Cape Argus 2022-01-13

STANDARD Bank said this week it had established a partner page on the crowdfunding platform Thundafund to assist small businesses that continue to try to get back on their feet after the civil unrest in KwaZulu-Natal and Gauteng in July, while already being disadvantaged due to the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic. Jenine Zachar, head of enterprise and direct banking, said: “The protracted and slow process of reconstruction and once again building up stock to meet consumer demands, particularly for micro and small enterprises, is often overlooked and unsupported.” Standard Bank said it had partnered with Thundafund to help businesses recover, rebuild, and restart operations. Donors can visit Standard Bank’s partner page at Thundafund, select a campaign they want to support and make their donation via the platform. “There are…

NON-LIFE insurer MiWay announced late last year that it had appointed Burton Naicker as CEO, to replace René Otto, who retired at the end of 2021. As a founding member and CEO, Otto led the business from a start-up 14 years ago, to the direct insurer it is today. René said: “It was without a doubt the best 14 years of my life. Together with my management team, we built a great business and made a meaningful contribution to the economic and social landscape of South Africa. “I am particularly proud of the strong values-based culture that we built with and for our staff. I believe it is the strongest differentiator between MiWay and most of its competitors.” Burton officially assumed his CEO duties with effect from January 1 and…

Edward West edward.west@inl.co.za THE Competition Commission has released guidelines to school governing bodies (SGBs), administrators and schools to improve the competitiveness of the procurement of school uniforms, after continuing complaints received about the prices of uniforms. The commission said that since 2010 it had received complaints from parents and guardians regarding the high price of school uniforms and that some schools compel parents to buy uniforms and learning-related materials from only one supplier. This often left parents out of pocket at the start of the school year, as they could not source cheaper suppliers. To address these issues, the commission on Monday released guidelines on the procurement of school uniforms and learning materials. Cliffe Dekker Hofmeyr commercial law firm’s national head of competition law, Chris Charter, said the commission’s guidelines…

Andy Searle AS WE enter the new year with renewed optimism, here is a reminder that at the end of last year, BPeSA signed a comprehensive framework for a global business services (GBS) sector masterplan designed to increase the exceptional growth and success the sector has achieved over the past four years. Our masterplan framework, developed and agreed with the Department of Trade, Industry and Competition (dtic) and other strategic public, private and social partners sets a target of creating between 250 000 and 500 000 cumulative new jobs in the sector by 2030. Our two-fold strategy requires scaling up the services we provide to our existing global customers by securing additional work from them, and attracting new customers who would invest in South Africa by expanding here or shifting…

Bang Showbiz This year’s Oscars ceremony will have a host after three years with no presenter. The ABC Entertainment president Craig Erwich has revealed that March’s Academy Awards night would see the return of the traditional format with a host, though he did not say who it will be as he quipped that he may take the reins. He said during the winter Television Critics Association virtual press tour: “You heard it here first.” The Oscars last had a host in the form of Jimmy Kimmel in 2018 but have not had a presenter since Kevin Hart stood down from hosting the following year after homophobic jokes that he had posted on social media resurfaced. This year’s ceremony is set to take place on March 27 and will return to…

Kedibone Modise kedibone.modise@inl.co.za Media personality and businesswoman Pearl Thusi has accused her employees of stealing from her. In a series of tweets, the Behind The Story host expressed her disappointment at the people she trusted with her “property”. “My home staff has been stealing from me. I’m hacked,” said the TV star. “The saddest thing is when staff in your home steal from you, it’s like losing family. “And without proof of who did it, you have to pay for their crime to let them go or deal with the CCMA. That’s actually crazy. “The stuff is just missing and no one knows what happened, but they’re the only other people with access to the property missing. I’m actually hurt. I really cared for these people,” said the star. “Home…