Choprop SA scoops yet another accolade at the International Property Awards for the third year running in The Africa and Arabia Property Awards at the International Property Awards ceremony held in Dubai on the 12th of November 2015. Yusuf Essa CEO of Choprop says; “This is a proud moment, today marks a milestone in the phenomenal growth of our business, our industry and most importantly the country of South Africa. With just on 13 Global Awards, we would like dedicate this to award to all our clients. Thank you all for the wonderful messages of love, loyalty and support received. Not forgetting our amazing team at Choprop SA, our trade partners, franchisees and other stakeholders for all their dedication, commitment and continued support.” Choprop SA has been awarded one of highest accolades in the Property industry at the Africa and Arabia International Property Awards Summit. Held at the JW Marriott Marquis Hotel, Dubai on the 11th - 12th November 2015, Choprop SA received the highly commended award as Real Estate Agent for South Africa. Hundreds of entries were received from 25 countries across the regions of Africa and Arabia. The Africa & Arabia Property Awards are judged by an independent panel of 70 industry experts. Judging focuses on design, quality, service, innovation, originality, and commitment to sustainability. The judging panel is chaired by Lord Caithness and Lord Best, members of the House of Lords in the UK Parliament. Emirates Airlines is the official airline sponsor of the Africa & Arabia Property Awards. The Awards are in their 21st year. The Africa & Arabia Property Awards are part of the International Property Awards – the world’s largest, most prestigious, and widely recognised programme. Worldwide, the 2015 International Property Awards has received more than 2000 entries from over 110 countries this year. Choprop continues to make major inroads into the real estate industry and offers the following services; …
Coastal freeway link in great shape for holiday traffic
Coastal freeway link in great shape for holiday traffic Pretoria, 7 December 2015. Travelling on the N2 freeway that runs from Cape Town along the eastern seaboard to Durban should be trouble-free during the festive season and road users will not experience any delays caused by roadworks. Vusi Mona the Head of Communications of the South African National Roads Agency says there are no major construction activities underway on the artery that links the major coastal resorts of the Western and Eastern Cape and KwaZulu-Natal. “As a result, our engineers have rated the 550km stretch between Cape Town and Port Elizabeth expected condition as fair to good barring any unforeseen major traffic incidents or weather conditions,” says Mona. The road consists of a single carriageway with climbing lanes. Drivers are urged to look out for stray animals on the roadside and pedestrian activity especially near Grabouw, George, Knysna and Plettenberg Bay. SANRAL also calls on road users to follow important safety tips when they take to the country’s main roads during the festive season. “The main message is to remember that a road is a shared space and that you should be respectful towards tour fellow road users.” Speed limits are clearly indicated on the 21 450 km of roads managed by SANRAL in all nine provinces. “These are maximum limits and drivers should adjust their speed according to conditions such as rain or visibility,” says Mona. Road users are encouraged to take a break during long distance journeys to prevent fatigue and lack of concentration. The automated pay system on SANRAL’s toll roads has been operational since Friday, 4 December. Road users with electronic tags will no longer have to stop at participating toll plazas on the N2 South Coast road at the Oribi, Umtentweni and Izotsha plazas. “Automated payment makes it much easier for motorists who undertake long distance journeys,” says Mona. “They will not have to wait in queues at toll …
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Bakwena Potjiekos Competition raises much needed funds for N1N4 toll community organisations
Bakwena’s annual Potjiekos Competition, held last month at the Voortrekker Monument Cultural and Picnic area in Pretoria, raised over R34 920 for three community projects situated along the N1N4 toll route. Bakwena is dedicated to uplifting the communities that reside along the N1N4. The handover to the charities took place on Monday the 2nd November and the three organisations that benefited from this year’s potjiekos were President Kruger Children’s Home who received R11 640 as well as some stationery donated by G4 Civils, Trust Hope Faith Youth Development Organisation who also received R11 640 as well as stationery donated by Bakwena and lastly Solidarity “My Held” who received R11 640. This year’s competition brought industry stakeholders together to enjoy a fun day of friendly rivalry with an amazing 25 teams taking up the challenge. The event was an opportunity for all the participants to interact and network while working towards a cause relevant to them all. Thanks to the hard work and dedication of Bakwena’s finance team, the event ran smoothly from start to finish. However, none of it would have been possible without sponsorship from generous donors, including V & V Consulting, WBHO, Talisman Wonderboom, Hassims Supply Store, Warmbad Grassny Dienste, Ras Appliances, Pink Drive, Nameplate, Bigen Africa, Carstens Elektries, Radium Garage and Phiriphiri Security. The competition itself was close and the judges had a tough time choosing between the delicious potjies on offer. However, a decision had to be made and the team from Bigen were announced as the first prize winners, followed by National Asphalt in second place and Scan RF who came in third. “Bakwena is grateful to all the volunteers, participants and donors for making the day such a success,” says Charmaine van Wyk, spokesperson for Bakwena, adding “We look forward to seeing everyone again at next year’s event.” Author: Thandokazi Mashalaba from PR Worx. More Info link: …
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Electronic Prepaid Distribution – a worthwhile investment
As a result of economic slowdown, Mobile Network Operators (MNOs) are feeling distribution margin squeeze and are challenged to maintain profitability while their margins are declining. The added pressure of declining ARPU (Average Revenue per User) is an added concern to take into account. This is according to Globetom MD, Philip Stander. Although the South African GSM market has a smaller prepaid segment compared to other African countries, electronic prepaid distribution is quite advanced and very pervasive compared to other emerging markets. South Africa has, by and large, proven the business case for electronic prepaid distribution as a pervasive, successful distribution strategy for prepaid product distribution. At the same time, the business case in the remainder of Africa has lagged behind despite the higher proportion of prepaid customers compared to South Africa. Emerging markets, for instance, have a need to convert the traditional, physical, scratch card distribution to electronic distribution to ensure future growth and sustainability, but are faced with a number of barriers to enter the electronic prepaid distribution space. Key obstacles include access to technology platforms and financing. However, the Cloud eradicates these barriers, making solutions more pervasive and affordable. Globetom’s GP3 platform is a hassle free one-stop-solution that covers the electronic prepaid distribution and top-up operations while also offering onboard loyalty and customer retention functionality. Coupled with its Cloud-based delivery there is no need to worry about access to an electronic prepaid distribution technology platform any longer. If resellers in rural areas run out of physical scratch cards, there is a significant problem. They have to wait for more stock to be delivered, which takes time, and it means that they have to be more accurate with their sales predictions. Electronic prepaid distribution solution ensures that stock is immediately available …
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Fifth National Schools Moot Court helps shape young legal minds
Round two of the fifth annual National Schools Moot Court is to get underway this month, after teams from secondary schools around the country entered into debate on South Africa’s highly celebrated constitution. The initiative is aimed at raising awareness and understanding in schools and communities around the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa. Through active participation, learners are exposed to the values and principles embodied by the constitution. They are given an opportunity to test their ability to think like lawyers and get a feel for law as a potential career path. The provincial round took place during August and September. In this round, a team of two grade 10 or 11 pupils chosen based on an essays round was invited to participate. The teams were presented with a fictional legal scenario for which they needed to submit oral arguments to real magistrates in their province. The four most impressive teams have now been to participate in the oral round to be held at the University of Pretoria in October. The two winning teams will argue a final round at the Constitutional Court of South Africa in Johannesburg, with the winners receiving financial assistance towards their first year at any South African law school. The National Schools Moot Court has helped to mould young legal minds around the country since its inception in 2011. One such mind is that of Gift Kgomosotho, who participated in that first Moot Court. Working as a national organizer for this years’ event, Gift says “I truly believe in what the Moot Court is trying to achieve, and it’s one of the constitutive reasons that I pursued law as a career.” The event is supported by, amongst others, the Department of Justice and Constitutional Development, the Department of Basic Education, the University of Venda and the Foundation for Human Rights and top legal firms and professionals from around the country. The semi-finals will take place at The University of Pretoria on …
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The women who want to eat clay
Netcare Media Statement The women who want to eat clay Uterine fibroids “a major women’s health issue in SA” Tuesday, 20 October 2015 Prolonged and heavy menstrual bleeding, pelvic pain, back and leg pains, pain during sex, feelings of exhaustion and even a strange urge to eat clay; these are just some of the troubling, even debilitating, symptoms that affect many of the hundreds of thousands of South African women who suffer from uterine fibroids. Dr Gary Sudwarts, an interventional radiologist who performs uterine fibroid embolisation (UFE) procedures at Netcare Park Lane and Netcare Linksfield hospitals in Johannesburg, as well as at UCT Private Academic Hospital in Cape Town, describes uterine fibroids as a major women’s health issue in South Africa. “This is a medical condition that warrants much greater attention and awareness than it currently receives, particularly as more and more effective treatment options are becoming available. Many South African women are silently suffering devastating symptoms as a result of untreated uterine fibroids. In addition, every year many thousands of women in South Africa have a hysterectomy, a major surgical procedure to remove the entire uterus, due to severe uterine fibroids.” Uterine fibroids are muscular, non-cancerous tumours that develop in the walls of the uterus. They most commonly, although not exclusively, develop in women in their 30s and 40s. Internationally, 20% of women have fibroids although this number is likely to be much higher in South Africa. “I began to experience long, irregular periods with heavy bleeding that could last as long as 12 days,” relates Bernadette Chiponda, a 39-year-old woman from Johannesburg, who says she also inexplicably suddenly started putting on weight and suffering migraines a year ago. “I would do one single chore around the house and feel completely drained. Fibroids were draining the energy and joy from my life. I often suffered migraines and my work as …
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“I thought the end had come,” says accident victim whose bakkie was crushed by truck
“I thought the end had come,” says accident victim whose bakkie was crushed by truck Rescue 1 community outreach service saves lives Tuesday, 1 October 2015 “I thought the end had come,” recalls 19-year-old Diego Viljoen, survivor of a horrific road accident, which saw the bakkie he was travelling in struck by a container truck in Modderfontein, Johannesburg earlier this year. “My bakkie was crushed under the weight of the truck, leaving me trapped in a tiny area of the cabin which was miraculously left intact.” Diego says he was in a great deal of shock after the accident and phoned his uncle to ask him to say goodbye to his mother, father and other family members as he did not believe he would ever get out of the wreck alive. Soon after this, however, Diego heard a calm voice asking if he was okay and then advising him to try to stay calm while assuring him that a rescue team would extricate him from his vehicle as soon as possible. “It was like the voice of an angel,” he recalls. “It was a paramedic and he brought hope that I might actually get out alive of what seemed a desperate situation.” Nick Dollman, a paramedic and crew member of Rescue 1, a special rescue vehicle operated as a community service by medical emergency services provider Netcare 911, arrived to find paramedics on scene, but was the first rescue unit to arrive at the accident. He says that what he saw took his breath away. A container truck had smashed into the bakkie, turning it over in the process. Thereafter, it drove right over the smaller vehicle. “We were relieved to hear that the driver of the vehicle was conscious, secured the accident site and called the fire department to assist at the scene. Fortunately, a crew from Northview fire station, as well as a number of other emergency services, soon joined us,” notes Dollman. “Together we worked for an hour and three quarters to free Diego. A crane had to be brought in to lift the truck off the bakkie before the recue teams …
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Create mobile car art at the biggest collaborative public art events ever seen
Colour in AutoTrader’s new fleet of cars to raise funds for charity and #DriveChange AutoTrader invites you to colour in their new fleet of corporate cars. Help create contemporary mobile art by colouring in between the lines drawn on by artists such as Lazi Mathebula (aka Greiispaces). AutoTrader’s #DriveChange campaign will raise funds to buy a container of bicycles for Qhubeka, the global non-profit organisation World Bicycle Relief’s programme in South Africa. “We will be giving rural learners bicycles so that they can shorten their journey times to and from school by up to 75%. This means they have more energy for their studies,” said George Mienie, CEO of AutoTrader. The colouring-in will take place at shopping centres across South Africa. Vibrant permanent markers will be supplied and sponsored by Sharpie. Colouring-in spots can be bought for a donation of R50, with all proceeds going to Qhubeka. All ages are welcome. The colouring-in will take place at the following malls, 22 September to 05 October 2015: Cape Town: Tygervalley, Canalwalk*, Cape Gate Durban: Gateway*, Pine Crest Joburg: Fourways, South Gate Mall, Eastgate* Pretoria: Menlyn, Centurion *Only from 22 Sept to 28 Sept 2015. AutoTrader is South Africa’s leading automotive site to buy new and used cars. For more information about AutoTrader #DriveChange, please visit: https://www.autotrader.co.za/drivechange and follow the action on social media http://www.facebook.com/AutoTraderSA https://twitter.com/autotradersa For more information on Qhubeka, please visit qhubeka.org Author: Michelle Lewis from Corner578. More Info link: https://www.autotrader.co.za/drivechange Images: For high res version/s of One image/s please contact Corner578. CLICK HERE to submit your press release to MyPR.co.za. …
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TFG announces exclusive franchise rights for accessories brand Colette
TFG (The Foschini Group) has announced that it has acquired the South African franchise rights of Australian fashion accessories brand, Colette by Colette Hayman. Founded by South African-born Colette and husband Mark Hayman in 2010, the brand epitomises fast fashion, offering the hottest range of fun, stylish and affordable accessories, handbags and jewellery. With its “you don’t have to spend a fortune to look fabulous” philosophy and new collections hitting the stores every week, customers have immediate access to affordable interpretations of the latest accessory trends from international catwalks. Seizing a gap in the market for designer handbags and accessories at affordable price points, Colette grew rapidly and currently has a footprint of over 150 stores globally, including stores in New Zealand, United Arab Emirates and Singapore. In South Africa, the brand currently trades from six stand-alone stores in Canal Walk, Cape Town; Woodlands Boulevard and Centurion Park, Pretoria; Rosebank Mall, Johannesburg; Clearwater Mall, Roodepoort and Gateway Theatre of Shopping in Durban. Colette will also be available from concessions within Foschini stores. It aligns well with the Foschini brand, while extending the product range to enable its customers to shop for the latest styles and catwalk trends, picking up everything they need to complete their look. TFG CEO Doug Murray says: “Aimed primarily at the fashion-forward female customer, Colette by Colette Hayman is an exciting fast fashion accessories brand that is taking the lead in designer-inspired, on-trend handbags and jewellery. The rapid speed to market means that there is a constant element of ‘newness’ in stores – capturing precisely what fast fashion aims to be. With the help of its franchise model, in a short five years, Colette has grown from the opening of its first store in Sydney, Australia to the impressive footprint we see today. It has also been very successful in growing its e-commerce …
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Lumka gives new direction to Madibaz Sport
Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University has appointed former Sascoc team preparation and academy systems manager Yoliswa Lumka as the new director of Madibaz Sport. Lumka took office at the beginning of September and has already unveiled ambitious plans for the university’s sporting programme. “My goal for Madibaz Sport is that in the next five years we will be among the top three sporting institutions in South Africa.” Lumka said NMMU had great, untapped potential as a centre of sports and learning in the Eastern Cape and that there was a huge provincial talent base from which to draw. “We need to focus on developing the talent that is already here, bringing the best-performing athletes to the university and taking us to those higher levels of sporting excellence.” She said building stronger ties with local schools and surrounding communities was the only path to success. “People tend to look at universities in isolation but the bigger picture, and part of the reason for us existing as institutions of higher learning, is to engage with the community at large. “As much as we are a sporting department, we also have research units and academic departments attached to us. So, as a ‘tripartite alliance’, there’s a lot we can do for the students, staff and other people around us.” Lumka said it was her disappointment with the national developmental structures that had reinforced her decision to move to a position where she could make a difference. “Considering that we are 21 years into the new dispensation, our development systems should be much further along than they are. “From a funding perspective, a lot of the budget sits at the top of an inverted pyramid, where only a few hundred high-performance athletes benefit from the structures. “Meanwhile, hundreds of thousands of children who should be playing sport and benefiting from proper coaching aren’t getting it.” She said she would use her experience to put the necessary structures …