South Africa News Archives - Page 51 of 72

12Apr

By Africa BusinessNo Comments

South Africa News

AI, automation the only option for SA

South Africa’s only option for addressing poverty and poor economic growth is to embrace 4IR technologies such as automation and Artificial Intelligence, to make the country more competitive. This is according to Prof. Tshilidzi Marwala, Vice-Chancellor and Principal at the University of Johannesburg and author of Closing the Gap: The Fourth Industrial Revolution in Africa, who addressed the Institute of Information Technology Professionals South Africa (IITPSA) Tabling Tech webinar hosted by Johan Steyn - IITPSA Chair: Special Interest Group – AI & Robotics; and Tony Parry - IITPSA CEO this week. In a highly engaging webinar, Prof. Marwala noted that despite concerns about people being displaced by automation, 4IR progress had to be made. “The future will be bleak indeed if South Afri...

7Apr

By Prenisha GovenderNo Comments

Fintech, South Africa News

South Africa: The South African revenue service joins the global rise of crypto-wars

By Prenisha Govender, Associate and Keketso Kgomosotho, Candidate Attorney, Tax Practice, Baker McKenzie Johannesburg. The growing popularity of cryptocurrencies worldwide, which is increasingly leading to its stronger footing in international business, has awakened tax authorities everywhere to a possible new revenue stream from unreported gains. Over recent years, we've seen a marked increase in crackdowns on cryptocurrency traders - all the way from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) in the United States (US) to Her Majesty's Revenue & Customs (HMRC) in the United Kingdom (UK), and now the South African Revenue Service (SARS). It was only a matter of time until SARS joined the party, given that in terms of both market value and volume, South Africa is reported to be one of the top t...

7Apr

By Africa BusinessNo Comments

Business, South Africa News

How cost cutting can help SMEs grow

Reducing the cost of supplies, inventory or business operations is common practice amongst many small business owners. Not preserving enough cash could land a business in deep waters and in need of a lifeline. For business owners, curbing your expenditure is a practical way to improve your cash flow without incurring risk to your business. According to Trevor Gosling, Co-founder and CEO of Lulalend – financing partner to South Africa’s small- to medium-enterprises (SMEs), spending countless hours worrying about your business finances is time wasted and could be best spent strategizing realistic solutions. Gosling explains that by creating a well-documented plan to engage in a cost-reduction strategy is essential. “Map out any areas in your business that could do with an overhaul or cost re...

7Apr

By Africa BusinessNo Comments

Events, South Africa News

Accelerating South Africa! Ayo Technology Solutions Partners With The Sa Innovation Summit To Scale Africa

A great leader once said, ‘What is important is that we make sure to work together, that we understand our strength comes from unity and not division.’ Now more than ever, we all understand the need to foster the spirit of collaboration in the way we do business. With that in mind, AYO Technology Solutions (AYO), in partnership with the SA Innovation Summit is proud to announce the first ever, AYO Scaling Africa Series. This is a brand-new Africa-base initiative, aimed at empowering technopreneurs. This series will identify and support digital and tech businesses from South Africa, disrupting the ecosystem with novel ways to solve business and everyday needs for communities across, not only South Africa but, Africa as a whole. The AYO Scaling Africa Series will provide Series A funding...

6Apr

By Africa BusinessNo Comments

Business, Medicine, South Africa News

Clean Air Crucial for Curbing COVID-19 Spread and Upping Productivity in Workplaces. Four Ways Clean Air is Better for Business

South Africa is bracing itself for a third COVID-19 wave. According to scientists, this is due to the slow start to the vaccination programme and relaxed level 1 restrictions. Finance Minister Tito Mboweni has stated that: “If that third wave comes, it should be managed (in such a way) that we keep the economy going and protect lives.” “To this end, employers need to ensure that they fulfil their moral and legal obligation of providing a safe and healthy workplace for their staff,” says Koen Van Wynendaele, Daikin South Africa Managing Director. He continues: “There is growing evidence that COVID-19 infection can occur from airborne exposure to the virus, particularly in enclosed spaces with poor ventilation[i]. With this in mind, employers need to consider the air quality of their workpla...

6Apr

By Africa BusinessNo Comments

South Africa News

Setting South Africa’s small and medium-sized enterprises Up for Success

South Africa’s small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) represent more than 98% of registered businesses, employ between 50% and 60% of the country’s workforce, and are responsible for a quarter of job growth in the private sector[i]. “It’s no wonder then that these companies are the country’s hope for economic recovery. But what is being done to ensure their success?” asks Andrew Hardie, Chief Executive Officer at Pay@ - a leading payment aggregator and provider of secure payment solutions. South African SMEs have the highest failure rate in the world[ii]. In fact, 70% to 80% of small businesses fail within five years[iii]. Studies conducted by the Universities of the Free State[iv], Limpopo[v] and Cape Town[vi] have found that a lack of business capabilities (including skills and tools)...

4Apr

By Africa BusinessNo Comments

Events, South Africa News, Tech

Top Tech Companies Driving Africa’s Growth – Africa Tech Week

On May 5th and 6th, Topco Media and partners will be presenting a robust networking experience aimed at kick-starting economic growth in Africa, using technology. Africa Tech Week is alive with gleaming opportunities to shape fruitful connections, forge clearer paths to digital transformation and inspire collective and personal growth. Enjoy the Inside Scoop from Top-Tech Companies Registered attendees gain access to the 2-day hybrid conference where they can enjoy the inside scoop from top-tech companies. Listen eagerly as renowned leaders including, Dr Marian Croak – vice president of engineering for Google USA, Abe Smith – international lead for Zoom USA and Ayodele Odusola – United Nations representative for South Africa unveil their winning formulas and “techs of the trade.” Redefinin...

31Mar

By Africa BusinessNo Comments

Energy, Green Energy, South Africa News

South Africa needs over 28 GW of flexibility to reach 100% renewables at lowest cost

Wärtsilä launches agile balancing technology - capable of ramping up to 10+ MW in two minutes - to bridge South Africa to renewable energy future The technology group Wärtsilä has highlighted a striking need to scale up flexibility in South Africa, in the form of energy storage and flexible gas technology, to enable a 100% renewable energy future. 28 GW of flexible assets are needed for South Africa’s energy systems to run on 100% renewable energy at the lowest cost. The capacity needed to balance South Africa’s switch to grids powered by intermittent renewables must come from two key technologies: over 21 GW of energy storage and over 6.8 GW of flexible gas power capacity, capable of running on future fuels. Future fuels can be produced during periods when renewables produce more electric...

31Mar

By Africa BusinessNo Comments

South Africa News, Startups

Justice Accelerator calls on innovative Southern African startups changing lives and creating social impact

EUR 10,000 grant for technology-driven finalists to grow their business The Hague Institute for Innovation of Law (HiiL) is calling on all game-changing justice startups that want to grow their social impact and business to participate in this year’s HiiL Innovating Justice Challenge. Successful applicants will earn a place in the prestigious international HiiL Justice Accelerator programme, along with EUR 10,000 in funding and a package of tailored local support. The programme is searching for promising startups and social enterprises who are solving a pressing justice problem in a way that is high impact and sustainable. Themba Mahleka, co-head of the HiiL Innovation Hub Southern Africa, says that the numerous social and economic challenges of the past year have made tackling inequality...

New DIY Toolkit Will Help Protect Companies Reputation in time of Crises

28Mar

By Africa BusinessNo Comments

Events, South Africa News

New DIY Toolkit Will Help Protect Companies Reputation in time of Crises

New Crisis Management DIY toolkit launched to help small businesses protect their reputation and their credibility without spending huge budgets on consultants or 3rd party experts. A new DIY tool to help small businesses save money and protect their reputations in time of crisis has been launched by Reputation Management Consultant, Deon Binneman also known as the Reputation Go-to Guy. It has been designed to give businesses, a blueprint to devising and implementing their own Crisis Management & Crisis Communication plans using a step-by-step and self-study approach. It was developed after years of research with many companies that found that many SMEE businesses wanted to plan and prepare for crisis situations but could not afford the services of PR agencies, management consultants ...