South Africa News Archives - Page 50 of 72

23Apr

By Africa BusinessNo Comments

African News, Business, South Africa News

Baker McKenzie named the Most Responsive International Law Firm in South Africa and 10 other jurisdictions

The Firm has also been recognized in 15 transactional and advisory practice areas across Asia and the Middle East and Africa region. The In-House Community (IHC) 2021 has awarded Baker McKenzie the "Most Responsive International Firm of the Year" in 11 jurisdictions, including in South Africa. The other jurisdictions were China, Hong Kong, India, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, South Korea, Thailand, United Arab Emirates and Vietnam. The Firm was also awarded "Firm of the Year" in 15 practice areas across Asia, United Arab Emirates and South Africa. South Africa won 'Firm of the Year’ for its Antitrust / Competition, Compliance/Regulatory, and Litigation and Dispute Resolution practices. Bruce Schubach, Baker McKenzie’s Head of Operations for Africa, said, “Over the challenges of th...

23Apr

By Africa BusinessNo Comments

Rwanda News, South Africa News, Startups

Africa as a Driver of Technovation

Sustainable digital transformation, applied in the context of startups, tech hubs and big business is what will define Africa as the “new frontier,” enabling actionable inspiration far beyond the continent. Founded in Africa, by Africans, for Africans, the most important tech event of the year, Africa Tech Week 2021, is set to be a platform and springboard for like-minded individuals and thought leaders can catapult themselves into a successful space. A space where digital change and evolution is quite possible. In the words of Elon Musk, the great industry disrupter, “Some people don't like change, but you need to embrace change if the alternative is disaster.” The poll data from Africa Tech Week 2020 showed that out of the 904 registrants that attended the event, only 42.6 were confident...

21Apr

By Africa BusinessNo Comments

South Africa News

IITPSA responds to government policies for digital development in SA

The Institute of Information Technology Professionals South Africa (IITPSA) has welcomed the government’s commitment to strengthening its digital capacity and moving the country into the 4th Industrial Revolution, but has questioned the need for the government to create a new SOE, and the implementation model and costs associated with some of its plans. Responding to the Department of Communications and Digital Technologies’ draft national data and cloud policy, which outlines plans to develop a State Digital Infrastructure Company (SDIC) and High-Performance Computing and Data Processing Centre (HPCDPC), members of the IITPSA Board said this was further evidence of the government’s commitment to digital progress. The plans aim to consolidate excess capacity of publicly funded data centres...

20Apr

By Africa BusinessNo Comments

Business, South Africa News, Tech

What does WhatsApp’s Privacy Policy Update Mean for Brands?

Despite public pushback, Facebook-owned messaging app WhatsApp will be going ahead with the privacy policy update it announced earlier this year. While the public has begun to appreciate that WhatsApp’s privacy rules are in fact still very much in favour of the user, with messages sent remaining private and encrypted at all times, what will this mean for brands that use the app to reach and engage with consumers? “The benefits for brands are massive,” says Kyle Oosthuizen, Chief Operating Officer at Blue Robot - creators of messaging solutions that allow brands to communicate with their audience at scale. “These updates form part of Facebook’s efforts to make communicating with a business secure, better and easier for everyone. The new updates will be made to business features that will he...

20Apr

By Africa BusinessNo Comments

South Africa News, Tech

IITPSA announces 2020’s leading lights at virtual President’s Awards event

The Institute of Information Technology Professionals South Africa (IITPSA) capped an unusual year and its first ever virtual President’s Awards ceremony by naming joint winners of the Visionary CIO of the Year Award this week. Dr Stanley Mpofu, CIO of the University of the Witwatersrand, and Nomthi Nelwamondo, CIO of Assupol, were jointly recognised as 2020’s Visionary CIO of the Year for their professionalism and excellence, particularly during the challenges of 2020. Ntuthuko Shezi, serial entrepreneur and innovator, and founder of livestock investment platform Livestock Wealth, was named IT Personality of the Year for 2020. Girl Code, an NPO empowering young girls and women through technology, was named winner of the Social Responsibility/Community Award, and Andre Jacobs, Chief of Pro...

19Apr

By Africa BusinessNo Comments

South Africa News, Tech

6G to Consider Societal Requirements

First NGMN 6G White Paper Presents 6G Drivers and Vision Today, the Next Generation Mobile Networks (NGMN) Alliance publishes its first 6G White Paper focusing on the 6G Drivers and Vision. As a global organisation representing the entire value chain, NGMN is set to take the lead in providing impactful guidance for global 6G activities to respond to the needs of end users, societies, mobile network operators and the ecosystem as a whole. In this White Paper, the NGMN Mobile Network Operators (MNOs) identify the key drivers for 6G and outline their vision for 6G and the future transition of networks enabling differentiated services with expanded market opportunities and novel experience. Furthermore, the paper outlines the key challenges to be considered in a journey towards 6G, and emphasi...

16Apr

By Africa BusinessNo Comments

South Africa News

SA shoppers are online. Retailers need to meet them with an exceptional experience

Consumers are embracing the e-commerce experience in growing numbers and corporate South Africa is taking serious notice, according to Geoff Hardy, Head of Digital, Immersion Group, a global team of experience design experts. Across the globe online sales have surged, while locally online transactions on Black Friday alone grew by more than 60%, and a recent study released by Mastercard found that 68% of South Africans are shopping more online since the beginning of last year. “The Covid-19 pandemic undoubtedly accelerated prevailing trends as well as consumer behaviour and preferences by as much as a decade. This extraordinary industry-wide transformation is a forecast of the future of South African retail,” notes Hardy. He says a solid digital footprint and strategy have become non-negot...

16Apr

By Baker McKenzieNo Comments

Botswana News, Egypt News, Main, Mauritius News, Morocco News, South Africa News

Competition law in post-pandemic Africa a key driver for market participation, consumer protection and fair practices

With the growth of economies across Africa, competition law has remained one of the key drivers for effective market participation, consumer protection and fair business practices. However, the global pandemic introduced new challenges for competition authorities in Africa and abroad, with each enforcer pursuing the most beneficial enforcement method for its national or regional jurisdiction. According to Lerisha Naidu, Partner in Baker McKenzie’s Competition & Antitrust Practice in Johannesburg, “These efforts were aimed at curbing the persistence of unjustified price hikes, anticompetitive cooperation between competitors and other harmful business practices that sought to undermine competition. In addition to the urgent responses to the unprecedented impacts of the global COVID-19 c...

14Apr

By Africa BusinessNo Comments

South Africa News

How positive debt can help SA’s SMEs grow

Regardless of the size of your company or how great your product maybe, at some point, every business will need more finance than they have immediately available. When this happens, accessing additional funding will help to give your company the fuel it needs to grow. It may seem counterintuitive, but Trevor Gosling, Co-founder, and CEO of Lulalend – financing partner to South Africa’s small- to medium enterprises (SMEs) - explains that fast access to capital plays an important part in any business growth strategy. Gosling says that there is often a misconception that all debt is bad or that it is only used by struggling companies. “In fact, the opposite is often the reason why some of the world’s largest companies, including the likes of Apple and Coca-Cola, routinely seek capital infusi...

13Apr

By Africa BusinessNo Comments

Africa Travel, African News, Mozambique News, South Africa News, travel

Air France extends its operations in Africa as it launches a new route to Maputo and increases frequency

Air France announces today that it will be expanding its operations on the African continent with increased frequency of flights between Paris-Charles de Gaulle and Johannesburg, and a brand-new route to Maputo, Mozambique from 20 June 2021. The flight to Maputo will be a continuation of the Johannesburg flight. Wouter Vermeulen, General Manager Southern Africa Air France-KLM, affirms that Air France remains strongly committed to Africa as a strategic asset in their global network. “Air France is very pleased to announce that we will increase our flights to Johannesburg again and add Maputo to our network starting from June. In recent years, Mozambique has emerged as an important business destination, due to its rich natural energy reserves. We will connect Maputo to all major cities i...