South African Water and Environmental Affairs Minister Edna Molewa has welcomed the 25-year sentences handed down to three Mozambicans this week, as the country steps up its efforts to combat rhino poaching.

The poachers were sentenced by the Phalaborwa Regional Court on Tuesday for illegally hunting rhinos in South Africa's Kruger National Park in 2010.

Aselmo Baloyi, Jawaki Nkuna and Ismael Baloyi were found guilty on four counts including illegal hunting of rhino, possession of a prohibited firearm, possession of a firearm and possession of ammunition.

Molewa said the sentence would send a strong message to poachers. She was optimistic that the sentence, coupled with increasing anti-poaching measures by the country's law enforcement agencies, would serve as a deterrent.

Increased anti-poaching measures

These measures include the South African National Defence Force returning to monitor the 350km of national border in Kruger National Park and other country borders, as well as the deployment of conservation specialists at ports through which the trade in endangered species can be exported and imported.

The Department of Water and Environmental and South African National Parks are also in the process of beefing up patrols in the Kruger National Park with the deployment of an additional 150 rangers.

Bilateral engagements between South Africa and Mozambique to deal with cross-border law enforcement are also ongoing, while South Africans have been urged to report any illegal rhino activities by calling the dedicated line 0800 205 005.

232 suspects arrested in 2011

The Department of Water and Environmental Affairs said last week that 232 suspects were arrested in connection with rhino poaching in South Africa last year. These included 194 rhino poachers, 24 receivers of rhino horns, 12 couriers and two exporters. No buyers were arrested.

Briefing parliamentarians in Cape Town, the department's deputy director-general on biodiversity and conservation, Fundisile Mketeni, said the crime was grossing about R160-billion annually worldwide.

Mketeni said that 122 rhinos were poached in South Africa in 2009, rising to 333 in 2010 and to 448 in 2011. He projected that about 300 rhinos were likely to be poached in the country this year.

He added that the North West and Limpopo provinces had the highest numbers of poached rhinos.

Mketeni was speaking during a briefing to Parliament's portfolio committee on water and environmental affairs by over a dozen concerned organisations and individuals.

Mketeni said that most of the poached rhino horns were destined for Asian countries such as Vietnam, Thailand and China.

He indicated that South Africa was at various stages of signing bilateral agreements with these countries to help combat the crime.

More co-ordination needed

Mtekeni complained about a lack of coordination between his department and its provincial counterparts as well as other related departments in dealing with problem, and called for his department to be given centralized powers to allow them to decisively deal with the matter.

Mtekeni said that the department should have its own officers trained along the lines of the National Intelligence Agency (NIA).

"We want to have our own intelligence and use it the way we want," he said, indicating that these would be able to directly pursue rhino poaching syndicates outside the country.

He said they planned to deploy their own officials at ports of entry as well as to train customs officials to help detect suspects about to leave the country.

He called for the Department of Public Works to fix, electrify and insert an electrical detection system on the fence between the Kruger National Park and Mozambique, where rhino poaching activities were frequent.

Source: BuaNews

Wildlife

The famous Big Five - elephant, lion, rhino, leopard and buffalo - and more.

Emergency funding has been allocated to provinces to fix the worst of the damage to transport infrastructure caused by floods and storms earlier this month, the transport department said on Monday.

The government has a budget of R240-million for the country this financial year from the Transport Disaster Management Grant, said DET spokesman Logan Maistry.

"This money is to enable affected provinces to start immediately with the most urgent repairs to their infrastructure," he said, but added that the need far outstripped the funds available.

In a tour of Mpumalanga on Monday, Transport Minister Sibusiso Ndebele heard that it would cost an estimated R445.7-million to repair infrastructure in that province alone.

"Of this, rebuilding of roads and bridges would be the most expensive at an estimated cost of R266-million," Maistry said.

Floods and storms swept through Mpumalanga, Limpopo and the North West in mid-January.

Technical teams deployed

Accompanying Ndebele on Monday were Mpumalanga public works, roads and transport MEC Dikeledi Mahlangu and SA National Roads Agency Limited (Sanral) CEO Nazir Alli.

"We are going all out to ensure we render all the necessary support and assistance to provinces to ensure that road infrastructure damaged by extreme weather conditions is repaired, " Ndebele said in a statement after his visit.

Technical teams have already been deployed in all three provinces to assess the extent of damage. They are to hand a report to the minister on Friday.

"We want to ensure that all resources of the state are mobilised so that the lives of those affected returns to normal as soon as possible," he said.

In Mpumalanga, five municipalities in the Ehlanzeni district of Mpumalanga have been declared disaster areas.

They are Mbombela, Nkomazi, Umjindi, Thaba Chweu and Bushbuckridge.

Sapa

Opportunities, incentives, regulations, assistance.

Cooperation on infrastructure development between South Africa and Qatar is set to intensify, following a meeting between President Jacob Zuma and Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al-Thani in Doha.

Zuma stopped over in Qatar on Tuesday, en route to the World Economic Forum annual meeting starting in Davos, Switzerland on Wednesday.

"The two leaders discussed a wide range of issues, including concrete projects that the two countries can engage in, as part of implementing South Africa's New Growth Path," Zuma's office said in a statement.

The two countries also agreed to intensify cooperation in other economic sectors, while it was agreed that a ministerial delegation from South Africa will visit Qatar early in February to follow up on issues raised and to ensure that no time is wasted in implementing the decisions of the two heads of state.

The South African government is seeking cooperation with Qatar in areas such as water, energy, construction, agriculture and general infrastructure development.

Already the two countries maintain a strong bilateral relationship and have strong cooperation in petrochemicals.

One of South Africa's largest investments in the Middle East, Sasol's joint venture gas-to-liquid facility, is located in Qatar. Qatar is currently the seventh-largest supplier of crude oil to South Africa, but bilateral trade and investment have not reached their full potential.

According to the Presidency, the two leaders also discussed the situation in Libya at length, and agreed that the African Union and the Arab League should work together to assist the National Transitional Council and the people of Libya to return the country to normalcy.

This comes as there are reports of fresh violence in that country. Protesters are reportedly saying that the interim National Transitional Council must deliver on promises of transparency and compensate those injured in the civil war.

Source: BuaNews

Internet giant Google has teamed up with the Department of Industry and other partners to launch Woza Online, an initiative that aims to transform tens of thousands of South African small and medium enterprises (SMEs) by giving them an online presence.

The announcement, made at the Innovation Hub in Tshwane this week, was followed by demonstrations during which small business owners - ranging from a Johannesburg cake business to a Soweto bird-watching company - created their own websites from scratch.

Other partners to the initiative include the Human Resources Development Council (HDRC), Vodacom and Lead SA, a Primedia Broadcasting and Independent Group initiative that aims to mobilise change among South Africans for the benefit of the country.

Businesses participating in the initiative will get a free, easy-to-build professional website; a matching mobile site; a free sub-domain name and hosting; an automatic listing on Google Places, which shows on Google Maps; access to training material and workshops; and free online support via Google Chat and e-mail.

The first 10 000 applicants will also get top-level .co.za domain name for free for one year.

Link between online presence and profitability

According to the interim results of the latest SME survey conducted by World Wide Worx in January 2012, there is a strong link between being online and being competitive, profitable and sustainable. 79% of SMEs with a website reported profitability, whereas only 59% of SMEs without a website reported the same.

"The more small businesses are online, the more customers they will be able to reach," said Deputy Trade and Industry Minister Elizabeth Thabethe at the launch. "We often hear entrepreneurs or business owners describing the challenges of building an online presence.

"With Woza Online removing those obstacles, SMEs are empowered to take that first bold step towards getting online."

Website as important as telephone

The HRDC is a platform where social partners can jointly seek solutions to identified blockages and the provision of websites to entrepreneurs will provide them with a head start by making it quick and easy for them to have an online presence.

"Today having a website is as important as having a telephone, yet over a third of SMEs are not online, and businesses with a website are four times more profitable than those without one," said Higher Education Minister Blade Nzimande. "Many businesses think that having a website is expensive or complicated.

"The HRDC has partnered with Google to provide entrepreneurs with free websites."

Vodacom MD Sipho Maseko added that being connected was essential to business growth, and possibly the most cost-effective means of marketing for most SMEs. "This is a step towards economic freedom and growth for many who previously were denied due to cost, technology know-how and access," he said.

Joining the digital revolution

World Wide Worx MD Arthur Goldstuck said Woza Online presented a "fantastic opportunity" for SMEs across the country to join in the digital revolution, at no expense.

He said that research showed that company websites, as well as the use of cloud computing, were closely correlated with being highly competitive and strongly visible. It also showed that many SMEs only survived though conditions thanks to their online presence.

"We believe that the power of the internet will help small businesses in South Africa to grow, and will help entrepreneurs thrive, by bringing more local information online and making it accessible, said Google South Africa country manager Luke Mckend.

"The Woza Online process is simple and business owners can be online in less than an hour - whether you sell transport services, cakes, crafts or electronics, locally or internationally."

Google has launched similar initiatives in 23 other countries around the world, from the UK, Canada, and Australia to Brazil, Indonesia, France, and Poland, bringing 400 000 businesses online over two years.

In Africa, the programme was launched in Kenya and Nigeria last year, with these countries seeing over 20 000 businesses going online within the first two months.

The deployment of 350 newly trained immigration officers at OR Tambo International Airport over the festive season was an overwhelming success, says Home Affairs Director-General Mkuseli Apleni.

The 350 South African National Defence Force (SANDF) officers were laterally transferred to the department, trained as immigration officers and then deployed to the airport in December.

They were trained on international best practices, which seek to deal with child trafficking, human trafficking, illegal immigration and money laundering.

The new method of immigration management replaces the one where immigration officers simply conducted passport control, Apleni explained.

The new immigration officers processed the entry and departure of 268 260 South African citizens and 351 003 foreign nationals.

From 21 December 2011 to 18 January 2012, 7 472 violations of the country's immigration laws were identified and 230 suspicious cases referred to the department's Inspectorate Services for further investigation.

"We are cognisant of the fact that there may still be instances of teething problems, as with any new operation. In this regard, we welcome all suggestions and call on members of the public to seek the assistance of the supervisor on duty," Apleni said.

He added that the department was in the process of strengthening security at all of South Africa's ports of entry.

"In this regard, we have taken a decision that passenger liners would no longer be allowed to dock at the V&A Waterfront in Cape Town since it is not a designated port of entry.

"It must be noted that it is only the Minister of Home Affairs who is constitutionally mandated to designate a port of entry within the Republic of South Africa," he said.

Passenger liners will be rerouted to Duncan Dock at the Cape Town Harbour, where foreign nationals entering South Africa will be processed in line with the Immigration Act.

The department has also deployed "additional human resource capacity" to two of the country's harbours, with 37 more officials at the Cape Town Harbour and 47 more at the Durban Harbour.

Source: BuaNews

South Africa is gearing up to send another high-powered delegation to the World Economic Forum's annual meeting in Davos, Switzerland - 20 years after Nelson Mandela, still fighting to pave the way for the country's first democratic elections, attended the exclusive gathering.

The by-invitation-only annual meeting in the Alpine ski town of Davos brings together a unique mix of leading businesspeople, politicians, civil society representatives, experts and intellectuals in various fields to debate the most pressing global challenges of the day.

Mandela and the making of Davos

The discussions in Davos weren't always so wide-ranging - or so well-attended - starting off in the early 1970s as business-focused gatherings of European executives.

According to TIME Magazine, conflict resolution became part of the Davos agenda after the formal branding of the World Economic Forum in 1987 - and the annual meeting was significantly boosted by scoring two notable early coups: "it hosted a summit in 1988 that headed off war between Turkey and Greece," writes TIME, "and in 1992 the first sit-down between South African President FW de Klerk and Nelson Mandela."

This was two years after Mandela's release from prison. Mandela and De Klerk were both in Europe at the time to accept the Unesco Houphouet-Boigny Peace Prize, which was awarded to them in Paris on 3 February 1992.

The following year, the two men would accept another joint award: the Nobel Peace Prize. And the year after that, South Africa would hold its first democratic elections.

A country grown in stature

Today, two decades after Mandela's first Davos appearance, the annual gathering has grown enormously in international stature - and so has South Africa.

Jacob Zuma now presides over a country that is punching well above its weight in international affairs, while economically it is increasingly recognised as the springboard into the world's last great investment frontier.

It was this combination of factors that led to the country's joining the BRICS - Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa - grouping of powerful emerging economies in April 2011.

And just as South Africa put great emphasis on the 2010 Fifa World Cup belonging to the Africa as a whole, so the country made it clear that it was bringing the continent with it when it joined BRICS.

South Africa's role on the continent

President Zuma has made Africa a central focus of South Africa's foreign policy. The country is pushing hard for the establishment of a free trade area covering 27 countries in east and southern Africa - to create a market with close to 600-million people and a combined gross domestic product of US$1-trillion.

Last week, South Africa assumed the rotating presidency of the United Nations Security Council for the month of January, and Zuma led an initiative that saw the Council unanimously adopt a resolution to enhance ties between the UN and regional organisations, particularly the African Union.

And this week, South African Home Affairs Minister Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma announced her candidacy for the chair of the African Union Commission, a move which the Zuma administration sees as crucial to strengthening the continental institution in order to promote African conflict resolution and regional integration.

When Davos 2012 kicks off on 25 January, the South African delegation in attendance will be smaller than the one that arrived in Switzerland in a blaze of colour during the country's Fifa World Cup year in 2010. But not less influential.

And, as in 1992 when Nelson Mandela and FW de Klerk took their places on the podium, people will be listening when the South Africans join the conversation.

SAinfo reporter

Francis Hweshe

Parliament's ad hoc committee looking into the Protection of State Information Bill has adopted an ambitious public hearing drive aimed at getting input on the Bill from as many South Africans as possible.

The Bill, which has sparked debate across the country, was approved by a majority vote in the National Assembly late last year. It has now been passed to the National Council of Provinces for further scrutiny before it is sent to President Jacob Zuma for his signature into law.

Committee chair Raseriti Tau said on Tuesday they would not "rubber-stamp" the National Assembly decision. He said they were taking the process seriously, with the aim of "deepening democracy".

"The only way to do [that] is to reach out to the people," he said.

Tau, who was positive about the public hearings, said they would take on board the views of as many people as possible.

Two programmes have been drawn up by the committee, one for public meetings to be held at Parliament in Cape Town, and another for public meetings to be held in all nine provinces, with a focus on both rural and urban settings.

Tau said his team of 15 MPs would be split into three groups to allow for multiple meetings to be held concurrently.

The process is meant garner what people know about the bill, as well as tell them what it is about.

Advertisements for public submission on the bill were expected to be published on Wednesday.

The Department of State Security has been scheduled to brief the committee on the bill next Tuesday, after which the public hearing meetings will commence.

The committee hopes to have them wrapped up by the end of April.

Asked whether the committee would meet its deadline, Tau said it was going to be a challenge but they would make it. In the event that they failed to complete on time, they would seek an extension of the deadline through a resolution in the National Council of Provinces.

All the committee members seemed to agree on the action plan. However, Congress of the People (Cope) MP Dennis Bloem said he did not want the hearings to turn into rallies.

Tau responded by saying that the committee wanted as many people to attend the hearings, as that was the aim of the process.

Source: BuaNews

South Africa is a culturally diverse country, one nation made up of many peoples.

A waste tyre management plan to be rolled out later this year will create a "sustainable recycling industry" to deal with a major waste problem, the recycling initiative said on Monday.

The Recycling and Economic Development Initiative of South Africa (Redisa) said the Integrated Industry Waste Tyre Management Plan, which had been approved by Environmental Affairs Minister Edna Molewa, would create jobs and foster small and medium-sized businesses throughout the country.

Job creation, business development

"The new law is intended not only to support the creation of a sustainable recycling industry to deal with a major and problematic waste product, but also to create jobs and foster small and medium sized businesses in communities throughout the country," the group said.

All involved in the industry have to register by 31 January 2012.

Redisa said the income generated from a rand-per-kilo levy charged to tyre manufacturers and importers would be used to help stimulate start-up businesses around the collection, transportation, storage and recycling of the waste.

It would also be used for research and development, training, monitoring and overall community upliftment.

10-million scrap tyres a year

The South African tyre industry produces more than 10-million scrap tyres a year.

According to Redisa it is estimated that between 60- and 100-million scrap tyres are stockpiled in South Africa.

"Waste tyres pose an environmental problem, both as pollutants and as breeding grounds for mosquitoes and vermin," the group said.

"However, there is as yet no effective technology for disposing of tyres in an environmentally friendly yet economically viable way.

"The need for research and development, collection and recycling is therefore imperative. The opportunity for generating jobs and new industry businesses aligned to the recycling of waste tyres is of paramount importance."

The group said the R2.30 per kilometre levy charged to the manufacturer would effectively subsidise the collection and recycling processes.

By giving the tyres a value for recycling, entrepreneurs would be able to build a business out of collecting tyres from their community and delivering them to a collection point.

Sapa

Opportunities, incentives, regulations, assistance.

9 January 2012

Lagarde, who visited Nigeria and Niger before arriving in South Africa at the weekend, met with President Jacob Zuma in Bloemfontein on Saturday following talks with Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan, Planning Minister Trevor Manuel and Reserve Bank Governor Gill Marcus on Friday.

"In these difficult times for the global economy, emerging economies are a key part of the solution," she said in a statement following her meeting with Zuma.

"South Africa has an important role to play on behalf of the interests of developing economies and the African continent in particular. As a member of the G20, it has a leadership role to play in making the voice of Africa heard. I'm confident that it will continue to do so."

Lagarde described South Africa's recent economic performance as "impressive", saying that good macroeconomic policies, together with a flexible exchange rate and sound financial sector, had mitigated the drop in output experienced during the global recession of 2008-09.

"Prudent fiscal management in the mid-2000s created the space that allowed fiscal policy to be supportive in recent years, mitigating the worst effects of the global economic slowdown and domestic recession."

At the same time, she noted, the ongoing debt crisis in Europe, one of South Africa's main export markets, presented "significant downside risks" to the country's economic outlook.

"In this context, we agreed that the challenge now is to ensure that monetary policy remains supportive and competitiveness improves.

"At the same time, moderation in wage growth and enhanced competition would support the ongoing recovery and lay the foundation for higher growth in the medium term."

SAinfo reporter

Brad Morgan

Bafana Bafana opened their 2012 account with a goalless draw against Equatorial Guinea in Bata City on Friday evening, in a match marking the opening of the 40 000-seater Nkoantoma Stadium.

The side was far from full strength, with some leading PSL clubs electing not to make their players available, and many overseas-based players not considered for selection either.

Five men - Brilliant Khuzwayo, Eric Mathoho, Ayanda Gcaba, Granwald Scott and May Mahlangu - made their first starts for the national team, while Ryan Chapman came on as a substitute in the second half.

Good impression

Mahlangu, Sweden's Player of the Year, made a good impression, but his skills were dealt with ruthlessly by the Equatorial Guinea players. Protection, sadly, was scant from the referee, whose performance appeared to favour the home team.

Three South Africans were carded in the first half. An hour into the contest, after a bad challenge on Mahlangu, Bafana captain Morgan Gould was controversially dismissed for protesting the challenge on the midfielder, leaving South Africa to play the final half-hour with 10 men.

Just before the end of the game, Bafana coach Pitso Mosimane was shown a red card.

"I do not even want to talk about that incident, as I believe it was mistaken identity by the referee," he told the South African Football Association afterwards. "But I must commend my players. They did very well under the circumstances - even though they had to break short their holiday to be with us, sacrificing family time.

'Will to fight'

"We had only two training sessions, used eight uncapped players on a heavy pitch. It's quite an achievement as they were tactically disciplined, especially when we were a man short. They showed the will to fight for their country.

"I would like to thank all those clubs that came to our rescue when we had no players," he concluded.

No answers were forthcoming for Bafana in the area of finishing, which has been a long time problem for the team. Then again, neither team fared well, some of which could be attributed to the new pitch, which was far from smooth.

Despite being sent off, captain Gould saw some positives in the showing of his team. "The performance from these youngsters proves just how much talent is available in this country," he said. "Under trying circumstances they managed to give a good showing.

"Let me hasten to add that there is still a lot of improvement to be made, but it was a good start.

'Proud'

"I am proud of the effort they put in to helping the side get a draw with a man short after we suffered a red card, and I believe we should have won the match," he added.

A concern about the result against the 150th ranked Equatorial Guineans is that the draw means Bafana Bafana have gone five matches without a win. Previously they lost 2-1 to Zimbabwe in Harare, drew 1-1 with Côte d'Ivoire in Port Elizabeth, drew goalless against Sierra Leone in Nelspruit, and lost 2-1 to Niger in Niamey.

Their last victory came in August 2011 when they outplayed highly-rated Burkina Faso 3-0 in Johannesburg.

Forthcoming matches

Bafana Bafana will be in action in two practice matches next, against African Cup of Nations finalists Zambia and Ghana.

They face Zambia at the Rand Stadium in Johannesburg on Wednesday, with the match kicking off at 16:30.

On Sunday they take on Ghana at the Royal Bafokeng Sports Palace in Rustenburg. The game starts at 16:00.