Frikkie Grobler

This week we profile Frikkie Grobler, CEO of Logicalis South Africa, which is focused on the design, support and execution of customers’ digital transformation by bringing together the customers’... 

Presidents for life

The past few years have witnessed the departure of a few African Big Men who had dominated the political landscape in their countries for decades. The most notable are Angola’s Jose Eduardo dos... 

Waste-averse Kenya under pressure

Kenya has quite a high profile in Africa. It owes this visibility to several factors: it is East Africa’s economic powerhouse, its tourist attractions – which are patronised by visitors from across... 

Covid-19-induced famine

The Covid-19 pandemic has had multiple impacts. Apart from hundreds of thousands of deaths, many economies are now shadows of their former selves, while scores of people have joined the ranks of... 

Black tax’s longevity benefit

The ‘black tax’ phenomenon is as common in Mzansi as it is elsewhere on the continent. This is where societal values demand that individuals who ‘have arrived’ – nay, who are fortunate enough to... 

Iain Williamson

This week we profile Iain Williamson, CEO of financial services group Old Mutual 

Africa now polio free

There is much depressing news around these days, from the havoc that the Covid-19 pandemic is wreaking on countries – in the health, economic and social senses – to tyrants continuing to ride... 

Tough-talking Ecowas

I have always admired the Economic Community of West African States (Ecowas). Unlike the regional body in our neck of the woods, the Southern African Development Community (SADC), it does talk –... 

Fezeka Nompumza

This week we profile Fezeka Nompumza, executive: business development and stakeholder relations at infrastructure development and construction company Concor Construction 

Tourism hit by Covid-19

Tourism is an important economic sector in Africa, accounting for a sizeable chunk of the gross domestic product (GDP) of many countries. Mauritius’ tourism sector boasts the highest GDP... 

July Ndlovu

This week we profile July Moyo, CEO of Anglo American Coal South Africa and chairperson of the World Coal Association 

Zimbabwe: more of the same

When the much-hated Robert Mugabe was toppled by the military as Zimbabwe’s President in November 2017, there was hope that his successor would open up the democratic space and end the suffering of... 

My Covid-19 ordeal

There was a time not so long ago when, for many in Mzansi, Covid-19 was something they watched on television. That’s no longer the case, with the virus having infected hundreds of thousands. Sadly,... 

Etienne Jooste

This week we profile Etienne Jooste, chief operating officer at Londani Coal, a coal mining company  

Congratulations, Malawi

Jacob Zuma’s acerbic tongue is well known. Malawi was once at its receiving end when the former President, in an attempt to convince Gauteng residents to pay urban e-tolls, blurted: “We can’t think... 

Unlamented dictator

Owing to the mediation role that South Africa played in conflict-prone Burundi, thus guaranteeing the Eastern African country a spot on our media agenda for many years, very few news-consuming... 

Food security amid Covid-19

It’s well known that Africa faces an imminent dilemma as far as food security is concerned: the majority of its farmers are in the twilight of their careers, aged 60 on average, and their offspring... 

Sophia the robot turns four

In one of the earliest instalments of this column, I wrote about Sophia, the social humanoid robot that was granted citizenship – with a passport to boot – by Saudi Arabia in October 2017, becoming... 

Christopher Eibl

This week we profile Christopher Eibl, GM of ESAB South Africa, a supplier of ESAB welding and cutting products 

Thieving Presidents

Africa has had more than its fair share of Big Men with sticky fingers. The latest to be outed as a kleptomaniac par excellence is deposed Sudanese strongman Omar Hassan al-Bashir, who amassed real... 

Bones tell slavery story

How enslaved Africans were shipped across the Atlantic over centuries is a story that has been told ad nauseum, generating a wealth of knowledge about this massive blot on the history of mankind.... 

Celebration-less Africa Day

In a few days, Africans at home and in the diaspora will be celebrating the fifty-seventh anniversary of Africa Day, which marks the founding of the Organisation of African Unity (OAU), the... 

Juliano Vargas

This week we profile Juliano Vargas, CEO of Zest WEG Group Africa, an electrical equipment manufacturer and distributor in Sub-Saharan Africa  

Fatal inaction

With Covid-19 having shaped up into a health crisis of unprecedented proportions – with equally unprecedented economic implications – it is not inconceivable that governments and other stakeholders... 

Nature’s fury

The Covid-19 pandemic has hogged news headlines during the past couple of months, and understandably so. The upshot has been that other crises have received comparatively little attention from the... 

No laughing matter – really?

The coronavirus disease – or Covid-19 – is dead serious business. According to the United Nations, the pandemic will likely consign 300 000 sons and daughters of the African soil to the grave,... 

Diminished productivity

It has been about a month since President Cyril Ramaphosa ordered a national lockdown to curb the spread of Covid-19 – a decision that earned him plaudits far and wide, even from his political... 

Trapped by Covid-19

African elites are notorious for seeking medical care abroad, eschewing medical facilities in their own countries, many of which are in a sorry state, having been starved of cash for maintenance... 

Ubuntu lacking in our leaders

I am a great admirer of Kenya’s PLO Lumumba, who is often on the speaking circuit in African capitals, preaching the gospel of African unity and good governance. The gist of what he says is that,... 

Natalie Jantjies

This week we profile Natalie Jantjies, digital transformation director at Heineken South Africa, which sells, markets and distributes beers and ciders in the South African market 

‘Moo-ney’ deal

I become quite sceptical whenever the old argument that Africans must find African solutions to their challenges is invoked. The argument’s biggest proponents have been the many obnoxious dictators... 

Liz Gorbunov

This week we profile Liz Gorbunov, GM and chief marketing manager: light commercial vehicles and sports utility vehicles at automaker Nissan Africa  

Let’s prioritise mathematics

March 14 was celebrated live and online around the world as the International Day of Mathematics. This was the first time this happened and followed a decision by the United Nations Educational,... 

Derek Halstead-Cleak

This week we profile Derek Halstead-Cleak, CEO of Kwikspace Modular Buildings, Africa’s largest manufacturer of prefabricated and modular buildings. 

Leadership deficiency

Africa continues to face a paucity of political leaders whose democratic credentials are worthy writing home about. The latest evidence of this is the decision by the Mo Ibrahim Foundation not to... 

You can say ‘next tomorrow’ – and it’s correct English

The Oxford English Dictionary (OED), described by some as “the last word on [English] words”, has been updated with 29 Nigerian English words and phrases. These include ‘severally’, as in “he... 

Whither, SAA?

I start with a disclaimer: the only discipline in which I received training is the art and craft of journalism. I have never been anywhere near a business school or a lecture hall where the... 

Opinion: Dateline Harare

My wife persuaded me to attend a wedding in Harare on the Saturday after Valentine’s Day. We got one of the earliest flights out of OR Tambo International Airport – just to make sure we would... 

Lucas Tseki

This week we profile Lucas Tseki, CEO of Concor, a provider of diversified infrastructure, building and opencast mining services 

Dateline Harare

My wife persuaded me to attend a wedding in Harare on the Saturday after Valentine’s Day. We got one of the earliest flights out of OR Tambo International Airport – just to make sure we would...