fighters took to the streets to shut South Africa down – in which they failed dismally, dismally I tell you – they demanded my resignation. I don’t know what they had been smoking, but they referred to Phala Phala and insinuated I was corrupt. They blamed me for Eskom’s mess and the loadshedding. They said I was killing the economy (as if they know anything about that).

the sparks usually fly. Just what we need to fire up Eskom again.

But, come to think of it, it’s a dilemma that’s not really a dilemma. You see, we have already successfully worked with the EFF in the metros of Gauteng to steal power from the DA and those other stupid opposition parties. We never let principles get in the way of a good and lucrative power-sharing arrangement. And we did this despite the Malema boy and the EFF constantly defaming me. If it worked there, I suppose it can also work at the national level. So, please my fellow South Africans, prepare yourselves for an ANC-EFF government. We are headed for wonderful things.

Which brings me to the day after the day of the red trickle that never shut South Africa down. Human Rights Day. Every year on March 21 we commemorate the killing

him of human rights abuses and the war crime of illegal deportation of children from Ukraine. I know the arrest warrant obliges the ICC’s 123-member states – of which South Africa is one - to arrest Putin and send him to The Hague for trial if he ever sets foot in any of these countries. But Putin is also a head of a BRICS member state and a good friend of South Africa and me.

My question to you is this: how can I share power with a party that wants to get rid of me? A party that blames me for everything that has gone wrong and unfortunately remains wrong. What do they know about Eskom, the economy, loadshedding, crime and all the other problems I grapple with daily? As I told you before, I and the ANC, we are making progress with solving all of these issues. You must just be patient.

And please, can someone explain this to that rude little Malema boy. If I go, who does he think will become president? He should realise, my country needs me. More than ever before. After all, just look at all the wonderful things I have already done for South Africa. Here’s a proposal: if Malema and his Fighters leave me alone, I will fire the new electricity minister along with Gwede Mantashe and Pravin Gordhan – and then Malema can be our new minister of electricity. After all, wherever he goes,

at Sharpeville of 69 people in 1960 when police opened fire on people protesting the apartheid pass laws. I don’t really know how many people know this, but Sharpeville had nothing to do with the ANC – the protest was organised by our then bitter rivals, the Pan-Africanist Congress (PAC). But that’s just a small detail that was lost in history and not really important. The important thing is, that we as the ANC and the government, and I as your president, remain totally committed to upholding human rights around the world.

Hosting Vladimir Putin

That is why we have decided to invite Russia’s President Vladimir Putin to attend the BRICS summit in South Africa later this year, despite an international warrant for his arrest having been issued by the International Criminal Court (ICC) accusing

Besides, I know the man, and I know he would never have committed any of the human rights abuses and war crimes he is being accused of – it’s all just evil propaganda made up by America and the West as they try to advance their imperialist control of the world. Don’t believe the television news footage you see every night. And by now America and the West should know what our attitude is. After all, my dear friend and honourable predecessor, President Jacob Zuma, laid down our policy when a few years back he refused to arrest Sudan’s then president, Omar al-Bashir, against whom an ICC arrest warrant had also been issued, while he was attending a summit in South Africa. If the Americans want to get snooty about it and withdraw our preferential trade benefits as a result, let them do so and be damned. Who needs America and their Mafia money anyhow. The same goes for the European Union.

In the meantime, I wish to state once again that we, the ANC government and I, respect human rights and uphold the highest human rights values and standards in and for South Africa. We would never harbour a fugitive from justice or anyone accused of such heinous abuses, which is exactly why we are inviting President Putin to our friendly shores. We want him to feel safe and respected here. And if anyone wants to complain about that, they can take a hike or check into a Siberian gulag for all I care.

With best regards,

“We have already successfully worked with the EFF in the metros of Gauteng to steal power from the DA and those other stupid opposition parties…”

UNLOCK YOUR POTENTIAL WITH LESEDI SKILLS ACADEMY

LESEDI SKILLS ACADEMY

The Lesedi Skills Academy (LSA) is the brainchild of Lesedi Nuclear Services. Lesedi is a leading African engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC), and maintenance company with a long history in nuclear, industrial power, mining, oil and gas industries. Lesedi executes turnkey bespoke projects from concept and basic design to detailed engineering, procurement, project management, installation and commissioning, as well as project and contract management function.

The Lesedi The Lesedi Skills Academy (LSA) is the brainchild of Lesedi Nuclear Services. Lesedi (amajority shareholder in the academy) is a leading African engineering, procurement and construction (EPC), and maintenance company with a long history in nuclear, industrial power, mining, oil and gas industries. The Lesedi Skills Academy, a private training provider and an EME (75% BO; 42,62% BFO), opened its doors in 2015.

LESEDI SKILLS ACADEMY

The Lesedi The Lesedi Skills Academy (LSA) is the brainchild of Lesedi Nuclear Services. Lesedi (a majority shareholder in the academy) is a leading African engineering, procurement and construction (EPC), and maintenance company with a long history in nuclear, industrial power, mining, oil and gas industries. The Lesedi Skills Academy, a private training provider and an EME (75% BO; 42,62% BFO), opened its doors in 2015.

The Lesedi Skills Academy, a private training provider and an EME (75% BO; 42,62% BFO), opened its doors in 2015. The Academy provides skills development and training (Mechanical Fitting, Boilermaking & Basic Welding), allowing young people, and previously disadvantaged individuals to enter the formal job market. Through focussed quality training, employed and unemployed learners are provided with the knowledge and skills to progress in the Engineering and related fields.

The Academy provides skills development and training (Mechanical Fitting, Boilermaking & Basic Welding), allowing young people, and previously disadvantaged individuals to enter the formal job market. Through focussed quality training, employed and unemployed learners are provided with the knowledge and skills to progress in the Engineering and related fields. Follow us:Contact Lesedi Skills Academy:

CONTACT DETAILS:

Email: info@lesedisa.com | Julian.vanderPoel@lesedisa.com

Phone: +27 21 525 1530 www.lesedisa.com

CONTACT DETAILS:

Email: info@lesedins.co.za

Phone: +27 21 525 1300 www.lesedins.co.za

The Academy provides skills development and training (Mechanical Fitting, Boilermaking & Basic Welding), allowing young people, and previously disadvantaged individuals to enter the formal job market. Through focussed quality training, employed and unemployed learners are provided with the knowledge and skills to progress in the Engineering and related fields.

BU IL D I N G,

BU IL D I N G, C O NN E C TI N G AND E M POWE R I N G O

BY LEADING THE POWER GENERATION, MINING, AND OIL & GAS INDUSTRIES SINCE 1984

C O NN E C TI N G AND E M POWE R I N G POWE R

LESEDI MARKETS

Oil & Gas

• EP&C of the Balance of Plant for Eskom’s four Gas Turbine Power Stations constructed in Atlantis and Mossel Bay in the Western Cape, South Africa.

• Mechanical erection of 14x150MW gas turbines for Siemens and associated turbine halls. Since 1990, Lesedi has successfully completed projects across Africa, illustrating our expertise.

Technology Products

• Lesedi has successfully concluded agency agreements for several state of the art products and services such as CONCO System Inc. and Arkema (DMDS).

• Lesedi performs Mechanical Heat Exchanger and Condenser Tube Cleaning as the African distributor for Conco Services LLC based in the USA. Conco has cleaned over 100 million condenser and heat exchanger tubes, making it the number one condenser and heat exchanger performance company in the world.

Mining

• Execution of turnkey engineering projects in the minerals processing and mining industries. Through its network of world-class technology partners, Lesedi o ers gas-cleaning and emissions control plants for its clients.

• Lesedi provides systems for the capture of dust, tars, acid mists, SO2 and various other acidic gases and contaminants in the mining sector.

Biomass, Waste to Energy & Solar

• Lesedi achieved preferential bidding status for two biomass projects for the South African RIEPPP (16.5MW - sugar cane & 5MW - wood chip.)

• Lesedi is the local partner for Exosun (singleaxis tracking).

• More than 20 projects under development in Africa.

• Our global partner has built over 100 bio-energy power plants, totalling more than 2,650 MW.

Nuclear

• 30 years of upgrade and maintenance projects at Eskom’s Koeberg Nuclear Power Station in Cape Town, South Africa, including over 150 modi cations on the plant.

• International maintenance services contracts in England, Brazil, China, France and the USA, resulting in over 75 interventions since 2006.

Thermal

• Balance of Plant for Eskom’s Medupi and Kusile Power Station, the biggest dry-cooled power stations in the world

• Turnkey Engineering contracts for plant life extension and major refurbishments icluding:

- High frequency power supplies

- Electrostatic precipitator

- Ash handling systems

With over 16 years providing insurance services to entities with assets in total worth over $50 billion

About Kunene Makopo Risk Solutions

Kunene Makopo Risk Solutions (KMRS) was founded in 2006. KMRS has 16 years experience in providing financial services and products primarily in insurance. KMRS has a unique footing in the market, because of their three licenses in Short Term, Long-term insurance and medical aid, it allows the company to provide a comprehensive service to its clients and partners.

Kunene Makopo Risk Solutions is a 100% black owned financial intermediary registered with the FSCA. Under the Short Term insurance license, we mainly focus on Commercial lines including corporate, Personal lines, Public Liability, Professional indemnity cover and Performance guarantees. KMRS has a sizeable public sector book where we provide brokering services for clients such as SOE’s, government entities and municipalities.

With over 100+ public sector clients KMRS has 37% of the market share. Our most notable clients are City of Mbombela, City of Polokwane, City of Ekurhuleni, Buffalo City, City Of Tshwane, City of Umhlathuze, Rand Water & SAFCOL just to name a few. Kunene Makopo Risk Solutions also provides services to private individuals and commercial clients.

Kunene Makopo Risk Solutions also has an outsource partnership agreement with a number of underwriters to provide motor and household insurance to public sector employees making it the first of its kind.

Under our Long Term insurance we provide the following services: Funeral schemes, Personal funeral benefit, Life cover/ Bond cover, Retirement fund and retirement planning, Education policies, Buy and sell agreements, Key man cover, Credit life insurance, Group life cover, COID, Investments and Employee Benefits.

Within our long term insurance licence, we are primarily focused on funeral covers and servicing unions such as CWU and NUPSAW who have collectively about 80 000+members.

Kunene Makopo Risk Solutions has 7 offices nationwide which you can find in Johannesburg, Cape Town, Durban, Ermelo, New Castle, Mthatha and Thohoyandou. Kunene Makopo Risk Solutions employs between 51 – 100 employees of which 40% are black females in a management, 80% staff members who are black females and 90% are youth. Kunene Makopo Risk Solutions has won the AIG Hippo award, AIG Cheetah award, AIG Lion award and Guardrisk consecutively over the past 3 years.

Kunene Makopo Risk Solutions is passionate about empowering the youth through its internship program for unskilled and unemployment youth.

Kunene Makopo Risk Solutions is involved in various CSI programmes through Kunene Makopo Imbewu Foundation, donating sanitary towels to girls, school shoes to school children and free insurance to the needy.

Vision

To be the preferred broker in local and global financial markets by providing innovative solutions.

Mission

To establish Kunene Makopo Risk Solutions as a key player in the Insurance brokering arena and to afford its clients and partners the highest level of service and excellence. To form mutually beneficial relationships with other industry players.

To establish Kunene Makopo Risk Solutions as a key player in the insurance and investment advisory arena.

To build the largest insurance brokerage in Africa and be the employer of choice for highly skilled professionals.

Services

Short-term insurance

Commercial lines

Personal lines

Public liability

Professional indemnity

Taxi insurance

Legal and tax cover

Performance guarantees

Mining Guarantees

Construction Guarantees

Film Insurance

Film Completion Bonds

Long-term Insurance

Group funeral schemes

Personal funeral benefit

Life cover / bond cover

Retirement planning

Education policies

Buy and sell agreements

Key man cover

Credit life insurance

Group life cover

Re-Insurance

Kunene Makopo Risk Solutions– 2023 Mining, Oil and Gas Offering

As part of our Comprehensive service offering, we are pleased to announce our Mine, Oil and Gas (MOG) Offering to all commercial businesses in the MOG sectors: We offer the following products and services:

-        Assets All Risks Cover (Property Damage and Business Interruption): This comes with Mining, Oil or Gas specific wording. The wording has been agreed to by leading insurers like the likes of Emerald, Hollard, Old Mutual, etc. The wording includes industry specific extensions like Machinery Breakdown, Accidental Damage, Explosion and Implosion and Fall of Ground amongst others that have been contextualised to MOG losses.

-        Surface and underground Assets. E.g. conveyors, equipment underground, slabs, Gas Cylinders, Oil Tankers. -        Machinery Breakdown and Business Interruption remain major risks and client exposures that are covered by this policy.

-        Mining Rehabilitation Guarantee: Legislation requires that all mining operations within South Africa must make financial provision to guarantee the availability of sufficient funds to undertake rehabilitation and remediation of the adverse environmental impacts of mining activities both during the life of the mine and at closure. KMRS is able to provide mine owners with the required full value guarantee which is accepted by the Department of Mineral Resources.

-        Plant All Risks: Is cover which provides sudden and unforeseen damage cover for your mobile plant and equipment. Cranes, back-end loader, front end loaders.

-        Hired In Plant Cover: which provides cover for Plant that has been Hired In.

-        Directors and Officers Liability Insurance: This is cover for you Directors and Officers personal liability for wrongful acts committed whilst acting in their capacity as such.

-        Commercial Crime: This is cover for Employee Theft, Employee Fraud and Employee Dishonesty.

-        Cyber Crime: This serves to cover cyber crime which is criminal activities committed using the internet or computers.

-        General Liability: Covers the companies’ legal liabilities towards third parties

-        Medical Malpractice Liability Insurance: for MOG Clients who provide medical services

-        Travel insurance: covers the mentioned travel incidents including medical expenses outside the country.

Address: 16 Culross Court, Corner Ealing Crescent & Culross Road, Bryanston, 2191 Website: www kunenemakopo com

Tel: 010 900 1346

Fax: 086 514 2212

Email: info@kunenemakopo com

Facebook: @kmrisksolutions

Instagram: @kmrs_za

Twitter: @kmrs_za

RELIABLE MILL LINER SOLUTIONS

Years as a leading global mill-lining system supplier has given us insight into the complementary functions of steel and rubber liners - we understand how each works best for specific mill applications and how your business can benefit from both.

Now with the addition of Growth Rubber, Growth is proud to be your one-stop centre for all mill-liner applications to ensure optimal solutions to suit your specific liner requirements.

OUR SOLUTIONS

LET US SHOW YOU WHAT OUR TEAM OF PROFESSIONALS CAN DO FOR YOU AND YOUR BUSINESS

GROWTH WILL ALWAYS COMMIT TO OFFERING THE HIGHEST QUALITY PRODUCTS, SERVICES, AND SOLUTIONS FOR THE COMMINUTION OF MINERALS IN THE MINING INDUSTRY

CONTACT OUR SALES TEAM FOR MORE INFORMATION REGARDING OUR GRINDING MEDIA OFFERINGS

NEED HELP?

GROWTH IS A WORLD LEADER IN DESIGN MANUFACTURE & SUPPLY OF MILL LINING SYSTEMS INCLUDING GRINDING MEDIA

WHAT MAKES US DIFFERENT

1. TESTED RUBBER COMPOUND

Our differentiated rubber compounds have been developed and field tested for long lasting performance.

2. EXPERTISE FROM DEDICATED LINERDESIGN CENTRES

Our global design centre provides in-depth technical support to our experienced site support team, ensuring latest design concepts are at the fore.

3. PURPOSE-BUILT FACTORY

Our facilities are purpose-built modern factories, running the latest foundry technologies and rubber processing technology.

4. INTERNATIONAL STANDARD, HIGH QUALITY RUBBER AND STEEL

Our steel composition is of international recognised standards and conform to the AS2074 Cast steel specifications. The highest quality rubber is selected to maximise wear resistance for our rubber liner solutions.

5. WORLD LEADER IN SERVICE EXCELLENCE

Growth Steel is part of the Growth Group, an established world leader in service excellence and the design and manufacture of mineral processing wear solutions.

6. WORLD’S BEST PRACTICES

All our equipment, practices and procedures are carried out in accordance with ISO standards

7. ACKNOWLEDGED BY INDONESIAN MINISTRY OF TRADE FOR OUTSTANDING PERFORMANCE

Consistently received Primaniyarta Award as ‘Best Performing Exporter’ and ‘New Market Pioneer Exporter’ from the Indonesian Ministry of Trade since 2006.