Latest news with #Se-AnneRall
IOL News
28-05-2025
- Business
- IOL News
South Africa's tourism sector works hard to shake off Covid-19 blues
South Africa's international tourism sector showed strong growth in early 2025, continuing its steady recovery from the pandemic downturn and reinforcing its importance to the economy. Image: Se-Anne Rall/IOL South Africa's international tourism sector showed strong growth in early 2025, continuing its steady recovery from the pandemic downturn and reinforcing its importance to the economy. In fact, the World Travel & Tourism Council expects South Africa's travel and tourism sector to 'reach a major milestone' this year and is set to support 1.9 million jobs, surpassing 2019 levels and marking an all-time high, underlining its role as a key employer and major source of opportunity, with the sector accounting for 11.3% of all jobs in South Africa. Yet, even as more tourists come through South Africa's airports, international visitor spending, while set to grow steadily, is likely to remain below pre pandemic levels at R128.4 billion, trailing 2019 by R37.7bn, the Council said. Domestic visitor spending continues to show stronger resilience, with the 2025 total spend forecast at R445 billion, 3.8% above 2019 levels. According to Statistics South Africa, 2.98 million travellers passed through South African borders in April 2025, marking a 21.4% increase compared to April 2024. This growth is part of a broader upward trend seen in recent months, with 2.84 million travellers recorded in March and 3.09 million in January 2025. World Travel and Tourism Council CEO and President, Julia Simpson, said, 'South Africa's Travel and Tourism sector is slowly turning the corner. Jobs are leading the recovery, with employment expected to reach new highs, showing the enormous human impact of the sector's growth.' Investec economist, Lara Hodes, said in a note that, despite the challenges facing the tourism industry, it remains a key sector for growth and job creation. Her calculations showed that tourist arrivals to South Africa rose by 5.7% year-on-year in the first quarter of 2025, with those travelling from overseas countries increasing by a modest 3.1% on an annualised basis, while overseas tourism declined by 0.9% as of March versus the same month last year. 'While the domestic tourism sector has rebounded notably from the devastation caused by the pandemic related lockdowns, it continues to face a number of challenges which weigh on optimal activity and investment,' said Hodes. Video Player is loading. Play Video Play Unmute Current Time 0:00 / Duration -:- Loaded : 0% Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently behind live LIVE Remaining Time - 0:00 This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Window Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Dropshadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps Reset restore all settings to the default values Done Close Modal Dialog End of dialog window. Advertisement Next Stay Close ✕ She pointed to key constraints including 'elevated operational costs, inadequate and poorly maintained infrastructure, high levels of red tape preventing the efficient and timely delivery of key services and critically, an excessive crime rate, which is a significant deterrent for visitors.' Yet, Statistics South Africa's latest print, for April, stated that 'a comparison between the movements in March 2025 and April 2025 indicates that the volume of arrivals, departures and transits increased for both South African residents and foreign travellers'. Although only 35% of those entering South Africa stayed for a while, and 32.3% entered multiple times, the accommodation sector is also growing, albeit a bit slower than in February. Hodes noted that income derived from the tourist accommodation industry, excluding restaurant and bar sales and other income, dropped to 6.9% year-on-year at the end of the first quarter, following February's 12.6% lift when compared to the same time last year. The largest category, hotels, was largely responsible for March's lift, on the back of growth of 8.5% year-on-year, she said. Tourism's contribution to South Africa's gross domestic product has grown, now estimated at 8.8%, supporting around 1.68 million jobs. IOL
IOL News
28-05-2025
- Business
- IOL News
South Africa's tourism sector works hard to shake off Covid-19 blues
South Africa's international tourism sector showed strong growth in early 2025, continuing its steady recovery from the pandemic downturn and reinforcing its importance to the economy. Image: Se-Anne Rall/IOL South Africa's international tourism sector showed strong growth in early 2025, continuing its steady recovery from the pandemic downturn and reinforcing its importance to the economy. In fact, the World Travel & Tourism Council expects South Africa's travel and tourism sector to 'reach a major milestone' this year and is set to support 1.9 million jobs, surpassing 2019 levels and marking an all-time high, underlining its role as a key employer and major source of opportunity, with the sector accounting for 11.3% of all jobs in South Africa. Yet, even as more tourists come through South Africa's airports, international visitor spending, while set to grow steadily, is likely to remain below pre pandemic levels at R128.4 billion, trailing 2019 by R37.7bn, the Council said. Domestic visitor spending continues to show stronger resilience, with the 2025 total spend forecast at R445 billion, 3.8% above 2019 levels. According to Statistics South Africa, 2.98 million travellers passed through South African borders in April 2025, marking a 21.4% increase compared to April 2024. This growth is part of a broader upward trend seen in recent months, with 2.84 million travellers recorded in March and 3.09 million in January 2025. World Travel and Tourism Council CEO and President, Julia Simpson, said, 'South Africa's Travel and Tourism sector is slowly turning the corner. Jobs are leading the recovery, with employment expected to reach new highs, showing the enormous human impact of the sector's growth.' Investec economist, Lara Hodes, said in a note that, despite the challenges facing the tourism industry, it remains a key sector for growth and job creation. Her calculations showed that tourist arrivals to South Africa rose by 5.7% year-on-year in the first quarter of 2025, with those travelling from overseas countries increasing by a modest 3.1% on an annualised basis, while overseas tourism declined by 0.9% as of March versus the same month last year. 'While the domestic tourism sector has rebounded notably from the devastation caused by the pandemic related lockdowns, it continues to face a number of challenges which weigh on optimal activity and investment,' said Hodes. She pointed to key constraints including 'elevated operational costs, inadequate and poorly maintained infrastructure, high levels of red tape preventing the efficient and timely delivery of key services and critically, an excessive crime rate, which is a significant deterrent for visitors.' Yet, Statistics South Africa's latest print, for April, stated that 'a comparison between the movements in March 2025 and April 2025 indicates that the volume of arrivals, departures and transits increased for both South African residents and foreign travellers'. Although only 35% of those entering South Africa stayed for a while, and 32.3% entered multiple times, the accommodation sector is also growing, albeit a bit slower than in February. Hodes noted that income derived from the tourist accommodation industry, excluding restaurant and bar sales and other income, dropped to 6.9% year-on-year at the end of the first quarter, following February's 12.6% lift when compared to the same time last year. The largest category, hotels, was largely responsible for March's lift, on the back of growth of 8.5% year-on-year, she said. Tourism's contribution to South Africa's gross domestic product has grown, now estimated at 8.8%, supporting around 1.68 million jobs. IOL
IOL News
23-05-2025
- Health
- IOL News
Sahpra approves first mpox diagnostic test to enhance global health efforts
South Africa has approved the first mpox diagnostic test, bolstering efforts to improve testing access across the globe. Image: Se-Anne Rall/IOL The South African Health Products Regulatory Authority (Sahpra) has made significant strides in combating mpox (formerly known as monkeypox) by approving the Alinity m MPX assay as the first in vitro diagnostic (IVD) test for the virus. This approval, facilitated through reliance on the World Health Organization's (WHO) Prequalification (PQ) assessment and Emergency Use Listing (EUL), marks a pivotal moment in enhancing global access to mpox testing. According to Dr Boitumelo Semete-Makokotlela, Sahpra's Chief Executive Officer, the timely listing of this diagnostic assay is a considerable milestone in efforts to leverage regulatory reliance mechanisms for improved health outcomes. 'For Sahpra to have been able to list this assay timeously, post a WHO PQ EUL, this marks a significant milestone in aiding global access to mpox testing by leveraging regulatory reliance mechanisms,' she stated. In the backdrop of ongoing mpox outbreaks, the emergency use approval of the Alinity m MPX assay, developed by Abbott Molecular Inc. and licensed to Abbott Laboratories South Africa (Pty) Ltd, is paramount. The nature of mpox necessitates rapid and accurate testing for early detection, timely treatment, and overall effective containment of the virus. Currently, only nasopharyngeal RT-PCR (reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction) tests are under consideration by SAHPRA for mpox diagnostics. Video Player is loading. Play Video Play Unmute Current Time 0:00 / Duration -:- Loaded : 0% Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently behind live LIVE Remaining Time - 0:00 This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Window Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Dropshadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps Reset restore all settings to the default values Done Close Modal Dialog End of dialog window. Advertisement Next Stay Close ✕ Healthcare agencies, including the African Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) and WHO, have emphasised that there is a lack of independently validated antigen rapid diagnostic tests (RDTs) in the market with a clinical sensitivity of at least 80% for mpox testing. As a result, antigen and antibody rapid test kits, including self-test versions, are not recommended at this time. The regulatory requirements for mpox diagnostics can be found in a detailed communication to industry stakeholders, specifically under Issue No.: MD01-2024/25 v1. The document is readily available on Sahpra's official website, which provides guidance on further WHO recommendations regarding mpox diagnostics. IOL
IOL News
22-05-2025
- Business
- IOL News
Trump's U. S. falls prey to the Dutch disease
Their concerted actions have enabled the United States to become – and, for a long time, remain – the world's leading economy and technological powerhouse. U.S. companies dominate the world economy especially in the technology space. Image: Se-Anne Rall/IOL This would not be the first time in history that a world-leading nation suffers from a severe cultural and social backlash at home and abdicates its leadership role in global commerce. Superficially viewed, Donald Trump's attacks on the global economic and strategic order appear as attacks on the rest of the world. However, the root cause of his attacks is entirely domestic in origin. A large share of the American people is not benefiting from the United States' extraordinary riches and feels marginalized in a society dominated by cosmopolitan and socially progressive elites. Abdicating generations of U.S. leadership This is astonishing insofar as the contemporary trade and economic order of the world has been shaped by at least three generations of U.S. government and business leaders. Their concerted actions have enabled the United States to become – and, for a long time, remain – the world's leading economy and technological powerhouse. U.S. companies dominate the world economy especially in the technology space. Video Player is loading. Play Video Play Unmute Current Time 0:00 / Duration -:- Loaded : 0% Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently behind live LIVE Remaining Time - 0:00 This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Window Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Dropshadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps Reset restore all settings to the default values Done Close Modal Dialog End of dialog window. Advertisement Next Stay Close ✕ The Trumpian 'pitchfork moment' And yet, the Trumpian 'pitchfork moment' is underpinned by a gigantic cultural, social and political backlash against the economic and strategic order that the United States constructed so carefully following the Second World War. To the Trump team, it does not matter for a minute that the established strategic order – based on NATO and alliances with Japan, South Korea, Australia, the Philippines and Thailand – has brought peace and stability to large parts of the world and underpinned global economic growth. While the United States' partners may contribute less than the U.S. government to these alliances, the United States has derived plenty of economic benefits from its dominant position in world affairs. Not the first time in history This would not be the first time in history that a world-leading nation suffers from a cultural and social backlash that has swept through their country. Just consider what happened to the Netherlands, the country which gave birth to the first liberal revolution around the year 1600. That exit may have occurred over 400 years ago, but the parallels are uncanny. The Netherlands created modern globalization The Netherlands arguably created modern globalization by inventing tall ships and navigation, joint stock companies and stock markets, as well as land and water management. This country society of swamps and dykes had a decentralized society, in contrast to France whose society and politics were centralized in Paris and Versailles. The Dutch celebrated individual rights, embraced markets and trade and tolerated religious minorities. In sum, the Netherlands saw the earliest flourishing of classical liberalism anywhere in the West, even before the term was invented. This plucky country became the richest in the world in terms of income per person! No paradise of harmony and prosperity However, scratching below the surface, the Netherlands was no paradise of harmony and prosperity. Periods of dramatic economic and technological transformation always offer more benefits to some groups than others. They also create changes that some embrace and others resist. There were divisions between those in favor of tolerance and those practicing strict religious conservatism. Merchants were in favor of free trade and globalization, while traditional artisans lobbied for tariffs and other protectionism. Old aristocrats felt threatened by the rise of the nouveaux riches. As in Trump's America, in the Netherlands of the time, ideological differences had a regional dimension, with cities being in favor of globalization and rural areas against. Passing the mantle of liberalism and global commerce to England The ensuing political divisions in response to the Netherlands' cultural, social and political backlash led to a slowdown in the country's economic and technological dynamism. The Netherlands remains a very successful country today, but its moment of world leadership passed. Thankfully, the ideas behind the Dutch economic dynamism did not die on the vine. They migrated to England through the Glorious Revolution, under the leadership of the Dutch-born 'William of Orange.' And on to the United States As a result, England then became the most powerful country in the world. Over time, liberal ideas would travel from England to its colony, the United States. They were critical factors in the development of the United States as a global-minded, capitalist democracy. With the advent of the Trump Revolution, and the prospective waning of the United States as the world's economic and political hegemon, the question is which country might pick up the baton left by the United States. With its enormous economy, Europe has the potential for world leadership. But its continuing inability to speak and act with one voice means that there is little prospect for Europe becoming a world leader. Could China step in and take advantage of the Trump Revolution? Most democracies are wary of China's assertive and coercive tendencies. But Donald Trump's trade war is already pushing China and the EU closer together despite their differences. Chinese President Xi Jinping has been on a charm offensive to Southeast Asia. Given that around 70% of the economies in the world already trade more with China than they do with the United States of America, China is a very attractive partner. All the more so as more than half of all economies now trade twice as much with China compared to the United States. John West is executive director of the Asian Century Institute, which conducts research and analysis and participates in policy dialogues to foster a better understanding of the opportunities and challenges of the Asian Century. The Globalist John West is executive director of the Asian Century Institute, which conducts research and analysis and participates in policy dialogues to foster a better understanding of the opportunities and challenges of the Asian Century. Image: Supplied. BUSINESS REPORT Visit:
IOL News
22-05-2025
- Business
- IOL News
MTN sticks to guns that Turkcell allegations must be heard in Iran
MTN asserts that South African courts lack jurisdiction over Turkcell's bribery allegations Image: Graphic/Se-Anne Rall Africa's largest mobile network operator, MTN, is convinced that South African courts have no jurisdiction to hear a matter involving alleged corruption in Iran, and that the issue should be dealt with in the Middle Eastern country. This follows a landmark judgement earlier this month in the Supreme Court of Appeal (SCA) that made it possible for mobile rival and accuser Turkcell to present evidence that it believes shows that MTN committed acts of bribery and corruption to overturn the award of an Iranian GSM licence to Turkcell. The SCA ruling set a precedent in that it was the first time a South African court had been asked to determine whether allegations of misconduct that apparently took place in another country could be heard locally. MTN has now taken the issue on review to the Constitutional Court and, should MTN fail in its bid, Turkcell can take its allegations of bribery to the Gauteng High Court, Johannesburg. The Turkish operator lost its bid for that to happen two years ago, with a finding then by the same High Court that South Africa was not the correct geography to hear the matter – which is the decision that has been overturned through the SCA ruling. Turkcell's legal wrangle with MTN dates back more than a decade when it initially approached the US courts in an action it later retracted, contending that MTN won its 49% of a telecommunications licence in Iran through paying bribes. MTN argues, in its Wednesday appeal filing to have the SCA's decision overturned, that Turkcell's allegations should be adjudicated in Iran's courts, which are the appropriate and competent forum for this matter. Video Player is loading. 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Next Stay Close ✕ Joining MTN in taking the matter to the top court in the country are former employees, Phuthuma Nhleko and Irene Charnley. Turkcell doesn't think the apex court should hear the matter, as it said on Thursday that the 'SCA's majority judgment was well-reasoned and correctly applied the established legal principles regarding jurisdiction that MTN and the other defendants invoked to seek to delay the trial'. The Turkish operator argues that MTN paid off both Iranian and South African officials to overturn a public tender, which it lost to Turkcell, for a multi-billion-dollar opportunity to run an Iranian GSM telecom licence. 'This case has significant implications for South Africa's stance on international bribery and corruption,' it said in a statement on Thursday morning. Cedric Soule, counsel at counsel at King & Spalding and global counsel for Turkcell, alleges that MTN's actions caused it more than $4.2 billion, worth R75.3bn at the time, in damages, which it seeks to recoup as it claims these are lost profits. 'MTN denies the allegations made by Turkcell. These claims were the subject of a comprehensive and independent investigation led by Lord Hoffmann, the findings of which did not support the allegations,' the operator said in a statement it provided to IOL on Thursday in response to a query. In 2012, the UK's Lord Leonard Hoffmann released a report that exonerated MTN of any shady dealings in securing the licence. In part, the report stated: 'All the allegations are a fabric of lies, distortions and inventions.' This report also cleared Charnley, then VP for the Middle East and North and East Africa, and Nhleko, who was then CEO, of any wrongdoing. 'MTN remains committed to operating with integrity, transparency, and full compliance with applicable laws. The Group continues to respect the legal process and will pursue all appropriate avenues to defend its position,' it said. IOL
