Innovate Africa: Introducing FlexClub, a smarter way to rent a car
With many people's credit records damaged by Covid-19, FlexClub offers a responsible and flexible way to get behind the wheel of a late-model car without taking on debt.
The model also lays the foundation for a more inclusive credit system, where access is based on real behaviour, not outdated scores.
It's car access made simple, honest and built for real life.
Innovate Africa Founder Kieno Kammies, finds out more about how this model works.
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IOL News
13 hours ago
- IOL News
Economists warn of job losses as US tariffs threaten South African trade
The South African sugar industry is facing the threat of collapsing and job losses as a result of US President Donald Trump imposing 30% tariffs on the country's exports. Image: Karen Sandison / Independent Newspapers In the wake of the recent 30% tariff hike imposed by the United States, South Africa's sugar and automotive industries are bracing for significant upheaval. Economists warn that these tariffs could spell disaster for local businesses, jeopardising exports and leading to alarming job losses. An economist has warned that losing the market will collapse the industry after President Donald Trump's 30% tariff hike imposed on goods exported to the country's second biggest trade partner. Economist Miyelani Mkhabela shared these sentiments as some local exporters already expressed concern about their future. 'People have a reason to panic because the tariffs will make it difficult for South African products to appeal to the American market,' said Mkhabela. He said small industries are facing the danger of collapsing because although the normal trade deal between South Africa and the US might be restored after the end of Trump's presidency, 'four years is a lot for a company.' 'When the market is closed (through exorbitant tariffs), it means a lot for small businesses that are sending products to the American market would suffer, as their clients would say your products are 30% higher. 'That would collapse the South African manufacturing system because we depend on the US as our second trade partner,' he said. He said South Africa cannot easily find a country that could replace the American market, which 'is bigger than what we are sending to the whole of Africa'. However, he said the African economy would recover after four years as it recovered from the global financial crisis and 'is still recovering from the global health (Covid-19 pandemic). But after Trump, many emerging companies will no longer exist because they will fail to repay bank loans. SA Farmers Development Association (SAFDA) Executive Chairman Dr Siyabonga Madlala, who is involved in sugar manufacturing, is concerned that while businesses have no power over politically influenced tariffs, they are the ones bearing the brunt. Madlala anticipated a loss of millions of rand, a situation that would result in alarming job losses. He said the South African Sugar Association (SASA)'s lots of sugar meant for the US might go to waste. 'America, through AGOA (the African Growth and Opportunity Act), has given us a lucrative market for about 24,000 tons of sugar exports, so with the imposition of tariffs, our sugar won't be attractive to our US consumers as it is now becoming expensive. 'It forces US consumers to look for alternatives rather than buying from us because our sugar becomes 30% more expensive,' said Madlala. South African competitors in supplying the US with sugar are Mexico, Brazil, Australia, and several Central American and Caribbean nations. He estimated that, through the tariffs, SASA will lose R168 million from its annual revenue. According to Madlala, the US market, which found South African sugar affordable under the AGOA agreement, may look for alternative countries to buy from. 'The reason is that lots of other countries are subsidised, therefore they can afford to still sell sugar than us, as we are not subsidised but working on our own,' said Madlala. He said reducing production would cause job losses and the shutdown of sugar mills. 'Once you try to lower the production, it means some farms will shut down or diversify. By that, it means that sugar mills will lose sugar cane supply, which is the lifeblood of the sugar mill,' he said. He said the tariffs came at the wrong time when the government's master plan was succeeding in reviving some major sugar mills, including Tongaat Hulett, which in the process was coming out of business rescue. 'While we are appreciating the master plan's initiative, we are now bombarded with the tariffs,' said Madlala. Influential organisations such as FW De Klerk Foundation recently called for the country to expand its trade partners rather than relying on the US. Agriculture Minister John Steenhuisen said the government was also reaching out to other countries. However, Madlala said finding an alternative market was not easy to do overnight. National Association of Automotive Component and Allied Manufacturers (NAACAM) CEO Renai Moothilal told the media that the automotive industry was already feeling the effects, as some companies have started to lose US deals. 'We are already seeing new contracts, especially for the US, being cancelled or not pursued, putting one of the country's most critical manufacturing sectors at risk,' Moothilal said. Build One SA (BOSA) called on Ramaphosa to engage directly with the US Congress members, who will decide on the fate of AGOA, and tell them that over 500,000 US jobs are linked to trade with South Africa. Another economist, Khulekani Mathe, commended Ramaphosa for continuing to negotiate with Trump, as he cannot immediately find an alternative market. He said it was not guaranteed that South Africa/US trade would recover after Trump's departure. 'It is dependent on whether we are to negotiate anytime between now and four for more favourable terms. The economic recovery would depend on whether the country can find an alternative market to send the volume of products that are sent to the US, something that can not materialise in the short term. Professor Bonke Dumisa said Trump was miscalculating to think tariffs would benefit his economy because 'Economic History shows us that no one wins the tariff wars'. 'Purportedly, it is said that the USA wants to open space for its businesses to recapture the market space they lost as they focused on moving abroad to produce more competitively priced products. Unfortunately, USA businesses priced themselves out of the markets. 'The South African businesses affected by these Tariffs must look for alternative markets. There is very little that the government can do to help these businesses,' said Dumisa. [email protected]
Daily Maverick
19 hours ago
- Daily Maverick
IDT CEO bribery scandal – How I ended up with R60,000 in a Dior bag
Daily Maverick journalist Pieter-Louis Myburgh says he had a hunch that 'something nefarious' was afoot before his meeting with the suspended Independent Development Trust CEO and her spokesperson – who went on to offer him a wad of cash to suppress a continuing journalistic investigation. Victoria O'Regan: How did you get into investigative journalism? Pieter-Louis Myburgh: I studied journalism, and I think around that time already I was quite interested in investigative journalism, specifically. I read All the President's Men [Carl Bernstein and Bob Woodward's non-fiction book detailing how they investigated and uncovered the Watergate scandal in the US, ultimately leading to President Richard Nixon's resignation]. It has always been a favourite read of mine, and at that point it was the most well-known example of really consequential, hard-hitting investigative journalism. I've always been inspired by the impact one can achieve through investigative journalism. VO: How did this specific investigation into the Independent Development Trust (IDT) begin? PLM: It started with the oxygen plants scandal. [A forensic investigation revealed that a shadowy company secured more than half of an IDT R836-million hospital oxygen plant tender during Covid-19, and governance failures at the IDT led to the CEO's suspension.] A source contacted me in mid-2024, telling me to have a look at this massive contract. It just grew from there. I got some documents relating to the contract, and also found out that the main contractor wasn't equipped to deliver that equipment and didn't have the necessary Sahpra [South African Health Products Regulatory Authority] accreditation. VO: How did you get the first tip-off? PLM: I can't go into that much detail, but it goes back to my work on Digital Vibes. [The Digital Vibes scandal involved a politically connected communications firm siphoning off millions meant for public health during Covid-19.] So, seeing as Digital Vibes was a Health Department exposé, I do have some sources in that environment. It was somebody from that environment who told me to look at those oxygen plants, because the oxygen plants thing was a collaboration between the Health Department and the IDT. VO: How did you come up with the idea of doing a sting? PLM: It was just the situation that led me to it. I was pursuing an investigation and, as I was contacting people, word of my probing must've got back to [suspended IDT CEO Tebogo Malaka] – or, at least to Phasha Makgolane, the IDT spokesperson – because Makgolane contacted me, out of the blue, in early June this year. I had just come back from doing some work in Gauteng on this issue that I'm investigating, and then he phoned me and said that we should have a meeting, and it was too sensitive to discuss on the phone. You know, all that suspicious language that gave away what the intentions would be. I contacted Daily Maverick editor-in-chief Jillian Green and deputy editor Anso Thom and I said that everything points to bribery being the intention – I don't think this is just a normal interaction between me and the spokesperson. I proposed the idea that we should pursue the meeting first, with Makgolane, and then later with the IDT CEO. Because when Makgolane contacted me, right from the start he said that there were going to be two meetings – one with him and one where Malaka would also be present. VO: So you suspected it? PLM: Oh, definitely. His language gave it away. Just the fact that he was saying that we have mutual matters to discuss. It's kind of code for something nefarious. VO: Were you nervous? PLM: Absolutely – throughout. We invested so much editorially and journalistically in this project – time and logistics, and there were some expenses, obviously. So just on that front, I really wanted it to work out. But then obviously there are also safety concerns on top of that. VO: Tell me about the tech that you used. Did you plan where to sit based on where you could set up a hidden camera? PLM: I suppose the operation is wrapped up, so we can go into some detail. The first prize was always going to be for us to sit at that table, which is why I arrived much earlier. I was already sitting there so that I could beckon for them to come over to me. But we did plan for some eventualities. If they maybe insisted on going to another table, if they didn't like that one, there would've been mobile cameras with some of the operators to follow us and hopefully get it on camera. But that table was going to be our very best chance of getting the best footage and sound. VO: How did Malaka and Makgolane react when you photographed the money? PLM: I think they were a little stunned. Makgolane thought I was using an app on my phone that was counting the money. Well, he jokingly suggested that. I think that when I did that, it probably dawned on them that I was doing something funny. And then, very shortly after that, I told them I was, in fact, not taking the money and gave it back to them. VO: Who paid the bill? PLM: That's a very good question! Obviously, I walked away to get out of there and so did the two of them. So the people on the ground who assisted with the logistics paid the bill. VO: Are you scared for your safety? PLM: Yes, I am – but, I guess, in this line of work it's almost a constant consideration. Whether it's me working on this or other journalists working on the provincial health department in Gauteng or whistle-blower Babita Deokaran's assassination – it's just, I suppose, a constant consideration. For now, I'm kind of lying low. VO: What now, and what consequences would you like to see happen? PLM: We're still focused on getting our actual investigation out [on Monday], which is the issue that prompted the whole bribe attempt. So, ironically, I think this bribe is going to become the main story for now, but actually the investigation involves another IDT contract and the CEO's property in Gauteng. VO: Some people have quipped that R60,000 isn't that much money. Is there a price that you would've accepted? PLM: No. I think we should definitely correct the optics around the amount, because I see that's one angle that's gone very viral. The reality is that R60,000 was meant to have been a little sweetener. At the very first meeting with Makgolane, the main boon for me would have been tenders from the IDT. He said that I could bring contractors to the IDT, they would clinch the contracts, and then I could sort of get my cut. And, very shortly after that first meeting, he sent me a Western Cape IDT tender, inviting me to spread it among my contractor friends. Unfortunately I don't have many of those [laughs].
TimesLIVE
a day ago
- TimesLIVE
Italy approves nearly €600m in new subsidies for EVs
Italy has approved new subsidies worth almost €600m (R12.38bn) for the purchase of electric vehicles (EVs) as sales lag, the environment and energy ministry said on Friday. The ministry will offer up to €10,000 (R206,398) to individuals and up to €20,000 (R412,796) to small firms, covering up to 30% of the purchase price of a new electric car or commercial vehicle. The subsidies, financed by the EU's post-Covid-19 recovery funds, will be restricted to individuals or companies based in larger urban areas with the aim of reducing pollution and improving air quality. To qualify for the programme beneficiaries will be required to scrap an internal combustion vehicle of up to the Euro 5 emission class, dating from 2015 or earlier, the ministry said. EV sales are struggling in Europe, hindered by high prices and lack of charging stations, as the EU is using regulations in an effort to phase out combustion engine cars to meet carbon emissions goals. In Italy, battery electric vehicles accounted for only 6% of new car sales in June, compared with more than 15% across the EU. Next year the bloc is due to review its ban on the sale of new petrol and diesel cars from 2035 under pressure from the car industry and some national governments to slow the transition.
