Current Edition >> Archives Section >> Spot Coverage >> 1-15 Sep 2006
Harmony Gold again loss: Harmony Gold Mining, Africa's third largest gold producer, posts its ninth quarterly loss in 10 as bets on bullion prices went against expectations. However, the net loss for the three months to 30 June 2006 narrowed to R41 million, or 11 cents a share, from R178 million, or 46 cents a share the previous quarter, a statement from the company announced.
SUT vir eerste keer lentegradeplegtigheid: Die Sentrale Universiteit vir Tegnologie (SUT) in Bloemfontein ken op 8 September vanjaar 205 sertifikate, diplomas en grade tydens sy eerste lentegradeplegtigheid toe. In die Fakulteit Ingenieurswese, Inligtings- en Kommunikasietegnologie word 78 kwalifikasies toegeken, 69 in die Fakulteit Bestuurswetenskappe en 12 in die Fakulteit Gesondheids- en Omgewingswetenskappe (slegs Bloemfontein-kampus). Elf kandidate sal hul meestersgrade ontvang, terwyl drie doktorsgrade toegeken word. Studente van die SUT se Welkom-kampus sal hul grade in Bloemfontein, saam met die studente hier, ontvang. Die SUT het besluit om van vanjaar af twee gradeplegtighede, 'n herfsgradeplegtigheid in Maart en 'n lentegradeplegtigheid in September, aan te bied.
Checklist for 2010 host cities' preparations: As part of its efforts to ensure local governments are ready for the 2010 FIFA World Cup, the Department of Provincial and Local Government has devised a checklist to monitor the progress that host cities are making with regard to their preparations. "The department of provincial and local government has prepared a practical governance checklist for the purposes of evaluating the implementation plans of the host cities," said director-general Lindiwe Msengana-Ndlela today, presenting the department's plans for the World Cup to a joint meeting of the department and the sport portfolio committee, in Parliament. Among others, Msengana-Ndlela said the checklist sought to alert host cities on the refinement of their five-year Integrated Development Plans. The Governance checklist further identifies the need for a budget review to accommodate a municipality's spending on 2010 projects.
VN vigs-syfers vir SA skok: Volgens die jongste VN Globale HIV / Vigs-verslag vorm Suid-Afrika die kern van die węreldepidemie as enigste sub-Saharaland in Afrika waar die probleem nie gestabiliseer of selfs afneem nie. Die verslag toon dat in SA die voorkoms onder volwassenes (tussen 15-49 jaar) gestyg het, met die hoogste HIV-voorkomsyfer in die węreld (tussen 15 en 34 %) wat in die SADC-streek aangetref word. Twee miljoen kinders onder die ouderdom van 15 is HIV-positief, waarvan die meerderheid in sub-Sahara Afrika woon. 'n Oneweredige hoër getal (59%) van geaffekteerdes is vroue. Botswana, Namibië en Uganda se verspreiding van teenmiddels oorskry 50 % - teenmiddels in Suid-Afrika het nog nie 20% van die geaffekteerde bevolking bereik nie.
Webblad vir plaasaanvalle: 'n Webblad is deur die Transvaal Landbou-unie (TLU) begin om alle plaasaanvalle en misdade teen die boeregemeenskap aan te teken. Die webblad bestaan uit drie afdelings, nl. plaasmoorde, plaasaanvalle en 'n opsomming van die eise van die slagoffers teen die staat. Die adres is www.plaasaanvalle.co.za. Relevante inligting kan gestuur word na louis@agriwebsa.com of faks 086 610 8518.
Absenteeism from workplace: According to a press release by SACOB on the incidence of absenteeism, it is estimated that absenteeism could be costing the economy as much as R12 billion a year. While it is difficult to obtain satisfactory statistics on this phenomenon, there appears to be evidence pointing towards an increase in the incidence of sick leave so far this year. It is possible that the recent industrial action that has been associated with violence may have contributed to some measure of absenteeism. The failure to move commemorative holidays to either the Monday or the Friday closest to the weekend continues to serve as an inducement to absenteeism. More info from (011) 446 3871.
Registering CC much easier and cheaper: Business owners looking to register a close corporation (CC) can do so through one of 600 post offices across the country or through the Companies and Intellectual Property Registration Office (Cipro) website. Joey Mathekga, Acting Registrar of Close Corporations (CC) at the Cipro office says business owners who register as CC electronically, will first need to open a separate Cipro customer account, into which they should deposit sufficient funds. Alternatively business owners without Internet access can do the lodgement at any one of 600 Post Offices that has a public information terminal. Mathekga says Cipro plans to expand this service to all 2 500 post offices soon. Because business owners will still need to sign the CK1 documentation by hand, they will need to send it express mail to Cipro's office in Pretoria once it has been completed. Upon successfully registering their CC, business owners will be issued with a registration certificate. This can be posted or emailed to them. Registering a CC through Cipro will cost R150, while through a shelf CC firm, will be in the region of R330.
HIV/AIDS not seen as a small business issue: Some 5,4 million South Africans are living with HIV/Aids according to recent United Nations estimates. A study by the South African Journal of Economics that was commissioned by the Joint Economic Aids and Poverty Programme (Jeapp), found that the epidemic is having little or no effect on business owners. The study results reveal that 62% of the 80 owner-managed businesses surveyed have never even considered HIV/Aids as a business issue, with business owners ranking Aids as ninth among a list of 10 concerns such as crime and the cost of labour. The top concern however, among business owners, was the productivity of their workers.
Number of PC's in SA: A study by World Wide Worx entitled PC User's in South Africa 2006 shows that the 4,5 million mark of PC's in use in South Africa was reached at the end of 2005 and is expected to grow by 17% to 5,3 million by the end of 2006.
Besigheidsforum vir Reitz: Die AHI was instrumenteel in die stigting vandeesmaand van die Reitz Besigheidsforum met die doel om die belange van ondernemings op die dorp te bevorder. Die voorsitter van die Forum is Neil van Dyk, met die ondervoorsitter Karel Wagner en die sekretaresse Elise Strauss. Die Forum beplan om maandeliks te vergader. Meer besonderhede by 082 807 5188.
Kroon Expo 2006: Die jaarlikse Kroon Expo word vanjaar op Saterdag, 23 September, op die Vlooimarkterrein langs Pick 'n Pay in die middedorp aangebied. Die datum is spesiaal gekies om uitstallers onderweg na die Aardklop Kunstefees die geleentheid te bied om hul ware op Kroonstad ook uit te stal. Stalletjies is nog beskikbaar teen R150 en, afgesien van kos, kan enige ander ware onbeperk verkoop word. Meer inligting by Vossie Voster 082 773 8738 of 056 – 212 4765.
Research and development (R&D) spending in South Africa was at an all-time high of about R12 billion, or 0,87% of gross domestic product (GDP), in the 2004/5 fiscal year. The intensity of R&D expenditure, measured as a percentage of GDP, is a good indication of the competitiveness of a country's economy. It goes without saying that innovation and continuous development are key to economic growth.
The target set by government is to boost R&D investment to 1% of GDP by 2008. Research by the Research and Experimental Survey, which the Human Sciences Research Council (HSRC) conducted on behalf of the DST, indicates that since 2001 South Africa's R&D expenditure rose from R10 billion, or 0,81% of GDP, in the 2003/4 fiscal year to R12 billion, or 0,87% of GDP, in the 2004/5 fiscal year. This represents a real annual increase of about 12,8%.
Mangaung Plaaslike Munisipaliteit het die private sektor erkenning ontvang vir nougesette toepassing van veiligheid- en gesondheidstandaarde op konstruksieterreine.
Die Munisipaliteit bestuur onder andere nege konstruksieterreine in Mangaung, Botshabelo en Thaba Nchu waar paaie en stormwaterkanale stelselmatig opgradeer word as deel van die Munisipaliteit se investering in plaaslike infrastruktuur. NBA Consulting is deur die Munisipaliteit aangestel om kontrole uit te oefen oor die toepassing van veiligheid- en gesondheidvereistes op die konstruksieterreine, in ooreenstemming met die Wet op Beroepsveiligheid en Gesondheid.
Mnr Dick Conradie, Streekbestuurder van NBA Consulting het 'n sertifikaat van erkenning aan die Munisipaliteit oorhandig, vir 203 konstruksiedae gewerk sonder 'n arbeidsongeskiktheidbesering. Me Marelize van Zyl, Eerste Ingenieur, het die sertifikaat namens die Munisipaliteit in ontvangs geneem.
Mnr Conradie sę: “Die toepassing van die Konstruksieregulasies van Julie 2003 is relatief nuut vir baie kontrakteurs en kliënte. Mangaung Munisipaliteit het egter die regulasies daadwerklik begin toepas op die konstruksieterreine in Mangaung, Botshabelo en Thaba Nchu, vanaf die tenderstadium tot by die finale oorhandiging van die voltooide bouwerk. 'n Totaal van 203 konstruksiedae is by hierdie terreine gewerk sonder 'n arbeidongeskiktheidbesering. Gedurende hierdie tydperk was daar gemiddeld in totaal 270 konstruksiewerkers per dag op die terreine werksaam. Die veiligheidprestasie is besonders, veral as in aanmerking geneem word dat meer as 80% van hierdie werkers ongeskoold is en afkomstig is uit die omliggende gemeenskappe in Mangaung, Botshabelo en Thaba Nchu waar werkloosheid 'n groot probleem is.”
Op die foto, van links Marelize van Zyl (Eerste Ingeneur) en Dick Conradie (Streeksbestuurder NBA Consulting).
At the recent SATSA conference and AGM it became clear that the Free State is in need of the implementation of a viable strategy to materially obtain more flights to the province. It was said at the conference that flight carriers consider a route based purely on sound financial aspects and not any sentiment - the concept is simple: “The front of the plane pays for the bunch in the back”. The seats filled by business travelers in business class justifies the flight carriers to establish and / or maintain a route. The business class traveler is price insensitive but time sensitive, while on the other hand the leisure traveler is time insensitive but price sensitive. Fares work on the popular 80-20 concept where 80% of spent comes from the business traveler and 20% from the leisure traveler. To increase the demand for flights and better prices for the leisure traveler, the need for the business traveler to the province must be considered. The Free State business and tourism environment cannot just stimulate demand, but would have to shift demand. The question therefore is what business and industrial development does the Free State offer to justify an increase in the number of business travelers? Is there new business and industrial developments on the cards to warrant more flights, resulting in cheaper flights? It looks as if macro economic development from both national and provincial government levels would be required for a realistic expectation to result as regards more flights and visitors to the province. For a long time now we are informed about Kulula's intention to start a route to Bloemfontein and the same applies to Nationwide, but as yet nothing. At present Bloemfontein is served only by SAA, SA Express and 1 Time. In the meantime flight prices for the leisure traveler remain a huge concern.
With the publishing of a report on the 2005 Domestic Tourism statistics in August 2006, SA Tourism is emphasizing the need to grow tourism within the country by developing a culture of holiday travel amongst locals. "The 2005 report shows some movement for the industry but a lot more needs to be done to maximise the potential of our own tourism wealth," said SA Tourism CEO Moeketsi Mosola. “South Africans are certainly travelling with more than 36 million trips recorded in 2005, but only 4.5 million of those were for holiday purposes – less than 13%.” The report highlights the need for the industry to continue to focus on growing domestic tourism figures in tandem with the international growth objectives, and underlines the importance of interventions such as Tourism Month for the country. In-line with its domestic tourism growth strategy, SA Tourism has been developing and executing campaigns over the past 30 months designed to grow the volume and value of the domestic tourism market. Issues such as reducing the seasonality and improving the geographic spread of tourism are at the heart of boosting job creation and transformation of the industry. “Holidays and vacations are where the industry extracts the most value and the need to develop a culture of holiday travel amongst all South Africans remains as relevant now as when we launched the Sho't Left campaign in 2004," Mosola said. The report also shows that the provinces extracting the most value from domestic tourism are KwaZulu-Natal, Gauteng and the Western Cape who together reap 63% of the R21. 2 billion pot with Gauteng travellers alone responsible for 39% of the revenue generated. Travel figures also remain largely seasonal with December, July and Easter being peak periods. "Tourism Month is one of the tools we use to highlight lesser visited provinces at a non-peak time of the year," noted Mosola. "The challenge for the industry is to harness the potential every month and to grow the value of domestic tourism exponentially." Comparing the 2005 domestic and international statistics further underscores the potential in domestic tourism. International tourism with 7,3 million tourists is generating 70% of the value in the industry, and domestic tourism is already generating a value of 30% with 4,5 million holiday trips.
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