South Africa News Archives - Page 29 of 72

Smart minds look to smart solutions at Africa’s only dedicated Smart Cities Summit

2Jun

By Africa BusinessNo Comments

African News, Business, Events, South Africa News

Smart minds look to smart solutions at Africa’s only dedicated Smart Cities Summit

Big industry players join forces to tackle urban decarbonization challenge The world’s population is on a fast-track from rural to city living. With around 55% already residing in urban areas, this figure is expected to rise to 70% by mid-century. Cities may be the engines of growth and account for more than 80% of global GDP[1], but they also guzzle almost 80% of the world’s energy and emit around 60% of greenhouse gases. According to Tracy-Lee Behr, Portfolio Director at leading global events company dmg events, smarter cities can alleviate many of Africa’s urban challenges, by delivering a higher quality of life and enabling economic growth through Internet of Things, technology and creative thinking. With a focus on advancing Africa’s cities through expert collaboration, many of t...

Northern Cape set to benefit as the ‘New Oil’, Copper, is set for steady climb as world economy pilots to green

2Jun

By Africa BusinessNo Comments

South Africa News

Northern Cape set to benefit as the ‘New Oil’, Copper, is set for steady climb as world economy pilots to green

Cape Town: Big Tree Copper chief executive Jan Nelson expects a steady climb in demand for the red metal over the next three decades. This, as the world has turned its full attention to sustainable energy and a greener economy. It is likely the beginning of a super cycle. Investment bankers Goldman-Sachs already called copper ‘The New Oil’ last year. It is a key component in green energy, from electric cars to wind turbine power supply. Recent panic over the conflict in Ukraine and its concomitant threat to Europe’s reliance on Russian energy saw a surge in the metal’s trade to around $ 10 900 per ton. Pricing since eased to what Nelson calls a “more realistic level” but he said that over the next few decades demand should steadily increase with a long-term view of 500% growth by 2050....

31May

By Africa BusinessNo Comments

South Africa News

Putting the brakes on payment fraud at SA’s car dealerships

While every business, irrespective of size, is vulnerable to payment fraud worrying gaps in South African motor dealerships’ payment systems put the entire sector at risk. Ryan Mer, CEO at eftsure Africa, a Know Your Payee™ (KYP) platform provider, says the most common thread in cases of fraud is the human element which can involve sophisticated fraudsters or unscrupulous employees. In either case, strengthening processes and protocols can mean the difference between being an easy target and stopping fraud in its tracks. Scenario 1: The external risk of a walk-in criminal A client wants to sell their car. They present their ID document, ownership papers, and bank details. What the dealership doesn’t know is that the customer is using a stolen or defrauded ID document and isn’t even th...

31May

By Africa BusinessNo Comments

South Africa News

Diagnosing the mining death toll: The link between workplace culture and safety

At the end of 2021, it was reported that mine deaths in South Africa had risen for a second consecutive year, increasing by almost 44% from 2020. The sector, which employs more than 450,000 people, had experienced a promising decline in fatalities since 2007 (where its annual figures resided at the 200-person fatality mark) up until around 2016. Three years ago, it reached a record low before once again rising. Yet even at this record-low in 2019, the sector still averaged around one death per week. The Department of Mineral Resources and Energy together with the Minerals Council South Africa cited falls of ground and transport-related accidents as the leading causes of death. The latter also announced a number of measures to tighten up safety protocols. Yet the question is, are there ot...

The Travel Corporation releases its first Impact Report with leading-edge sustainability initiatives (globally, and in SA & Africa)

26May

By Africa BusinessNo Comments

Africa Travel, South Africa News, travel

The Travel Corporation releases its first Impact Report with leading-edge sustainability initiatives (globally, and in SA & Africa)

Creating positive change through climate action, food waste reduction, supporting developing destinations, animal welfare and additional projects Trattoria Terra Madre, featured on select Insight Vacations’ Italian itineraries, is a farm-to-table experience in Alberobello, Italy, advancing sustainable food production. Insight Vacations offers a MAKE TRAVEL MATTER® Experience on 94% of itineraries. The Travel Corporation (TTC), one of the world’s largest travel operators, founded by the late Stanley Tollman, a global tourism industry icon and a devoted philanthropist of South African descent, has released its first official Impact Report, detailing progress against its 11 sustainability goals launched in September 2020. How We Tread Right (HWTR), TTC’s current 5-year sustainability strat...

26May

By Africa BusinessNo Comments

South Africa News

What keeps SA’s top CIOs awake at night post-Covid

South Africa’s top professional CIOs are grappling with enabling new work models and ensuring the wellness of their teams in the post-Covid environment. This emerged during the first IITPSA Pr.CIO® round table – a forum for professional CIOs who hold the Pr.CIO® designation. The CIOs from leading enterprises said rolling out and managing IT infrastructure to enable a remote and hybrid workforce was not their biggest challenge post-Covid-19. Most enterprises had been considering virtual and remote work models before the pandemic hit, and had the resources to enable remote work quickly. However, the real issue now was managing teams effectively, supporting staff wellness, and adapting work models to compete effectively in the war for talent. The round table, held under the Chatham House R...

Construction industry can provide a solid foundation for SA’s unemployed youth

24May

By Africa BusinessNo Comments

South Africa News

Construction industry can provide a solid foundation for SA’s unemployed youth

Leading trade show hosts 25 free workshops to drive job creation For years, South Africa’s public and private sectors have talked about transformation as the key to unlocking economic growth and job creation. Yet in Q4 of 2021, national unemployment rose to 35.4%, with youth unemployment remaining at a dangerously high level of 66.5%[1]. Aubrey Tshalata, National President of the National Federation for the Building Industry (NAFBI) says the days of rhetoric must stop. Unless South Africans act now, he believes the end result of this gross unemployment will be a revolution of a very different nature, with last year’s looting in Kwa-Zulu Natal serving as an ominous taste of things to come. “Within the construction industry, tangible transformation occurs by allowing new entrants to parti...

24May

By Africa BusinessNo Comments

Real Estate, South Africa News

Using powerful data to shut the door on SA’s biggest property scams

Fraud in the property sector has become alarmingly common in recent years. With substantial sums of money on the line, increasingly sophisticated scams have made easy targets of buyers and sellers, as well as various property practitioners like estate agents and conveyancers. But the tide is starting to turn as up-to-the-minute credible data makes it harder for criminals to fleece consumers and those working in the industry out of their hard-earned cash. “For as long as property is an attractive investment option, it will be a target for con artists. In some scams, fraudsters will approach a seller as a potential buyer, or pose as the owner and seller of a property. In other instances, criminals appear to be legitimate estate agents with multiple ‘listings’ on various fake agency websites...

23May

By Africa BusinessNo Comments

South Africa News, Tech

People-first approach needed in AI era

Automation, robotics and artificial intelligence can be a force for exceptional business progress, but could also cut jobs, impacting a multitude of workers and their families. Instead of cutting heads, organisations should be empowering employees with technology to become more valuable. This is according to Johan Steyn, technologist, management consultant, Chair of the Institute of Information Technology Professionals South Africa (IITPSA) Gauteng Chapter and Chair of the IITPSA Special Interest Group in AI and Robotics. “Organisations need to consider how they can simultaneously improve efficiencies and their bottom line, while also empowering the people they have,” he says. “Every business should have a roadmap for using these new technologies,” he says. “They should not approac...

23May

By Africa BusinessNo Comments

South Africa News, Tech

People-first approach needed in AI era

Automation, robotics and artificial intelligence can be a force for exceptional business progress, but could also cut jobs, impacting a multitude of workers and their families. Instead of cutting heads, organisations should be empowering employees with technology to become more valuable. This is according to Johan Steyn, technologist, management consultant, Chair of the Institute of Information Technology Professionals South Africa (IITPSA) Gauteng Chapter and Chair of the IITPSA Special Interest Group in AI and Robotics. “Organisations need to consider how they can simultaneously improve efficiencies and their bottom line, while also empowering the people they have,” he says. “Every business should have a roadmap for using these new technologies,” he says. “They should not approach ado...