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Absa partnering with development finance agency to help East African coffee farmers

Published: 15 May 24

South African banking group Absa and the International Finance Corporation (IFC – part of the World Bank group) will jointly provide a commodity trade finance facility, worth up to $60-million, to a leading global green coffee merchant, Volcafe. This facility will strengthen Volcafe’s operations in East Africa and support thousands of coffee farmers in that region, by providing working capital for the purchase of coffee cherries (the fruit from which the coffee beans are extracted) from ...

An automotive component factory in the TASEZ

Tshwane Automotive SEZ celebrates training of first cohort of youth

Published: 15 May 24

The Tshwane Automotive Special Economic Zone (TASEZ) on May 14 celebrated the first cohort of 526 local youths trained in safety, health, environment and quality to participate in different parts of the automotive value chain. These skills were critical in all aspects of the automotive value chain, said TASEZ CEO Dr Bheka Zulu.

Itac makes strides in investigation of active yeast dumping from Zim

Published: 15 May 24

The International Trade Administration Commission (Itac) has asked the South African Reserve Bank to impose provisional duties on imports of active yeast originating in or imported from Zimbabwe for six months while further investigation into allegations of dumping is under way. Itac has been investigating the alleged dumping of active yeasts originating in or imported from Zimbabwe since August last year.

Tribunal conditionally approves Sea Harvest’s acquisition of Terrasan businesses

Published: 15 May 24

The Competition Tribunal has conditionally approved the proposed merger whereby subsidiaries of JSE-listed seafood and aquaculture company Sea Harvest intend to acquire certain subsidiaries of Terrasan. The subsidiaries being acquired are those engaged in the catching, processing and sale of pelagic fish, as well as in the farming, processing and selling of abalone.

Qatar Airways to invest in an airline in Southern Africa

Published: 15 May 24

Qatar Airways will soon announce an investment in an airline in Southern Africa, its CEO said on Wednesday, part of the Gulf carrier's drive to expand its network in Africa. "We are at the final stage of an equity investment in an airline in the southern part of Africa," Badr Mohammed Al Meer said on a panel at the Qatar Economic Forum in Doha, saying the deal could be announced in two to three weeks.

US travel numbers to South Africa greater than ever before, reports United Airlines

Published: 15 May 24

The number of US visitors to South Africa is now higher than it was in 2019, the last year before the Covid-19 pandemic hit, United Airlines director sales continental Europe, India, Israel, Africa & Middle East Thorsten Lettnin tells Engineering News, in an exclusive interview. In 2022, the total number of travellers to South Africa from the US was some 350 000, a number on par with that for visitors to South Africa from the UK. “Since Covid, we have seen stronger demand on our South Africa routes,” he reports. “We think this is a new normality. It’s very good for United. We’re a major facilitator of US tourism to, and trade with, South Africa. We’re really happy. Interestingly, on the business travel side, smaller companies have come back to air travel faster that the big businesses.”

Plunging currencies, El Niño to delay rate cuts in African economies

Published: 15 May 24

Mounting price pressures from the resurgence of the dollar, foreign-currency crunches and adverse weather conditions are set to lead to delayed and shallower interest-rate cuts for African central banks this year. Over the next three weeks, analysts predict Nigeria, Angola and Zambia, who are still fighting double-digit inflation, will raise interest rates and only start reducing them next year.

Rescue efforts under way at a building collapse site in George, in the Western Cape

Forensic pathologists identify 18 of the 33 deceased in George building collapse

Published: 15 May 24

Forensic Pathology Services have, as at 06:00 on May 15, identified 18 of the workers killed in the collapse of a partially built residential building in George. The death toll has reached 33, while 19 people are still unaccounted for eight days after the building's collapse.

John Deere showcases continued technology, innovation focus

Published: 15 May 24

Equipment manufacturer John Deere South Africa will continue to focus on pursuing innovation on its machines and technology as it looks to strengthen its footprint in Africa. Tasneem Bulbulia tells us more.

$2.2bn pledged to support clean-cooking access in Africa

Published: 14 May 24

Pledges worth $2.2-billion to support clean-cooking access in Africa were made at a summit in France on Tuesday, convened by the International Energy Agency (IEA). It is estimated that more than one-billion people in Africa currently lack access to clean-cooking solutions and instead cook over open fires and basic stoves, using charcoal, wood, agricultural waste, and animal dung as fuel.