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| PRESIDENT ZUMA SENDS CONDOLENCES TO THE REPUBLIC OF INDIA FOLLOWING DEADLY EXPLOSION |
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| On behalf of the Government and people of South Africa, I send my deepest condolences to the Government of India and to everyone affected, particularly to the families and friends of those killed and injured in the explosion at the temple," said President Zuma. |
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President Jacob Zuma has on behalf of the Government and people of South Africa, conveyed a message of condolences to the Government and people of the Republic of India following an explosion and fire at the Puttingal Devi Temple in Paravul, Kerala State in southern India, on Sunday, 10 April 2016, that claimed over a 100 lives.
The explosion and blaze at the temple were reported to be sparked by a stray firework.
"Our thoughts are with the people of India in the aftermath of the catastrophic explosion and blaze at the Puttingal Devi Temple in Kerala State.” |
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| The meeting came not long after the Deputy Minister of Small Business Development, Elizabeth Thabethe, signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Liberian Deputy Minister of Commerce and Trade responsible for Small Business and Administration, Andrew G Paygar-Flangiah. This created a legal framework to improve trade and economic relations between the two countries. |
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Deputy President Cyril Ramaphosa says South Africa will use its long-standing friendship with Liberia to deepen cooperation. The Deputy President said this when he recently received a courtesy call from Liberian Vice President Joseph Boakai at Tuynhuys in Cape Town.
Deputy President Ramaphosa said the two countries were both endowed with mineral resources and that when it came to investment, there were areas in which they could both cooperate in a mutually beneficial way.
“… In terms of investments, your country is well endowed when it comes to resources, just as our country is, and that tells us that there should be broad and deep cooperation between the two countries,” he said.
The Liberian Vice President said South Africa had always been a good friend to Liberia, and expressed his gratitude for the support his country received during the Ebola crisis. He said beyond Ebola, and given the history between the two countries, it was time for Liberia to strengthen its relationship with South Africa.
“There is a lot we can gain from here. Most of our people who come here … are getting education, are living comfortably in the African spirit and we believe that at this point in time, we can heighten this friendship that has existed for many years.
“There are a lot of discussions that we have had with the Industrial Development Cooperation. We are trying to explore some possibilities of the things that we could work on together. Our country is small but it is endowed with a lot of resources,” he said.
Liberia’s development has encountered obstacles over the years due to protracted civil wars. The Vice President said during the conflict, competent people left the country.
“Now we need all the skills and the knowledge to be able to rebuild the country,” he said.
Boakai said South Africa had the experience and the technology that could help Liberia turn the aftermath of the civil war around.
Deputy President Ramaphosa said South Africa would look at various ways to strengthen relations between the two countries. – Source: SAnews.gov.za |
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| DEPUTY PRESIDENT RAMAPHOSA LAUNCHES 100 DAYS TO AIDS 2016 INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE |
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| In his message, the Deputy President said the City of eThekwini, the province of KwaZulu-Natal and South Africa, would in July host close to 12 000 delegates for the conference. |
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Deputy President Cyril Ramaphosa, in a video-recorded message on Friday, 8 April 2016, launched the 100 days towards the hosting of the 2016 AIDS Conference scheduled for 18 July 2016 in Durban, KwaZulu-Natal.
Deputy President Ramaphosa urged South Africans to participate fully in the AIDS2016 International AIDS Conference as part of the continuing global effort to push back the HIV-AIDS pandemic.
"AIDS2016 is one of the most important global events on the calendar of the international response to the HIV epidemic,” said Deputy President Ramaphosa.
"It brings together governments, policy-makers, scientists, activists and community stakeholders to review progress made across a wide range of programmes.
"This conference is an important event for our country for a number of reasons. Sixteen years ago, South Africa was host to the same global meeting. At that time, people living with HIV had no access to treatment; and the country was under attack by the global community for our stance on HIV. They urged us to move speedily to ensure access to treatment to those afflicted by HIV.
"South Africa has since made huge strides in this regard. We now have more than three million people on ARVs and mother-to-child transmission has been reduced dramatically.
"We pay tribute to all the constituencies – the scientists, activists, researchers, government officials and the communities who have made this possible.
"We also acknowledge the support of the international community who have stood by our side and continue to support us." |
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| DEPUTY MINISTER LANDERS VISITS MALAWI FOR A MEETING OF THE SA-MALAWI JOINT COMMISSION OF COOPERATION (JCC) |
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| The JCC, which was formed in 2007, further deepened the socio-economic and political relations that exist between the two countries. |
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The Republic of Malawi hosted the Third Session of the South Africa-Malawi JCC from 6 to 7 April 2016.
Deputy Minister Luwellyn Landers co-chaired the JCC with George Chaponda, Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation of the Republic of Malawi. The JCC was preceded by a Senior Officials' Meeting on 6 April 2016.
South Africa and Malawi have strong economic ties as evidenced by several major South African companies operating in Malawi. In 2015, South African exports to Malawi amounted to R4,70 billion, while imports from Malawi to South Africa totalled R706 million. |
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| INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY IMPORTANT FOR GROWTH |
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| The Minister was speaking at the World Intellectual Property Organisation's (WIPO) International Conference on Intellectual Property (IP) and Development, in Geneva. |
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South Africa regards the IP system as an important policy instrument in promoting innovation, industrial development and economic growth, says Trade and Industry Minister, Rob Davies.
Addressing the conference recently, Minister Davies said South Africa had a long history of IP rights (IP) protection and as signatories of the World Trade Organisation, the country had adopted and implemented all its obligations under the Trade Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) Agreement.
“As we review our IP policy, we are seeking to ensure that appropriate balances are struck in providing protection for innovation and ensuring that benefits are shared in society. In particular, we are interested in ensuring that the IPR regime in South Africa supports our wider development objectives and underpins our efforts at industrial development objectives,” explained the Minister.
In doing this, South Africa aims to harness the capabilities across government and draw in expertise across society through a strengthened national consultative process, he said.
The Minister said South Africa had been working with the African Union towards the establishment of a Pan-African Intellectual Property Organisation (PAIPO).
The objectives of PAIPO include encouraging a harmonisation of IP systems and establishing platforms for policy discussions on how IP systems can serve as a tool for economic, cultural, social and technological development of the continent.
“In a region exclusively comprised of developing countries and least developed countries, PAIPO aims to pursue a pro-development and balanced approach to IPR protection.” – Source: SAnews.gov.za |
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SA SCOOPS INVESTMENT AWARDS IN DUBAI |
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Deputy Minister Masina received two awards on behalf of the Department of Trade and Industry and InvestSA, which were presented by the United Arab Emirates Minister of Economy, Saeed Al Mansoori. |
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South Africa has won two awards at the Second Indian Ocean Rim Association (IORA) Ministerial Economic and Business Conference in Dubai.
The organisations won the runner-up for best investment project facilitated in the southern African region and third prize for investment agency in the IORA.
Deputy Minister Masina said the awards were a vote of confidence in South Africa as an investment destination of choice and its ability to facilitate such investments as a government.
The conference was held under the theme “SMEs and Innovation Investing in a Sustainable and Inclusive Future”.
The Deputy Minister also led a delegation to the Annual Investor Meeting, which focussed on Foreign Directives Investment (FDI) attractiveness, best practice, global hot spots and future FDI destinations.
– Source: SAnews.gov.za |
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| DEPUTY MINISTER DLODLO HOSTS SOUTH AFRICAN OGP OPEN DATA PROJECT SEMINAR |
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| Experts from the United Kingdom (UK) shared and exchanged knowledge with relevant South African stakeholders on open data. |
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On 7 April 2016, the Deputy Minister of Public Service and Administration, Ayanda Dlodlo, hosted the South African Open Government Partnership (OGP) Open Data Project Seminar in Pretoria.
Open data is increasingly seen as an enabler for improving access to services and service delivery by frontline officials by establishing open data platforms and running focussed open data challenges to address specific service delivery needs. Open data is data that can be freely used, shared and built on by anyone, anywhere, for any purpose.
The data portal, [data.gov.za], will help citizens and civil servants to solve big social and economic challenges in their local context by making relevant data more accessible and useful. The value of this platform will be determined by how widely data is used and applied in solving national and local social, economic and political challenges.
The day’s discussions included the UK’s experience on open data, the open data experiences of South Africa, the challenges opening up data for the public administration and how to overcome them and the benefits of opening up data for the public administration and how to reap them.
The OGP is an international voluntary effort to improve government performance that aims to secure concrete commitments from governments to promote transparency, empower citizens, fight corruption and harness new technologies to strengthen governance. It achieves this by bringing together governments and civil-society organisations as true partners in the process. |
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| SA JOINS INTERNATIONAL ICT EDUCATION PROGRAMME |
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| The programme is supported by the Government of Finland in collaboration with Microsoft’s Worldwide Education Initiative. |
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South Africa has joined the World Education Transformation Countries Programme, which shares different challenges and risks in the management of change and transformation of their education system.
The Department of Education said recently that South Africa, Finland, United Arab Emirates (UAE), India, the United States of America and Shangai State in China ranked among the first countries which joined the programme.
The Minister of Basic Education, Angie Motshekga, said: “We have had difficulties with introducing information and communications technologies (ICTs) in our education system, let alone utilising ICTs. We are at a point where ICTs cannot be regarded as a choice nor a luxury.
“Every child must use ICTs to learn. By joining this programme, we are not alone and we join hands with others who have had more experience with education transformation."
Minister Motshekga made the announcement of the programme at BETT Middle East, in Abu Dhabi.
The department said BETT Middle East ranked among the world’s largest educational technology exhibitions.
“During her visit, the Minister and her delegation had meetings with leaders of the UAE’s Smart Learning Programme and the Microsoft Worldwide Education Team and toured the various education exhibits at BETT.
“The delegation was exposed to the value of predictive learning analytics, digital badging and assessments, game-based learning and introducing coding into the curriculum,” said the department. – Source: SAnews.gov.za |
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| MATIES PROF ELECTED TO UN COMMITTEE |
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| A Stellenbosch University professor has been elected to serve on the United Nations (UN) Committee on Economic‚ Social and Cultural Rights. |
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Sandra Liebenberg‚ who occupies the HF Oppenheimer chair in Rights Law in the university's law faculty‚ was nominated by the Department of International Relations and Cooperation in recognition of her “extensive experience in human rights law‚ particularly in the area of economic‚ social and cultural rights”.
The UN Economic and Social Council elected Liebenberg and the Egyptian candidate, Mohamed Ezzeldin Abdel-Moneim, as candidates representing Africa. Their four-year term begins on 1 January 2017.
The Committee on Economic‚ Social and Cultural Rights is a mechanism for defending and promoting economic‚ social and cultural rights‚ and has a mandate to specifically monitor fulfilment of states' obligations under the International Covenant on Economic‚ Social and Cultural Rights. It is composed of 18 independent experts.
Liebenberg is academic co-director of the law faculty's postgraduate Socio-economic Rights and Administrative Justice Research Project. She previously served as a member of the technical committee advising the Constitutional Assembly on the Bill of Rights. – Source: www.timeslive.com |
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| PRAISE FOR TREASURY AS IT ISSUES NEW $1,25-BN BOND |
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| South Africa issued its first international bond in two years on Thursday, 7 April 2016, to fund its budget deficit that has increased to about 4% of gross domestic product in the last four years, Treasury announced recently. |
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National Treasury was praised for managing to attract interest in its new $1,25-billion 10-year bond issuance on the international capital market on Friday, 8 April.
The US dollar bond was priced at a coupon (interest rate) of 4.875%, which represented a spread of 335 basis points above the 10-year US Treasury’s benchmark bond, it said in a statement.
"That is down from about 350 bps (basis points) when it started marketing deal. At close of local trade, R203 was marked-to-market at 8.145% – down two bps," NKC African Economics said in a note.
“The global investor base was primarily located in Europe and the United States,” National Treasury said.
“The transaction was more than two times oversubscribed,” it said. “The South African Government sees the success of the transaction as an expression of investor confidence in the country’s sound macro-economic policy framework and prudent fiscal management."
This issuance forms part of South Africa’s 2016/17 financing programme.
Government’s borrowing requirement over the medium term amounts to $5,5 billion equivalent, which includes $1 billon carried over from 2015/16.
The proceeds of the bond will partially finance government’s foreign currency commitments of $6,4 billion over the medium term, it said.
“During the remainder of 2015/16, government plans to raise the equivalent of $1 billion in global capital markets,” Treasury said in its budget review in February.
“Over the medium term, government intends to borrow the equivalent of about $4,5 billion to cover its total foreign currency commitments of $6,4 billion in global markets. The rest will be financed through foreign exchange purchases,” it added.
Treasury said in the review that government’s foreign debt as a percentage of gross loan debt remained low, averaging 10% over the medium term.
– Source: Fin24 |
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| FORD'S R2,5-BILLION INVESTMENT IN SA WELCOMED |
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| The Minister of Trade and Industry, Rob Davies, has welcomed Ford’s R2,5-billion investment in local production, saying it’s an important indication of confidence in South Africa. |
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Ford Motor Company of Southern Africa recently announced the investment to expand operations in South Africa at its Silverton Assembly Plant in Pretoria.
This will see the production of the all-new Ford Everest, along with the new Ford Ranger that was launched at the end of last year.
Minister Davies said the investment not only showed confidence in South Africa but also showed the significance of the Africa Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) two-way benefits.
AGOA is legislation that provides duty-free market access to the United States for qualifying sub-Saharan African countries by extending preferences on more than 4 600 products.
“The automotive industry is of significant importance to South Africa. To date, we have invested more than R25 billion in the motoring industry and are positive that through this investment we will see more and more vehicles manufactured locally,” said Minister Davies.
Furthermore, the Minister announced that the Department of Trade and Industry had awarded Ford Motor Company of Southern Africa with a R699-million incentive through the Automotive Production and Development Programme incentive for their latest investment expansion.
Ford Executive Vice President and President of Europe, Jim Farley, said the investment would create approximately 1 200 new jobs at Ford South Africa and within the South African supplier network.
– Source: SAnews.gov.za |
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| OPPORTUNITIES EXIST FOR SADC REGION TO INCREASE COMPETITIVENESS |
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| According to the World Economic Forum’s (WEF) Lead Economist for Competitiveness and Risks in Africa, Caroline Galvan, South Africa performs very well in the “more complex areas of competitiveness, such as innovation, technological readiness and financial market development”. |
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Delivering a presentation on the competitiveness of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) region at a special workshop hosted by Brand South Africa and the WEF on Thursday 7 April, she said fundamentals such as infrastructure, health, education and a higher uptake of new technologies would be necessary for sustained growth to occur within the SADC region. The seminar preceded the annual session of the WEF’s meeting on Africa, which will be hosted by Rwanda in Kigali from 11 to 13 May 2016.
SADC has been one of the fastest-growing regional economic communities in Africa. However, in recent years, especially following the 2007 to 2008 global economic crisis, the region has stopped performing as well. Low commodity prices and turbulent global financial conditions have been affecting the region’s growth prospects. In light of these conditions, the workshop interrogated how the SADC region could regain its growth momentum in a sustainable way by 2020.
Premised on the Global Competitiveness Report 2015-2016, the workshop, which brought together leaders from the business sector, policy-makers and development experts, provided an overview of the performance of SADC country’s which shows that productivity has slowed down in most countries in sub-Saharan Africa in the last decade.
“Low productivity impacts negatively on sustained, long-run growth in the region and levels of quality employment. Improving competitiveness is key to lay the foundation for a solid future,” added Ms Galvan.
However, the region has an opportunity to increase its competitiveness which can contribute to improved economic growth, job conditions and social conditions, by among others, investing in infrastructure, the development of its human capital and technological readiness. Creating an enabling environment for investors to do business efficiently within the region will also contribute to improved levels of competitiveness. |
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| MINISTER MOLEWA DECLARES MOUNTAIN ZEBRA AND CAMDEBOO PROTECTED ENVIRONMENT |
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| The Minister of Environmental Affairs, Edna Molewa, recently declared the Mountain Zebra-Camdeboo Protected Environment, in terms of the National Environmental Management: Protected Areas Act (NEMPAA), 2003. |
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The proclamation also gazetted the regulations conferring powers and duties to the Management Authority responsible for the Mountain Zebra-Camdeboo Protected Environment, in terms of the NEMPAA.
The Mountain Zebra-Camdeboo Protected Environment is located between Camdeboo and Mountain Zebra national parks in the Eastern Cape. The corridor project is a joint partnership between SANParks and the Wilderness Foundation with funding from the Critical Ecosystems Partnership Fund. The vision for the future is ultimately to link Camdeboo National Park at Graaff-Reinet with the Mountain Zebra National Park at Cradock, protecting a huge diversity of plant and animal species.
The Mountain Zebra-Camdeboo region is a mountainous area dominated by the Grassland Biome, having been identified as one of the top three priority grassland areas for protection. This biome is one of the three biomes (Grassland, Nama-Karoo and Indian Ocean Coastal Belt) least protected in South Africa.
This will not only assist in the conservation of the endangered Cape mountain zebra, but it will also contribute to the conservation of the recently identified Sneeuberg Centre of Endemism, part of the Amatole-Sneeuberg Montane Belt. The idea is to create a single conservation area over 120 km in length and including up to 520 000 hectares of land under conservation, to be accomplished in the main by public-private partnerships. |
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| SOUTH AFRICA’S FIRST CAR-FREE ECO-FRIENDLY VILLAGE MAKES GLOBAL NEWS |
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| A proposed luxury eco-village, near Somerset West in South Africa, is making news around the world after CNN International featured an article about the supercool, eco-friendly and car-less residential estate recently. |
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Blue Rock Village – on the shores of Lake Blue Rock in the Western Cape – is being touted as the “Greenest Village in South Africa”. According to a press release issued at the end of March, it will be not only the first Green Village in South Africa, but in Africa.
According to the press release, the R14-billion project is an upgrade of the Blue Rock Resort, with a view over “Blue Rock Lake, the only lake in Cape Town with crystal clear waters, with a depth of 60 metres and a water temperature of 27°C, ideal for water skiing and scuba diving”.
Lukas Reichmuth, founder and director of Blue Rock Village, said: “The project will be market-driven, focussing on both the international market and the South African market …”
He says the vision is to enjoy the beauty of the outdoors and that all parking is underground “to maximise the green living”.
"For convenience, we have planned a helipad for businesspeople to commute easily between the airport and Cape Town,” he adds.
The contemporary-designed buildings – which will house 1 000 apartments on 40 hectares of land – will incorporate LED lighting, water-management systems, solar water-heating systems, environmentally friendly building materials and more.
The village will also offer its residents restaurants, medical centres, boutiques, schools and a lifestyle centre with hotel, spa and conference centre. – Source: www.sapeople.com |
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| SA AGULHAS II DEPARTS FOR MARION ISLAND |
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| On 7 April 2016, the Department of Environmental Affairs’ (DEA) SA Agulhas II embarked on her fourth logistical and scientific voyage to Marion Island. |
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Aboard the ship was the Marion 73 expedition team, as well as a host of researchers and scientists from DEA and tertiary institutions who will be doing research in the ocean and on the island. Marion Island is a volcanic island that forms part of South African territory and was proclaimed as a Special Nature Reserve in 1995.
The Marion 73 expedition team will be the fifth of its kind to inhabit the new base since its commission in March 2011 and will occupy it for a period of 14 months. This year also marks 50 years of research and adventure on South Africa’s sub-Antarctic Island. |
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| TOURISTS TO SA HITS NEW RECORD FOR JANUARY 2016 |
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| South Africa’s tourism industry is seeing an encouraging recovery as tourist arrivals for the month of January 2016 reached a new record, with over a million tourists arriving in the country for the first time ever. |
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According to data released by Statistics SA, there were 1 012 641 tourist arrivals recorded for the first month of 2016, representing a 15% growth compared to January last year.
Grant Thornton analysis, which takes into consideration travellers who overnight and are not just transiting through South Africa's ports of entry, shows that January’s record-breaking month of arrivals comes off the back of a 7% overall decline in tourism arrivals for the full year of 2015. Despite a stronger finish for South African tourism statistics in the final quarter of last year, overall South African tourist arrivals were dismal for 2015, compared to those arrivals recorded during 2014.
“We welcome this notable level of growth for the first month of the 2016 year, albeit off a low base which was recorded in 2015,” says Lee-Anne Bac, Director: Advisory Services at Grant Thornton.
“A bumper month in January clearly indicates that the industry is on the rebound, which bears testimony to the tourism sector’s resilience and its ability to bounce back.”
Bac added that breaking through the one million mark was momentous for the country.
“The closest South Africa has ever been to this milestone was in January 2014 when there were 949 000 tourists,” she said. “In fact, for the entire 2015 year, tourist arrivals to South Africa never even broke through the 900 000 number in any month.”
The arrivals data reveals that growth was driven by buoyant demand from both overseas and African tourists, with the majority of tourists arriving from African countries (79%) while 21% were from overseas.
– Source: Traveller24: |
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| AFRICA TRAVEL WEEK KICKS OFF IN CAPE TOWN |
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| Africa Travel Week is an umbrella event which includes the World Travel Market Africa, the International Luxury Travel Market and the International Business Travel Market. |
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Africa Travel Week, which attracted more than 5 000 delegates, was held in Cape Town recently and opened by Alan Winde, Minister of Economic Opportunities, Western Cape Provincial Government.
“We’re excited to once again host Africa Travel Week. In 2015, over 500 exhibitors attended World Travel Market Africa, which drew over 4 000 attendees. The International Luxury Travel Market also generated a R41-million boost for Africa’s luxury travel industry in 2014 and resulted in over 4 000 business meetings among key players.”
There was a technology focus at Africa Travel Week, which was aligned to the Western Cape Government’s plans through Project Khulisa.
Project Khulisa had identified the tourism sector as one of the Western Cape’s focus areas for the next five years.
“Tourism is our fastest-growing sector and it’s creating jobs the quickest. There are currently 204 000 people employed in formal jobs and the sector is worth R17 billion. Under a high-growth scenario, this sector could add a further 100 000 jobs to our economy.” |
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| BUNNY CHOW SCOOPS INNOVATIVE BREAKFAST AWARD |
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| Inspired by South Africa's humble bunny chow – traditionally a curry served in a hollowed-out loaf of bread – the Full English Bunny has been named the winner of the Innovative Breakfast Award category in the British Best Breakfast Awards. |
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The Full English Bunny is served at an establishment called Bunnychow in London. It contains the usual breakfast to-go items such as sausage, bacon, mushrooms, beans, tomato, black pudding and fried egg in a hollowed-out brioche.
"We chose the Full English Bunny because we'd never seen anything like it before," reads the Shake Up Your Wake Up website. "With more and more people looking for things they can eat quickly and on the move, we felt the bunny was an ideal solution."
The Shake Up Your Wake Up Campaign comes from Britain's Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board. It ran British Breakfast Week in January this year, during which the bunny was selected in its awards.
Bunnychow's website notes that the original meal hails from Durban and was created in the 1940s. "Every Durbanite loves a bunny chow," it reads. "We loved them too, so we created our take on a bunny and have been serving them up to the good people of London since 2013."
Other uniquely South African bunnies served at Bunnychow include chakalaka chicken and bobotie meatballs.
– Source: www.southafrica.info |
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| GARY PLAYER BECOMES OLDEST GOLFER TO HIT HOLE IN ONE AT MASTERS |
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| Player’s incredible hole-in-one at Augusta National in Georgia, United States of America, is the 31st of his career! |
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Gary Player almost danced for joy recently after becoming the oldest golfer to hit a hole-in-one at the Masters Par 3 contest.
The 80-year-old South African sportsman was playing with fellow golf legends Jack Nicklaus and Tom Watson when he used the slope on the seventh hole to pull the ball back from the right to the left side of the green … and slap bang into the hole!
– Source: www.sapeople.com |
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| MCGREGOR, HARTLEY CROWNED AFRICA’S BEST |
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| The three days of racing saw Team South Africa dominate the Continental Championships and 2016 Olympic Games qualifier’s proceedings, with the host nation going on to top the final medal standings with 15 medals, 12 of which were gold. |
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At a gala dinner in Hillcrest recently, South African paddling icons Hank McGregor and Bridgitte Hartley were named African Canoe Federation’s Men’s and Women’s Paddler of the Year for 2015, bringing down the curtain on the 2016 ICF Canoe Sprint African Championships held at Shongweni Dam.
McGregor, who did not take part in the sprint event but has excelled both locally and internationally over the past decade, resulting in him being named the World Paddle Awards Male Paddler of the Year in 2014, was thrilled by the award from the Confederation of African Canoeing.
“It is a great honour to receive this award and be recognised on a continental level, especially coming off the back of winning the Paddler of the Year title at the World Paddle Awards last year,” said McGregor.
Hartley, the 2012 London Olympics K1 Women 500m bronze medallist, added her appreciation for the continental recognition.
“It is great to be recognised by your peers on the African continent,” said Hartley. “I hope this can serve as further motivation for the other female paddlers in Africa to keep working and driving the competitive standard of women’s canoeing.”
Having already secured Olympic qualification at last year’s World Championships, the continental clash presented Hartley with another good opportunity to continue her preparations for the Rio de Janeiro showpiece in August.
– Source: www.news24.com |
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| SA TEEN LANDS BENTLEY SEAT FOR GERMAN RACE SERIES |
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| Bentley Team ABT confirmed Pepper as one of six of its drivers set to drive its three Continental GT3 racers among a grid of 30 cars from eight manufacturers in the leading international series. |
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South Africa's Jordan Pepper (19), ADAC German GT3 Masters race winner, has been chosen as one of the Bentley Boys for the 2016 ADAC GT3 Masters series.
Pepper will chase overall and Junior honours alongside 43-year-old defending ADAC GT3 Gentleman’s champion Andreas Weishaupt in the No9 Bentley Continental GT, while Le Mans-winning Briton Guy Smith shares the No 8 car with Fabian Hamprecht and Formula E racer Daniel Abt and Christer Jöns will drive the No 7 machine.
Pepper said: "I’m really excited to make the change to the Factory Bentley Abt Team for 2016 after a very tough but promising first year in the 2015 ADAC GT Masters.
"I am thankful that the team has seen promise in me – this is my second year in GT Racing and I will have a better understanding of what to expect.”
2016’s 10th ADAC GT Masters will see 20 teams entering 34 supercars in races through Germany, Austria and the Netherlands starting at Oscherslieben from 15 to 17 April. There, the Bentley Boys will face GT3 racing rivals the likes of the new Audi R8, BMW M6, Corvette C7, Lamborghini Huracán, Mercedes-AMG GT, Nissan GT-R and Porsche 911s fielded by 20 teams in a 34-car grid.
“The ADAC GT Masters field is definitely going to be one of or if not the most competitive GT3 sprint series around the world this year,” Pepper pointed out. ”This year, I am partnering reigning ADAC GT Masters Gentleman Champion Andreas Weishaupt, so obviously the goal is to help Andreas defend his title and to be as competitive as we possibly can – I’m looking forward to the challenge, no doubt!” – Source: www.news24.com |
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| NINE-YEAR-OLD SA KARTING SENSATION OFF TO UK RACE |
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| Nine-year-old South African kart ace Aqil Alibhai headed to England for the opening round of the 2016 Formula Kart Stars series from 9 to 10 April. |
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Johannesburg racer Alibhai, who competes in the 60cc primary school Maxterino class at home and lies a close second in the 2016 Northern Regions Karting Championship after two rounds, recently travelled to England following a tough but encouraging South Africa national opener in Cape Town earlier in April.
Alibhai will race in the Formula Super Kart Cadet 60cc class for 8-10 year-old kids, where he will find himself competing with among the top primary school age group drivers in the world.
Young Alibhai said: “I am really excited to be part of this series. I’ve been racing since the age of five and now I have the privilege to compete internationally at nine years old.
“Thanks to Uncle Elijah and my Dad for this opportunity to let South African talent shine!”
Supported by Bernie Ecclestone, Lewis Hamilton and several Formula 1 teams, the British-based Formula Kart Stars is considered to be a main road to F1 through racing and education.
Formula Kart Stars is widely regarded as the premier training grounds for aspiring single-seater and sports car drivers.
Young racers race in identical cars in Formula Kart Stars and have to manage tyres and fuel. Most significantly, all engines are powered by computer ballot that distributes power equally to all drivers, in order to reward pure driving talent. – Source: www.news24.com |
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