Innholdsfortegnelse for 2022-10-30 i Sunday Independent

Meta is far from achieving its metaverse dream, at the same time the Meta Quest Pro is enabling us to see what that future would look and feel like, writes Wesley Diphoko “Imagine enjoying a courtside seat at a game, studying in a classroom of students and teachers all over the world or consulting with a doctor face-to-face – just by putting on goggles in your home.” This is what Mark Zuckerberg posted on Facebook to announce an acquisition deal of the Oculus Rift (now Meta Quest Pro) in 2014. Facebook acquired the device for $2 billion and worked towards improving it and integrating it into the company's ecosystem. Fast forward to this past Tuesday, and Meta (formerly known as Facebook) shipped Meta Quest Pro which enables users to immerse…

THE WATER crisis affecting several parts of the country, including Johannesburg, Gqeberha and Nelson Mandela Bay municipality, will have an inevitable knock-on effect on small businesses whose operations rely on the consistent supply of clean water. As the country gears up to welcome the usual year-end influx of local and international tourists, hospitality will undoubtedly be among the sectors most at-risk to suffer the impact of water scarcity and restrictions. The Sustainable Hospitality Alliance calculates that tourism-related businesses use eight times more water per person than the average population. Given the immense volume of water usage, small and medium enterprises (SMEs) across the hospitality value chain have an important role to play in practising and promoting responsible water usage. A crucial part of learning how to become a successful entrepreneur…

WE cannot call food bad but there are several foods more essential in summer compared to others. Be it your breakfast, lunch or dinner, choose your food wisely as it focuses on your wellness and overall health. When you are spending a lot of your time outside, going to the office, meeting up with friends and family, and hanging out for activities in summer and humidity, it is mandatory to pick essential summer food which is light, refreshing, and keeps you charged when the weather is hot. If you are looking to boost your energy, protect your immune system, get some much-needed nutrients into your body, or looking to change your summer recipe routine, here are a few of the must-have summer foods to incorporate into any breakfast, lunch, or…

Akshata Murty, the Indian wife of Britain’s next Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, is fabulously rich thanks to her billionaire father, a fortune that is attracting controversy as ordinary people reel from a cost-of-living crisis. Sunak’s father-in-law, NR Narayana Murthy, 76, co-founded tech giant Infosys in 1981. The outsourcing giant, worth $75 billion (about R1.3 trillion), helped drive India’s transformation into the “back office of the world”. One of only two non-Americans in Fortune magazine’s 2012 list of the “12 greatest entrepreneurs of our time”, the Infosys chief’s life-changing moment came in 1974 when he was locked up for four nights in communist Eastern Europe. “That cured me from being a confused leftist to a determined compassionate capitalist,” he said afterwards. Sunak’s mother-in-law, Sudha, was Tata Motors’ first female engineer after…

Many people believe sub-Saharan African societies are very religious. According to a paper titled “African and Not Religious: The State of Research on sub-Saharan Religious Nones and New Scholarly Horizons”, published in Sage Journals, “at least 30 million sub-Saharan Africans identify as ‘religious nones’ and are allegedly not affiliated with any religious tradition”. Stress and anxiety levels are increasing to unprecedented heights as a result of contemporary stresses. Many people are realising they need more calm in their lives as life becomes increasingly chaotic. According to author Ravi Kathuria: “In the past, religion has served as a haven from life’s challenges, but the present generation is looking for logical and scientific answers to life’s most difficult concerns. The present age no longer accepts blind faith.” Is there a viable remedy…

Topicality is baked into the film Call Jane, director Phyllis Nagy’s historical drama about a pre-Roe versus Wade network of underground abortion providers in late-1960s Chicago. But for the undercooked endeavour, such relevance is more of a burden than a boon. The real-life inspiration for the fictionalised tale – the Jane Collective, a women-run network that provided about 11 000 abortions when the procedure was mostly illegal – is a genuine source of female empowerment. Still, Nagy only occasionally imbues the proceedings with urgency befitting the life-or-death stakes. Best known as the screenwriter behind 2015’s Carol, a master class in romantic longing and slow-burn storytelling, the film-maker (working from a slapdash screenplay by Hayley Schore and Roshan Sethi) strains to shepherd a narrative that zips along in a haze of…

THIS week the US government sowed fear and panic among the SA populace when it warned of an possible terror attack in Sandton over this weekend. Immediately, debate ensued, inevitably questioning if the SA security establishment was aware of the threat and if so, why had it not issued a public alert, as the US had. There are two pertinent points to draw from the situation. Firstly, if the US – through its means and ways – established a looming threat to the safety of people anywhere in SA and decided to issue a public alert to save lives, well done. However, this brings me to the second point: Surely, at the highest echelons of government, SA and the US must have established diplomatic channels through which, away from the…

SOUTH African attorney and politician Mathews Phosa wants local businessman Hector Kunene to be denied entry into Malonjeni coal mining, and his attorneys to be charged with misconduct. Kunene violated his bail conditions by visiting the mine in KwaZulu-Natal, now owned by Transasia, and flew a drone into the premises to gather information. Phosa said this violated the company’s rights to privacy. Kunene was arrested in 2021after he allegedly stole R14 million from Transasia after the company, owned by Luda Royblat and Phosa’s 11 Miles Investment, entered into a sale of prospecting rights agreement with Umsobomvu Coal, owned by Kunene, in 2012. Kunene’s company, as the holder of four prospecting rights, was to permit Transasia to take carriage of any applications pending in the Department of Mineral Resources (DMR) under…

DUE to the increased security risk on our roads, vehicle tracking and fleet management have become an indispensable part of day-to-day activities on roads, not just in South Africa but throughout Africa. There is a high probability that your vehicles will be affected by crime at some point during the life of your fleet in South Africa. One of the people that has addressed these challenges is Thobeka Ntshangase, 31, sole director of Malonjeni Logistics – a logistics company that hauls dry bulk products using tipper trucks. It is through the challenges that she experienced in the transport and logistics industry that Ntshangase, who is passionate about education and entrepreneurship, established MyFleet Track in April 2021. MyFleet Track offers personal and business- vehicle tracking and fleet management solutions. MyFleet Track…

THE ANC has averted further threats to delay preparations for its national conference in December after it met its obligations to pay its employees their salaries this week. The governing party was, however, forced to extend the deadline for branches across the country to hold their general meetings to next Monday, November 7. Last weekend, ANC staff notified their bosses that they would not be reporting for duty from Friday until Monday over fears that they would not be paid their salaries on Tuesday. The employees told The Sunday Independent their salaries were up to date including for October while the national executive committee (NEC) again recommitted itself to pursuing all avenues to address the ANC’s financial sustainability and employees’ rights. ANC treasurer-general Paul Mashatile informed party structures that the…

DOGS are often referred to as man’s best friend, but what happens when dogs such as the American pit bull terrier turn on humans? As with any other relationship, human and dog relations are not exempted from turning sour. But pit bulls are the primary breed that always makes the headlines for severely injuring or mauling humans to death. This breed is more notorious for its viciousness and fearless nature rather than for being a harmless dog. They are considered power-breed dogs, in general, that are bigger and stronger than other breeds and can cause a lot more damage than is seen in dog attack cases the majority of the time. Recently, numerous media reports about pit bulls mauling people have surfaced. In February this year, 46-year-old Mlungisi Nketshisa was…

IT is no urban myth that the Waca was the quickest, bounciest pitch in the world. Batters used to break into a cold sweat the night before at the prospect of being physically harmed by hulking fast bowlers with handle-bar moustaches. A visit to the Wild Wild West was not for the faint of heart. But such is the modern world that change is inevitable, which left “the Westerners” with real anxiety that the legend would be lost somewhere along the way in the move across the Swan River to the new Perth Stadium. Fortunately, the famous square remains intact, with the drop-in pitch assembled from the Waca soil and clay. Fast bowlers still have the unadulterated pleasure of hurling the ball through at 150km/h and watching the wicketkeeper taking…

WHEN the Springbok Test squad for the end-of-year tour was announced on Friday, there were only two names at hooker: Malcolm Marx and Bongi Mbonambi. Joseph Dweba, who battled with his throwing into the line-outs during the Rugby Championship and for the Stormers in recent weeks, was relegated to the SA A group. But most Test teams have a third hooker in tow in the week of a match, and next Saturday’s Ireland clash is looming large. When quizzed about the risk of having just two hookers in Dublin, director of rugby Rassie Erasmus pointed out that Stormers flank Deon Fourie is the next-in-line in the front row. “Deon Fourie is actually just purely picked ahead of Joseph at this stage. We had those opportunities during the Rugby Championship. Some…

Qatar is a relatively small peninsula bordering the Persian Gulf and Saudi Arabia. Despite Doha, the state’s capital in the northeast, being the centre of attraction, Qatar has other towns and cities to explore or stay in. They are well connected to the capital due to Qatar’s immaculately maintained infrastructure. Due to its world-class public infrastructure and public safety, Qatar has earned the number one rank for “Safest Country in the World” on the Numbeo Crime Index for both 2021 and 2022. Places to stay outside of Doha Doha is the capital and will be the centre of attention during the Fifa World Cup 2022 Qatar. If you’re not keen on getting too caught up in the action, you can stay in neighbouring towns. The designated venues for World Cup…

Closing in on his Twitter megadeal, Elon Musk said last week that his goal is to enable “healthy debate” of ideas and counter the tendency of social media to splinter into partisan “echo chambers”. In a message meant to reassure jittery Twitter advertisers on the eve of a court-imposed deadline to finalise the deal, Musk said he would work with marketers to “build something extraordinary together”. The billionaire entrepreneur pursued the $44 billion (R800bn) deal “because it is important to the future of civilisation to have a common digital town square, where a wide range of beliefs can be debated in a healthy manner”, Musk tweeted. The planned takeover has dismayed activists who fear a surge in harassment and misinformation under the unpredictable Musk, who himself is known for trolling…

The government says it will take over between one-third and two-thirds of Eskom’s current R400 billion debt in a bid to ensure reliability of electricity supply FINANCE Minister Enoch Godongwana has justified the government taking over a significant portion of Eskom’s debt as a major structural reform to deal with electricity supply bottlenecks. The government says it will take over between one and two-thirds of Eskom’s R400 billion debt, in a bid to ensure reliability of electricity supply and the financial health of the state company. On Thursday, Godongwana said Eskom’s electricity supply challenges accounted for as much as 40% of South Africa’s economic under- performance. He said the government must implement structural reforms in haste as expenditure, enabled by the commodity cycle windfall, could not be sustained for…

As we start drawing closer to the festive season, everyone is looking forward to some much-needed downtime. That doesn’t necessarily mean travelling to some hidden getaway. It could simply entail plonking yourself down on the couch, with the remote control within reach. There is plenty to look forward to as far as binge-worthy options are concerned. Showmax’s trailer of its upcoming murder mystery, Donkerbos, has already got the attention of whodunnits. Writer-director Nico Scheepers, who won a Golden Horn for Best Editing: TV Drama at this year’s Saftas, is at the helm of this offering, which debuts on the streaming platform on Tuesday, January 17. The premise centres on six children found in the backwater forests of Donkerbos, Limpopo. And it is up to a shunned detective, Fanie (Erica Wessels),…

When spooky season arrives, there’s nothing we love more than cosying up to a scary (and/or scary good) TV show or movie. We’ve rounded up some of the most frightening fares to help you get into the spirit of Halloween. The Midnight Club Mike Flanagan, who has helmed various hauntings (Hill House, Bly Manor), takes us into Brightcliffe, a mysterious hospice for terminally ill teenagers in this story based on Christopher Pikes’ novel of the same name. The 10-episode series follows Ilonka (Iman Benson), whose plans to attend Stanford University are put on hold by a cancer diagnosis. Beware the jump scares, but like most of Flanagan's work, the underlying themes here are deeper than things that go bump in the night. At heart, The Midnight Club is about taking…

PRESIDENT Cyril Ramaphosa failed to uphold, defend and respect the Constitution and has a case to answer on the Phala Phala farm robbery scandal. These are some of the conclusions of three political parties who made submissions to the section 89 independent panel established by Parliament to determine whether or not Ramaphosa violated the Constitution and breached the executive oath of office. The three-member panel, chaired by former Constitutional Court Chief Judge Sandile Ngcobo, supported by former Judge Thokozile Masipa and Advocate Mahlape Sello, is expected to make a pronouncement before the end of November. The EFF, in its submission, said the panel must find that there is ‘prima facie evidence’ against the president as the party claims that “Ramaphosa was not faithful to Parliament”. “There is prima facie evidence…

JAZZOPHILES, get your jazzy groove on and prepare for the 2023 Cape Town International Jazz Festival (CTIJF). The esteemed event returns after a three-year involuntary hiatus due to the Covid-19 pandemic. The much-loved festival will take place at the Cape Town International Convention Centre (CTICC). The two-day music affair promises a fire line-up, including an appearance from South Africa’s Queen of Afro-jazz, Judith Sephuma. The Mme Motswadi (2005) and Lerato La Pelo Ya Ka (2008) singer said she was looking forward to performing at the festival. “The event holds a special place in my heart. I'm so excited. I cannot wait. It is to take place from the 17 to the 18 of March next year,” she said. Sephuma will be performing alongside local and international surprise acts that will…

On October 30, 1990, a group of strong-willed LGBTQIA+ South Africans marched down the streets of Johannesburg. They marched with a clear message: to be treated with dignity and the same rights afforded to all. They marched in protest against apartheid and the queer community being the target of homophobia, transphobia and intersectional discrimination. It was a march led by queer and anti-apartheid activists, Simon Nkoli and Beverley Ditsie through the Gay and Lesbian Community of the Witwatersrand (Glow). Glow was founded by Nkoli in 1988. The march saw diverse faces united in their mission and intending to start a defiant movement and freedom of expression. Thirty-three years later, the pride march has continued with its original message in an evolved South African society, because while apartheid may have ended,…

A MINERAL-rich North West community has wrested control of a lucrative stake in mining giant Glencore after accusing its chief of not accounting for millions of rand. This follows the North West High Court’s ruling in Bakwena-ba-Mogopa’s favour in the battle for the control of its community trust. The Bakwena-ba-Mogopa, land owners in Bethanie, Jericho and Hebron, entered into a pooling and sharing venture with Glencore wherein they hold 26% in Rhovan Mine and also share in the earnings of the operation. According to non-profit organisation Corruption Watch’s 2018 mining royalties research report, the R575 million BBBEE agreement relates to the vanadium facility on the community’s land, which is rich in platinum, vanadium and diamonds extractives. Bakwena-ba-Mogopa also entered into another money-spinning deal after Impala Platinum acquired African Platinum for…

THE state of our country’s energy infrastructure purposefully designed to generate, transmit and distribute electricity is parlous and dilapidated, which malaise has undoubtedly proven to be detrimental to our competitive economic fortunes and individual prosperity. In the current climate of policy uncertainty caused by discontinuous initiatives that are spatial and cognitively unrelated to researched planning, it is difficult to imagine urgent initiatives that could curtail this precipitous slide into sheer anarchy. At this stage, the amount of resources to be deployed to stem these wanton acts of sabotage on the energy economy and the infrastructure that supports it would easily compare to countries at war. In September alone, our rolling brownouts and managed power shut-offs were worse than the maximum 15% loss of electricity supply in Ukraine. While the population…

SUPPORTERS of opposing teams will wonder how the Sharks continue to sign top Springboks despite a stringent salary cap, but Bulls coach Jake White believes the big names just add extra pressure on them for today’s United Rugby Championship clash at Loftus Versfeld (3pm kick-off). The Durban side included their latest new face, Bok centre Francois Venter, at No 13 alongside former Wallaby midfielder Ben Tapuai in what will be an intriguing duel against Bulls duo Cornal Hendricks and Harold Vorster. There are others such as Aphelele Fassi, Phepsi Buthelezi, Vincent Tshituka, Scotland flank Dylan Richardson and Bok props Thomas du Toit and Ntuthuko Mchunu that form the basis of an excellent Sharks team, despite the absence of stars such as Siya Kolisi, Eben Etzebeth, Bongi Mbonambi, Ox Nche, Jaden…

As part of the efforts to boost tourism, the eThekwini Municipality’s tourism department, Durban Tourism, has announced that it plans to make Durban a premier whale-watching destination to rival the likes of Hermanus. Durban Tourism hosted a Whale-Watching Experience and a Trade Educational workshop encouraging tour operators to see it as an activity or attraction that tourists can look forward to when visiting. According to Soul of South Durban (Sodurba) chairperson Helga du Preez, the Bluff in Durban is an internationally certified Whale Heritage Site. “In 2019, we were the first of two sites worldwide, awarded heritage site status alongside Harvey Bay Australia. Whale Heritage Sites aim to increase the protection and conservation of cetaceans, whales, dolphins and porpoises, and their habitats while contributing to sustainable livelihoods, local economic development,…

A TikTok user who goes by the username, localtumbleweed, has gone viral for calmly handling an insolent customer at the hotel where she works. The video was uploaded on October 23 and has since accrued over 28.9 million views. The video shows a quarrel between the hotel receptionist and a male customer over a booking. He is heard sounding upset that the room he booked only has one king-sized bed and a pull-out sofa, where he’d be staying with another adult and 2 children. “What do you expect us to do?” the man asked. “We can’t all sleep on a King bed, that’s ridiculous.” The receptionist politely reiterates that the man had booked via a third-party website, and would have to take up the issues with them. A bystander…

A frightening number of kids’ apps are spying on them. Now parents can get some help to stop it. A new app called Do Not Track Kids acts like a privacy shield for iPhones and iPads used by children. For $5 (around R90) per month, it runs in the background of the device to block the companies that harvest personal information from children (and grown-ups too). It also contains cartoon lessons to teach kids about online privacy. Do Not Track Kids was made by a dad who knows a thing or two about digital snoops: former National Security Agency researcher Patrick Jackson. Today, Jackson is the chief technology officer of Disconnect, a company that also makes privacy software used to power tracking prevention in web browsers including Mozilla's Firefox and…

Africa’s Mission Challenges: an address I delivered at the UN Economic Commission for Africa to the joint Conference of StatCom Africa, Civil Registration and Vital Statistics and the UN Committee of Experts on the Global Geospatial Information Management on October 25. This is an edited version. AFRICA faces mission challenges of energy hunger, food hunger and self-insufficiency, development deficits on almost all terrains of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals, not least because of the more recent Russian-Ukraine war, not least because of the Covid-19 shocks, not least because of the recent data revolution, not least from historical challenges of the Fourth Industrial Revolution. But mission challenges embedded in colonialism and its adaptation through neo-colonialism and coloniality machinations that often express themselves independent of our will and ride on statistics, technology,…

There are never any simple solutions or answers to mental health challenges, this is especially true for suicide. Those who contemplate ending their lives are usually at an emotionally draining and isolating precipice of a mental health crisis, they see no way out of. This is why, one of the most important aspects of our lives is to develop positive relationships; having fulfilling and meaningful relationships with our friends and family, people who we love and respect, can help create meaning in our lives and make for an important support system. If you know someone who is struggling with their mental health, here are some ways to help them deal with their crisis and be that one person in their lives who can help make a difference, shared by Dilshad…

Actor Leslie Jordan died on Monday in Los Angeles, according to his agent. Jordan was reportedly in a car accident, though his cause of death was not confirmed. He was 67 years old. While known in recent years for appearing in the television series American Horror Story, Will & Grace and Call Me Kat, Jordan became a viral internet sensation early in the pandemic because of videos he posted on Instagram. He filmed himself doing all sorts of humorous activities, from baton twirling as an exercise to singing Lizzo while impersonating Sia, with a fringed pillow atop his head. At the time of his death, Jordan had 5.8 million followers and nearly a thousand posts on the platform. Jordan’s agent, David Shaul, of the BRS/Gage talent agency, said “the world…

Triangle of Sadness (Cinemas nationwide) The satirical black comedy film is written and directed by Ruben Östlund in his English-language feature film debut. The film stars Harris Dickinson, Charlbi Dean, Dolly de Leon, Zlatko Buri, Henrik Dorsin, Vicki Berlin and Woody Harrelson. It is the last film Dean starred in before her death in August this year. The premise centres on a small group of survivors consisting of Carl, Yaya, Dimitry, Therese, Paula, Jarmo, ship mechanic Nelson, and cleaner Abigail, who escape to a deserted island. Blazing a Trail, by Lincoln Mali (R230 on loot.co.za) After being jailed as a student activist during the 1980s, Lincoln Mali heeded his father’s advice: the most powerful weapon against the apartheid government was “to get the best education, embrace the best values, principles…

SUSPENDED Public Enterprises director-general Kgathatso Tlhakudi this week submitted a protected disclosure letter to the speaker of Parliament and President Cyril Ramaphosa, asking them to investigate Minister Pravin Gordhan for corruption. Tlhakudi, in his letter to Nosiviwe Maposa-Nqakula and the president, seen by Sunday Independent, says Gordhan suspended him when he “started seeing me as an obstacle to the programme that he was embarking on of disposing of state-owned enterprises (SOEs) and their assets in a fraudulent and corrupt manner”. Tlhakudi also claims that, on Thursday, he and his lawyers were denied parking and entrance at the state building where they were to attend his disciplinary hearing. He says when his lawyer phoned to ask for parking and report entrance problems, he was “rudely scolded and they dropped the phone…

ANC NATIONAL executive committee member Dr Mathole Motshekga has become the latest governing party leader to publicly criticise the country’s Constitution, describing it as an impediment to the desired social and economic transformation. In addition, Motshekga, co-chairperson of Parliament’s joint constitutional review committee, wants delegates to the governing party's national conference in December to consider a referendum on the land question. He warned that the ANC had failed to deliver on land reform and would struggle should the failure continue and criticised his fellow MPs for failing to grasp that the Constitution was the biggest obstacle in achieving transformation. “Since the majority of MPs do not seem to know that section 25 of the Constitution is the biggest stumbling block to social and economic transformation, it is suggested that the…

THE Phala Phala scandal has given citizens more reason to question the trustworthiness of President Cyril Ramaphosa. South Africa gained international media attention when its head of state was entangled in allegations of money laundering, of undermining the rule of law, and kidnapping. This was after the former director-general (DG) of the Department of Correctional Services and former DG of the State Security Agency (SSA), Arthur Fraser, laid criminal charges against Ramaphosa and his head of security, General Wally Rhoode, at Rosebank police station on June 1. Fraser alleged that Ramaphosa tried to cover up a robbery at his Phala Phala farm in Limpopo where robbers helped themselves to an undisclosed amount of US dollars, estimated to be between $4 million and $8m (approximately between R76.5m and R145.2m at current…

BITCOIN Ekasi a non-profit organisation (NPO) seeking to establish a bitcoin economy in Mossel Bay, has opened the Bitcoin Ekasi Centre. The centre was co-founded by Hermann Vivier, who also co-founded the Surfer Kids Non-Profit in 2010, which is a 100% donation-based non-profit organisation that works to create youth empowerment in impoverished and marginalised youths in Mossel Bay through character-building activities that teach commitment and dedication. Bitcoin Ekasi Centre opened its doors educating youths from primary and secondary school, in a dedicated after-school programme. Ekasi Bitcoin has educated 20 pupils, with the goal of doubling the numbers in the future. The children will alternate their time between the Bitcoin Ekasi Centre and The Surfer Kids. The curriculum is age dependent. For younger learners, the centre will focus on foundational maths…

“ My number is like a public phone. People rely on it more than they rely on 10111” “My number is like a public phone. People rely on it more than they rely on 10111.” These are the words of a woman still widely addressed by her moniker, “Mama Action”. Former Cabinet minister Nomvula Mokonyane says she dreads taking calls in the morning, because she views them as harbingers of bad news, like a death in the family. But more and more she’s come to have no choice but to field the calls and they are mostly from distressed women, victims of gender-based violence asking for help. When a 94-year-old woman was raped by a 21-year-old neighbour in Mapetla, Soweto, last week, the first call they made was to her.…

ZETHU Myeki is from Mdantsane, the East London township known as the centre of boxing in South Africa for having produced more professional pugilists than any other location in the country. While in Grade 7 in 2009, she used to walk past a soccer field where a group of girls were busy with golf practice. She was interested but too shy to approach the girls to let her in. Her saving grace was a fellow student from her school who ultimately invited her into the fold. Today Myeki is a professional golfer. This week she was playing at the two-day Standard Bank Pro-Am Series tournament at the Houghton Golf Club on Wednesday and Thursday, one of just under five black female golfers. The women were playing for a R600 000…

THE launch of South Africa’s Agriculture and Agro-processing Master Plan (AAMP) earlier this year was a momentous event in the history of agriculture in the country. The AAMP is an agricultural social compact developed by government, agribusiness, labour and other stakeholders; and aims to bring notable changes to the sector by 2030. The plan also comes to consolidate gains that have been made, and reposition and ready the sector for the future while attentive to the transformational needs of the sector. Covid-19, the war in Ukraine, resultant supply-chain bottlenecks and consequent high food inflation have undoubtedly elevated the significance of sovereign food security and firmly put agriculture in the spotlight. Moreover, the plan could not have come at a better time, given signs of waning globalisation and the re-emergence of…

LOCAL airline FlySafair has scooped top honours at the World Luxury Travel Awards for Best Budget Airline in Africa and Best Cabin Crew in Africa Kirby Gordon, chief marketing officer at FlySafair, said: “It’s encouraging to receive this high praise as we prepare for the upcoming holiday season. “We have always taken a great deal of pride in providing our customers with a hassle-free travel experience. “From the moment they search for their flight, all the way through to stepping off the aircraft at their next destination, we do everything to make sure it’s as seamless as possible.” Not only is this airline known for its great service, it also received recognition from Skytrax for “Best Low-Cost Airline in Africa” at the World Airline Awards. Earlier this year, it was…

South Africa has a lot to offer when it comes to rural travel. Options range from exploring wine-making in the Winelands to supernatural attractions like the mythical carnivorous Modimolle mountain in Limpopo, and world-renowned geological marvels like the Bourke’s Luck Potholes in Mpumalanga. According to the online booking platform Jurni, picking your ideal travel experience from a wide range of options can be daunting but thanks to tech advances in the travel market, the best of cultural and rural travel is now found on digital platforms. The question then is, how can tech better help travellers experience the best of South Africa’s isolated rural and cultural travel? Tech enhances safety Jurni’s head of marketing Tshepo Matlou believes that using tech to buy travel and tourism products and services from…