Africa Outlook Issue 22

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pharma FOCus FOr aN

Imperial Logistics leverages its longstanding expertise in new markets

InvESTMEnT proFILE CHad 18 Africa Outlook takes an inside look at Chad’s business and investment potential

GHana ruBBEr ESTaTES LTd 48

Deeply rooted within the Ghanaian community

aIrTEL

kEnya 70 Connecting families, communities and individuals

auTo InduSTrIaL Group 40

Auto Industrial is a leading provider of automotive components to major car manufacturers in South Africa

aFrICa ouTook ISSuE 22 a L S o T H I S I S S u E : G E r T r u d E ’ S C H I L d r E n ’ S H o S p I T a L | j I n d a L a F r I C a | M T n r W a n d a

W E L C O M E The Continent’s Finest Look Towards International Growth

Editorial

In years gone by, the yardstick by which Africa’s elite companies were measured against was South Africa; traditionally, the gateway to the continent’s business arena.

Times have changed though, and for a company to be classified as regionally successful these days, international expansion into any one of the many emerging and lucrative countries in Africa is a must.

Telecom heavyweights, Airtel and MTN are two companies whose proactive approach towards expansion is well established, and this month we take a look at each brand’s operations in Kenya and Rwanda respectively.

Our main focus however is on supply chain specialists, Imperial Logistics, whose entrepreneurial spirit and flexible structure is not only expanding its influence to a wider, international market, but is also incorporating new sectors into its repertoire.

I spoke to the company’s Chief Business Development Officer, Cobus Rossouw about Imperial’s move into the pharmaceutical industry and the business’s ongoing drive to filter market-leading standards throughout the organisation.

Return visits to hospitals are rarely sought after occurrences, but Africa Outlook makes an exception this month as it also welcomes back Gertrude’s Children’s Hospital and Bokamoso Hospital to catch up on the two’s recent developments, investments and improvements.

Ghana Rubber Estates, Auto Industrial and Jindal Africa help to complete this month’s company showcase, while in lighter news, I provided a platform for 10 of the continent’s most advanced countries to showcase their technological prowess.

From South Africa to Nigeria, to Uganda, and Rwanda, the pressure is on to adopt the most modern technologies - across telecoms, energy, computing, social media and data services – to not only bridge the gap between the continent and the rest of the developed world, but to also enrich the lives of the surrounding communities.

Wrapping up the final Africa Outlook of 2014, and therefore the final investment profile of 2014, is an in-depth review of Chad; a country set in the heart of the continent, but in need of slight resuscitation across its key sectors as it joins us in wishing for a happy new year.

Matthew Staff Editorial Director, Outlook Publishing

Editorial Director: Matthew Staff matthew.staff@outlookpublishing.com Sub-editor: Emily Jarvis emily.jarvis@outlookpublishing.com

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Production Manager: Daniel George daniel.george@outlookpublishing.com Magazine Design: Optic Juice Ltd www.opticjuice.co.uk

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Sales Director: Nick Norris nick.norris@outlookpublishing.com Operations Director: James Mitchell james.mitchell@outlookpublishing.com Sales Manager: Ben Wigger ben.wigger@outlookpublishing.com Senior Project Managers: Arron Rampling arron.rampling@outlookpublishing.com Donovan Smith donovan.smith@outlookpublishing.com Project Managers: Callum Philp callum.philp@outlookpublishing.com Eddie Clinton eddie.clinton@outlookpublishing.com James Smith james.smith@outlookpublishing.com Serge Utting serge.utting@outlookpublishing.com Tom Cullum tom.cullum@outlookpublishing.com

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Finance Director: Suzanne Welsh suzanne.welsh@outlookpublishing.com Office Administrator: Donna Redpath donna.redpath@outlookpublishing.com Images: www.thinkstockphotos.co.uk Digital & IT: Hamit Saka Helpdesk: James LeMay

Outlook Publishing

Managing Director: Ben Weaver ben.weaver@outlookpublishing.com Chairman: Mark Weaver Contact Africa Outlook / UK 22 Wensum Street, Norwich, UK, NR3 1HY Sales: +44 (0) 1603 559 145 Editorial: +44 (0) 1603 559 152 Fax: +44 (0) 1603 559 553 Africa Outlook / SA The Colosseum, First Floor, Century Way, Century City, Cape Town, 7441 Tel: +27 (0) 21 527 0053 Subscriptions Tel: +44 (0)1603 559 152 matthew.staff@outlookpublishing.com

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Enjoy the issue and see you in 2015!

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In this issue of Africa Outlook...

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saNgIO pIpE sA’s leading Producer of hDPe Pipe

Sangio Pipe plans to do everything in its power to remain the leading and largest producer of HDPE pipes

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JmV TExTIlEs A tight-Knit Focus on customer satisfaction Success has been engrained into the fabric of this family-run business

64 L O G I S T I C S

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ImpErIal lOgIsTICs Pharma Focus for an imperious Future

SA’s supply chain supremo celebrates another year of growth

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Embodying the true spirit of entrepreneurship on an international scale

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NOblE aZaNIa one group, many missions

Noble Azania says that diversification is key to remaining competitive in an ever-changing market

NEWs

All the latest top stories across the month from Africa

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ZENuFa grOup OF COmpaNIEs Affordable, Accessible, Availing

aFrICa TECh rEVIEW OF ThE yEar 2014

The ‘emerging’ have emerged: The continent’s top 10 techsavvy countries are revealed

MANUFACTURING

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INVEsTmENT prOFIlE Chad

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shOWCasINg lEadINg COmpaNIEs tell us your story and we’ll tell the world

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Africa Outlook takes an inside look at Chad’s business and investment potential

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www.AFRICAOUTLOOKMAG.COM

auTO INdusTrIal grOup south Africa’s leading Automotive component manufacturer

T E C H N O L O G Y

Auto Industrial is a leading provider of automotive components to major car manufacturers in South Africa

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aIrTEl KENya Kenya’s telecom experts

ghaNa rubbEr EsTaTEs lTd stretching Across West Africa

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mTN rWaNda Digital Drives Dominance in Rwanda

GREL is deeply rooted within the Ghanaian community

Airtel connects families, communities and individuals

4G and fibre expansion signifies 2014 tech growth for the market leader

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ErICssON ssa leading transformation through mobility

bOKamOsO hOspITal specialist healthcare for a Developing nation

Ericsson strive to connect everyone, wherever they may be

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A hospital that is internationally recognised as a centre of medical excellence

mICrOsOFT NIgErIa Driving innovation from the start The continent’s leading economy benefits from the world’s leading technologies

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IsON bpO experience-centric solutions

ISON’s approach to delivery via BPO has given them an early advantage in the African markets

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TIgO ghaNa A Brand new experience with tigo ghana CEO Roshi Motman tells us more about the launch of Tigo Music in Ghana

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mrs OIl strength of the stallion

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maJWE mININg the Prince of mines in Botswana

MRS Oil are a fully integrated and efficient downstream player in Nigeria’s oil industry

With Botswana’s diamond mining industry accounting for a huge chunk of the country’s GDP, we ask Majwe Mining where the industry is headed in the future

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F O O D & D R I N K

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lusITaNIa FOOd prOduCTs Positive thinking Produces Positive Results

1,000 products and counting for one of SA’s largest industry players

harlEQuIN INTErNaTIONal ghaNa setting the Benchmark for West African engineering

Servicing a wide variety of West Africa’s engineering needs

R E S O U R C E S

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JINdal aFrICa growing our spirit, the African Way

Jindal Africa looks to Botswana for its latest coalfield project at Mmamabula

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WEaThErFOrd algErIa 40 years of slick service Quality

Capitalising on one of the world’s most lucrative oil and gas regions

R H E A L T H C A R E

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gErTrudE’s ChIldrEN’s hOspITal unparalleled specialists in children’s healthcare

The gift of health and hope for children in Africa since 1947

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TusKys Pay less, get more – everyday

A family-owned chain of supermarkets bringing convenience to Kenya

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EVENTs

Africa Outlook highlights the upcoming events across the continent

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BP Southern Africa Continues its Commitment to Transformation P Southern Africa (BPSA), one of the oldest companies operating in South Africa for over 90 years, has completed a major Broad Based Black Economic Empowerment (B-BBEE) transaction with two new BEE investors, as part of its continued commitment to meaningful transformation of the country.

BPSA’s commitment to transformation dates back several years. In 2001 it became one of the first companies in the petroleum sector in South Africa to implement a BEE transaction with the Mineworkers Investment Company (MIC) and WDB Investment Holdings/WDB Fuel (WDB).

BPSA’s previous ownership structure was advantageous to both BP and the former BEE shareholders. However, consistent with BEE legislation changes, BP has deepened its equity ownership structure to ensure a greater balance between economic and voting interest, which BP believes provides more sustainable transformation for the future.

BPSA has sold 25% + 1 share to two BEE partners, namely KAPELA and the BPSA Education Foundation, a Broad Based Black Economic Empowerment Trust.

The Kapela BEE consortium includes the Disability Empowerment Concerns Trust, which is a majority black broad based trust with over two million people with disabilities as beneficiaries (at least 85% are black and 50% are women), as well as a majority black owned and managed

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private equity firm. Kapela acquired a 20% +1 share and the BPSA Education Foundation acquired 5% of BPSA’s shares.

Mr Israel Skosana, Kapela Executive Chairman says: “We are excited to be a shareholder in BP South Africa.

The acquisition of 20% + 1 share is a significant investment for us. We are looking forward to partnering with the BPSA Education Foundation as shareholders, other members of the board of directors and management of BP South Africa in creating value for all relevant stakeholders. Together we can continue to contribute towards the socio-economic transformation of our beloved country. Ms Fatima Abrahams and I will be on the Board of Directors of BPSA”.

The transaction was concluded after a competitive process where every bidder was treated in a fair and transparent manner. The partners (MIC and WDB) were invited to participate in this process and during this time elected to extract value from their existing investment, enabling BPSA’s new BEE structure.

Through the BPSA Education Foundation, BPSA will contribute in meaningful and sustainable ways to enhance the standard of living and improve the well-being of the

previously disadvantaged, specifically black women and people with disabilities, through education and skills development. This aligns with BPSA’s existing Community, Social Investment (CSI) as well as Skills Development programme.

Within Skills Development BPSA has established a progressive partnership with Wits on a Targeted Talent Programme (TTP) and is investing R105 million over five years with R15 million spent in 2014 alone to enrich the lives of just under 1,000 students. At its core, this enrichment programme identifies talented pupils in underprivileged rural areas and guides them through specially developed engagements over a long term period (2 - 3 years) to prepare them for their final matric exams and for transition into the university environment.

The programme has already produced some of South Africa’s top matriculants with 900 more pupils expected over the programme’s 6 year run.

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TransSys Solutions Recognised via Oracle Excellence Award for Specialised Partner of the Year Oracle recognised TransSys Solutions, a leading system integrator in the Middle East & Africa regions, with its 2014 Oracle Excellence Award for Specialised Partner of the Year - EMEA in Applications. TransSys Solutions is a Platinum level member of Oracle Partner Network (OPN).

The Oracle Excellence Awards for Specialised Partner of the Year EMEA encourage innovation by OPN members, who use Oracle’s products and technology to create value for customers. The award reflects TransSys Solutions’s success in adopting OPN’s Specialised approach which is aimed at enabling partners to establish industry recognition by following a formal process to become Specialised in key Oracle solution areas.

TransSys Solutions was presented the 2014 Oracle Excellence Award for Specialised Partner of the Year – EMEA in Applications for demonstrating excellence in helping customers adopt Oracle SaaS service and offering innovative solution options to address critical customer challenges in the areas of ERP, CRM and Human Capital Management. TransSys is a rapidly growing system integrator, known for their commitment to deliver niche and high quality solutions to customers. With over 15 Oracle Cloud engagements in the past 9 months, TransSys is committed to Oracle’s initiative in helping customers adopt SaaS solutions effectively.

“This award demonstrates that regional OPN members with the right solution approach and focus can add significant value to customers. This further reinforces our commitment to continuously deliver transformational value driven and a consultative approach based solutions to our customers” said Prabu Balasubramanyan, Executive Director of TransSys, while acknowledging

the award presented during Oracle OpenWorld 2014 at San Francisco, USA. “TransSys Solutions has demonstrated an outstanding level of innovation in delivering proven, Oracle-based solutions that solve our joint customers’ most critical business challenges,” said David Callaghan, Senior Vice President of EMEA Alliances and Channels, Oracle. “We congratulate TransSys Solutions in achieving the 2014 Oracle Excellence Award for Specialised Partner of the Year - EMEA in Applications. This achievement is a testament to their dedication to excellence and to providing customers solutions and services that drive real business value and results.”

Tigo General Manager Diego Gutierrez said: “This second round of profit disbursement shows the company’s continued commitment to benefit and improve the lives of Tanzanians. The payment goes to all Tigo Pesa users including super agents, retail agents and individual users of the service.”

“The first payment was bigger due to the fact that the profit had been accumulated over a period of three and a half years. This second payment is the profit accumulated from funds held in trust in commercial banks for three months in the quarter July to September 2014,” the General Manager said.

Mr Gutierrez explained that, as before, the average return to a customer will vary based on their average daily balance in their Tigo Pesa e-wallet. This applies to superagents, retail agents and individual customers.

The next installment for the quarter of October to December 2014 will be paid out in February 2015.

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Tigo Pesa Returns TZS 3 Billion to Customers as First Quarterly Payment Tigo announced today the first of its regular quarterly payments worth 3 billion (US $ 1.8 million) to Tigo Pesa users.

This payment comes three months after the company paid a staggering profit of TZS 14.25 billion (US $ 8.64 million) accumulated in the Tigo Pesa Trust Account to become the first mobile money service in the world to pay profit to its users. Tigo Pesa has a subscriber base of 3.6 million customers.

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t e c h n o l o g y ASUS Launches Two Commercial Notebook Ranges in South Africa SUS, the Taiwanese technology innovation brand, has launched its B-Series and P-Series ranges of commercial notebooks, with devices available through resellers from the end of November 2014 The ASUS Advanced B-Series of notebooks are ultra-light, superslim, extra-durable, and offer superior performance for corporate executives on the move. Tested to military standards, these notebooks

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have a durable carbon-fibre-reinforced LCD cover construction, tough antishock hard drive to protect data, and a spill-resistant keyboard. Their lay-flat 180 degree hinged anti-glare HD/HD+ display offer wide viewing angles,

and their true-comfort keyboard, responsive SensePoint and precision touchpads make user experience all the more professional.

Under the hood, the ASUS Advanced B-Series is shipped with Windows 8.1 Pro and latest generation Intel® Core™ processors with Intel® vPro™ Technology. The notebooks offer enhanced security with Trusted Platform Module and a fingerprint reader, while the ASUSPRO Ultra Docking Station offers greater expansion and connectivity.

The ASUS Essential P-Series are budget-friendly and ultra-reliable notebooks for small and mediumsized enterprises, and for home and home office users. Tested to ASUSPRO’s strict standards, the notebooks are shipped with Windows 8.1 Pro, and users can stay connected anytime with dual-band Wi-Fi. Wake-on-LAN (WOL) allows PCs to be turned on by a simple network message, while built-in USB 3.0 ports offer ultra-fast data transfer speeds.

A removable large-capacity battery pack makes for easy servicing and a long battery life, while the ASUSPRO Business Centre for advanced PC management is included in one simple software package. USB Charger+ allows quick charging of mobile devices, even when the notebook is powered off.

“These two ranges of notebooks offer South African users the best of ASUS’ globally renowned research and development, with its robust yet elegant outward appearance only hinting at the notebooks’ power and efficiency,” says Jeff Kuo, Country Manager for ASUS South Africa.

“ASUS strives to make technology accessible to everyone, and these two ranges will certainly offer remarkable experiences to corporate users and to smaller enterprise users.”

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Johannesburg Remains Africa’s Most Visited City ohannesburg is set to be the most popular destination city in Africa for the second year, followed by Cape Town, according to the 2014 MasterCard Global Destination Cities Index.

Johannesburg expects 4.3 million international overnight visitors in 2014, a 4.9 percent increase on last year’s 4.1 million visitors.

Johannesburg also comes out on top in Africa in terms of international visitor expenditure, with travellers expected to spend a substantial US$3.2 billion in 2014, compared to US$3.06 billion last year.

“The City of Gold’s status as the most popular destination city among visitors to the African continent is significant for the economic prospects of the city. Visitor spend is an increasingly important source of revenue for the city’s hospitality, retail, transport, sports and cultural sectors,” says Mark Elliott, Division President, South Africa, MasterCard.

Now in its fourth year, the MasterCard Index of Global Destination Cities ranks 132 cities in terms of the number of their total international visitor arrivals and the cross-border spending by these same visitors in the destination cities. It also gives visitor and passenger growth forecasts for 2014. The 13 African cities ranked in the Index are: Johannesburg, Cape Town, Durban, Cairo, Casablanca, Accra, Nairobi, Beira, Dakar, Kampala, Lagos, Maputo and Tunis.

Most visitors to Johannesburg will again travel from London. This

year, visitors from that city will increase in number by three percent (444,000 in 2013 compared to 458,000 in 2014).

Londoners will spend an estimated US$462 million while in Johannesburg, US$20 million less than they did in 2013.

Frankfurt (305,000 people), Harare (269,000 people), Maputo (204,000 people) and Paris (198,000) round out the top five cities sending visitors to Johannesburg. Parisians are expected to spend the most (US$337 million), followed by visitors from Frankfurt (US$159 million), Harare (US$140 million), and Maputo (US$115 million).

According to the City of Johannesburg, the Index rating affirms Johannesburg’s status as a worldclass African city that has repeatedly demonstrated its capacity to host major sporting events, global meetings and summits, most recently the fifth biennial C40 Mayors Summit earlier this year.

“The Index rating cements Johannesburg’s position as the economic capital and heartbeat of trade and economic activity on the African continent. We are proud to be the home of most local and multinational companies in banking, finance and industry due to our economic and social infrastructure,” says City of Johannesburg Executive Mayor Councillor Parks Tau. Trailing Johannesburg by a substantial margin, Cape Town is set

to be Africa’s second most visited city. The Mother City is expected to receive 1.6 million international overnight visitors in 2014, who are likely to spend US$2.3 billion.

This is a 5.5 percent increase in visitor numbers and an impressive 10 percent increase in spend compared to 2013 (US$2.1 billion).

“This year’s Index points to a continued strong demand for - and interest in - air travel, both for business and personal reasons.

Having Johannesburg and Cape Town in the top two places in Africa is a great achievement for South African tourism,” Elliott says.

Rounding out the top five most visited cities in Africa are Cairo in Egypt (1.35 million visitors spending US$804 million), Lagos in Nigeria (1.33 million visitors spending US$710 million), and Casablanca in Morocco (0.98 million visitors spending US$737 million).

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Transnet Tender Continues to Empower South Africa’s Independent Fuel Wholesalers ulfstream Energy, supplier of quality and innovative petroleum products and one of South Africa’s larger independent wholesalers, has recently announced the formation of a new company, G&T Tsela, in conjunction with Tipublox Petroleum. Tipublox, an independent wholesaler and current Gulfstream customer, shares equal ownership with Gulfstream in G&T Tsela. The new entity’s main focus will be that of logistics within the South African fuel industry.

As one of nine companies collectively awarded the R 15.5bn Transnet contract at the end of 2013, and as part of the latter’s Supply Development Programme, Gulfstream made a commitment to place 20% of its Transnet fuel delivery with an empowered fuel transporter.

Delivering on its word, Gulfstream decided to take it one step further and create an entirely new entity in conjunction with Tipublox.

The Gulfstream portion of the tender will see the delivery of significant quantities of fuel to all ports within South Africa for a period of five years. “But even more significantly, it has provided us with the opportunity to play a greater role in the development and sustainability of our local industry,” says Shane Jegels, Chairman and CEO, Gulfstream Energy.

“As an independent wholesaler, we need to create our own logistics capability,” says Phenyo Ntshabele, Financial Director, Tipublox Petroleum. “But logistics and the required infrastructure require significant capital.” Up until now

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Tipublox has been making use of Gulfstream’s logistics capability to ensure delivery of its own fuel orders.

The new company will see Gulfstream funding the required equipment in addition to awarding a contract to deliver 20% of the Transnet order.

The relationship between Gulfstream and Tipublox has been in existence for many years. Having received its independent wholesale license in 2010 from the Department of Energy, Tipublox found itself in a situation experienced by many other independent wholesalers.

“It comes down to security of supply,” says Ntshabele. “In order to secure customers, you need to guarantee product supply.

However, in order to secure supplier relationships, especially with the larger players, one needs to have customers.” This led Tipublox to approach Gulfstream Energy. With a value offering, which encapsulates making fuel available to independent wholesalers who are not able to access product as efficiently, Gulfstream has subsequently been supplying as much as 80 - 90% of required product to Tipublox for the last two years.

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But the relationship between these two independent wholesalers is about so much more than product.

“We benefit from the entire supply chain through Gulfstream,” says Ntshabele. “In addition to fuel supply we receive back end office support, the passing on of rebates ensuring Gulfstream always delivers ‘best price possible’ as well as logistics capability.” As a result, the significance of this new venture proposed and spearheaded by Gulfstream, will see Tipublox now able to independently meet its own logistic requirements, further enabling them to take another step forward as an independent wholesaler.

It is an exciting time for South Africa’s fuel industry, which is seeing an opening up of opportunities for independent wholesalers not previously available. “It’s not about competing with the larger oil companies, but rather about carving a niche for ourselves as independent wholesalers, working cooperatively with the larger players for the benefit of our country’s fuel consumers,” says Jegels. But it’s also about working together as independent wholesalers.

“With Gulfstream, there is an understanding that we are working together to achieve something bigger than ourselves,” says Ntshabele.

“They are empowering us with regards to business in general and our place in the local petroleum industry.”

“If I could sum up our relationship with Gulfstream in one phrase, it would be that of ‘mentor and big brother’,” continues Ntshabele. “Dealing with one of the larger oil companies would render us a number, at Gulfstream we are part of the family and the learnings and support we receive from its management team continue to be invaluable.”

CFAO Announces the Launch of its Club of Brands in Africa CFAO Group announces the creation of its club of brands, a network of international brands wishing to support the rise of the African middle class.

The following new-generation international brands are the first five members of this innovative club: La Grande Récré (Ludendo group), L’Occitane en Provence, Cache Cache and Bonobo (Beaumanoir group), and Kaporal.

CFAO will operate the sales outlets of these new partners under exclusive agreements (franchises, brand and distribution concessions, and distribution agreements).

The club of brands will include around twenty brands with sales outlets opening first and foremost in CFAO’s shopping centres in eight African countries: Cameroon, Congo, Côte d’Ivoire, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Gabon, Ghana, Nigeria and Senegal.

“CFAO acts as a catalyst for the development of international brands in Africa and as a springboard for brands that view the continent as a real growth lever. With our experience and our approach to consumption in Africa,

we give them access to a high-growth market”, explains Xavier Desjobert, Chief Executive Officer of CFAO Retail.

The launch of this club of brands goes hand in hand with the opening of CFAO’s first shopping centre in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire in the second half of 2015.

According to Ludendo group President Jean-Michel Grunberg, “This franchise agreement bolsters La Grande Récré’s international presence. Our expertise in toys and the strength of our brand concept are key in satisfying Africa’s new consumption needs.”

The African middle class is expanding rapidly on the back of strong economic growth. Seven of the ten countries that will experience the strongest growth between 2011 and 2015 are in Africa. In sectors related to services and consumption, revenue on the continent is expected to increase by between 4% and 5% per year by 2020, while the number of households bringing home annual revenue of more than USD 5,000 is likely to rise to 130 million compared with 85 million today.

CFAO has a strong, longstanding presence in Africa and therefore boasts in-depth knowledge of the continent’s markets and consumption patterns.

Through these recent initiatives, CFAO aims to offer African consumers diversified high-quality products and services. This project demonstrates the confidence that CFAO and its partners place in Africa’s economic impetus.

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TECH REVI Africa has long been labelled as one of the world’s emerging markets when it comes to technology, but for the following 10 countries the word ‘emerging’ doesn’t always apply anymore Writer Matthew Staff

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for many of the countries on this countdown, the advancement of their technology sector can be epitomised by telecoms growth as the need to diversify and expand offerings beyond voice services runs parallel to the general industry growth occurring globally.

Bringing into play areas of data, privacy, social media, internet, cloud adoption, digital media, entertainment and banking, the mobile domain is where many countries are focusing their attention as they strive to bridge the gap to more mature markets.

In some cases, being relatively new to the arena gives them a competitive advantage as they surpass old, outdated systems to favour the newest and most advanced technologies instead.

Educating and promoting such innovations is a whole other matter though, as Zimbabwe has found out in trying to increase mobile penetration over recent years.

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U G A N D A according to a study conducted

by Marting prosperity Institute of the uS, uganda is one of the three african countries to watch in regards to advanced technologies and innovation capabilities.

Headed only by South Africa in the report, Uganda has made a bit of a name for itself in recent years in thinking outside of the box to develop the infrastructure and footprint of its technological influence.

Predictably, telecoms fall under this strategy once again, but one area where the company has made more notable inroads over the latter stages of 2014 is in the energy sector.

The southern African country continues to achieve steady, if not staggering year-on-year GDP growth, with the telecoms industry at the forefront off the back of 3G services and the combined influence of Econet, NetOne and Telecel Zimbabwe aiding the network’s expansion moving forward.

The main advantages for Zimbabwe in the future could be the improved data services and access to mobile banking; a vision which is familiar across the continent in 2014.

The country has made its bid to become a large-scale solar player through the introduction of four projects, amounting to a total of 20Mw. Capitalising on international partnerships, the projects have been put in place to support private investment in renewable energy under its ‘GET FiT’ programme.

“Solar PV offers important advantages for Uganda: in addition to being quick to implement, solar projects can be built close to demand centres, thereby reducing transmission losses and stabilising the grid,” Benon Mutambi, chief executive of ERA was quoted as saying at the time of the announcement. “By introducing a new technology to the generation mix, Uganda’s dependency on hydropower is reduced, making the country’s electricity supply more resilient to climate change.”

The four projects are expected to begin as early as late 2015, and are indicative of the forward-thinking approach Uganda is taking towards technological innovation at present.

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A N G O L A one country which does still fit the ‘emerging’ mould is Angola as its stop-start introduction to advanced technologies finally seems to be stabilising.

Concerns over security and skills development have halted progress traditionally, but the south-west nation has every reason to be optimistic for future growth in the sector, with a young and ready-to-learn demographic forming the platform for a new era of innovation.

Around half of the country’s population is aged 20 or below, and this statistic, coupled with the country’s current attractiveness for foreign investment, means that it can attack the modernisation of technologies on two fronts.

Similarly to Uganda, it has also been important for Angola to optimise efficiencies in complementary industries; renewable energies again forming the crux of current initiatives.

Sustainability is now the key for Angola, putting to rest the inconsistent growth of the past to ensure that it builds upon the strengths currently available to the country.

B O T S W A N A As one of the most stable sub-Saharan economies, Botswana’s technological development has been consistent if not revolutionary, while its innovation hub looks set to bare the fruits of the country’s strategy over the coming years.

The idea behind the hub was to integrate the mission statements regarding start-up companies, global corporations, R&D and health organisations; subsequently facilitating growth under one banner, with the same overall objectives. with such a comprehensive general philosophy in place, the country has also been able to set its sights even further in terms of technological advancements, leading to the recent call by MP, Kagiso Molathegi to adopt more green technologies.

The proposal outlines that two percent of Botswana’s GDP should be used for the “diversification and development of the green economy”.

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R W A N D A rwanda is the closest Africa comes to a ‘rags to riches’ tale when it comes to technology, as a result of its reformation since the end of the country’s civil war 20 years ago.

Rwanda’s Minister for Youth and Information, Jean Philbert Nsengimana has stated that the best way to recover from genocide and to rebuild the economy was to address the general poverty still lingering in the country.

“So what Rwanda has decided is to make IT a key component of the whole economic model,” he continued. As a consequence of this ethos, the country has become a regional hub for African IT in the east of the continent.

Even more positive is the fact the country is still in transition in a lot of areas too, with many rural areas of the country still largely untouched by the tech revolution. This gives the likes of MTN a fantastic opportunity to progress not only their own company, but to also enrich the lives of the people around them.

“In Rwanda your handset is not just for phone calls and internet but it is your bank too,” explained MTN Rwanda’s CEO, Ebenezer Asante. “we have more customers using their phones to do transactions on our networks than there are bank accounts in the country.”

Enhancing job opportunities across agriculture, tourism, transport and energy, green initiatives such as improved recycling systems and waste water services are a primary goal for Botswana as it looks to optimise the positive infrastructure put in place already.

Mobile banking is one facet of the tech drive proving most beneficial to the people of Rwanda, again surpassing some of the fixed-line infrastructure challenges to embrace mobile capabilities and reach areas of the community previously detached from such access.

“Technology is a key. we call it the driver for other economic activity,” Nsengimana added.

Since the Innovation Hub’s introduction in 2012, numerous projects have been established with the country’s Minister of Infrastructure, Science and Technology, Nonodo Molefhi emphasising that it is in place to “nurture creativity and innovation in technical developments and build capacity for economic diversification”.

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G H A N A Veering back towards telecoms and not many countries in Africa have been as active in the sector as Ghana in recent years. with one of the best infrastructures and environments to foster a lucrative telecommunications industry, the nation has hung on to the coattails of its fellow west African heavyweight, Nigeria, very successfully.

Beginning life in the industry as the first country in sub-Saharan Africa to launch a cellular mobile network in 1992, this has formed a basis from which technological innovation has flourished, and while the likes of South Africa and Nigeria remain the two major African economies, many analysts forecast that Ghana could be the next ‘great’ African country.

Recent statistics certainly suggest this to be the case too. with the likes of MTN, vodafone, Tigo’s Millicom and Airtel’s Zain all operating within the country, mobile penetration is at an all time high, far beyond the continental average, and influencing a myriad of tech advantages across the wider population.

K E N Y A East Africa has become somewhat of a mini stronghold for economic and technological growth in recent years, epitomised already by the likes of uganda and rwanda, and supported by the arguably more established nations of Ethiopia and Tanzania.

If South Africa, Egypt and Nigeria are the business gateways to the south, north and west of the continent though, then it is Kenya performing that role in the east, and the country’s approach towards technological progress is a key feature of the nation’s ongoing economic development.

with the likes of Liquid Telecom and wananchi Group’s Zuku brand among this upper echelon, the emphasis being placed on diversification and extended offerings is complemented by a series of Corporate Social Responsibility programmes to educate the country as much as sell to them.

The triple threat of internet, phone and entertainment media is the default setting from which any mainstream operator has to find a There is a healthy balance within the country differentiator from now, and of encouraging new start-ups to enter tech as the population continues markets, while also establishing a selection of elite to embrace and adopt heavyweights who continue to compete at the such services, their hunger business end of the sector. for even more advanced Once again, this is never more the case than in the technologies grows; a telecoms industry, where the competition among fact that will only help the the power five or six has done wonders for the continued growth of Kenya’s general tech advancements being seen within Kenya. economy moving forward.

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N I G E R I A from an economic standpoint, nigeria finally fulfilled the forecaster’s prophecies of surpassing South Africa to become africa’s leading light this year.

There are still potential areas for further growth though when it comes to the levels of foreign investment, and also technology.

The infrastructure and financial stability is there, and with Nigeria tipped to become one of the top 20 global economies over the next decade, it is imperative that the country builds a technology strategy akin to that mantle.

Internet penetration still sits at a relatively low 38 percent in the country, so even though the business domain is embracing the new era, the sustainability on a nationwide scale still needs work.

According to an SAP report, most banks in Nigeria are moving at a “very slow pace in adopting new technologies for financial transactions”, an issue which is strongly impacting the levels of customer satisfaction and regulatory compliance.

In stark contrast to some of the less economically developed nations on the list who are working tirelessly to improve the levels of technological understanding, the knowledge is already largely there in Nigeria, and it is now down to the larger organisations and institutions in the country to match efforts being made on a global scale in areas of big data and analytics.

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E G Y P T While the west, east and south of the continent continues to enjoy growth on a rapid scale in areas of economic development and technological advancements, the north has been somewhat left behind on both fronts in recent years, with political and social implications stunting progress.

Tunisia, Morocco and Algeria have all endured difficult periods, but the outlook for Egypt is looking more positive.

Having long been associated with innovations in the past, the country is eager to revert back to type and the new President, Abdel Fattah elSisi is placing a strong emphasis on proactive development.

From a financial perspective this incorporates ‘New Suez Canal’, an elongating of one of the country’s

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most iconic features, which will boost trade via a series of new business hubs and supply route expansions.

From a tech standpoint, BMI believes that while short term growth may not be earth shattering, there are reasons for optimism in the mediumlong term.

The country’s economic stability is one reason for a bit of enthusiasm, with the two entities going hand in hand.

Egypt’s geographic closeness to the thriving Middle East is another reason for hope as the nation can look both north and south to a sea of emerging supply routes – again, not directly impacting technologies, but providing the economic platform for innovations to manifest.

Similarly to Nigeria, Egypt is a bit of a sleeping giant when it comes to technology but to a large extent, the infrastructure is already in place to thrive in the future. And where shortfalls are evident, there are now plans in place under the new political regime, to rectify the hindrances of the past few years.

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S O U T H A F R I C A finishing in the same sector we began, telecoms is the battlefield on which South africa’s tech development is fought.

Described as the gateway to the continent, it has long been the view that innovations have to come through South Africa to reach those sitting above, and while this dynamic looks to be changing slightly through the influence of countries like Nigeria and Kenya, there is certainly still some truth to the theory.

In terms of foreign direct investment, South Africa is still far and beyond the most attractive country on the continent, thereby making it the first port of call for most international innovation and elite business partnerships. It therefore stands to reason that the country will have first refusal on the majority of affordable tech advancements, by way of globally recognised businesses entering the nation.

This makes for an extremely competitive domain, and in the telecoms industry specifically, Vodacom, MTN, Cell C and Telkom Mobile are single-handedly enriching the lives of the wider population through the need to expand and develop their range of services.

Much like Nigeria and Egypt, the understanding and readiness for advanced technologies is largely already established, so as the major companies continue to develop their offerings, there should be a willing market ready to embrace them.

Outside of telecoms, and the country also plays host to the key general players in the industry including IBM, Microsoft and Google who have all set up their regional headquarters in Johannesburg.

Not only is this a major foothold for the country moving forward in terms of global competitiveness, but it also helps to lead the way for indigenous start-ups to follow as the country looks to capitalise on one of its remaining economic advantages over the rest of Africa.

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Chad Africa Outlook takes a closer look at Chad’s business and investment potential Writer Emily Jarvis SOURCE: Chadnow.com

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he Republic of Chad is the heart of Africa. Its people, landscapes, and potential experiences provide unique opportunities to the traveller and international worker alike. Chad is rich in tradition with over 120 languages spoken and colourful camel trains of nomadic pastoralists in the Sahelian belt. The nomads here are said to be of Arab descent and their markets, weddings and horse races are fascinating.

Located in the centre of the CEMAC zone, Chad currently attracts an average amount of FDI into Africa, but has seen a huge fluctuation in FDI levels over the past 12 years. Its highest value was 46.49% in 2002, while its lowest value was -4.58% in 2006.

Any steadiness in the FDI throughout the years can be put down to the country’s oil exploration and infrastructure development.

Chad is rich in tradition with over 120 languages spoken and colourful camel trains of nomadic pastoralists in the Sahelian belt Conversely, Chad has opened up its economy and offers advantageous tax benefits and incentives to prospective investors. The service sector, which constitutes 40% of the GDP, should be developed in the coming years thanks to foreign investment, notably Nigerian, in the telecommunications and banking sectors. In spite of these reforms, lack of safety, political instability and poor infrastructure, as well as a limited domestic market and a shortage of skilled labour are factors which considerably hinder investment. This situation is equally stressed in the world Bank’s “Doing Business 2014” report, which ranks Chad as the last of the 185 evaluated countries.

The government has nevertheless expressed its will to implement reforms and improve the situation.

In 2012, China funded the construction of a cement factory aimed to improve the local construction market. China also invested in an oil refinery (60% stake) but negotiations with the Chadian government regarding the cost at the pump has turned out to be very complicated. In 2013 the opening of two new oil fields (Mangara and Badila) were announced, thanks to the investment of several foreign oil companies.

France, the United Kingdom and South Korea are the main investor countries here.

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A g r i c u lt u r e & M an u f ac t u r i n g C h a d has an economy based on agriculture, but oil has recently emerged as a dominating force. Historically, though, Chad’s economy has been centred around cotton production and animal husbandry, which were important to Chad even before colonisation by the French. French authorities encouraged cotton production during colonial rule, and raw cotton was primarily exported to France.

When France withdrew from Chad in 1960, the nation was left with a less than adequate supply of skilled professionals and a poor infrastructure. In the following years, Chad’s economy focused on cotton production, with livestock exports also taking an important role. Nevertheless, political instability, war, and periodic drought hampered the steady economic development that was needed. A collapse in world cotton prices also severely crippled the cotton industry.

Manufacturing and industry have essentially been a support mechanism for agriculture.

Take for example the parastatal Cotontchad, which produced cotton fibre. Many past Chadian state enterprises were privatised in the 90s, including the state sugar company and the two largest banks.

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Telecomm u n i ca t i ons & E n t r ep r ene u r s T h e telecommunications sector has experienced exponential growth.

A Zain/Bharti Airtel booth is visible on every street corner in the capital. With the help of operators such as Tigo Chad, the internet has also become more accessible, although rural areas are lacking in this and other infrastructural areas. The lack of paved roads and poor electricity generation are additional infrastructural considerations.

Entrepreneurs in Chad face a high tax burden. In the 00’s the Government of Chad instituted a new value added tax. Also, formal businesses encounter competition from informal businesses, which do not face taxes.

The Government of Chad also loses tax income because of the vast and untaxed general commerce. Historical attempts at regulating various traditional economic activities have failed.

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O i l E x plo r a t i on Oil

is the most recent and most exciting topic in the Chadian economy. In the run-up to the opening of wells, much was envisioned for the oil income and its effect on Chad’s future. The World Bank called the project an “unprecedented framework to transform oil wealth into direct benefits for the poor, the vulnerable and the environment.” As the project continues to mature, the envisioned impact of oil funds has failed to materialise, a fact underscored by the World Bank’s withdrawal of support.

Petroleum exploration began in the 1970s. Oil was discovered in the Lake Chad basin and the Doba basin. Initially, Exxon, Chevron, Conoco and Shell collaborated in oil exploration in Chad. Since then, there have been numerous withdrawals, and today the consortium is made up of ExxonMobil, Petronas, and ChevronTexaco. Exploitation activities were delayed during the civil war, which began in 1979, and final preparations for extraction did not begin until the 1990s.

The World Bank and the International Monetary Fund were initially involved in financing the project and monitoring how the Government of Chad handles profits. In essence, the Chad-Cameroon Petroleum Development and Pipeline Project consisted of extracting oil from fields at Doba (southern Chad), and transporting that oil to the Atlantic coast via a pipeline through Cameroon.

Cameroon shares in the profits of the project. Although the World Bank website puts the number of wells at three hundred, 391 wells had been drilled by June 2006. An independent report by Robert Barclay and George Koppert claims that “after lower than projected oil flows from the initial wells following project inauguration in October 2003, it was decided to increase the size of the well field in the OFDA to about 450 wells.”

The Government of Chad modified the Petroleum Revenue Management Law without proper consent by the World Bank in January of 2006.

Budget execution in 2006 was affected by a number of factors. In January, the authorities’ unilateral modification of the Petroleum Revenue Management Law agreed with the World Bank resulted in contractual remedies by the Bank, including the blocking of the offshore oil revenue escrow account. The loss of revenue was partly offset by the start of income tax payments by the oil companies in March 2006. The dispute with the Bank was settled in July and, in October, the settlement of an income tax dispute with two of the three companies in the consortium producing Chad’s oil resulted in additional revenue equivalent to 8 percent of non-oil GDP. This allowed for further expansion in most categories of expenditure-including on exceptional security expenditure following heavy fighting with rebels-raising the non-oil primary deficit to 16.6 percent of GDP in 2006.

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De v elop i n g In f r as t r u c t u r e I n a statement following this, IMF directors said that “Chad’s temporary oil windfall should be used to promote the development of the non-oil sector so that it can support the continuation of the poverty reduction strategy when oil runs out.” It seems that, to a certain degree, this did happen.

Chad’s Provisional Committee for Managing the Producing Region’s Oil Revenues (CPGRP) undertook projects to develop the infrastructure. A World Bank article details projects conducted in the cities of Doba and Bebedjia. Projects include constructing and equipping new schools, building a water tower, erecting a water tower, and a new sports stadium in Doba.

Nevertheless, the CPGRP faced much criticism for slow action.

Even in the earliest stages of the project, signs emerged that oil exploitation was negatively affecting indigenous populations. In early 2007, an independent review of land acquisition by Esso Chad (and affiliate of ExxonMobil) revealed a greater than expected negative impact.

Cameroon Pipeline Project on September 9th, 2008, citing the Government of Chad’s mismanagement of funds.

In short, the magnitude and severity of project impacts in the OFDA were far greater than envisaged in the CRCP. The livelihood restoration strategies proposed in the CRCP were not adequate to address the impacts of households left economically non-viable as a result of land losses to the project.

The Outcome

The conclusion here is that the overall role of training in the livelihood restoration model needs to be rethought. Training is supplementing traditional agricultural activities for some households, but it is not an alternative to land replacement programmes.

Minimising Project Impacts The World Bank reported that Esso Chad had formulated an action plan, which, “if implemented as planned...will minimise project impacts, help strengthen the restoration of livelihoods, and improve the way cumulative impacts are predicted and monitored.”

In July of 2006, the World Bank and the Government of Chad signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) that committed 70 percent of the government’s budget to programmes in the health, education, agriculture, infrastructure, environment, rural

development, de-mining, and good governance. However, a multi-donor mission visited Chad in June of 2007 and found that “the 70 percent provision in the MoU may not be met in light of the security situation which led to high military spending over the past year [2006-2007].”

The World Bank project update for late 2006 indicated that, as of September 30, 2006, Chad had grossed $754 million in revenue since oil production began.

As a result of not meeting the budget requirements, the Bank announced that it would no longer support the Chad-

The Chad-Cameroon Pipeline Project ultimately failed to reach its goals, despite it being heralded the most closely-monitored African oil project in history. NGOs and independent monitors from the beginning warned that the project would not lead to advances in poverty reduction, and admittedly, the World Bank’s involvement was an effort to alleviate such concerns. The Bank’s actual financial contribution to the project was miniscule in light of the money that Esso and partners put forth, but the Bank’s planning and oversight gave legitimacy that enabled the big oil producers and the Government of Chad to receive funding. Years later, the World Bank’s withdrawal is a largely symbolic move and will not affect oil production.

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Imperial Logistics’ ongoing acquisitional drive has ventured into new industry territory over the past two years as it continues to diversify its supply chain offering and footprint Writer Matthew Staff Project Manager Arron Rampling

mperial Logistics continues to lead the way in Africa’s supply chain market as a strong 2014 and a concerted focus on further strategic acquisitions prepares the renowned logistics and outsourcing specialists for varying market conditions across Africa.

While its influence in South Africa remains dominant – realising six percent real organic revenue growth, as well as minor growth through acquisitions – the business also achieved 23 percent revenue growth for the year ending June 30, 2014 across its entire continental operations; an achievement which Chief Business Development Officer, Cobus Rossouw attributes to the diversification of Imperial Logistics’ operations.

“2014 has been another great year for Imperial Logistics in Africa, where revenue, excluding Africa, increased organically by 17 percent in real terms and a further 14 percent from acquisitions,” he says.

“Given the scale of our operations, including South Africa as well, overall revenue exceeds R22 billion which is very rewarding.”

Roussow is confident now that the vast array of services within the organisation leaves the company in a prime position to overcome any foreseeable challenges moving forward into 2015.

He continues: “The slowdown in growth in some markets is concerning and we need to adapt to that. The increasing cost of logistics, driven by fuel cost and currency devaluation, is placing our clients under even more pressure. The challenge is to find even more gains in efficiency to counter these costs.

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“By combining logistics, sales and even marketing services, we mitigate some of the risks and constraints through the end-to-end ownership of the value chain onbehalf of our principals.”

Pharmaceutical Drive

Forming a key component of the company’s overall risk management and proactive continuous improvement strategy, much of 2013 and 2014 has revolved around a drive into the pharmaceutical industry, bringing its world class logistics capabilities to yet another sector of African business.

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We entered the pharmaceutical industry through the acquisition of RTT Medical at the start of 2013, which provided an excellent footprint across Africa

“We entered the pharmaceutical industry through the acquisition of RTT Medical at the start of 2013, which provided an excellent footprint in Kenya, Nigeria, Ghana and Malawi as well as established industry leadership in South Africa,” Rossouw explains.

“Subsequently, we have acquired Eco Health in Nigeria and Ghana, Fine Chemicals in Botswana, Imres based in The Netherlands [providing humanitarian services in various African countries], and Pharmed, a leading distributor in South Africa.”

The combined attributes stemming from these acquisitions cements Imperial’s position as the clear

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industry leader across sub-Saharan Africa, as the company continues to leverage synergies to service its brand-owner principals.

Rossouw adds: “Our service offerings now span traditional logistics, distributorships, procurement and wholesaling which provides comprehensive alternatives to enable the routes-to-market of our principals.

“The different healthcare stakeholders - brand owners, donors, governments, etc. - all have different requirements in different countries and regions, and we are able to assist them to achieve their objectives.

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“Since we are in the business of outsourcing, we recognise the choice our clients make to entrust us to perform some of their business processes

“We will continue to expand our network, specifically in the regional clusters of sub-Saharan Africa where we do not have a footprint yet.”

Competitive Edge

Complementing all acquisitions and growth strategies is Imperial Logistics’ unwavering focus on improving the competitiveness of its clients, customising its services through the business’s vast experience in outsourced value chain management.

“Since we are in the business of outsourcing, we recognise the choice our clients make to entrust us to perform some of their business

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Why you should care about Total Communications

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any multinational corporations have a patchwork of different wired, wireless and cloud service providers around the world. This patchwork can grow every time a new office is opened or an additional market foothold is gained, and new suppliers, contracts and bills are negotiated to support the communications needs of the growing enterprise. The result can be time, money and resource wasted on managing an unnecessarily complex infrastructure.

The complexity makes it tough for CIOs to gain insight into critical resources and harder for CFOs to monitor usage and expenditure to see precisely where savings can be made.

Having a spread of communications service providers also makes it difficult to break down the barriers between different devices and communications methods.

When united into a single, intelligent and completely configurable service, businesses can benefit from increased productivity and overall business process streamlining. When communications platforms aren’t united it can negatively impact the end user experience, turning what could be an intuitive and contextual experience into something altogether more disjointed.

Working with one single global service provider to provide total communications - fixed line, fixed data, mobile voice, mobile data and broadband, as well as cloud and managed services - across every office and in every market, means only dealing with one supplier, one bill, one single global contract and one global point of contact.

This not only takes away the pain of expensive, patchwork communications, but means that game-changing services and applications, such as CRM systems and cloud-based unified communications can be embraced to help provide a competitive advantage.

To avoid a fragmented and complex communications landscape, businesses should adopt a consolidated strategy that addresses the total communications needs of the enterprise.

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Why have business communications become so fragmented?

New market footholds are certainly adding to the fragmentation of enterprise communications, but changes closer to home are making things just as complex. Hunger for cloud services and applications across departments such as marketing and human resources has meant that a growing number of people now have a say in procurement decisions.

This is creating a bigger patchwork of providers, less centralised visibility over the communications environment and more potential vulnerability for the business.

This is further confounded by needing to cope with the demands of four generations of people in the workplace. While the Baby Boomers and Generation X are generally more accommodating to the commands of the IT department, Generation Y and the Millennials are more fearless technology users and less inclined to comply with tight corporate control over how they work, where they work and the devices they work on.

These are generations that want to use social media and cloud-based applications to communicate, collaborate and share. They expect to be able to bring personal consumer devices into the workplace. And with limited responsibility they are less concerned over the security implications for the business.

A roadmap to consolidation

Businesses can untangle this web and reconcile these competing demands by consolidating their connectivity and communications services.

Put into practice, this means that if a business wants to keep expanding into new markets, but needs to keep the cost of its network and ICT spend down, it can establish one single Wide Area Network across all of the countries it operates in.

The business can consolidate the management of its network, which provides greater visibility of

By Deon Liebenberg, Executive Vice President: Vodafone Global Enterprise Africa

cost. This also enables the business to establish a standardised operating model to support faster, more efficient deployment of critical business applications.

By streamlining communications infrastructure into one strategy a business that wants to meet demand for flexible working without impacting team collaboration, can integrate fixed and mobile communications into a single, intelligent and completely configurable service.

This ensures calls and messages can always be routed to reach employees and it enables teams to use a range of collaborative tools such as instant messenger, video conferencing and enterprise social media apps on any device, through the same unified application.

By bringing all communications together, a business seeking to improve internal processes or create better customer-facing products and services can deploy technologies such as Machine-to-Machine (M2M) using one global SIM card and one single supply chain across all markets.

Connected whenever, wherever, whatever to whoever

Enterprise communications needs aren’t going to get any less complicated.

Economic uncertainty means businesses need to constantly evaluate the markets they operate in – and act quickly to expand operations and communications across the latest emerging economies.

Ever more tech-savvy generations armed with connected devices will continue joining the workforce. And the uses and applications of cloud, M2M and data analytics will only become broader as costs come down and understanding of the benefits goes up.

Only the businesses that are ready to meet these challenges with total connectivity will stay at the forefront of tomorrow’s uncertain world.

vodacom.com/africa

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processes,” Rossouw explains. “We are building the Imperial brand as an end-to-end service provider, specifically focused on the consumer products and pharma routes-to-market across sub-Saharan Africa.

“Evidence of this lies in our ability to retain, expand and gain engagements with our strategic partners and other clients alike. We have been very successful, despite increased competitive pressure.”

Competitive pressure comes handin-hand with the tag of market leader, but Imperial has never been one to rest on its laurels, as its 100 South African acquisitions over the past 40 years testify.

“The proven Imperial acquisition model is to retain management and link their rewards directly to acquisition performance. We add some specific skills and capabilities to the businesses to ensure that we leverage our experience and extract synergies.”

On this basis, Imperial Logistics is acquiring businesses of all sizes, with the total revenue from acquisitions in the pharmaceutical environment alone set to surpass R5 billion over the coming months.

Sumitomo Rubber South Africa (Pty) Ltd

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umitomo Rubber South Africa (Pty) Ltd (SRSA) produces tyres in passenger, SUV/4x4 and light truck applications and will introduce its new range of Truck Bus Radial tyres in January 2015, which will be distributed both locally and internationally.

Cobus Rossouw, Chief Business Development Officer

Diversified Solutions The company’s pharmaceutical drive derives from a continuous monitoring and adaptive philosophy regarding industry trends and fluctuations, and subsequently identifying the most profitable areas of business moving forward.

This ethos also comprises the ability to customise its own service offerings for each client, catering for a general rise in customers requiring multiple logistics services.

This new range, under the well-known Dunlop brand, is a highly acclaimed range that has tested well under trying conditions around the world. SRSA is very confident that this new range will provide the company with a competitive advantage through the excellent quality and improved cost per kilometer advantage it brings.

At a time when the industry faces challenges from high manufacturing costs and imported tyre competition, SRSA has taken a long term view of both the African and South African tyre market potential. As part of this view, SRSA is confident in making further investments, including a recent R1.1 billion plan to support its Original Equipment (OE) business and African expansion.

The investment includes plans to initiate local production of the Sumitomo Tires brand as well as range extensions and quality enhancements to the iconic Dunlop brand at the company’s South African manufacturing plant in Ladysmith.

SRSA is sure that this investment will have a hugely positive effect on the country’s tyre industry and local employment and will serve to facilitate the company’s future growth and development on the African continent.

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mperial Cargo adds 60 MAN long-haul trucks to fleet

Imperial Cargo, a division of JSE-listed Imperial Group, has procured 60 MAN TGS 26.440 truck-tractors to service its line-haul operations in southern Africa.

Imperial Cargo fields a mix of truck

“We are expanding our exposure to our clients through additional services,” Rossouw says. “This follows on from the maturing of our relationships and our developing capabilities in non-traditional logistics operations.

“Most notably is the convergence of logistics planning and execution.

Traditionally companies either perform planning internally or use a separate provider from logistics execution. We have been able to secure multiple engagements where we perform integrated logistics planning and execution services.”

This diversification has been largely driven by the demand for enhanced logistics efficiencies, and Imperial has managed to tick all the relevant boxes in reducing costs, through transport demand management.

The same considerations are also made in dealing with regional differences throughout its African operations; the company’s South African model is not always literally transferable to the rest of the continent.

Rossouw explains: “The SA market is quite mature, where clients tend to have established markets. Service providers have strong capabilities and I believe we are on par with the rest of the world.

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brands and deployed its first MAN trucks in 2012 following successful in-fleet trials on the TGS 26.440.

The SA market is quite mature, where clients tend to have established markets.

Service providers have strong capabilities and I believe we are on par with the rest of the world

Geoff du Plessis, Managing Director, MAN Truck & Bus SA, comments: “Being chosen by high-profile fleets for our superior technology and customerfocused aftersales service is hugely significant for MAN and proves that we not only have the right product for longhaul applications in Southern Africa, but also the right people to service both the trucks and our customers in a manner that builds their business. All of us at MAN are proud to be associated with

“Companies tend to outsource more logistics planning than developed markets, where internal capabilities are quite well established. The challenges for integrated logistics planning are bigger in SA, given our relatively small scale and long distances, compared to western markets.

“In other countries in Africa, consumer demand and

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Imperial Cargo and we look forward to a partnership that continues to grow in strength.”

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infrastructure is still developing, albeit at a rapid pace. Service providers are quite fragmented and/or specialised. Cross-border transport remains a key focus for most 3PLs, but Imperial is focusing on the integrated route-tomarket solution.�

Skills Development

Adding a further string to Imperial’s bow has always been its dedication to not only its profit margins and business success, but also to the care it provides to the people surrounding the company, whether they be employees or the local communities.

The international presence of the company makes Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) all the more prevalent and is something that Rossouw is proud of emphasising.

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“Compassion for the communities in which we live and work is one of the keystones at Imperial. We focus on giving back to the communities in which we live through active involvement and investment in education and wellness funds that supports black South Africans.

“We recognise the shortage of skills as a key constraint to GDP growth and infrastructure development and we are therefore actively involved in various skills development initiatives.

“Imperial is responsive to the needs of our community and during these times we roll up our sleeves, put our intelligence to work and strive to really make a difference.”

This same difference infiltrates the internal structure of Imperial too, epitomised by the company’s inhouse training offering, The Imperial Logistics Academy.

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Imperial is responsive to the needs of our community and during these times we roll up our sleeves, put our intelligence to work and strive to really make a difference

Established in 2013, the academy is accredited by the Transport SETA (Sector Education and Training Authority) in South Africa and comprises programmes customised to reflect the Imperial way and Imperial Logistics’ best practice.

“Subject matter expertise from within the organisation contributes to the training programmes by way of content development, guest lecturing and/or mentorship,” Rossouw explains.

The main focus areas surrounding people management include learnership programmes aligned to National Qualifications; higher education qualifications in logistics and supply chain management offered through an institutional partnership; skills development programmes; short courses; and work experience programmes for students.

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Having systems in place to engrain sustainability and consistency within the organisation complements the flexibility of Imperial Logistics’ supply chain operations, making the resulting combo a formidable one for industry competitors, and critical for the future aspirations of the company, also.

“We entered the market as a transport business. This remains critical today, but is now only part of the requirement,” Rossouw concludes. “Customers want services across the supply chain spectrum, including integrated and end-to-end services.

“Moving forward, we will continue to expand into Africa through leveraging our capabilities, partnering with the appropriate in-country specialists and acquiring businesses.

Much of our growth has been in pharma, but we continue to expand our consumer products businesses in southern Africa; and we will grow similarly in West and East Africa.”

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Automot sOuTh aFrICa’s l E a d I N g

COmpONENT maNuFaCTurEr

The first port of call for all of South Africa’s major OEMs, Auto Industrial has established itself as a leading market player through ongoing investments and a commitment to quality Writer Chris Davies Project Manager James Smith

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Earlier this year, a change of ownership occurred at Auto Industrial.

Previously the company operated within the ZF Group, a global manufacturer of transmission and steering systems as well as chassis components and axles. Auto Industrial was considered a non-core business and capital expenditure was very limited. with plans to expand and improve, Auto Industrial proposed that the business be sold and after a lengthy process, Trinitas Private Equity bought 70% of the company’s shares, and management 30% of the shares. This deal was effective from 1st January 2014.

Gaining a Competitive Advantage

or more than 40 years, Auto Industrial Group has been an integrated provider of machined and assembly, ductile and grey iron castings as well as hot steel forgings of various automotive components.

With a total of five production facilities, which includes two machining plants, two foundries and one forge, Auto Industrial’s capacity and competency serves all of the major automotive Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) who assemble in South Africa. This extensive manufacturing footprint manages to produce approximately four million automotive components annually.

Auto Industrial’s CEO Andrea Moz believes that the company’s ongoing investments, attention to detail and commitment to local businesses and communities make it stand out from industry rivals: “we continually invest in the latest technology and always put in the required capacity as and when needed,” he reveals. “Our core focus is the manufacture of safety critical world class products.” “we are the sole manufacturer in the local market for our products and accordingly we are the first point of call for all seven OEMs that have local manufacturing plants for new projects. we pride ourselves in producing and procuring locally. Our products are in excess of 95% local.”

Moz also goes on to say that keeping a close and meaningful relationship with all of the OEMs while satisfying their ever-changing requirements has also helped Auto Industrial build its profile in South Africa. “we have a long relationship with all the OEMs based on good quality products, supplied on time and at a reasonable price,” he notes.

“The focus on various OEM’s has changed over the years depending on their own strategy of vehicles

We are the sole manufacturer in the local market for our products and accordingly we are the first point of call for all seven OEMs that have local manufacturing plants for new projects Andrea Moz, CEO, Auto Industrial Group

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produced and in-house component manufacturing. Over the past 40 years we have virtually removed all OEM in-house manufacture of our core components.”

On top of that, Auto Industrial manufacturers most tooling in-house, which significantly reduces lead times when implementing new projects.

Value added production chains, from foundry or forge to machine and assembly, add to the company’s allencompassing product offering too.

Product and Project Portfolio Even though Auto Industrial manufactures a wide range of highquality components, its portfolio is quite unique, as not many other companies are able to supply these products.

Moz explains: “The steering knuckle, brake disc, brake drum and wheel hub are the core products sold

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by the company. For these products, there are no other competitive local suppliers. However, we also manufacture many other products like differential components, gearbox covers, flywheels, clutch plates, brackets and ball joint attachments among others.”

When new vehicle models enter the market, Auto Industrial invests in its manufacturing capacity accordingly. At the moment, the company is working on the tooling required for the new Toyota Hilux and Fortuner, where investment will exceed R40 million. Together with localisation projects alongside General Motors South Africa and the next generation Volkswagen Polo, Moz believes that by 2016 more than 10% of Auto Industrial’s business will come from products it has never made before.

P.H. HEAT TREATMENT

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N INTEGRAL PART OF THE AUTOMOTIVE INDUSTRY For the past 20 years, the

quality of Auto Industrial’s components have been enhanced by P.H. Heat Treatment’s heat treating processes. This includes the hardening and tempering of various steering and brake parts, as well as various other components requiring high tensile strength. It also includes normalising of forgings in order to refine and homogenise the structure to ensure good quality and resistance to impact, of the final product.

Another important process has been the nitriding of forging dies, thereby increasing their life substantially. The process also imparts a better surface finish on the forgings. By increasing the die life, dies can produce more forgings before redressing. The service which P.H. Heat Treatment provides necessitates an extremely fast turn-around to ensure necessary fast service to the motor assembly plants.

P.H. Heat Treatment is on the cutting edge of new technology worldwide and has a state-of-the-art atmosphere heat treatment plant and testing equipment including a fully equipped metallographic laboratory. This ensures the best treatment for the components and thereby helps to ensure a world class end product for its customers.

T +27 (0)11 822-2704/5 E sales@phheat.co.za

www.phheat.co.za

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FNB Business

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et more bank. Do more business At FNB Business we strive to help our clients get more from

banking with us. Through our innovative banking solutions clients spend less time worrying about day-to-day banking and more time on doing business.

Our team consists of seasoned bankers, astute dealmakers and solution strategists, who strive to obtain a thorough understanding of our client’s business operations and their financing requirements. By doing so we are able to provide financing and transactional banking packages specifically for your business needs.

For businesses looking to switch

Market Conditions and Challenges “The South African market is no different to the rest of the world, local OEMs compete for the business just the same as any other country,” cites Moz. He goes on to add that Auto Industrial has to achieve the same quality standards and supply performance, whilst competing with the best in the world on price, in order to gain the upper hand in other areas.

“The difference lies in the volumes, where in South Africa we generally quote for thousands of units while elsewhere they quote for hundreds of thousands of units or even millions,” says Moz. “We have developed the ability to be very competitive in the low volume environment.”

However, just like any other business, Auto Industrial faces a number of challenges. Along with higher operating costs for labour and electricity, Moz believes that demands by the Unions and

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to FNB Business, we help take the

We have developed the ability to be very competitive in the low volume environment Eskom are excessive. Not only could this lead to companies becoming uncompetitive, the whole manufacturing sector in South Africa may also suffer as a result too.

“These increased operating costs may ultimately drive the OEMs to move the business to other countries who offer far more favourable trading conditions,” he fears. Even so, Auto Industrial takes a proactive and positive approach to certain obstacles that are within the company’s control.

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struggle out of switching by project managing the process until your business is fully banked by FNB. We assign you your own dedicated Business Banker, allowing you to do more and get more for your business.

Switch to FNB Business today and explore our unique transactional and investment solutions and financing capabilities.

For more information contact Zak Sivalingum on T 082 333 0468 or E zak.sivalingum@fnb.co.za Alternatively contact us on T 087 575 9479 or E newbus@fnb.co.za

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Steering in the right direction for 40 years.

Founded in 1970, Auto Industrial Group has set themselves apart from the get-go.

With their consistent track record in the manufacturing of a wide range of quality automotive components they’ve become market leaders.

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“On the energy front, we continuously invest in the latest technology to reduce consumption as well as looking for better ways to plan our production to reduce peak time usage of electricity,” notes Moz. “On the labour cost issue, management have to become better at allocating and controlling resources. In addition, automation is always an option.”

Investing in People

Another problem that Auto Industrial has faced in recent years is the recruiting of skilled staff with the expertise required to manufacture automotive components. Partnered by private and government initiatives, the company has sent employees for training or recruited students who have previously completed their academic studies. These include millwright apprentices, toolmakers and electricians.

The next initiative will give students the opportunity to work and gain valuable experience in a foundry.

Having said that, the automotive industry has recently identified the need to update certain qualifications in line with the new QCTO (Quality Council for Trades and Occupations) format. “This will ensure that consistent standards are in place

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to train shop floor employees in the automotive component manufacturing industry,” reveals Moz. “The QCTO will offer structured development through qualifications that relate to hand assemblers, operators and machine setter occupations.”

At the request of stakeholders in the automotive component industry, the merSETA, which is an education and training authority established to promote skills development, has co-opted Auto Industrial on this initiative. “Two senior managers from our company sit on a panel of 8-12 subject matter experts, from a range of companies, to assist the merSETA in developing the qualification,” notes Moz. “Over the past three years we have invested more in training than the 10 years prior to that combined.”

In order to bring employment stability to the company, the Metal and Engineering Industry Bargaining Council (MEIBC) of which Auto Industrial is affiliated, recently established a wage agreement with workers for a total of three years. Currently, approximately 750 people are employed directly by

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Auto Industrial, but many other jobs are dependent on Auto Industrial via the supply chain.

In the aftermarket there are huge opportunities that may be considered in the future

Previous Success and Future Prosperity Apart from the global economic downturn in 2008/2009, where the majority of worldwide manufacturing businesses suffered, Auto Industrial has recorded year on year growth and significantly increased turnover annually. What’s more, the introduction of new products in 2016 will add another string to Auto Industrial’s bow. However, that doesn’t mean to say it will not look for new avenues of opportunity or stop investing in key areas.

“There are still several markets that remain untapped by Auto Industrial,” notes Moz. “In the aftermarket there are huge opportunities that may be considered in the future.”

To achieve further growth, Moz says that Auto Industrial needs to invest in a third foundry line. At this moment in time, the company is planning the equipment and technology

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DISTRIBUTORS OF INDUSTRIAL PACKAGING Our core services include: Flexible plastics such as LDPE, HDPE, shrink & pallet wrap Corrugated boxes manufactured to customer specification.

In addition we also supply protective packaging, tapes, strapping, seals & buckles, twine, staples, wire ties, labels, ribbons and machinery.

We are a QSE Company with a current B-BEE Rating of Level 5.

We pride ourselves on our strong customer relationships, being small enough to give each customer personal attention, thus creating relationships which promote transparency, trust, passion, creativity and understanding.

www.micronpack.co.za requirements for this additional facility, which will increase group capacity by 25%.

Regardless of what the future has in store, Moz believes that Auto Industrial will continue to put money back into the business and provide clients with added value. After all, this is how Auto Industrial managed to establish itself as a leading South African automotive component player in the first place.

“Significant investment in new technologies and processes have provided a platform to develop new products on time and at targeted selling prices,” boasts Moz. The value added chain, from the foundry to machined part is also a significant advantage. In addition, we have been very successful in controlling our costs, which is paramount in the motor industry.”

Further to ongoing investment, the company has embarked on a strategic vision, the name adopted is Project 5 55 5 (Five Double Five Five) and quite simply it means in a five year period , turnover must increase by 55% and productivity improvements of 5% year on year must be achieved. This vision is not a pipe dream as the business is certainly there and with the right investment, the cost savings of 5% would not be an unrealistic expectation. Further information regarding the company can be found on the company’s website: www.autoindustrial.co.za

OVER 80 FACILITIES ACROSS SOUTHERN AFRICA Ferrous (Steel/Cast Iron) Non Ferrous (Copper/ Alluminium and Stainless Steel) Demolition/ Underground Salvage Recycled Oil to Fuel Rubber and Tyre Hamma Equipment E Waste Cardboard Paper Chemical Division Re usable Division Waste Management - on site

Reclam recycles non-ferrous, ferrous, paper, plastic, cardboard and used oils. Reclam produces various recycled products including aluminium pellets and copper sulphate.

Reclam has the largest operational footprint for recycled products in Southern Africa, with numerous collecting and processing facilities strategically located across the region.

www.reclam.co.za

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hana Rubber Estates Limited (GREL) prides itself on its position as a truly Ghanaian company, fully embedded into the local community.

Managing Director Lionel Barre has brought his extensive history in the natural rubber and agri-business sector in order to bring his international experience and in-depth product knowledge to Ghana, having previously spent 24 years with renowned tyre-maker Michelin, travelling the world through various management positions. when Ghana declared its independence from Britain, becoming the first country to free itself from colonial rule, GREL started its life in 1957 at a 923 hectare site known as Dixcove. In 1996, French management company, Société Internationale des Plantations d’ Heveas (SIPH), became a major shareholder of the company.

GREL’s integration into the community has been successfully accompanied by the reinjection of profits to encourage growth Consolidation and rehabilitation Writer Emily Jarvis Project Manager James Smith

In the 1990s and the first part of the 2000’s, GREL shifted its focus towards consolidation and rehabilitation of the natural rubber plantations in Ghana, which had gained private interest from various tyre companies and the government of Ghana (25 percent shareholder), seeking a share in the organisation. Since then, GREL has grown considerably to a size of more than 20,000 hectares of estates and is now in Phase five of the outgrowing development and Phase two of factory extension.

“Phase five will run for three years, financed by Agence Française of Développement for more than €17 million, during which time we will work with more than 4,000 outgrowers. we currently have more than 40,000 hectares of outgrower rubber trees planted and are working to extend our activities to the western, central and Ashanti regions, and have most recently made waves into the eastern region,” says Lionel Barre, Managing Director of GREL. “Not only are we expanding the amount of land managed by outgrowers, we are replanting and extending our own estates as part of a €25 million investment which will be negotiated over the next year.”

Accompanying this land expansion is a factory capacity which has more than doubled. “Two years ago, our factory produced less than 20,000 tonnes of rubber per annum. Now, it can produce over 45,000 tonnes per year. This shows our determination to succeed and work at growing the business,” he says.

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CUMMINS GHANA

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ortune 500 company, Cummins Inc. has been operating in Ghana since 2009 as a wholly owned entity and is well positioned to provide services across the region, incorporating Benin, Burkina Faso, Côte d’Ivoire, Liberia, Sierra Leone and Togo.

The recent opening of its ultra-modern warehouse in Accra has brought the company even closer to its customers in providing sales of engines and generators.

Through these products, Cummins provides the West African market with reliable and dependable power to meet its vision of becoming numbers one and two in primary markets.

T 054 9777 666 / 0302 30 1451 E info.cumminsghana@cummins.

Opportunities Abound

Commenting on the stability of the country, Barre says that there are a significant number of opportunities for GREL in such a stable climate: “It is a great time to be in the country; the population is stable, the number of people going to university is rising, road access is good and we have two large ports. There is also political

stability even with the economical challenges the country is now facing in terms of exchange rates.”

With a focus on accelerating their expansion, Barre has already secured long term financing to the tune of €7.5 million from Société Générale. This is coupled with further investment into the new factory in order to increase its

Two years ago, our factory produced less than 20,000 tonnes of rubber per annum.

Now, it can produce over 45,000 tonnes per year. This shows our determination to succeed and work at growing the business Lionel Barre, Managing Director, GREL

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capacity once more. “In 2013, we planted more than 6,000 hectares of rubber, between our estates and the outgrowers. The Agricultural Development Bank of Ghana is loaning €17 million to the outgrowers project, demonstrating their belief in the huge potential for natural rubber’s future in the country,” Barre explains.

By the same token, approximately 80 percent of profits are ploughed back into the business in order to reinvest into the local economy; the remaining 20 percent is spent on essential external needs. The use of wood also becomes a by-product through the creation of rubber, which is another form of profit for GREL and rubber agri-business.

“Companies in Asia buy a significant amount of wood from rubber outgrowers for furniture creation, which adds extra revenue to the value chain.”

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Rubber Price Drop

One of the main challenges GREL is facing is the drop in price for natural rubber on the international market. “These prices have been dropping over the past two-to-three years quite significantly.

Fortunately for us, we export 99 percent of our goods which means we receive all our income in Euros which helped us a lot in 2014 as we could, in part, compensate the huge depreciation of the local currency, [the Ghana Cedi].”

Besides this, there has been a huge increase in inflation over the past two years, with the figure standing at around 17 percent currently. This figure has gone into double digits recently which presents difficulties that GREL hope to overcome by increasing its output proportionally at the factory and cost-cutting when it comes to overheads.

By combating these issues, GREL is able to come out on top in West Africa and offer competitive rates to international buyers. “Take Michelin for example. The tyre manufacturer consumes more than 70 percent of the world’s natural rubber and is always looking to diversify its offerings in order to remain sustainable and manage their own costs. Global organisations

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Integrated in the Community

Today, GREL has close to 4,000 employees coming from 86 communities across several regions of the country. “In all these areas, we try to improve the water and electricity supply as well as healthcare conditions, and contribute to many other everyday needs of the locals. Our integration in the community is what makes us so successful, we respect the people here and this attitude has secured us steady business over the years.

“We do not consider ourselves an industry business, we are an agribusiness that is deeply rooted within the community,” says Barre.

such as Michelin are now looking towards Africa for their rubber supply in order to remain competitive and cost effective in their respective markets,” comments Barre.

Health, Safety & Environment

In November 2014, GREL was certified with the ISO 9001:2008 Quality Management System, which

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was a positive outcome for the company. Equally, the company is acutely aware of the environmental impacts associated with the manufacture of natural rubber. “We hold a number of partnerships with environmental companies and adhere to environmental charters in order to optimise our management of the forest and local rivers.”

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Our integration in the community is what makes us so successful, we respect the people here and this attitude has secured us steady business over the years

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While a considerable number of not just Ghanaian, but African companies often choose to outsource their labour or hire a large number of expatriates from neighbouring or even international countries, GREL choose to only have two expats and are committed to training local people in order to contribute to the country.

“We want to make as larger impact as possible.

Quite a significant portion of our employees right from the grassroots up to the senior managers are from the local communities. Training is crucial for everyone and we strive to provide employment opportunities for all via a training unit which circulates all departments to ascertain the key skills appropriate to each individual. To demonstrate our dedication to this arm of the business, almost half a million Euros has been invested in this area,” emphasises Barre.

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CHEMICO LIMITED A leading supplier of: • Fertilisers • Herbicides • Insectides • Fungicides • Industrial and domestic paints With a state of the art fertiliser blending plant in Ghana, we are able to produce specific fertiliser grades for specific crops Community No.1 Ind. Area, Obedeka Road, P.O. Box CO 950, Tema, Ghana

Tel: +233 303 202991/2 Fax: +233 303 202000 E: chemico@chemicogh.com

Developing the Economy

Meanwhile, GREL takes part in a wide array of CSR projects, which is very much encouraged by the culture of its parent group, SIFCA, one of Africa’s biggest agri-industrial firms located in Abidjan, Cote D’Ivoire. “We do everything we can in order to simultaneously develop the communities and Ghanaian economy,” he adds.

SIFCA is the one of the biggest Groups operating in West Africa including Liberia, Cote D’Ivoire, Nigeria and Ghana. During the last year, GREL has leveraged the expertise of the Group in order to replicate the same high standards throughout its factories and practices.

“We strive to be more professional and implement a best practice approach in all that we do.”

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Pipe

sa’s lEadINg prOduCEr OF hdpE

Sangio Pipe is focussed on achieving a leading product coupled with exemplary customer service, which will in turn create a long lasting relationship with the end user Writer Emily Jarvis Project Manager James Smith

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or many years, Sangio Pipe ran as an entrepreneurial-type medium sized business.

In 2013, the company’s previous Managing Director, Gary warren, unfortunately passed away during the initial stages of a takeover deal with Dawn Group, leaving Sangio Pipe in limbo and without a leader. Now, with Chris wright at the helm, the company is preparing for a long and prosperous future.

“It has been a difficult two years for Sangio Pipe, however the restructure I have implemented is well underway, and I am successfully stabilising the company. Through consolidation of the solid foundations we already have and maintaining customer relationships, I am confident that Sangio Pipe will continue at the high levels it has been known for,” says Sangio Pipe’s new Managing Director.

As a result of continued perseverance, the company hope to achieve a profit by the end of the current financial year. “We need to manage the changes so that we can continue to grow going forward.

Through intensive training of our staff, we can make sure that the people we have know exactly what we want to achieve and what is involved in achieving our goals.

“Being part of the Dawn Group is to be part of one of the top 100 companies in South Africa. To be part of such a group means to have a secure position in the market and have capital available to grow Sangio Pipe and maintain market leader status. It is great to know we have a very strong company behind us.”

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Chris Wright saNgIO pIpE md

Chris Wright has been in the pipe manufacturing industry for 25 years. Prior to joining Sangio Pipe, Wright had worked for Marley Pipe Systems, a competitor located in Johannesburg, South Africa. “Working for Sangio Pipe is a perfect fit for my years of experience and service to the pipe manufacturing industry.”

Wright started his career in mechanical engineering, in the gold mining sector. After joining Marley, Wright realised that he wanted to move into the production side of the industry, and began this journey by qualifying in Product Management. By working his way up the ladder through various positions, he had gained experience running three different factories for Marley.

Managing operating Expenses

In a nutshell, there are two key aspects of the business wright is focussed on; one is introducing a competent sales team that can hit the ground running to introduce Sangio Pipe and its

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quality products across Africa, and the second is to closely manage operating expenses and create more efficient methodologies in order to become more cost-effective.

“We strive to penetrate markets that traditionally would not draw Sangio Pipe’s attention. We have had a very prosperous ten year agreement with a very large retail business in South Africa. While we still welcome this kind of business, the company has changed its dynamic and is moving into targeting bigger portions of the market.

“By implementing production efficiency methodologies such as TPM (Total Productivity Maintenance), adopted from Toyota, we will move towards world class manufacturing and will continue our goal to be the best in South Africa,” Wright surmises.

The TPM strategy is difficult to maintain on a daily basis without a sound foundation in place. TPM cuts through all parts of the business and you need to have sound foundations to start building a world class TPM status,” Wright comments.

looking at waste management in order to reduce wastage. This will ultimately have a lesser impact on the environment, which is an instrumental step in our improvement programme.”

Providing a Service to the End User Sangio Pipe go to great lengths to ensure that products are delivered on time. In recent years, the company made the decision to diversify into the manufacture of large diameter piping.

“We manufacture Polyolefin pipe ranging in diameter from 16mm to 1000mm covering working pressure from 400kPa to 2500kPa, and pressure classes PN4 – PN25.

“In addition to manufacturing pipes Sangio Pipe offers a complete fabrication solution. Where needed, we can assist in suggestions on application solutions. Sangio Pipe’s aim is to become the most successful producer of HDPE pipes in South Africa,” emphasises Wright.

Autonomous Maintenance

A considerable amount of company training is done to fulfil the needs of autonomous maintenance. “By this I refer to the operator of the machine being able to take care of lubrication, maintenance and inspection duties without the need for external assistance. This method teaches people to look after their own equipment.” When working to TPM standards, the idea is to achieve 100% productivity with no unscheduled breakdowns. With a more efficient factory, Sangio Pipe hopes to gain the edge over the competition.

Wright hopes to impart Sangio Pipe’s mission and vision to all staff.

Included in this outlook is a focus on environmental impact and more efficient use of energy. “We will be

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Syst Pak CC

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yst Pak CC specialises in ink jet coding in all various industries mainly packaging and extruded

pipe manufacturing. We provide sales, service support, consumables and machine rentals and are sub-agents for the Hitachi range of coding machines.

From one of the fastest inkjet machines capable of character per sec to code at 6 meters per hour.

All Hitachi coders have an innovative ink circulation system that reduces fluid consumption and operating costs. These coders do not require an external air supply further reducing costs.

E info@systpak.co.za

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Industrial coding and marking solutions...

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yst-Pak cc, is a proud sub agent for Hitachi ink jet coders in South Africa, now introduces the new range of the RX series printers, which can do up to five lines of print!

QUALITY CODING • Easy, quick opEration with largE touch scrEEn • nozzlE and guttEr automatically clEanEd • small footprint, light wEight • usEr-friEndly, costEffEctivE, Easy maintEnancE • widE rangE of inks and colours

This dynamic company offers the complete range of Hitachi printing machines, from the economy BD 3 line model for basic applications, right up to the PXR-H, one of the world’s fastest inkjet printers, which can print more than 3 100 characters/second.

PROVEN RELIABILITY Hitachi reliability has been proven on the South African market. All machines have innovative ink circulation systems that reduce fluid consumption and operating costs. The machines do not require an external air supply.

one Stop Solution In current market conditions, customers look for a provider that can complete as many of their needs as possible; whilst also presenting a cost saving and excellent delivery times. “Sangio Pipe has to be able to offer the full basket. Being part of the Dawn Group is advantageous as we are able to access a wider portfolio of services and advise customers accordingly.

“If customers come to us, we can satisfy the majority of their needs. This is our key strength.”

In order to provide a quality product, you need to be as efficient as possible, closely monitor health and safety and environmental impact, and bear in mind that although this quality costs money, it builds a reputation. “As members of SAPPMA [South African Plastic

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T: (27) 031 7006930 | Cell: 0824495368 F: 0866853634 | E:info@systpak.co.za

INdusTrIEs WhErE SANgiO PiPE’S PrOduCtS ArE uSEd: Automotive beverages & Soft drinks Civil Engineering building industrial Agricultural Mining Sugar Paper Mills irrigation

Pipe Manufacturers Association], we are fighting hard to educate the end-user on the importance of a high quality product, which comes at a higher cost,” wright concludes. “The purpose of SAPPMA is to create absolute customer confidence in the plastic pipe industry, and there are only three major companies in South Africa that conform to this. “we at Sangio Pipe pride ourselves in being a Company who provide our customers with quality solutions supported by employees who are passionate about pipes and piping solutions. we value integrity and high moral values. Sangio Pipe is dedicated to the future of this beautiful country we live in, and to this end is committed to the development of employees in providing the best in service delivery and integrity.”

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JMV Textiles Group continues to invest and expand in line with its flexible, entrepreneurial approach to maintain its position as an industry leader Writer Matthew Staff Project Manager James Smith

MV Textiles Group has established itself as one of South Africa’s leading textiles and clothing manufacturers over the course of its 43-year history, but continues to overcome challenges and industry fluctuations through its dedication to customer satisfaction and an entrepreneurial spirit.

In an industry which has seen numerous changes over the past 20 years, the company which started from humble beginnings has been forced to diversify, expand and invest over the years to ensure its ongoing success, and has done so to now comprise three subsidiaries; JMV Textiles Ltd, Polydye Ltd and Solar Sports Manufacturers Ltd.

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Upon its inception in 1971 the company ran as a small, circular knitted fabrics manufacturer with just one machine to its name, making its rise to current prominence all the more impressive.

“JMV Textiles now manufactures knitted fabrics and offers screenprinting, dyeing and finishing,” the company states. “Polydye supplies polyester and nylon textured filament yarns - dyed and natural - as well as dyed acrylic, poly cotton, and cotton and viscose yarns.

“Completing the picture, Solar Sport Manufactures ladies’ and men’s fashion and sportswear as well as men’s corporate wear.”

Across the Group, the goals and ambitions remain the same, and have formed the crux of the business’s continuous improvement strategy throughout its development: to provide a quality service to customers in order to attract a loyal client base, while employing the best people for the job; all in aid of creating the best possible value for its shareholders.

High Profile Clients

JMV Group embraces a hands-on management structure to further enhance levels of customer satisfaction and to garner a proactive, flexible approach within the company structure.

“The aim is to continue leading the way as a cost-effective, professional and proactive vertical source of garments,” the company continues, “The group’s continued focus on competitive pricing, innovation, superior quality and efficiency together with its on-going investment in new technology, has provided it with a competitive edge and helped it to thrive in an industry that has been plagued by failures.”

Marketing Director, Ajit Valjee adds: “The Group places a high priority on quality and boasts its own in-house lab testing facilities. Its manufacturing processes conform to all major chain

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store requirements and the Group holds certificates of quality compliance from all leading retailers including Woolworths, Edcon Correlated, Mr Price and Identity.”

JMV is also renowned for its production of high profile sportswear for the likes of Reebok, Hummel, Admiral and Canterbury, emphasising how far the company has come over the years through the diversification of its range.

A vast and varied selection of yarns is arguably the company’s bread and butter offering, incorporating the usage of more than 10 different materials, engineered to a bespoke high quality.

The group’s continued focus on competitive pricing, innovation, superior quality and efficiency together with its on-going investment in new technology, has provided it with a competitive edge Advanced electronic knitting machines also complement this process along with its range of stateof-the-art dyeing vessels. This same adherence to modern equipment and processes is also followed through to the fabric finishing stage, with two in-house stenters used for open width fabrics, and a polymerising machine in place for tubular finishing.

Upgrading, developing and investing into its technologies has been the platform for JMV’s ever-growing customer base, building a strong industry reputation for the quality of its final offering as a result.

Aljit explains: “No order is too big or too small, and we take great pride in our ability to efficiently turn around orders and deliver on time.”

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Advanced Technologies

The Group’s loyal staff and specialised management team play a significant role in the company’s continued success, with specific emphasis placed on both quality and efficiency.

In regards to the latter, the role that technology plays within the company is also continuously monitored and updated to keep up with and, where possible, keep ahead of the industry curve.

An in-house CAD system with the latest knitting graphic design software is utilised alongside its rotary screen printing capabilities. These are both incorporated within 10,000 square metres of factory space.

“We have a substantial amount of designs on screen that are open to the trade and public to use, which saves time in cutting and preparing new screens and saves the customer in screen costs,” the company states in reference to its library of designs.

Further enforcing its position as a market leader in South Africa, the company adopts the same focus in regards to its rotary screen printing, specialised for customers’ needs once again while updating continuously to ensure the most modern techniques are being used by the company.

In line with this strategy, JMV Textiles has spent R100 million over the past three years on new premises tailored for garment manufacturing

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and the modernisation of its knitting plant. As a result, the business has been able to optimise its already comprehensive range of services at an improved production rate.

Family Feel

The reason for the company’s continuous progression and entrepreneurial spirit can be attributed to JMV’s status as a family-run business, with the Valjee name engrained into the fabric of the organisation since its inception.

Through this structure, the company has fostered a highly skilled workforce, consisting of almost 100 percent locally sourced talent; a facet which JMV believes is its most valuable resource.

The same local focus is instilled in the company’s supply routes, but in this case, there is certainly room for expansion, and JMV has already begun laying the foundations for

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improved export opportunities in the future.

Creating differentiators within the market has always been a primary goal, and is one that has been achieved through the Group being South Africa’s only BEE vertical textile company with its entire operation strategically housed on one site, in close proximity to both the harbour and the port.

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This also helps to improve efficiencies which has long been a company consideration through its environmental and CSR considerations.

“The JMV Group recognises our responsibility to monitor, manage and reduce our environmental impacts wherever possible and therefore have taken reasonable steps to ensure a minimum impact on the environment,” the company notes.

This includes using steam operated machinery, recycling procedures, energy conservation initiatives and rainwater harvesting; all of which have been optimised to help the business meet its primary ambitions and visions.

“Our definition of quality service includes the following: Providing a quality service and information to always guarantee customers satisfaction; assuring our customers integrity, personal interest and value for money; and respecting the contribution that our staff and suppliers make, thereby providing the quality of product that we seek to maintain.

“Our business mission remains to operate as a family-owned fabric manufacturing business enterprise based on value, quality and service which will be of benefit to our customers, staff and shareholders,” Ajit concludes.

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Affo r d a b l e , Acce s s i b l e , Av a i l in g Zenufa Laboratories has replicated its early healthcare and manufacturing successes in DRC, into Tanzania and looks forward to the next stage of its geographical and product expansion Writer Matthew Staff Project Manager James Smith ising from a small trading company in the DRC in 1976, the Zenufa Group of Companies has grown into a dynamic, medium sized, international conglomerate over the years to satisfy the emerging and diversified market demands within the East & Central African region.

While also involved in business activities that reach as far as India and

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Canada, it is the company’s influence in the pharmaceutical industry from which it has made its name and built its strong reputation over the years; its migration into Tanzania being the business’s groundbreaking strategic move up to this point.

“The Group has pharmaceutical manufacturing facilities located in two strategic locations within Africa, the Democratic Republic of Congo, in Kinshasa, and Dar-es-Salaam in Tanzania, with an additional ground distribution presence in five countries,” Zenufa Tanzania’s Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Harvinder Alag explains.

In both cases, “the manufacturing facilities were founded with the primary objective of providing a wide variety of pharmaceutical preparations, manufactured under a hygienically controlled environment, with a promise of consistent guaranteed quality and affordability”, the CEO continues.

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Continuous Improvement

The diversification of the wider Group, incorporating Zenufa Laboratories more than 15 years ago, has enabled the business to enforce its continuous improvement strategy throughout challenging market conditions, becoming a leading importer and distributor having represented a portfolio of prestigious global companies including the likes of Pfizer, Pharmacia Upjohn and Glaxo Wellcome and SmithKline Beecham.

“Zenufa Laboratories’ platform on efficient and effective healthcare is embedded in the company’s longterm vision of availing pharmaceutical products, which are affordable and nationally accessible, with a promise of consistent guaranteed quality,” Alag notes.

Since moving into Tanzania in 2007, originally as Mimco International, Zenufa has replicated this early vision and dedication to quality, as Alag adds: “We’re proudly Tanzanian, no

less than our western counter-parts, and, most importantly, one of the most high-tech cGMP facilities in East Africa.”

Complementing the quality infrastructure are the people who work inside the facilities throughout the entire Zenufa Group, as the need to adapt and prepare for various industry trends remains of paramount importance to the company’s ongoing success.

Alag says: “Producing pharmaceuticals is a complex process that requires high levels of technical expertise. Sufficient human resource capacity is required, specialising in manufacturing and regulatory measures as well as quality control and assurance procedures.”

Requiring a plethora of expertise across chemistry, pharmacy, engineering and machinery operations, the ability to make the most of the limited skills available within the region becomes a skill in itself, and is subsequently subsidised by a fully-functioning internal training process.

“Even though the staff are well educated, they still lack the requisite experience to be able to match proficiency of their counterparts in the other parts of the world,” Alag explains.

“Thus, we are providing in-house training in most of the areas by way of classroom training as well as on-the-job training and skill development workshops, etc.

“Workers are also sent for external training programmes at times, organised by various institutes or agencies.”

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DEV LIFE Corporation

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ev Life Corporation prides itself in being a trusted partner in India offering bespoke end-

to-end sourcing solution; from dossier support to product registrations, manufacturing, design & packaging, independent quality tests and logistics support.

Accredited with WHO-GMP and dedicated facilities for orals, injectables and ointments, we offer a broad range of formulations across therapeutic segments in tablets, capsules, oral liquids, topical and sterile dosage forms. A strong development team and a solution-oriented approach help us reduce time to launch for our clients for new generation molecules.

Our commitment to quality and a non-

Strategic Partnerships Aspiring to be pre-qualified by the World Health Organisation, Zenufa’s collaborative efforts in having a fully equipped on-site control laboratory further enforces the standards that the industry has come to expect of the company, while it has also capitalised on key partnerships to enhance the offering further.

One such partnership is the affiliation the company now has with the Drugs for Neglected Diseases Initiative (DNDi), who pass on their technical knowhow in assisting the most stable formulation of the anti-malarial artesunate and amodiaquine, fixed dose combination as a bi-layered tablet, by way of a technology transfer agreement.

Zenufa’s collaborative efforts in bringing the best in healthcare to the region is a substantial ongoing investment made by the business and

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has also led to the aid of locally relevant treatments including malaria.

This also represents another facet of the company’s commitment to care, as Alag explains: “We are looking at venturing into manufacturing of ARVs for donor-funded projects and for which we are open to a strategic partnership with any companies that are looking to venture in to Africa as a CSR activity.”

Other areas which the company plans to move into include donor funded projects for primarily prequalified products; and optimising the potential for growth in key lifestyle areas such as diabetes, hypertension, cancer and obesity.

Local procurement of raw materials has long been a challenge for all companies working in the sector, but as the company continues to improve its own standards and skill sets, Zenufa is also having a positive

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conflicting position of working with our clients in their home market has helped us win patronage and confidence of clients across Congo, Angola, Mozambique, Ivory Coast, Senegal, Mali, Benin, Cameroon, Cambodia, Vietnam and Bhutan.

“Zenufa was one of the first customers who trusted in us in our early days and chose us as their partner for India,” says Vaishali Anjaria, CEO of Dev Life Corporation. “We are privileged to have been a part of Zenufa’s growth and are truly impressed with their commitment to delivering quality healthcare solutions; an ideology that we fully share with them.”

www.devlifecorporation.com

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knock-on effect on the surrounding region, forming a sustainable strategy for progression and expansion looking towards the future.

Future Expansion

Areas of expansion are always carried out off the back of extensive research and marketing among its divisions, ensuring that the company’s sales and medical representatives stay ahead of the industry curve in regards to the ethical promotion of products, as well as establishing the most efficient distribution channels to the retail counter.

“We ensure each prescription that is being generated is being honoured,” Alag states. “The primary sales are through major wholesalers in each territory along with major institutions such as NGOs, hospitals and polyclinics. The retail pharmacies are also catered directly through the medical and sales representatives.”

We are open to a strategic partnership with any companies that are looking to venture in to Africa as a CSR activity

“Our sales and marketing team work hand-in-hand with the customers all over the country and keep a tab on the product quality, and feedback from the customers.”

A continuous dialogue is also kept open with hospitals and dispensaries to ensure that any untoward reactions to Zenufa products are dealt with as quickly and effectively as possible, subsequently withdrawing products from the market, if necessary.

All of this fits under Zenufa’s overall strategy to produce profitable, safe products and to achieve long-term sustainability.

This applies to DRC and Tanzania primarily at present, but with the likes of Kenya, Rwanda, Zambia, Ethiopia and Mozambique also on the company’s radar for future geographical expansion, Alag’s strive for “consistent quality, affordability and adherence to WHO standards” will soon be reaching a wider audience than ever before.

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, ONE grOuP maNy mIssIONs Noble Azania, a known business group in the private sector in Tanzania, is managed by a team of professionals who have had a significant impact on the country’s infrastructure since inception in 1976.

Writer Emily Jarvis Project Manager James Smith

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here are very few enterprises which are as closely linked to Tanzania’s development as Noble Azania Group.

Over the last three decades the Group has been supporting the country’s economic development, through direct participation in government investment programmes. Noble Azania, a known business group in the private sector in Tanzania, is managed by a team of professionals who have had a significant impact on the country’s

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infrastructure since inception in 1976.

The Group’s motto, one group, many missions, encompasses the diverse range of sectors that Noble Azania works across. The company has been working to achieve consolidation through this diversity, with a focus on profitability and nobility of action.

Bharat Patel, Managing Director of Noble Azania, says that the key to the Group’s success has been the on-time and error-free supply of goods, backed by an in-depth knowledge across the six divisions of the company: “Our repeat

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orders year-in year-out are testament to our excellent service and competitive rates. Moreover, by focussing on the customer and our market presence, we can focus our efforts on gaining a bigger share of the market thus, making a bigger difference to Tanzania’s economic development.”

In-depth Industry Experience

Noble Azania’s six divisions cover an expansive range of industry practices including; automotive, textiles, agriculture, alcoholic beverage manufacturing, pharmaceuticals and most recently the real estate business. The company is the sole distributor of BMw and related parts in Tanzania, making it the natural partner of choice when it comes to obtaining quality car parts.

Mr Patel’s father went into business over fifty years ago in the country, and this industry experience and knowledge has been passed

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through a generation. “Consequently, this industry know-how has been passed to all 300 members of staff.

Our understanding of products and services; clients and their requirements is second to none,” Patel cites.

The Importance of Diversification

As a legacy company, it is vital that Noble Azania diversify in the face of fluctuating market conditions.

“Indeed, we need to secure growth year-in year-out. In the past, our competition was simply in neighbouring countries, now we have to compete on the world stage. Foreign Direct Investors are looking to Africa and as a result, we are looking to work alongside them where possible, to keep up with market trends,” says Patel.

In the past, our competition was simply in neighbouring countries, now we have to compete on the world stage

Key Divisions AutOMOtivE: Noble Azania have an expansive offering of over 1500 different car supplies and have invested in a rental cars service in recent times.

AgriCuLturE: One of the oldest sectors of the Noble Azania business. from 3,800 acres of farmland in 1986, this sector has grown in size to over 15,000 acres of sustainable farmland consisting of maize, rice, sunflowers, cotton and more. Product is fertilised with a bio fertiliser so as to be as environmentally friendly as possible, and is sold to the Middle East and Europe.

diStiLLEry: Locally produced liquor with its own local branding, with a world-class standard attached. Alcohol is produced with ethanol made out of sugar cane and is mostly limited to seasonal production, which is in full swing at this time of year for those who can afford to buy.

PhArMACEutiCAL: Noble Azania work with world class facilities in order to sell pharma goods to local chemists and clinics.

rEAL EStAtE: Patel sees this sector as one with phenomenal growth attached to it, as he focuses his efforts on accommodation for expats and current ownership of two hotels in the country.

“Globalisation means that most countries have upped their game in terms of quality, but we have to be cautious still in our approach.” with Tanzania’s GDP promising to average at 7.1% throughout 2015-2019, the country guarantees a safe haven for Noble Azania from now into the future. “This growth is largely driven by improvements to the transport, agriculture, infrastructure and manufacturing areas, and we have a footprint in three of these industries already.”

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Sole distributor for BMW

Since 1996, Noble Azania has been associated with BMW. After fifteen years in 2011, the company were offered full Sales, Service and Spares as the sole distributor of BMw products in Tanzania. “Thanks to the sincere efforts of Noble Motors Team, BMw Tanzania stands second in the entire East African Market and is the largest selling premium car brand in Tanzania. Even after experiencing tough competition of BMw car sales, we have surpassed the industry growth rate,” says Patel.

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Staff Training

Investment in people is key to the success of any business, and as such, training is an integral part of Noble Azania’s management system. “we believe that the continuous upskilling of our staff is an integral part of the business, and will help us through future challenges and in our contributions to the longevity of the business.

Thanks to the sincere efforts of Noble Motors Team, BMW Tanzania stands second in the entire East African market

T +00255 22 2111269 M +00255 786 209443

Puma Energy, Bandari Road, Kurasini, P.O. Box 9043, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania

“Through our programme called ‘Next Step’, we prepare our people for the next position in the hierarchy wherein they are trained in the skills required for specific positions. This applies to key departmental areas including; communications, leadership, team management, negotiations, supply chain management and customer relationship management. “what’s more is that we often hire external agencies or sponsor our employees to participate in public programmes.”

No Compromise

Patel highlights that Noble Azania’s perseverance, dedication and belief in the final product is key to its continued success in Tanzania: “we cannot and will not ever compromise on quality as customer satisfaction is a crucial determiner for longevity in the country. when the customer is lost, they will not return and it is important to remember this fact.”

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A year on and Airtel Kenya continue to grow from strength to strength, paving the way for other mobile operators by providing affordable, modern and innovative mobile solutions to all Writer Emily Jarvis Project Manager Donovan Smith

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he year 2014 has been a busy one for Airtel’s operations in Kenya. From advances in its Airtel Money payment system, to a partnership with Facebook that offers free internet to users, the company continues to be driven by the vision of providing affordable and innovative mobile services to suit all. “Mobile phones are changing the way that many people live and work in Kenya.

They make business easier and more efficient, help families and communities to stay in touch and individuals to feel connected,” says Adil El Youssefi, Airtel Kenya’s new CEO. “It is our job to use our expertise in telecoms to help improve the lives of Kenyans and bring prosperity to our country.”

Airtel Money VISA Card

2014 has been a big year for Airtel Money developments in Kenya. Not only has the company launched a cross-border money transfer service pilot in November, but a new partnership with Visa & Chase Bank promises Airtel Money subscribers an Airtel Money Visa card. “The card allows Airtel money subscribers to withdraw money from their Airtel Money accounts from more than 1.8 million Visa ATM’s worldwide, and shop and pay for goods and services using Airtel Money at more than 30 million visa accepted merchant stores worldwide,” says Youssefi.

“It is our job to use our expertise in telecoms to help improve the lives of Kenyans and bring prosperity to our country According to the East Africa Community, mobile commerce is gaining importance in the region for its huge role in speeding up transactions, saving time and money for people and businesses. The introduction of more sophisticated financial services, such as credit, savings and insurance schemes through partnerships with financial service providers has positively changed the way businesses can operate in Kenya, speeding up efficiencies in key elements of regional integration.

Customers have become more interested about the efficiency and speed of their transactions and overall experience as a result.

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ocial Media Care: what new age Consumer wants?

Customer care has now leapfrogged to a different level, considering the fact that now social media has enabled the consumer to touch base with the organization ANYwHERE and at ANYTIME. Social media has become THE most important channel of customer care.

The statistics show that more consumers would recommend a brand that provides a quick but ineffective response than would recommend a brand that provides a slow but effective solution.

Adil El Youssefi aIrTEl KENya md & CEO

Aligning with the company’s success this year has been the appointment of Airtel Kenya’s new Managing Director and CEO, Adil El Youssefi, who has been with the telecoms giant since May 2014. He has been spearheading the consumerfocused turnaround strategy for the organisation.

With more than 13 years of experience in developing countries across Africa, Asia and Europe, Adil has strong leadership skills and a drive for achieving great things. This is coupled with a desire to positively inspire success in people and organisations.

Adil has an MBA from INSEAD, the Business School for the world and an MSc in Engineering from NSEIRB in France. He has experience in areas which include leadership, strategy, execution, marketing, product management, telecommunications, and consumer goods among other areas. Adil has grown companies in Chad and Ghana with a double digit Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) while ensuring their long term sustainability by focusing on market and customer understanding, devising a compelling vision, executing a winning strategy, inspiring and growing the leadership team while continuously engaging staff and other stakeholders.

He believes in open and fun communication, engagement and effective teamwork, emphasising that “nothing can be achieved without effective teamwork, leadership and a strong execution discipline”.

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“There is a demand for not just convenience when it comes to making payment, but also efficiency. With this demand, we have to re-invent and innovate so that we can profitably meet the ever changing tastes and preferences of customers,” Youssefi comments.

DStv Partnership

This time last year, Airtel Kenya and DStv Mobile entered into a partnership which allowed Airtel subscribers to access DStv through their mobile network, using Drifta as a mobile decoder on Android phones.

“Our post-paid subscribers can now experience the best television in entertainment, free of charge,” highlights Youssefi.

Consequently, Airtel customers would not only get the chance to get their hands on the trendiest mobile devices, but also get to enjoy up to sixteen channels with three months free subscription.

Mobile virtual network operator (Mvno) In April this year, the Communications Authority of Kenya licensed Mobile Pay, Finserve Africa and Zioncell Kenya to operate as a Mobile virtual Network Operator (MvNOs). These

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ISON helps its clients to offer social media care through a multi-pronged strategy:

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1. Choosing the right platform To measure & analyze social media interactions, a specialised tool needs to be deployed which can improve the manpower productivity by 45%. ISON deploys best in class tools for social media management providing greater efficiency to its clients.

2 Consumer Categorisation Different strokes for different folks.

Since every consumer is different so is his preference to use social media platforms. With right-fit hiring, focussed training & specialisation, ISON executives are capable of handling the requests for consumers across different social media platforms.

3. real-Time Coverage ANYwHERE and ANYTIME consumer never sleeps i.e. people are looking at your updates/profile at any part of the world. we ensure that product updates, consumers’ issues which get reported first on social media platforms are responded and resolved within the specified TAT by working round the clock.

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Pan Africa Life Assurance Limited

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an Africa Life Assurance Limited has a rich history spanning 68 years since its inception in 1946. Pan Africa has experienced many positive changes over this period and ranks highly in the industry with a market share of 18.5% in individual life (No 2) and 24.6% in group risk (No 1) based on 2013 financials.

Kenya Airways Group CEO & MD Dr. Titus Naikuni and Airtel Africa CEO Christian de Faria exchange MOU agreement

three organisations received licenses under the “application service provider” category, which allows them to provide services such as customer registration, the issuance of SIM cards, billing and customer care. The operators will host their services on Airtel Kenya’s network.

Later in the year, Airtel opened the telecommunications and mobile commerce space in Africa with the signing of MOUs with host Africa’s leading airline, Kenya Airways as a Mobile Virtual Network Operator, (MVNO) on its Kenyan Network.

The newcomers will offer customer registration, SIM cards issuance, billing and customer care. They will also be assigned their own numbering range, and will be hosted on the network.

Use of Mobile to Pay Your Taxes October 2014 saw Airtel Kenya agree to a partnership with the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA), which would allow Kenyan citizens the opportunity to pay their taxes via the Airtel Money service. Through the partnership, Airtel customers across the country are able inquire for KRA services, generate a KRA payment reference number and make quick and simple payments through Airtel Money, simply by dialling the short code *572#.

“The revolutionary service provides Airtel Money customers in Kenya with a convenient, flexible and time saving option for tax payment as they will no longer have to walk into KRA banking halls and queue up in order to pay their taxes,” affirms Youssefi.

Airtel Kenya Corporate Affairs Director Brand Dick Omondi and DStv Mobile General Manager Felix Kyengo display the DStv Drifta during the partnership launch.

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Pan Africa has a solid capital base and draws experience and technical expertise from its strategic partnership with Sanlam, Africa’s second largest financial services group.

We have several partnerships including one with Airtel Kenya since 2013 where we launched Bima Mkononi (https:// panafricalife.co.ke/individual-life/bimamkononi/ ) to provide affordable life insurance entirely via one’s mobile phone.

Bima Mkononi (https://panafricalife.co.ke/ individual-life/bima-mkononi/ ) provides very flexible rates on premiums and premium payment frequency. We are now in the final stages of launching other new innovative insurance products to cater for the growing needs of the low to middle income segments that use Airtel’s vast network.

Pan Africa Life’s vision is to be the provider of choice in wealth creation and protection. Our relationship with Airtel Kenya will go a long way in augmenting our desire to realise this vision for the Kenyan insurable public.

“We are really excited at the opportunities presented by this partnership that we have forged with Airtel Kenya since it will give an opportunity to thousands of Kenyans who currently do not have any form of life insurance cover to have one at an affordable cost” - J M Muiruri – General Manager, Corporate Business T 020-2781000 E customerservice@pan-africa.com

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Head Office | Pan Africa Life House | Kenyatta Avenue | P.O Box 44041 GPO -00100, Nairobi Tel: +254 2781000, +254 2247600, +254 2225050, +254 722206900/1, +254 733418807 | SMS: 30182 E: customerservice@pan-africa.com

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Facebook

Most recently of all, Airtel officially launched a partnership with Facebook to offer the Internet.org app to both its pre-paid and postpaid customers in Kenya. Facebook’s Internet.org app provides a set of locally relevant basic internet services free of charge in order to make it easier for people to access the internet.

“The partnership responds to the needs of our youthful customers who are in constant need to access the internet and keep in touch with events and activities at all times.”

Internet.org is a Facebook-led initiative with the goal of making the internet both affordable and increasing available access to the two thirds of the world who are not yet connected; in efforts to bring the same opportunities to everyone.

As part of Facebook’s Internet.org app in Kenya, Airtel

customers will have free access to: AccuWeather; BBC News; BBC Swahili; BabyCenter & MAMA; BrighterMonday; Daily Nation; Ebola Information; Facebook; Facts for Life; Girl Effect; Jamii Forums; Messenger; OLX; Scholars4Dev; SuperSport; Toto Health; Wattpad; Wikipedia.

Airtel in the Community

Airtel has not only strived to create a telecommunication network that is affordable and accessible to all, but has also invested heavily in terms of community capacity building through Airtel Spirit. This is in line with the Bharti philosophy of giving back to the society.

“The Airtel Spirit is the code which the brand lives by. Staff engage in sustainable community development initiatives to create lasting value that is beyond simply monetary value,” says Youssefi.

The Airtel Spirit is achieved on the strength of two pillars: 1. Education and Entrepreneurship Development Airtel identifies education as a very important area that helps in the realisation of individual and collective dreams and the development of the community. It is with this reason that the company has invested in education programmes that tap into Airtel’s technology and brand presence with the aim of enhancing the learning process in schools thus empowering the young minds for a better tomorrow.

“To foster and strengthen the entrepreneurial spirit in the youth, we use our expertise and diverse enterprise products and services to advance projects in youth ICT enterprise and small businesses,” emphasises Youssefi.

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2. Staff in the Community Time is the most precious commodity we have. Airtel Spirit encourages a selfless giving of time on both an individual and a corporate level.

“We encourage our members of staff to take time out of their busy schedule to positively impact the community through mentorship programmes, health initiatives, environment preservation activities and disaster management.

“This makes a significant impact to both the member of staff and the people they are reaching out to, therefore passing on the Airtel spirit in a literal sense, as well as a metaphorical one,” Youssefi concludes.

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ZTE Corporation

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TE Corporation is a globally-leading provider of telecommunications equipment and network solutions.

With operations in 160 countries, the company is a leader in technology innovation, delivering superior products and business solutions to clients all over the world. Founded in 1985, ZTE is listed on both the Hong Kong and Shenzhen Stock Exchanges and is China’s largest listed telecoms equipment company.

Offering the industry’s most comprehensive product range and endto-end solutions, ZTE delivers cuttingedge technology to telecommunications clients in wireless, access & bearer, value-added services, terminals, managed network services, and ICT solutions for enterprises and government agencies T +254 20 2731106

www.zte.com.cn

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Digital drives dominance in

Rwanda MTN Rwanda has led the way in the country for more than 15 years and has no intention of resting on its laurels as it introduces its latest innovations Writer Matthew Staff Project Manager Donovan Smith

ince its inception in 1998, MTN’s Rwandan arm has been leading the way in telecoms, bringing commercial success and socially significant advancements to a country that was starting from scratch in the industry 16 years ago.

As the first private telco to begin operations in Rwanda, the pressure has grown over the years to maintain an innovative and forward-thinking approach in order to fend off growing competition in the market. The latest stage of the company’s development has incorporated technological developments, across both consumer and enterprise domains, every bit as advanced as those being seen in the global marketplace.

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21 days of y’ello care, knowledge share

Ebenezer Asante, CEO, MTN Rwanda

“In terms of tech evolution, MTN has seen it all in Rwanda, starting with 2G, migrating to 3G and in November this year we have also, working with another operator, begun offering 4G to customers,” explains the company’s Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Ebenezer Asante. “We have also expanded our network and fibre project offering on the enterprise side, as well as having our first commercial launch of cloud services here in Rwanda.”

As part of the globally renowned MTN brand, there are always high expectations of each country’s individual operations, but few of the Group’s divisions can compare to the dominance that Asante’s team has enjoyed in Rwanda.

“We came from humble beginnings in to a virgin Rwandan market establishing less than a million subscribers initially,” Asante continues.

“Over time, as the market grew, more and more competition entered the sector, but with the market growing at the same time, everyone is able to have a reasonable share as long as you can compete well.

“It keeps us on our toes and helps us to innovate and find new ways to firstly extract value and then give value back to our customers.”

Digital Adoption

Much of 2014 has consisted of a concerted drive into digital and data initiatives, capitalising on a global trend that MTN wants to be the first to bring to Rwanda.

“Digital and data is now our bread and butter, with voice revenue under pressure and people talking more but wanting to pay less,” Asante says. “The area of business available for us to make a difference in is in the form of

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Trust Engineering Solutions

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rust Engineering Solutions (TRES in short) is a Rwandan company that started in 2007,

offering telecom site solutions. TRES was created as a local alternative to importing services, realising that telecom multinationals in Rwanda have been spending capital that should be rather invested in acquisition of their core infrastructures.

Our aim is to relieve these multinationals of any activity on BTS site that is not their core competence.

digital, both from the point of view of revenue but also from the point of view of delivering exciting new services to help our customers’ lifestyles.”

The commercial and ‘feel-good’ combo is what MTN Rwanda is striving for through the introduction of its digital and data related solutions, but the company’s commitment to Corporate Social Responsibility has also led to a series of free offerings to ensure that the country as a whole is moving forward in line with the technological evolution.

“We have launched a lot of products that our customers have to pay for but have also introduced a range of services for free across the country,” Asante adds. “Firstly, if you come to Rwanda today, you will be able to access our 10 megabyte hotspots for free from anywhere in the country to increase mobile adoption and to make sure that affordability is not a problem.

“Secondly, we have also made Wikipedia free in Rwanda for students so that affordability does not hold them back from their studies, and this

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is free irrespective of how much time they spend on it.”

The final initiative encourages customers to carry out their social networking for free, through the launch of accessing Facebook for no cost, once again to increase the amount of exposure that the Rwandan population has to mainstream internet, and subsequently laying the foundations for enhanced understanding and usage of such functions in the future.

Mobile Money

On a more commercial scale, across both consumers and enterprises, the same dedication to improving lifestyles is adhered to, and much of this appears in the form of the company’s mobile money services.

With more users than there are bank accounts in the country, MTN Rwanda is fast becoming the first port of call for the majority of the population in managing funds and keeping track of their commercial activities.

“Mobile money is one of the main reasons why my customers remain active on their network,” Asante

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TRES’s uniqueness lies in “holistic view” of BTS site, addressing site needs from rollout, installation, commissioning and maintenance. This allows designing costeffective solutions that considerably save on both capex and opex.

TRES has been adopted by MTN Rwanda as one of its local providers since 2009, and has successfully delivered hundreds of site builds and RF and MW installations for this long-term and esteemed client.

In line with its mission to develop local competences, TRES has initiated an “Engineering & Competitiveness Learning Centre”, which aims to identify talented young graduates from local engineering schools, and transform them into COMPETITIVE professional engineers for serving the continent’s telecom market.

Telecom operators, like MTN Rwanda, shall start benefiting the center’s product by end of 2015.

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For a business like us as market leader and differentiator in quality to customers, we can’t afford to not make sure the network is fully functional and fully available, so we drive our investment with that strategy in mind explains. “In Rwanda your handset is not just for phone calls and the internet but it is also your bank.

“The beauty of this is you can receive money from every corner of the country and soon they will be able to from around the globe too. Even if you don’t have a lot of money you’ll be able to put it on your phone, and manage it the way you deem fit. This way we also promote micro savings which is a sine qua non for developing economic take-off.”

This forms part of the company’s drive to find ways to suit the ordinary needs of people, ranging across all incomes, from the executive in the office to, as Asante emphasises, the farmer in the fields.

“The farmer working on the farm can use his phone to read the weather and predict and plan his activities, or to know the price of produce 20 kilometres from the farmhouse, or to plan ahead in regards to stock levels.

“We can make a difference to this person’s life with digital. Digital itself can be so broad, exciting and extensive that not all of them suit the individual customer but we go in to understand what they are looking for and how the customers want their communications to make a difference to their lives.”

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For larger enterprises, MTN’s offering also promotes the influx of foreign investors into Rwanda, providing a readymade platform of telecom and internet services for international businesses to come in and hit the ground running.

Asante states: “Companies coming in always look at the available communication needs for services that are needed offshore and in real time, and we at MTN help to offset those constraints.

“Investors in Rwanda are interested in the country now because the basic telecom infrastructures are available through us.

“Digital and data will deliver a high proportion of growth, turnover and profits in bringing a broad range of services to all our customers, and this is a key strategy and vision for us moving forward.”

Educating Rwanda

Introducing advanced technologies to every corner of Rwanda doesn’t occur without its challenges, and as much of MTN’s work around the country has been in educating and marketing as it has been in regards to technological research and development.

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Investing heavily into direct communications, advertising and community engagement has not only helped to instil unparalleled levels of trust and customer satisfaction but it has also helped garner an understanding of why these sorts of services are so beneficial to the people of Rwanda.

“Education is important because when you’re striving to innovate every year, you can imagine the amount of products that we are carrying,” Asante says. “At any point, the customer has to make a decision about which of these products and services suit them best, so we are there to educate about what service they should adopt.”

These services include, more recently, the introduction of 4G connectivity, an offering not completely available in some, more developed, western markets, signalling once again the forward-thinking approach that the Rwandan Government takes in regards to tech advances and innovations.

“For a business like us as market leader and differentiator in quality to customers, we can’t afford to not make sure the network is fully functional and fully available, so we drive our investment with that strategy in mind,” Asante states.

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International Company, Acting Locally

Arguably the company’s greatest strength stems from the name itself, being able to leverage the technologies, reputation and skill sets of a brand as regionally significant as MTN. With all services Group-driven – although carefully tailored then for the Rwandan market – the business is also an employer of choice within the country, having been the longest-standing telco with a presence there.

This has subsequently led to a large pool of talent and skills being developed over the years in association with local academic institutions, to the point where the percentage of expatriates working within the company is in single figures.

An ethos of being a big international company with the ability to act and influence locally also acts as the platform for MTN’s Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) strategy which continues to make a difference in Rwanda year on year.

“Across the MTN group, CSR is taken very seriously, to the extent that it has a unique unit independent from commercial activities,” Asante explains. “Under the umbrella of the MTN Foundation, one percent of our profits are transferred to that unit to fund their own charitable projects.

“These projects primarily comprise work in education, health and economic empowerment. Thus while we do good business and honour our corporate civic responsibility like being a lead tax payer, we also touch the lives of the underprivileged and support individuals to realise their dreams and potential through the MTN Foundation.”

Enhancing levels of internet connectivity within schools, and presenting students with the necessary equipment is just two facets of the MTN Foundation’s educational focus, while the health drive includes a strong partnership with Rwanda’s Ministry of Health in sponsoring and donating equipment, and striving to bring first-class medical care to as many remote parts of the country as possible.

Asante adds: “The MTN Group is also contributing US$10 million to help fight Ebola, while also launching a campaign with the Ministry of Health to encourage others to contribute too.

“We do all this through the foundation, investing in their network while also giving the means to our customers to donate themselves where possible.”

This initiative in the country is part of an MTN-wide campaign where each region will carry out the same procedure, epitomising once again the levels of local care that has made MTN the success that it is in Rwanda.

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lEadINg TraNsFOrmaTION ThrOugh

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Mobility Globally-renowned for its technology offering, Ericsson continues to be one step ahead when it comes to the latest communication tech-related products Writer Emily Jarvis Project Manager Ben Weaver

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providing equipment, software and services to enable transformation through mobility,” says the company.

Some 40 percent of global mobile traffic runs through networks which Ericsson has supplied. More than one billion subscribers around the world rely every day on networks that the company manage.

“Our leadership in technology and services has been a driving force behind the expansion and improvement of connectivity worldwide. we believe that through mobility, our society can be ommunication is transformed for the better. changing the way we “New innovations and forms live and work the world of expression are finding a greater over. Telecoms giant audience, industries and hierarchies are Ericsson plays a key role in this evolution, using innovation being revolutionised, and we are seeing a fundamental change in the way we to empower people, business and communicate, socialise and make society through the provision of decisions together,” Ericsson states. communications networks, telecom These exciting changes services and support solutions, making it easier for people all over the represent the realisation of the company vision: a networked society, globe to communicate. where every person and every “we are a world leader in the industry is empowered to reach their rapidly changing environment of full potential. communications technology –

“Our vision is to be the prime driver in an all-communicating world. In this world, everyone can use voice, data, images and video to share ideas and information wherever and whenever they want. we aim to make people’s lives richer and easier, provide affordable communication for all and enable new ways to do business.”

Our leadership in technology and services has been a driving force behind the expansion and improvement of connectivity worldwide Dynamic Duo

A key area of business for Ericsson in Africa is the fruitful long term partnership with MTN. In South Africa, MTN offers cellular network access, communications services and business solutions. It is part of the MTN Group, a multinational operation with more than 130 million subscribers in 21 countries across Africa and the Middle East.

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Revolutionising the South African pre-paid market, MTN and Ericsson co-developed MTN Zone, offering up to 95 percent discount on all MTN network voice calls.

As the leading mobile operator in Africa and the Middle East, MTN sought to develop a solution that would set it apart from competitors in South Africa and counter congestion problems on the network by flattening peak voice traffic. The solution would change customer calling patterns, influence peak and off-peak traffic balance as well as offering consumers more affordable mobile phone tariff options. The overall aim of this project for MTN was to maintain revenue, while improving network utilisation and voice quality.

MTN SA has a 36 percent share of the South African market. The rainbow nation is a culturally diverse country with more than 47 million inhabitants. It is a highly competitive and rapidly changing market where new and emerging rivals include four broadband operators and two fixedline companies.

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As the leading mobile operator in Africa and the Middle East, MTN sought to develop a solution that would set it apart from competitors in South Africa

dIGITaTa LIMITEd

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igitata Limited was selected by Ericsson, leading provider of telecommunications solutions

globally, to provide core technology for Ericsson’s Dynamic Discount Solution (now known as Yield Optimization), which uses the operator’s excess network capacity to:

Managed Services Nigeria

This year, Ericsson partnered with MTN Nigeria in a five year managed services agreement. This contract involves the management, optimisation and field maintenance of 75 percent of MTN’s network infrastructure in Nigeria. Under the contract, Ericsson will assume full responsibility of the management, optimisation and field maintenance of MTN’s network infrastructure in Lagos, Abuja, Enugu, Port Harcourt and Asaba, which represents the aforementioned 75 percent of the network. As a result of Ericsson taking over the day-to-

• Increase revenue • Improve the operator’s returns on investment and get more out of the network • win and retain customers • Allow the operator to defer network expansions, reducing both capital and operating expenditure This technology uses discounted tariffs to shift load within the network away from periods of peak congestion to times when the network has unused capacity. But it is not a blunt instrument, like a static, off-peak pricing scheme.

This solution is dynamic, using historical and current load and revenue data, and business rules set according to operators’ business objectives, to determine the optimal discount for each individual cell, at specific times.

A powerful algorithm ensures control of the operator’s revenue. Broadcast messages let the customers know the discount level at any time, encouraging them to call, text or consume data – when the operator wants them to.

The partnership between Digitata and Ericsson has proven to be highly successful over more than seven years.

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Ericsson in SubSaharan africa

day operations of the network, MTN is able to focus even more on its core business; providing a superior customer experience across all its network offerings.

Transforming rwanda

In 2014, MTN Rwandacell identified the need to offer service differentiation.

Consequently, the operator worked with its long-term partner Ericsson to transform its network into an IP-based converged architecture, migrating all its subscribers to a common IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS) platform.

This enables it to offer advanced, highquality services to its subscribers on both prepaid and post-paid plans.

People are at the heart of our services business: 57,000 professionals in 180 countries

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On a much broader scale than this, Ericsson’s presence in Sub-Saharan Africa is far reaching, boasting 2,288 employees in the region.

“People are at the heart of our services business: 57,000 professionals in 180 countries, including more than 20,000 employees outsourced to Ericsson in managed services contracts. Most of our customers are operators, but we also work with other adjacent industries such as Tv and media, public safety and utilities. “we combine local capabilities with global expertise. That means we base our competence and delivery resources close to our customers, while our global processes, methods and tools allow us to move our competences anywhere in the world, making the most of global learning and knowledgesharing,” comments the tech giant.

Through its people, processes and partnerships, Ericsson helps customers expand their businesses and keep pace with the latest industry developments.

Operators can maximise network quality and performance, and focus on their customers, by having Ericsson integrate equipment from multiple vendors, handle multi-technology change programs, design and integrate new solutions, and manage their operations.

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Passion for Technology

With over 35,000 granted patents, Ericsson has one of the industry’s strongest portfolio offerings in the world as the largest holder of standard-essential patents for mobile communication. “Our unrivalled patent portfolio covers 2G, 3G and 4G technologies, and we are a net receiver of licensing royalties with more than 100 patent-licensing agreements in place.

“Technology is at the heart of our business. Ericsson engineers, researchers and scientists around the world are always working on what’s next in information, communications and telecommunications (ICT),” highlights the company.

With a team who are committed to constantly improving both today’s technology and customer relationships, Ericsson are helping to create the breakthroughs that will shape tomorrow. As a result of offering the best-in-class solutions, “the key to

With over 35,000 granted patents, Ericsson has one of the industry’s strongest portfolio offerings in the world as the largest holder of standard-essential patents for mobile communication Ericsson’s continued success is our ability to build business-orientated customer partnerships.

“By engaging with our customers, we have a deep understanding of where they are headed and are able to actively support them on their transformation journey,” concludes the company.

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airing up one of the world’s leading technology companies with one of the world’s fastest developing countries is proving to be a match made in heaven as Microsoft Nigeria strives to influence Africa’s leading economy in the same way it has influenced the rest of the tech world over the years.

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More than most countries on the continent, the Nigerian population has reached a level of technical maturity which is ready to embrace services comparative to those in the most developed western markets.

Among the elite providing such services is Microsoft whose offerings range across consumers and businesses to not only provide

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the best in technological solutions in the west African country, but to also further educate and develop the communities around it.

On the consumer side, Microsoft’s range speaks for itself. with some of the most recognisable products in the tech world, the brand’s operating system, Office software, Xbox games consoles, and own-name systems are

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every bit as popular in Nigeria as they are in the rest of the world.

It is from a business standpoint where the organisation has really made a difference in recent years however, as Microsoft Nigeria aids both established multinationals and start-ups – and everything in between – in applying cloud services and the most modern and honed business tools across a variety of sectors.

Driving Innovation Education, government, health, legal and professional services are targeted especially through the company’s customisable selection of IT services.

A core focus in 2014 though has been in aiding the rest of the business community in Nigeria, and specifically in helping to get start-up companies

off to the best possible start from a technical standpoint.

Microsoft Nigeria was awarded for its efforts in this area at the Nigerian SME Excellence Award and Global Entrepreneurship week which comprised 15 corporate winners.

Microsoft’s Office 360 product was among the most highly lauded in aiding business management efficiencies;

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an attribute which the company looks to replicate once again via its Microsoft ventures initiative.

In partnership with 88mph, the launch of Microsoft ventures for entrepreneurs in Nigeria will help improve startups’ productivity by providing tools, resources, expertise and routes to market around the world. The hope among the two partners is to replicate the success of the initiative that has already taken off in Kenya on the other side of the continent.

“There is a great opportunity to further develop the start-up ecosystem in Nigeria and drive innovation,” says Amrote Abdella, Director of Start-up Engagement and Partnerships, Microsoft Africa Initiatives. “By expanding Microsoft ventures into Nigeria, we hope to reinvent productivity for start-ups.

“This means equipping them with the technology that puts their businesses

first, by providing affordable devices, cloud-based software and pay-asyou-go models, that enable anytimeanywhere access.”

After global acclaim, Microsoft ventures’ introduction to Nigeria is already showing early signs of promise and through its partnership with 88mph, there is huge optimism that Microsoft will be able to have the same positive influence on SMEs in Nigeria that it has already had across India, China, Central Europe, the Middle East, South America and the US. “88mph is a leader in a region where entrepreneurship is thriving and a great source of economic good,” adds Cliff Reeves, Senior Director of Microsoft ventures. “The Microsoft ventures team is proud to be partnering with them in Nigeria and we hope to contribute to the success of 88mph, the start-ups they support, and the country as a whole.”

TavIa TECHnoLoGIES

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With an objective to achieve PanAfrican status and subsequently global excellence by leveraging on best practice Information Technology, we are determined to continue harnessing the value of partnering with other specialist technology solution providers, both on and off shore.

Our vision to inspire and empower people as well as businesses through the provision of cutting edge technology-driven solutions commits us to providing our clients with invaluable business solutions that not only improve performance but exceed expectations.

Our areas of focus include: • Portals and Collaboration • Business Intelligence • Training and Development • Enterprise Data Warehousing • Applications and Product development • Value-Added Services.

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Corporate Social responsibility

Microsoft Nigeria’s commitment to Corporate Social Responsibility doesn’t just stop in the business arena it works alongside, but has especially come into play this year, in light of specific health challenges in the country.

Filtering down from the philanthropic dedication of Microsoft founder, Bill Gates, the company has played a key role in generating funds and in aiding research towards the continent’s Ebola relief effort.

The world-renowned billionaire has been quick to praise Nigeria as a whole for its work in healthcare initiatives, and is eager to continue this progress, through the Microsoft organisation, relating to diseases like rotavirus and polio.

“The infrastructure Nigeria has built to fight polio actually made it easier for them to swiftly contain Ebola,” Gates notes in his blog.

On a global scale, Gates’ influence can be seen via his Microsoft empire, and with Nigeria a figurehead of economic stability in the west of the continent, there is a certain responsibility placed on the company to help combat these social and financial challenges.

This is a pressure that the company has never shied away from however, and Microsoft continues to enrich the lives of Nigerians both through its charitable activities and its technological developments.

The infrastructure Nigeria has built to fight polio actually made it easier for them to swiftly contain Ebola

Diversity and Inclusion

Stemming from this core of care within Microsoft is the company’s diversity and inclusion ethos which is especially prevalent in Nigeria.

The Business of Inclusion as it is titled strives “to create an environment that helps Microsoft capitalise on the diversity of its people and the inclusion of ideas and solutions to meet the needs of its increasingly global and diverse customer base”.

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In an attempt to become more aligned throughout the entire organisation, the Microsoft vision is clear as the productivity and platform company for the mobilefirst and cloud-first world.

Mobile and cloud services are forming the crux of any major

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technology or telecoms company’s development strategy at present, making competition all the more fierce, and Microsoft’s established reputation for quality products and services all the more important. “we will reinvent productivity to empower every person and every organisation on the planet to do more and achieve more,” the company states. “Our strategy is to maximise the business impact of global diversity and inclusion to empower our people, transform our culture and delight our customers.”

From a people perspective, Microsoft Nigeria is active in fostering greater levels of diversity among its workforce, encouraging general skills development not only within the company but across the technology sector in Nigeria.

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People, Culture, Customers

This initiative comprises work alongside local universities, aiding students in more technical areas of computing and rewarding the best and brightest young talent entering the industry with the opportunity to either learn or even work at Microsoft.

In regards to culture, this consists of the company promoting an enhanced environment in which to improve operations, incorporating areas of best practice, problem solving and collaborative working.

This component is especially prominent at senior levels, encouraging a more flexible and inclusive philosophy to filter down through the company.

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The same approach to people and cultural development is also applied to Microsoft’s direct customers, to complete the all-encompassing nature of the business’s growth strategy and providing a sustainable platform for future growth in Nigeria.

“Microsoft believes that building the best software means incorporating the talents of our varied workforce into our products, and recognising the needs and priorities of our diverse suppliers, customers, and partner base,” the company concludes. “we are committed to supplier diversity, which includes spending more than US$ 2 billion with certified and highly trained businesses that are minority-owned, women-owned, veteranowned businesses, and owned by persons with disabilities.

“Product innovation is at the heart of Microsoft’s work and we strive to deliver technological innovation through devices and services that inspire people of all ages and abilities as well as eliminate barriers, improve lives, and strengthen communities.”

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Experience-Centric ISON BPO assist clients with experiencecentric solutions that empower them in enhancing business efficiencies, streamlining operations and reducing costs through Business Process Outsourcing Writer Emily Jarvis Project Manager Donovan Smith

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Solutions SON BPO, earlier known as Spanco BPO in Africa, was established at the end of 2010 and started its first operation in Nairobi, Africa in February 2011 with just 110 staff. As a leading Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) firm, with a strong focus in sub-Saharan Africa, ISON BPO has grown substantially in the last four years and now has around 7000 employees working out of ten countries in Africa, two cities in India and Yangon in Myanmar. This rapid pace of expansion secures ISON’s footprint across its areas of operation, giving them an early advantage and this fast paced development is expected to continue. Global

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CEO Pravin Kumar explains that the company’s basic strategy has been to “dig deeper into every account that they take on”. By this he means the company would rather have a smaller amount of fully satisfied customers, rather than stretching their resources unrealistically, which could damage efficiency and customer relationships.

As a truly multi-cultural organisation, ISON’s unique approach to service delivery in BPO combines building and managing call and data centre infrastructure, as well as global manpower outsourcing and call centre operations. “we help clients with experience-centric solutions that empower them in enhancing business efficiencies, streamlining operations and reducing costs,” says Kumar.

Having a senior management team who have all come from senior professional backgrounds has been a key factor in driving the business forward. The wide range of domain knowledge and expertise in the client segment has allowed for ISON to explore a solution-based approach instead of a transaction processing approach. “This approach to business means that we handle the outcome and not just a single transaction.

By taking end to end responsibility of processes such as Customer Life Cycle Management means that our expertise in these sectors have to drive us forward and make us stand out from our competitors,” Kumar further explains. Moreover, it is ISON’s strong value proposition that really places them ahead of the rest. “Put simply, the cost of ownership must go down. And if you cannot bring it down, then clients will not return to you for

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business. we think of ourselves as cost leaders as we offer a very competitive price for the full range of solutions customers receive. As such, we are known as a high value service provider for managing customer experience,” he adds.

Managing Customer Expectation

As a result of the increased focus on technology in Africa in recent years – due to the rise of mobile money and Smartphones for example - ISON BPO has seen an increase in the number of clients choosing to use multiple services from them. Customers are more demanding than ever before, aggressively striving to adapt to newer technologies in order to remain competitive. “People used to outsource plain vanilla voice services from us. This has now evolved into multidimensional IT-enabling services covering the entire gamut of ITeS (Information Technology Enabled Service) including customer experience management using self-care, analytics and so on. we endeavour to change with the times in order to fulfil all our client’s needs and keep them up to date.” Expectations continue to rise, particularly when people come into interaction with technology, therefore, the role of good quality customer service is increasingly integral, which in turn allows ISON’s clients to increase their competitiveness.

industries, they require up-skilling which should be taken seriously by governments through Public Private Partnership initiatives.” Kumar believes that governments should take initiatives for creating proper infrastructure with availability of power supply and proper connectivity to residential areas. Another area of opportunity for the government is to improve the security and the perception of security across Africa as some of these services operate on 24/7 basis and should be treated as a priority area for development.

ISON offer skills training including soft skills and leadership training so that a better quality of customer experience can be provided. Further, the company has also taken some initiatives in up-skilling of competencies as a CSR activity. “One of the themes of our employer brand is that wherever we operate, we should be known as a welfare-oriented organisation. In pursuit of this theme, we decided to embark on our journey to generate employability in the countries in which we operate,” Kumar continues: “Our commitment is to provide employment opportunities to persons from

Staff Development

BPO is an area which requires training, and as we enter the generation for employment opportunities in Africa, it is vital that current education regimes address the skills needed for development in the workplace. “IT & ITeS (BPO) services are known to be the most significant employment generating activities. while the continent does have an educated population to work in these

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marginalised communities through partnerships with reputable, not-forprofit organisations. Accordingly, we have set our CSR objective of recruiting part for our entry level talent from NGOs which we hope to achieve by March 2015.”

Testing Out New Markets

After consolidating their early start up operations in first three years, ISON BPO have moved the company focus towards securing growth into new areas, which Kumar is excited about: “Having started out in the telecoms sector, we have now begun moving into various sectors including the retail space, the Airline segment ISON BPO CEO (Fastjet), Pravin Kumar insurance, power distribution and in banking.” Through this

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manifold growth and diversification, ISON can extend their vast experience and insights from consulting, migrating and executing thousands of large and complex business functions and processes in a global delivery framework. What’s more is that the company expect to witness substantial growth in the upcoming twelve months in all these verticals including the telecoms sector, whilst also hoping to start BPO operations in at least three new countries during this period.

Perhaps the most exciting venture that Kumar highlighted was ISON’s entry into Fastjet Airline’s account in Kenya and Rwanda, as the flying giant has agreed to outsource a large part of their customer-facing operations to ISON in phases. “This way, the airline can test us out in phases and if they like the services we provide, then we can see huge potential for the aviation segment across Africa to do the same. On the one hand we can use this experience as the building blocks to expand into the industry, and on the other it provides us with an opportunity to further improve customer experience whilst simultaneously reducing commercial losses in this segment,” he says.

Furthermore, ISON provided Tigo Tanzania with a high level of service and consequently, they have awarded the company with a contract in Rwanda which has now been implemented. “Due to the successful roll out of our BPO with Tigo, we hope to be considered for their Pan Africa account, which would be a great achievement for the business and testament to the growth direction we wish to head in,” Kumar surmises.

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Burco Safaris

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urco Safaris is focused on providing the best quality above all else.Our company is made of

young, dynamic and experienced staff whose aim is to give our clients the best experience, providing excellent guided tours to all destinations so that you experience Tanzania from a wholly local point of view.

We plan your journey from beginning to end, helping with all your package safaris, beach holidays, excursions and air travel arrangements, including airport transfers and free hotel reservations.

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INEXEA

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NEXEA is a world-class IT firm providing IT & related solutions, services & products. Our offerings include the provision of end-to-end IT consulting services, including: • Enterprise Technology Solutions e.g.

Information Security & Management including Big Data & Social Analytics solutions & services • DQM (Data Quality Management), BPM & BPO services, Infrastructure Management Services, Call Centre solutions and Systems Integration.

Our target clients are within a variety of sectors, including financial, telecoms, energy, construction & real estate. We also handle projects in other sectors.

We have strategic partnerships with industry leading organizations including Q1 Labs, IBM, Oracle, Plantronics, and Lenovo. We are IBM core supplier of technical services, spanning some 14+ African countries.

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Connecting you with nature

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Launching a brand new music service and encouraging more young girls to take an interest in ICT are just two of the ways that Tigo Ghana stands out in a crowded telecoms market Writer Emily Jarvis Project Manager Donovan Smith

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igo Ghana is a subsidiary of Millicom International Cellular SA and it was the first telecom operator in Ghana back in 1991.

As of September this year, Tigo Ghana’s subscriber numbers stood strong at just over 4 million, and with CEO Roshi Motman leading the Ghana team this number promises to continue to grow steadily.

“I have been in Ghana for six months now and I enjoy living here. I love Ghana. I love the people, the warmth and the rich and diverse culture,” she says.

With five players in Ghana’s telecom industry, Tigo Ghana have made a name for themselves via the launch of Tigo Music, the first music streaming service in the country.

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Congratulations on the successful launch of Tigo Music, tell us about this new innovation

Thank you very much, you should have joined us at the Accra Sports Stadium for the launch. It was wonderful as we celebrated with over 30,000 people and top notch Ghanaian artistes. we have done extensive work to really understand the needs and desires of Ghanaians. Based on this we made the strategic choice of meeting the demand for music. Music streaming is the fastest growing area in the global music industry and music content is already the second most popular mobile phone feature in sub-Saharan Africa. Studies have also shown that in the near future more people from this part of the world will use Smartphones. This was an opportunity for us to differentiate.

Ghanaians love music, it is a part of their everyday lives. People are born with music, they celebrate birthdays and marriages and even when people die, they are mourned or celebrated with music. And over the years we have supported music because we know that it delivers a great brand experience. we have had some very successful music concerts and supported local artistes to launch their albums. we have also enjoyed some collaborations with the Musicians Union of Ghana (MUSIGA), the

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umbrella organisation for Ghanaian artistes and have prided platforms such as Tigofest (Tigo Festival) for local artistes to showcase their talents across various genres. with the launch of Tigo Music we are combining all our music properties including the latest innovations; our partnership with Deezer and the launch of Tigo Music Hub to give it much more focus. This is a first in Ghana and a significant achievement for us as we are creating an exciting experience for our customers and increasing Smartphone penetration in Ghana.

Tell us about the partnership with Deezer and the Tigo Music Hub?

Deezer is an international music streaming service that provides music on the go. As part of the partnership we have developed pre-paid data bundles which give our customers direct access to the Deezer platform and the opportunity to enjoy over 35 million songs including African and Ghanaian artistes on their phones, tablets and computers. The other addition to this innovation is that we will also be sourcing exciting new local content through a new venture with Africa Music Rights, a digital music company which funds, acquires and manages music rights across the African continent. Through this we hope to digitise more local songs and also develop local talents.

The Hub is another exciting element of the Tigo Music experience. we developed www.tigomusic.com.gh with the support of some the most digitally talented young Ghanaians to make it the ‘go to place’ for the extended and extraordinary music experience. It went live on the day we launched Tigo Music and we live streamed the launch concert for people around the world to share our excitement.

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We are finalising some innovations on the Hub and I would like to take this opportunity to encourage Ghanaians and people around the world to log on and enjoy music including the latest news on new releases and concerts.

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The launch concert ‘Unplugged’ is reported to be one of the best concerts in Ghana for 2014, how does that make you feel?

Very happy. I am proud of my team for pulling it off and proud of the positive response by Ghanaians. It is one of the best concerts I have been to internationally. I had a fabulous time and so did over 30,000 others that joined us including competitors.

We had top notch Ghanaian artistes such as Sarkodie, Shata Wale and 4X4 just to mention a few. There was also Davido from Nigeria and new music sensation Mzvee. Hit after hit we got all the people in the packed stadium singing along and dancing.

DG Capitel’s core team of leaders brings extensive project experience to the African market in the design, planning, implementation and operational management of transmission networks.

From small metro access systems to complex, mission critical high capacity backhaul networks, DG Capitel has what it takes to keep the network functioning 24/7 at the highest performance level.

What next after music?

For us, music is a long term investment. We want to become an integral part of the daily lives of Ghanaians.

We also want to be synonymous with world class music live events headlined by the best Ghanaian, African and global artistes. The future is very exciting and we are poised to become the digital service provider of choice.

I hear you are directly involved with a CSR project to encourage more girls to study ICT. Tell me more

Well I studied Electrical Engineering and I truly believe the ICT sector offers considerable opportunities for women to bring their personal ambitions and passions together and make a meaningful contribution to themselves, their companies, homes and society. We can develop cuttingedge innovative solutions to solve some of businesses and societies pressing challenges.

A career in ICT also offers us economic freedom and the independence to work from anywhere including remote locations and across multiple sub-sectors. In Tigo

Ghana about half of our employees are women. Like myself, some combine work with family and I am supportive of flexible working hours. After all we are an ICT company and therefore can work from remote locations if need be.

I met Regina Agyare, one of our Change Leaders and a social entrepreneur a few weeks after joining Tigo Ghana and I fell in love with the kind of work she did. She provides hands-on training for young girls in deprived communities to code and build websites. I visited the ‘Tech needs Girls’ centre in Accra and I was pleasantly surprised by the enthusiasm of the young girls to become the next CEOs for tech companies.

Like Regina, most of them wanted to have their own start-ups despite being young and that is so encouraging.

Ghana needs more of such tech start-ups to become the ICT Hub for the sub-region if not Africa, which I think could and should be a serious target.

My pledge is to support them with the needed resources to embolden them and to spend some time with them regularly mentoring and teaching them several others including the basics of running a successful business. My challenge to them? Be confident and challenge the status quo instead of feeling constrained by history, processes and systems.

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Jindal Africa is working vigorously to entrench and expand its foothold in Africa to the benefit of its holding group and its local stakeholders Writer Emily Jarvis Project Manager Arron Rampling

indal Africa is at the forefront of Botswana’s mining and energy developments, which are carefully aligned with the country’s national goals.

The industrial conglomerate, Jindal Steel and Power Limited (JSPL) is a leading global player in the steel, power, mining, coal-to-liquid, oil and gas, as well as infrastructure sectors, employing more than 50,000 people around the world, thus Jindal Africa is a natural fit within the business structures of all the African countries. With a strong presence throughout the country, Jindal Botswana makes substantial contributions to the Batswana economy through employment opportunities and community enlistment.

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The Jindal Botswana office is strategically located in the capital city, Gaborone, while dedicated technical support is available from the neighbouring Jindal Africa Johannesburg head office. Jindal Group currently has established a workforce of over 50,000 employees globally and approximately 2,500 within Africa. The parent company and its subsidiaries exhibit a varied portfolio of professional skills in undertaking mining, power, infrastructure, and oil and gas projects accordingly, which Jindal Botswana’s operations currently leverage. To this end, the company is currently involved in numerous exploration

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The company is currently involved in numerous exploration and mining operations across five continents while also looking out for and planning projects in the steel, power and related industries

and mining operations across five continents while also looking out for and planning projects in the steel, power and related industries.

Being a corporate native of the emerging economic power of the Indian sub-continent, JSPL came to the realisation that its wide and inherent experience in the development of its home market can assist with stimulating a similar rise in Africa. As a result, Jindal Africa – one of the fastest growing and significant parts of the Indian JSPL – now spans throughout South Africa, Mozambique, Botswana, Madagascar, Tanzania, Zambia and Namibia.

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The Mmamabula Project In October 2014, Jindal Resources Botswana, a subsidiary of Jindal Steel & Power Limited, was awarded a mining licence in the rich coalfields of Mmamabula. “The Mmamabula East Coalfield is an extension of South Africa’s Waterberg Coalfield, comprising of a total area spanning 312.69 km2 and proven reserve of 2.7 billion tonnes,” says Rajendra Kumar Tiwari, General Manager of Jindal Africa’s Botswana operations.

Waterberg Coalfield contains approximately 40 percent of South Africa’s coal resources. Located here is also Eskom’s impressive 3,690 MW Matimba power station and Exxaro’s 19 MTPA Grootegeluk coal mine.

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Long Term Vision The long term vision for this operation is achieving nine mining complexes, of which six will be underground operations and three opencast complexes. “In a full operational state, the mining complexes will have a capacity of 45 million tonnes per annum (MTPA). And with the first phase of the project underway, we have begun our license with 4.5 MTPA, with progression to 14.5 MTPA over the next five years.”

Currently still in the planning phase, Jindal are securing the necessary permits and lease in order to proceed with the project safely and other factors that will contribute to its success and longevity. Initially, the

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company hope to export 3 MTPA of the first mine (4.5 MTPA), however discussions are ongoing into local marketing for the coal product.

Economic Benefits

Jindal’s goals in Botswana are closely linked to the country’s adherence to its Vision 2016 and Millennium Development Goals (MDG). The continent shares many similarities and a shared history with India, which provides an unprecedented opportunity for both rising economic giants to march together into the future, for the mutual economic and social benefit of their respective peoples. The mine promises positive economical benefits by heavily contributing to the GDP and

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uto Sueco Botswana is part of Nors group providing sales, parts and service for Volvo Trucks in Botswana as well as for other Volvo brands such as Volvo Bus and Penta. Auto Sueco Botswana has also the exclusive representation of Renault Trucks for sales and after sales in addition to the existing Volvo product line, in the sequence of the great investment made by Volvo group of which Renault Trucks is part and the reinforcement of the commitment of Nors group with Volvo group.

Organisation Auto Sueco Botswana counts with a well-trained team who is capable of providing the expertise and guidance on all the Volvo and Renault Trucks product range. At a more operational level, we have a commercial team permanently on the ground to ensure that a high quality service is delivered in a consistently and timely manner.

Market presence In Botswana since 2006, Auto Sueco is backed up by the strength of Nors group which has been widening its presence in the most promising growth markets over the last decade. In addition to the

Botswanan market, the presence of Nors group in Africa, which started in Angola in 1991, extends today to Namibia, Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda and Mozambique. As part of the geographic coverage plan defined

by Nors group for Africa, Auto Sueco Botswana opened a new branch in Francistown which seeks to to ensure a close proximity to a greater number of clients who hardly go to the capitals to be provided with trucks.

This support network equips Auto Sueco Botswana with a robust stability, enabling to broaden the product line.

Particularly on Volvo Trucks and Buses, Volvo Penta and Renault Trucks, Auto Sueco Botswana offers the latest technology to serve the different purposes of all segments.

Referring to after sales, Auto Sueco offers a diversified

stock portfolio and counts on a dedicated stock manager in its team for monitoring and supervising orders.

Company vision As a business partner for the brands and products it represents in Botswana, Auto Sueco commits itself to present a unique value proposition to our clients by: •Combining an in-depth understanding of the local markets with global business expertise •Establishing a long term relationship with clients •Creating a specialised team in After Sales who makes a perfectly link with our commercial team •Opening a new branch to reach to other clients and expanding our assistant network

Please reach Auto Sueco Botswana at the contacts listed below Gaborone Plot 47, Gaborone International Commerce Park, Plot 1855.

Tel: +267 392 3117 Fax: +267 392 3986 Emergency Breakdown: + 267 713 193 00 Emergency Parts: +267 712 033 33 Francistown Nogha Close, Dumela Industrial.

Tel: +267 241 5458 Fax: + 267 241 3987 Workshop: +267 713 192 99

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generating employment opportunities.

“There are huge benefits for locals as we seek a growing number of workers for the site, who we can teach a range of new skills to,” says Tiwari, adding that in terms of supply, doing business with local vendors is also a priority.

“Jindal recognises that Africa is endowed with great mineral wealth and hardworking committed people.

Its intent is to pass on its inherent knowledge and experience to the continent by enriching lives, creating job opportunities and adding value.

“Employment opportunities are still being finalised, but we will strive to source local labour where we can. A lot of our project support is also provided from our central hub - Johannesburg corporate office – until such a stage as we are further developed to employ the necessary manpower to ensure project success,” he says.

Mining often forms the base of most economies within Africa, and Botswana is no different. Tiwari says that at the moment, coal mining in the country is in a very nascent stage: “There is only one coal mine in the operating stages within Botswana, with Mmamabula soon to change this.” Backed by the strength of the Group’s strict OHSE policies, the coal mine will closely adhere to practices. “This is a critical area of delivery in all projects and Mmamabula is no exception.”

Landlocked Challenges

Perhaps the biggest challenge facing Jindal Botswana is the logistical challenges that operating in landlocked Botswana creates. “It is a reoccurring fact that the country requires significant investments in infrastructure developments in terms of transport links by rail and road. These upgrades will allow Botswana to compete on a global scale alongside Indonesia, Australia and other major exporting countries,” comments Tiwari.

The Next 12 Months

With governmental discussions ongoing including land leases and various permits that need to be obtained in order to advance project development, environmental clearances for Phase two of the Mmamabula project are also underway. “We are hopeful that these clearances will be obtained in 2015 to allow development to commence on the western portion of the licence area accordingly,” cites Tiwari.

In the meantime, Jindal will continue to provide support to the communities in the surrounding areas as Tiwari emphasises: “This is done through our pillars of strength in medical provision, education, youth development through sport initiatives, agriculture development projects and enterprise projects that support sustainability to the area once decommissioning of our projects occur.”

High Rise Scaffolding Erectors (Pty) Ltd

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t High Rise Scaffolding Erectors (Pty) Ltd we have now been delivering a premier contract scaffolding service for more over a decade.

We aim to deliver a product of the highest calibre, whilst maintaining a proactive approach towards health & safety matters and consistently delivering exceptional levels of service to all our clients.

We are pleased to offer all of the necessary resources in order to handle your straightforward or complex scaffolding & access requirements.

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AEL Mining Services (Pty) Limited

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n Botswana, AEL Mining Services (Pty) Limited strives to meet their customers’ needs through maintaining the highest level of safety and improving blasting efficiencies in order to lower final cost per unit of mineral produced.

AEL has supplied explosives, accessories and support to Botswana’s mining industry since 1973, when it was first registered as a local business entity with the registrar of companies.

AEL Mining Services is fully SABS ISO compliant, and has implemented water recycling programmes at its sites.

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EXPLOSIVES AEL provides an exhaustive range of surface products, including bulk explosives, packages explosives, boosters, detonating cord and ammonium nitrate (AN) products while its initiating systems offering includes shock tube, electronic initiating systems and Statsafe Carrick detonators.

As mining techniques have changed over the years, this division has helped drive the adoption of AEL’s electronic products and the related inherent risk minimisation features among its customer base.

Services • Equipment Services • Product Services • Mining Optimisation • Research and Development www.aelminingservices.com

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weatherford Algeria continues to invest and modify its oil service offering as it prepares for industry fluctuations and stronger market competition Writer Matthew Staff Project Manager Arron Rampling

eatherford Algeria has established itself as major oilfield services provider over the course of its 40-year history in the country, and continues to introduce new initiatives and programmes to prepare for the next 40 years of operations.

Growing alongside the sector’s growth in Algeria, weatherford has been able to adapt and improve its services firmly in line with industry requirements, while adding its own innovative and entrepreneurial approach to go beyond market expectations.

“A company objective is to support any type of operations throughout the country,” says General Manager, Olivier Konig. “weatherford activity in Algeria was initially based on core business and technology, especially Tubular Running Services, and set the bar for competency and service quality in this domain.

Weatherford has been able to adapt and improve its services firmly in line with industry requirements “As the company grew over the years, we introduced multiple services including pumping, drilling services, wireline and secure drilling services, underbalanced drilling, managed pressure drilling, air drilling and drilling.”

This vast array of services bridges its main headquarters and satellite bases in Hassi Ramel, the largest gas producer in the country; TFT, the second oilfield producer opened in Algeria behind its main facility, Hassi Massaoud; and Ardar South west Region which has been the setting of numerous new development projects since its introduction.

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Business Continuity

Weatherford’s primary operation facility, Hassi Messaoud is where the company has really made a name for itself however, providing a second-to-none platform to support the high levels of activity without external support, gearing it up for the business’s current mission to cover the conventional and non-conventional resource activities in Algeria over the coming years.

This strategy is in-keeping – as always – with general industry trends occurring across Algeria at present, and especially a refined focus on exploration. With a 1,000-strong workforce and a further 400 personnel subcontracted and dedicated to Weatherford however, the company is more than prepared to cater for these fluctuating market demands.

“Algeria is one of the world’s top ten producers of both oil and natural gas. Existing upstream and midstream infrastructure is ageing and inadequate to meet Algeria’s near-term production goals,” explains Konig. “We expect new investment in these areas, as well as investment in offshore exploration.

“In addition to the existing traditional fuels, Algeria has the world’s third largest reserves of recoverable shale gas resources (19.8 trillion m3) across seven

Algeria is one of the world’s top ten producers of both oil and natural gas

Panafrica Logistics Trading & Services

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anafrica Logistics Trading & Services is an oil logistics company with a registered office the free

zone of zarzis in Tunisia with branches in Libya, Algeria and Paris, France.

regions throughout the Sahara. A new hydrocarbon law was enacted in March 2013 to encourage foreign investments in unconventional gas exploration and exploitation.”

Weatherford has subsequently been working towards a restructuring to reinforce the organisation in line with efficiencies, in order to maintain its position as a market leader in the future.

A flexible approach also enables Weatherford to react quickly to more specific industry and regional challenges, as Konig notes: “The security situation and the travel restrictions it implies have proven very challenging; we consider this as an integral part of our day-to-day business in Algeria and globally.

“Weatherford has in place processes to efficiently mitigate the issue and ensure business continuity whatever circumstances arise, as we did throughout the 1990s without interruption, despite the threats.”

For more than 25 years, the group has been able to evolve in order to offer to its customers a wide range of performance and offer innovative solutions at the best cost.

Panafrica provides the following services: • Rental yard and cover store • Logistics services (import-export) from ex work up to final destination • Forwarding consulting services • Custom brokerage • Handling • Consolidation of shipment • Dispatching • Packaging • Cleaning and painting of equipment By offering the best service and reacting to our customers’ needs, Panafrica achieves client satisfaction.

Our main clients are: • Weatherford Algeria • Halliburton Algeria • Total Libya • NOV Brandt Dubai & Algeria • Baker Libya • Sahara Well Algeria Free Zone Zarzis 4137 BP 001 Zarzis, Tunisia T +216 75 691 240 | +216 75 691 241 E panafrica@panafrica-tn.com

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International multimodal transportation

International road transportation

International air transportation

PANAFRICA top of Logistics

Sea freight

Customs services

www.panafrica-logistics.com

Free Zone Zarzis 4137 BP 001 Zarzis, Tunisia

Telephone: +216 75 691 240 +216 75 691 241 Fax: +216 75 691 242 E-mail: panafrica@panafrica-tn.com

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Comprehensive Product Range

Complementing Weatherford’s proactive and adaptable philosophy is the company’s approach towards capital investments and technological advancements, transferring its industry knowledge either through joint ventures or by establishing locally registered entities to transmit the technology to local manpower.

Skill sets in the industry include market leading services such as tubular running services which have been carried out by Weatherford in Algeria for more than 30 years; fishing and re-entry services incorporating a committed QHSSE (quality, health, safety, security, environment) philosophy; thru-tubing services; and secured drilling services across more than 50 wells in a joint venture with Sonatrach.

Solid expandable services, artificial lift systems, surface logging systems and liner hanging services make up the remainder of Weatherford’s unparalleled offering; all of which are completed in line with the business’s general dedication to hazard mitigation, personnel and asset protection, performance optimisation and project evaluations, all the way through to completion.

“We provide everything, from a comprehensive line of products for conventional completion in benign reservoir applications, to engineered and integrated completion systems for complex and challenging environments,” Konig explains. “Our expandable completion systems address traditional completion design challenges related to commingled production, segregated production, maximisation of rates and drawdown control.”

After more than 30 years of honing these services specifically for a market that it knows better than most, the company could perhaps be forgiven for resting on its laurels, but a recent major restructuring

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Weatherford QHSSE management system is a main strategy for developing a safe and environmentally sustainable business

process epitomises the Group’s consistency in never shying away from necessary capital investments and continuous improvements.

“After 30 years of continuous growth in the country, Weatherford Algeria recently went through a major restructuring process to rejuvenate the structure and realign the organisation towards anticipated new and future challenges, especially in enhanced recovery for ageing fields, unconventional gas exploration, and exploitation of the offshore sector,” Konig continues.

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Major investments have been made as a consequence of this strategy over the past two years to improve existing support bases and facilities throughout the country, incorporating three drilling rigs and a complete fleet of secure drilling equipment.

Health and Safety

A primary reason behind these investments was also to enhance the levels of health and safety within the wider organisation and to improve employees’ working conditions; a strategy encompassed within its QHSSE management system.

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“weatherford QHSSE management system is a main strategy for developing a safe and environmentally sustainable business,” Konig states.

“Covering development, sales, and service operations, etc., it provides a means of managing potential HSE impact from international standards.

Our QHSSE system is an integral part of Weatherford’s day-to-day activities and provides many advantages.”

These advantages include enhanced efficiencies within its operations, the reduction of risks and accidents, improved customer satisfaction, a more enthusiastic and motivated workforce, the promotion of international trade, profit increases and a general reduction in waste.

The same emphasis is placed on safety, via its Safety Leadership Council which comprises nine senior company leaders in an attempt to transform its safety culture and to establish community engagement into health and safety from all members of the weatherford workforce.

Konig adds: “we all have a personal responsibility and accountability to work safely, to care for those around us, and to take the necessary action to prevent injuries from occurring.

All employees are regularly urged to follow safe practices.”

Professional Development

Engagement and collaboration throughout the business is an asset which weatherford is especially proud of, providing competency models for each job to help identify the skills and knowledge required for the professional development of each individual.

“Our technical training programmes are designed to act as catalysts for learning, both in the classroom and on the job,” Konig says. “Algeria takes full advantage of our Training Centre located in Hassi Messaoud, which includes a fully functional rig and classroom capacity for 40 people.

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General Manager, Olivier Konig

“Its training rig provides unique training experience to our employees and also benefits for our clients and contractors.” weatherford is increasing both the quality and quantity of its training programmes to ensure the business has the right people in the right classes at the right time.

Konig adds: “Taking advantage of advanced training techniques, practical hands-on training, and complex well simulators (located in Abu Dhabi training center), weatherford employees are prepared to face whatever challenges arise.”

Service Quality

To maintain the highest standards of operational excellence within Algeria is not only a requirement in the country but is something the industry has come to expect from weatherford as a result of its consistent success over the past 40 years.

This requirement becomes all the more prevalent moving forward though, given the current influx of new companies entering the oil services industry in Algeria, increasing the level of competition.

“Algeria is a definite regional stronghold for sustainable business

opportunities,” explains Konig.

“Weatherford has a long-term vision, and our projection goes beyond 2014. A long-term vision is critical to secure the required investments to support the expected growth.

“After nearly 40 years, weatherford still sees Algeria as a land of opportunities. with strong ties and trust built over the years with our partners and clients, we look forward to engaging in the coming unconventional resources and offshore research.”

All of this, as it has always done, will be completed with the highest levels of service quality in mind; a key to the company’s success which Chairman, President and CEO of weatherford, Bernard J. Duroc-Danner is keen to emphasise: “weatherford ‘owns’ service quality.

Our brand and our people are synonymous with service quality. “we build service quality into everything we do, with competency, unified systems, and consistent processes to deliver product and service reliability. Our quality culture drives our performance, profitability, and continued growth.

Service quality gives us and our clients a competitive edge.”

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Stallion Often considered the supplier of choice in the eyes of the customer, MRS Oil tells us more about their growth in Nigeria’s downstream sector Writer Emily Jarvis Project Manager Arron Rampling

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RS Oil is a conglomerate of companies with diverse activities that are focused on capturing the entire value chain in oil trading, shipping, storage, lube manufacturing, aviation, distribution & retailing in West and Central Africa. With a vision to be the leading integrated energy company recognised for their people,

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excellence and values, MRS are an organisation focused on improving operating efficiencies in all areas of the downstream sector. “With the stallion as our symbol, we’ve lived up to our reputation of excellence through our landmark acquisition of Chevron’s west African assets (Texaco), an achievement that has placed us on the league of global integrated multinationals. MRS Oil is now one

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The Chevron Acquisition and Beyond The acquisition of Chevron added over 680 further retail outlets to the Group’s distribution chain across West and Central Africa, making MRS one of the leading petroleum retailers on the continent, as the official distributor of Chevron lubricants in West Africa. Additionally, MRS partners with host governments to reach national aspirations such as providing employment opportunities, environmental sensitivity and economic growth. Currently backed by a team of approximately 800 employees and over 7,000 indirect staff located at various retail outlets in the region, MRS continue to provide a trusted and reliable service, nationwide and beyond.

Since this high-profile acquisition of Chevron and the Texaco brand in Nigeria, MRS Oil has built a very strong brand foundation with over 50 years experience in the Nigerian market. The company has invested in a fleet of barges and has more than 5,000 dedicated road tankers and 400,000 tonnes of floating storage. of the largest and most efficient Additionally, MRS also owns two downstream players, with solid roots aviation jet fuelling facilities in Lagos in Nigeria, Cameroon, Benin, Togo and Abuja, which have tank storage and Cote D’Ivoire,” highlights Paul capacities for refined products of over Bissohong, Managing Director for 122 million litres. Plus, MRS delivers MRS Oil. 200 million litres of Jet A-1 per year to As one of the largest and leading many of Nigeria’s major airports. “We marketers of refined products, are seeing a lot of success in aviation including quality gasoline, marine and activity across the region, we have also aviation fuels in Nigeria, the company embarked on refreshing the look and market premium fuels under the experience at all our retail outlets and MRS brand across hundreds of retail this has had a noticeable impact on service stations strategically spread volume growth,” Bissohong affirms. across Nigeria. With a wide range of As an NIS ISO 9001: 2008 company, lubricants and industry expertise, the company also offer premium lubricant MRS continues to strategically invest brands - Stallion and Premier Motor Oil. in storage capacities, jetty expansion, technological advancement in terminal MRS Oil’s proprietary blending facility and retail operations and its image and its research and development facilities in Apapa allow them to supply re-fresh activities in all its outlets in order to create a world of experience premium quality products, to their for all its esteemed customers. esteemed customers.

As a downstream company with an expansive retail network spread across West and Central Africa, MRS have entered into several strategic supply partnerships with various world class companies and host governments; in addition to Chevron, these include PZ Cussons, Cadbury, Procter & Gamble (P&G) and British American Tobacco (BAT).

MRS are an organisation focused on improving operating efficiencies in all areas of the downstream sector.

Renewed Performance Levels

Bissohong says that the oil and lubricant industries are witnessing a renewed wave of activities and performance levels which is repositioning the industry on a new path of growth and development: “Across the region, the government are making efforts to improve the integrity of infrastructure in the region, as a result, the industry is seeing less and less occurrence of a fuel crisis. In some areas, despite the activity of road-side fuel peddlers, with its negative impact on retail business, the region as a whole is providing a lot of opportunities in industrial areas.”

The development of infrastructure in Nigeria such as roads, airports, mining, and agriculture is generating a lot of opportunities for the oil industry as Bissohong further explains: “In some parts of the region, the industry

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Nichole Integrated Investment

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ichole Integrated Investment, based in Lagos, offers services in investment and asset management, haulage, real estate and consultancy.

Within our real estate arm, we offer property sales, leasing and renting, and also offer management of properties.

Our asset management business provides investment management and advisory services to institutional clients, financial intermediaries, private clients, and investment vehicles around the world.

is undergoing a subtle but steady transformation that would hopefully result in a highly robust industry as soon as the current smuggling of petroleum products from the neighbouring countries is addressed.”

The smuggling of counterfeits and low quality brands is a major challenge for MRS Oil, which the company are working hard to curtail with the help of various associations and the relevant government units.

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The MRS Card – A Fleet Management Tool Designed for the efficient control of organisational fuel cost and consumption, the MRS card is aimed at effective monitoring and reporting of an organisation’s fleet activities. This rechargeable smartcard is used to pay for products offered at MRS service stations. “The card offers portability, is durable and secure and guarantees customer satisfaction,” Bissohong says.

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Our haulage business engages in prompt and timely delivery of petroleum products such as PMS, AGO, DPK and ATK to our customer and client base across the country

www.nicholeintegrated.com

An Efficient Downstream Player

Over the years, MRS has received several awards and accolades for operational excellence, including the Pearl Award for Excellence in 2013 for the highest net asset ratio. Besides this, the company are active in the CSR sphere and are directly involved in efforts to improve football talents, right from the grassroots. “The first under-12 football competition in Nigeria was organised by us and this remarkable soccer event has been sustained for the last two years. It re-groups over 1,000 young individuals annually,” Bissohong proudly exclaims. The aim is to discover young talented players who will represent the country in future international competitions.

MRS believes that their desire to be the market leader who provides a consistently outstanding retail experience would clearly differentiate them from the

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• Investment Management • Assest Management • Consultancy • Oil and Gas E: peter.omokaro@nicholeintegrated.com T: 00234 817 307 8252 | 00234 815 939 3141

www.nicholeintegrated.com InnOvAtIOn And flexIbIlIty, quICk And hIGh results OrIented wOrk

competition. “Our desire to refresh our retail look indicates that 2015 will be a prosperous year for us in terms of volume increase. After the election in Nigeria, we are foreseeing a reduction in road sales/counterfeit products further to the deregulation that may happen. We also want to grow our market share in strategic segments,” emphasises Bissohong.

When identifying future market trends, Bissohong highlighted that 82% of energy consumption in Nigeria is currently made up of traditional biomass like wood, waste and kerosene. “Therefore, the potential for shifting consumers to cleaner cooking Gas or LPG is significant. It is important to accelerate this conversion particularly for lower-income households,” he adds.

With a strong desire to be the preferred fuel marketer in the hearts and minds of the customer, MRS Oil hope that their reliability, high quality, cleanliness and safety practices create the perfect product to match. “We strive to be a leading integrated African energy company, ultimately recognised by its people, excellence and values,” Bissohong signs off.

SID OIL AND GAS LIMITED previously known as SID INVESTMENTS LIMITED

No 75 Maiduguri Road, Opp. NNPC Depot Maiduguri Road, Hotoro, Kano, Nigeria

T: 0803 586 0413 | 0806 7079095 E: sidinvestments@yahoo.com danfulanikg@yahoo.com

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Majwe Mining’s Project Director Rod Fraser tells us of the benefits of large scale contract mining - a relatively new concept in Botswana - and provides insight into the Cut 8 Project at Jwaneng Diamond Mine in Botswana Writer Emily Jarvis Project Manager James Mitchell s a Joint venture company, Majwe Mining have been able to draw on the strengths of three companies from three different countries, bringing together both international experience and a wide array of industry knowledge from Australia, Republic of South Africa and Botswana.

Hired by Debswana Diamond Company Ltd as the contractor for the Cut 8 Phase 2 Contract, Majwe Mining is set to move over 156 million cubic metres of material over the full term of its contract. Debswana is a partnership between the Government of the Republic of Botswana and the De Beers Diamond Company and is one of the world’s largest diamond producers by value.

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Komatsu

K

omatsu was founded in Komatsu City in 1921. Komatsu built its first crawler tractor more than 65 years ago and has since developed the world’s most extensive range of earthmoving, mining, construction and utility equipment.

Komatsu now offers a full product line up with quality parts and reliable service to meet all our customers’ needs in the earthmoving industries.

Komatsu products are directly marketed, serviced and supported throughout southern Africa, including Botswana and South Africa.

Our vision is to be the leading Earthmoving equipment company in southern Africa, with the highest level of product support and value add to our customers’ business.

www.komatsu.co.za

Danoher Contracting (Botswana) Pty Ltd

Debswana has mining operations at Jwaneng, Orapa, Letlhakane and Damtshaa in Botswana, and plays a fundamental role in Botswana’s economy, producing over 70% of the country’s export earnings and 30 per cent of its GDP. Moreover, as pits continue to go deeper to access more diamonds, this drives the overall strip ratios up, which means the need for more cost effective solutions, efficiencies and productivities that large scale mining contractors can deliver are going to become more and more important. As Majwe’s first contract in Southern Africa, Rod Fraser, Projects Director, tells us more about the mine and the impact it has had on the Batswana economy.

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Tell me about the Cut 8 Project in more detail

Formed between Leighton (the world’s largest contract miner in prime locations across Australia, Asia, Middle East and Africa), Basil Read Mining and Bothagka Burrow Botswana (a local contract mining company), Majwe Mining was formed with the sole purpose of working on the Cut 8 Phase 2 project as the contractor at Jwaneng Diamond Mine. The Jwaneng Diamond Mine is owned by the Debswana Diamond Mining Company and it is the richest diamond mine in the world by value. Majwe’s contract is to mine what we call Cut 8. Cut 8 contains 156 Mbcm of material to be mined in a 66

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ctive throughout Southern Africa, Danoher Contracting is a crushing company specialising in the processing of materials for road base and aggregate for concrete.

Operating primarily in remote virgin quarries, Danoher are involved from the outset of site establishment through to drilling and blasting, which is managed within a specialist division of the firm, and on to rehabilitation.

Lead by an experienced team of managers who are experts in their fields, Danoher’s quality and depth enables highcapacity output on multiple simultaneous sites with an emphasis on excellence in a highly competitive industry.

Danoher has been contracted by Majwe for the past 18 months on the Debswana mine in Jwaneng Botswana.

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Komatsu Botswana southern africa’s full range provider of earthmoving, mining, construction and utility equipment

Plot 58, Int. Commercial Park, Private Bag 00137, Gaborone, Botswana Tel: (00267) 3928343 | Fax: (00267) 3928515 | www.komatsu.co.za

351/2 Sixth Road Bredell, Johannesburg Tel: +27 83 609 5554 Fax: +27 86 216 4231

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month timeframe in order to provide access to the diamond bearing pipes underneath. As part of our contract, our job is to maintain, plan and schedule all of the equipment and safely manage it all. With a contract valued at $586 million, Majwe Mining will move 400 million tonnes of waste between 2011 and completion in 2016. This is our first contract in Southern Africa but we want to grow our business and bring our people along on the journey with us.

The Cut 8 project is a project of national significance and is critical to the Batswana economy. As a result of the mine’s importance, the project must be delivered on time in order to ensure continuity of diamond bearing ore into the Jwaneng process plant, and consequently diamonds to help fuel the growth of the economy.

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For the Batswana Mining Industry to really take its rightful place on the global stage a lot more operations will have to embrace these more modern work cycles and the boost in productivity that they deliver

What has your biggest challenge been and how do you intend to combat it?

Our biggest challenge at the moment is to boost our effective hours and our dig rates. We have the three biggest electric rope shovels on the continent and a fleet of ultra-class trucks. We need to double side load with the shovels at all faces with thirty second buckets. The trucks are set up for 300 tonne payloads and the shovels deliver 100 tonnes in each bucket, therefore three passes to load a truck in 90 seconds. We have operated at these levels for short periods of time but we need to continue to strive to bring all of the systems (people, planning, power, water, maintenance) together in a fully integrated manner so that we can be more consistent with our production.

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How would you sum up the current state of the mining industry in Botswana?

The industry is growing, there are new opportunities opening up. There will be more large scale contracting opportunities in the future as the mines get bigger and more complex.

As contractors we need to be able deliver value to our client’s operations through efficiencies and productivities because we’re able to concentrate on the operational side of things, which theoretically should free our clients up to concentrate on what they need to do which is sell their product into the market at the best price possible and replace depleted ore reserves via exploration and mine development or acquisition.

There is no reason that the mining industry in Botswana cannot compete with the Chileans, the Australians, the Canadians and the Brazilians.

There are a few work practices that need to change. For example we are the first company to operate a large scale mine here with a 12 hour shift cycle. Most other places operate an 8 hour cycle. For the Batswana Mining Industry to really take its rightful place on the global stage a lot more operations will have to embrace these more modern work cycles and the boost in productivity that they deliver, especially as the capital intensity of the equipment increases.

How has being influenced by your Australian, South African and Batswana knowledge helped cement the local reputation of the mine?

You don’t know what you don’t know.

If we operate within a vacuum with no outside influences or new ideas all things will eventually reach stagnation where no improvement can occur.

Botswana as a nation seems to be acutely aware of the need to engage with the rest of the world. They have to their credit sent many of their children overseas to study at universities abroad and then they have come home to help contribute to the development of the country and its economy. Additionally the country has been open to people from the outside coming in with their ideas and methodologies and making a contribution as well. Operating the sort of equipment we do and on the scale that we do with the technical requirements that come with it, there was a definite requirement to bring in some skills and experience from outside of the country and work to transfer those skills to the locals.

We also have to remember that large scale contract mining is a relatively new concept in this country. There has been small contracting around just as there is in other parts of the world but the big operations are generally executed by a mining house rather than a contractor who is willing to take on production and machine availability risk. Majwe, via its shareholders, has the backing of the biggest mining contractor on the

planet in Leighton Holdings. We have no problem in bringing the strength of a Leighton Holdings along with our South African partner, with all of its contracting experience, to the table for the benefit of our client. Our local partner in Bothakga Burrow Botswana plays an absolutely pivotal role in terms of country knowledge, supply chain knowledge and very important understanding of the cultural work environment.

We recently had two shovel operators leave us who had been head hunted to go and work in Zambia where there is a shovel just commencing operation that is the same as our three shovels. We let these guys go with our blessing.

We had trained them from scratch and now we had turned them into a wanted commodity with skills that were wanted both at home and abroad; skill that others desired. These two can now really go places. They are breaking new ground for a Motswana and the world is now their oyster. This was manifestation of the skills transfer actually starting to be visible. It was an exciting moment for us.

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A company backed by a team of experienced, knowledgeable and dependable staff that provide value-add services to its product range Writer Emily Jarvis Project Manager Arron Rampling

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arlequin International Ghana Limited (HIT) has an experienced, knowledgeable and dependable team who are at the forefront of your general mechanical and hydraulic engineering needs. Since formation in 1998, the company has been providing services in the mining, oil and gas, agriculture, and ports and harbour sectors.

“Here at HIT we always find the best possible solutions available for our

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clients, we continuously motivate our staff to achieve their optimum level of productivity and together as a team we are always reaching for new heights,” says the company. with unrivalled capabilities within the engineering market, whether it is hydraulic, electrical or mechanical, Harlequin is able to provide added value to its products and services. “At HIT no job will be taken on unless it is known for sure that the work will be accomplished resulting in complete customer satisfaction.”

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The company has worked on crucial Ghanaian turn-key projects, which have been completed efficiently and to a high standard whilst remaining cost effective. After investing 1.5 million dollars in specialised equipment, Harlequin continues to grow its status as the preferred supplier in all industries in which it operates.

As a distributor and supplier of a wide product offering from companies such as Krost shelving, Hyva, Linde, Toolquip, Enerpac, Gedore, Rigid and

Aeroquip, Harlequin remains the go-to name for a host of industries. It has achieved this with an unprecedented range of capabilities within the engineering market, a committed, experienced and reliable workforce, and a history of adding value to its hydraulic, electrical and mechanical services and products.

Meeting the Highest Standards

Today, the business boasts 2,000 square metres of workshop area, state-of- the-art fabrication centres, hydraulic repair centres, engineering and CNC centres, brush plating, metrology, a spray booth and temperature controlled storage areas, as well as a well stocked forklift centre and an expertly manned CAD centre with the latest in CAD and solid works software.

But you shouldn’t just take Harlequin’s word for it. The firm was the first of its kind to receive the ISO 9001:2008 certification in Ghana via Det Norske veritas (DNv). This accreditation neatly demonstrates to its customers that all of HIT’s products, procedures and training regimes meet the highest exacting standards.

Guaranteed Project Completion

For HIT, it is not just about having the right talent and resources. It is also about knowing how to apply them.

Consequently, the company will never take a job on unless it can guarantee to see the project through to a satisfactory conclusion. The company’s experience in completing quality turn-key projects means that it knows exactly where and when it can provide the best products at the height of value for money.

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Vast Product Range

To get a better idea of how Harlequin became so successful however, it’s worth taking a look at an individual line of the company’s product range, in particular, its extensive offering of forklift trucks. HIT is the exclusive agent for Linde Material Handling Equipment in Ghana, a position that it holds with pride because Linde Material Handling are among the world’s best manufacturers of forklift trucks and warehouse handling equipment, as well as being well known for their hydrostatic drives that are used internationally in farming, construction and forestry machinery.

TEN Project

Over the last year, HIT has experienced some phenomenal changes. The oil and gas industry in Ghana is slowing due to no planned exploration rigs in the waters at present. However, the TEN Project (Tweneboa, Enyenra and Ntomme) is currently underway and Harlequin has been awarded a manufacturing contract for this oil and

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HIT’s implementation of the latest in technological innovations cements their position as the preferred supplier to all industries

“This would be a first in Ghana, so all major activities are now focussed on this contract, which should be completed by May 2016,” states the company.

The company hope that this project will secure the longevity of their position in the mining industry for future years to come.

Cutting Edge Software

As well as standing by the best names in the business, the company is also able to hardness some of the latest technologies. HIT recently purchased the USM Vision total weld inspection solution and the software will create an integrated database using gas exploration development. procedures drawn from international The TEN fields are located in the codes and standards, with ray tracing Deepwater Tano licence area, which functionality to aid in the validation of covers more than 800km2, and lies UT parameters.

The cutting edge software is used in around 20km west of Tullow’s Jubilee collaboration with a specially designed field. The project is expected to hand-held flaw detector that features deliver first oil in 2016, with a plateau a unique user interface that uses two production rate of 80,000 barrels of track balls to direct the device, making oil per day. Future development of gas resources at TEN is anticipated following it easy to use for even untrained operators. The device weighs only four the commencement of the oil start-up.

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kilograms and boasts a 10.4 inch screen with a 1024 x 768 resolution, as well as a hot battery swap exchange so that low batteries cannot halt workflows.

preferred Supplier

HIT’s implementation of the latest in technological innovations cements their position as the preferred supplier to all industries. “we run a professional operation and stay ahead of the times. with our focus on innovation, we bring the latest equipments to our clients.

Moreover, without their support – always pushing us to serve them better – we would not be where we are today.

“The level of trust that Blue Chip international companies put in us is enormous. So we consider our clients as partners rather than customers, and we will continue to push forwards on this mutually rewarding basis.

“Furthermore, without the commitment of the people, we would not be as successful as we are today.

It is our combined team effort that has allowed us to become a leading supplier in Ghana,” concludes HIT.

Stellar Express TNT Ltd 5 Agbaamo Link, , Airport Residential Area P.O Box KIA 164, Accra, Ghana Telephone: +233(0)302953531 +233(0)302953532 Mobile: +233(0)54432051 Email: tntinquiries@stellar-africa.com

www.tnt.com

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hEALthCArE A year on and Gerties continues its adventure, expanding its ever-growing reach across Kenya with the advent of outpatient clinics Writer Emily Jarvis

Project Manager Serge Utting

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urGILaBS LTd InTroduCES your SoLuTIon For non InvaSIvE HEMoGLoBIn SpoT-CHECk TESTInG The Pronto-7 offers nonivasive and quick spot-check testing of total hemoglobin (SpHb), SpO2, pulse rate, and perfusion index, which may provide the following benefits: CLInICIan • Facilities timely patient assessment • Reduces the need to wait for lab results

Chief guest, Mrs. Susan Otieno, acting Chief Nursing Officer at the Ministry of Health receives a bouquet of roses during the 9th paed nursing graduaction in December 2104

ertrude’s Children’s Hospital is the largest hospital in East and Central Africa that is dedicated exclusively to the care of children. For over 65 years, the hospital has provided high standards of paediatric care for children right from birth to 21 years of age. CEO Gordon Odundo’s care and devotion to providing the best service possible to the country’s children is mirrored in the unparalleled level of care the hospital provides.

I previously spoke to Gordon in issue 11 of Africa Outlook and in just twelve short months, the organisation has derived great success from the opening of the Chandaria Medical Centre (opened in November 2013), and its new ventures into developing outpatient clinics across the country.

“As a result of the rise in bed occupancy numbers that we have seen this year – from 60 to 71 percent – we have diversified our offering by increasing our number of outpatient clinics, which means that ultimately, we can reach more people,” says the CEO. “The growth in bed occupancy numbers can be attributed to the opening of a surgical ward in the Chandaria wing. we set this up to

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iron out the processes involved in getting our patients prepped for theatre, and our doctors and nurses are very happy with the efficiencies this brings to the hospital.”

The hospital, which is affectionately nicknamed ‘Gerties’, has also continued its training programmes, creating newly qualified doctors and nurses with the relevant specialisms.

outpatient Expansion

Last time we spoke to Gordon, he talked about the imminent opening of the hospital’s first outpatient clinic in

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Mombasa. “we opened the centre in May and have seen a good response.

Advantageously for patients, this means that they do not have to travel to the hospital directly for all their medical care and therefore, they can be reached faster.

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Hospital Admittance Numbers

“It is important to consider that it

costs approximately GERTRUDES - SURGI LABS - QTR.indd 1seven times more

per night to be treated in a hospital versus being seen at an outpatient clinic. We are directly seeing the impact from this and have been able to enhance our level of care for children in harder to reach regions,” he says.

Moreover, treating patients via these methods costs Gerties significantly less, this crucially presents a more cost-effective solution that saves patients and the healthcare industry time, which can even mean catching a disease early while it is more treatable; or even be the difference between life and death.

“Through the clinics, we hope to greatly reduce the number of children falling sick from infectious diseases.

Our costs can therefore be spent elsewhere, and we have more available spending to provide the much needed specialist care to those who are critically ill.”

15/12/2014 11:32:53

Through the clinics, we hope to greatly reduce the number of children falling sick from infectious diseases

As it stands currently, Gerties tend to approximately 360,000 outpatients a year and admit approximately 9,000 of these to the hospital. “From these numbers, you can see just how much of an impact the clinics are having to our hospital admittance numbers,” adds Gordon.

Mid-December 2014 saw Gerties open a further outpatient clinic in Nairobi, which they hope replicates the success seen in Mombasa.

“Opening clinics in such quick succession suggests that this was the right thing to do,” he comments.

Furthermore, in the next 18 months, Gertrude’s will be doing a complete conversion of an existing older clinic by constructing a new building altogether. This outpatient clinic is located in Doonholm, a settlement in the Nairobi area. “We are currently in the approval stages and hope to start construction in March 2015.”

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JCA accreditation mock visit

Increasing Reach

Gordon highlighted that the hospital is regularly approached by potential medical businesses who share the same vision to further increase patient reach in the country via outpatient clinics: “Now that we have completed our Mombasa site, our next focus areas will be in city centres such as Kisumu, Eldoret, Nakuru. In the long term, we hope to have a presence in these cities and municipalities in the next six years.”

Gerties’ strong desire to work with partners is fuelled by Gordon’s view to pool its resources and share knowledge with other medical institutions. “Fundamentally, we want to improve the outlook for children in Kenya. In particular, the immunisation rates in the country are simply not high enough. We operate in a country where there are a lot of infectious diseases that affect children. As a result, we want to share our data with other people and merge our resources in the country. Greater resources means better healthcare.”

The hospital is confident that having access to dedicated resources in

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children’s healthcare from a shared partner network will go a long way towards improving medical standards across the board. “This is particularly prevalent when it comes to private hospitals as more than 50 percent of healthcare in Kenya is done by the private sector. Subsequently, we hope a new system will emerge through Public Private Partnerships that will address access to healthcare for all,” emphasises Odundo.

Specialist Treatments

As one of the only dedicated children’s hospitals in Kenya, Gerties is faced with many challenging scenarios. Attracting and retaining health workers is one aspect that is a country-wide challenge. For Gertrude’s, the major problem is having enough specialist workers to care for children who are critically ill, and also raising the money for the necessary treatments.

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Our faultless devotion to children runs throughout our mission, goals and staff and this will never change

Gerties has always made a huge contribution to healthcare in the region due to being a Trust.

With an established training college, the hospital is always churning out new fully qualified talents to tend today’s generation of patients. Throughout its history, Gertrude’s has partnered with other institutions in order to offer the best medical education possible in Kenya.

“We have a very successful programme training paediatric endocrinologists. When we started six years ago with this training, we only had one fully trained in Africa, now we have over forty who have come from various countries and backgrounds.”

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Free medical camp and donation of a refillable first aid box to Maweni Secondary school

Additionally, Gordon is very keen to get more involved in medical research and has the ambition to be a leading health research centre for child healthcare in the East Africa region: “It will take time to build up this profile, but I am optimistic that we can achieve this status.”

Active CSr work

As a charitable Trust, Gerties continues to participate in corporate social responsibility projects in the community. Not only does the hospital itself hold this status, but it also has established the Gertrude’s Hospital Foundation; and a considerable amount of CSR is completed under this banner as the organisation remains very active.

Most recently, the charity and its partners have been involved in advocating for children in road safety, which Gordon says has been a triumph for the region: “A considerable number of children take the bus to school. Not only do we hope that the initiative will reduce accident numbers, but a new law might be passed in this area as well.”

Besides this, the Foundation is also running a cardiac programme, which provides the necessary support to children who aren’t able to afford heart surgery.

“Another key part of our CSR is our outreach programmes. we have medical camps in high density areas of the country. In most cases, this is a completely free service that reaches as many people as possible,” he adds.

www.alexanderforbes.co.ke What does the future hold for Gerties?

Gertrude’s Children’s Hospital will continue to spend time consolidating its strengths as a leader in the region for children’s specialist care, with further outpatient clinics on the cards in key areas of the country. “Extending our community reach is our key focus. We can - and will - do so much more in the country. Our faultless devotion to children runs throughout our mission, goals and staff and this will never change,” concludes Gordon.

Official opening of the Mombasa satellite clinic in Nyali with Nyali M.P Hezron Awiti Bollo and the first patient

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Lenmed Health Bokamoso Private Hospital brings a future of good health to thousands of people in the Southern Africa region Writer Emily Jarvis Project Manager Serge Utting

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okamoso Hospital is a facility owned by Bpomas and run by Lenmed Health, an organisation that also fronts hospitals and other medical health facilities in South Africa and Mozambique. Backed by this level of expertise, the hospital is able to bring together an array of industry specialities to offer patients access to state-of-the-art facilities that is matched by a world class service.

Quality Healthcare at Affordable Rates With a mission to provide quality and affordable healthcare to all, Bokamoso remain the largest private specialist hospital in Botswana. “And in order to be able to enhance our status, we intend to open a physical rehabilitation centre in 2015, which will equip us to conduct open heart surgery in the

private sector,” says Ruben Naidoo, CEO of Lenmed Health Bokamoso Private Hospital.

Bokamoso Hospital has a clear target to cater to needs which had not previously been met in Botswana, a country which faces many challenges when it comes to health; burdened

by HIV, Tuberculosis and Malaria.

The hospital is on the frontline and patients can expect the very best levels of treatment. Now, the facility is equipped with over 200 beds and boasts an incredible 60 specialists who are based permanently on site.

Moreover, by choosing to use local suppliers, Bokamoso not only benefit from a cost saving and local support, but they are also making a conscious decision to support local businesses.

“We try our best to support the local establishments in order to enhance their growth and contribute to the country’s GDP,” adds Naidoo.

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“with only two private hospitals in the country, we are the only one backed by two organisations that can offer state-of-the-art services,” explains Naidoo.

Technological Advancement

The Chief of Mmopane painting as part of a CSR project

Specialities Beyond the Basics Naidoo says that Bokamoso’s range of specialist services is what truly makes the organisation stand out: “We can offer patients a ‘fully joined-up service’ via our specialities in neurology, cardiology, endocrinology, haemodialysis and peritoneal dialysis, sports medicine, pathology and gynaecology.”

Additionally, Bokamoso’s other facilities include a cardiac catheterisation lab, an oncology and nuclear medicine unit, a dialysis unit and, radiology. It also houses a rehabilitation unit, an orthopaedic unit, ophthalmology, and has 24-hour accident and emergency services.

“Our five operating theatres can offer a range of procedures including orthopaedic surgery, plastic surgery and cardiac surgery and we are growing our specialities all the time with the aim of providing the best medical services to the country,” Naidoo says.

“Our mission is to provide affordable and quality patient care through excellent customer service that meets the standards of our patients, staff, internal and external stakeholders.”

Lenmed Health Bokamoso Private Hospital provides equipment and facilities which other hospitals cannot.

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The continual rate of advancement in technologies relating to healthcare has changed the medical climate forever. What was once state-of-theart a few years ago has since been upgraded; most likely several times over. Conversely, patients also have improved access to technology – specifically the internet – which has played a large part in empowering the public and their ability to question the medical industry. “Our doctors and hospital are challenged with the level of knowledge patients read on the internet. Therefore, it becomes difficult to convince the public that doctors and nurses know best,” says Naidoo.

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We are growing our specialities all the time with the aim of providing the best medical services to the country

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niting clinical and workflow excellence

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Siemens Healthcare is proud to be a technology partner to Bokamoso Private Hospital.

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BEP 2000 Advance System Where Convenience Begins siemens.com/diagnostics The BEP 2000 Advance System meets the demands for a high level of automation in this millenium. The requirements for the next generation of MTP-systems are included as well as newly developed unique software features. The well known and proven BEP concepts for GMP/GLP (good manufacturing practice/good laboratory practice) are consequently integrated in the BEP 2000 Advance System.

Bpomas and Lenmed Takeover The hospital went into sequestration in 2010 and towards end of last year a group from South Africa called Lenmed Health took the reins.

Since the new management took over, the hospital has been on course to do well and its future is looking bright as Naidoo further explains: “This was a pivotal moment for us and our patents are reaping the benefits.”

Even with this takeover, Bokamoso continues to look at ways to improve its pioneering healthcare services and delivery in Botswana. Subsequently, the hospital uses patient satisfaction questionnaires to identify areas in which it is excelling and those that require attention. “we have some tools in place which we use to measure our standards - like the patient satisfaction questionnaires - which give us an idea of areas which we are excelling in and those that we need to address,” comments Naidoo.

Deputy PS. CEO & other VIPS touring a local school

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“The hospital is developing tremendously, there are so many opportunities for the hospital to grow and meet the needs of Batswana.

We play a pivotal role in the future of Botswana’s healthcare industry and being a healthy nation is one of pillars of the country’s vision 2016. We are optimistic about the future and will continue to focus on patient care which is one of the hospital’s core values,” he adds.

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Highest Level of Care for Botswana

We are optimistic about the future and will continue to focus on patient care

As the most well-equipped and specialist hospital in the country, Bokamoso has a huge role to play within the medical industry in Botswana. Health professionals, senior and junior doctors all pull together to offer the very best patient care.

“Being a part of Bpomas and Lenmed is advantageous because between them they own seven

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Bokamoso Hospital adopts 1,200 pupils at a local school

hospitals in South Africa and one in Maputo. As a result, they are well-equipped and knowledgeable in the medical field which has been a blessing for us in Botswana. “we can finally provide the service that the people of Botswana deserve, both now and in the future. This is backed by the strength of our name – Bokamoso – which means ‘the future’ in Setswana,” concludes Naidoo.

Being a part of Bpomas and Lenmed is advantageous because between them they own seven hospitals in South Africa and one in Maputo

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Lusitania Food Products continues to increase and diversify its range of products to complement its equally flexible supply chain management strategy Writer Matthew Staff Project Manager Ben Wigger usitania Food Products is taking its ‘can-do’ attitude to a wider footprint than ever before as it continues to expand a business which has grown year-on-year in the southern African region since 1997.

Bought by East London-based entrepreneur, Tony Cotterell more than 25 years ago, Lusitania Food Products started as a seafood wholesaler and has subsequently expanded its vast portfolio of products to become one of largest national frozen and chilled distributors in South Africa; comprising more than 1,000 lines of branded frozen meat and chicken products, vegetables and dairy goods under its remit.

Adding desserts, pastries and cakes to the ever-growing list of offerings to the hospitality sector, Lusitania is now fully equipped to maintain its regional rise, and revenue growth targets, as Branch Manager, Lorette Kotze explains: “with a portfolio of over 1,000 products from a range of suppliers we are able to deliver quality products at competitive prices five days a week in the major cities and weekly in the outer lying areas.

“Our growth in the last two years has been above market expectation, and with branches in Johannesburg, Durban & Cape Town, we have a wellestablished footprint in the sector.”

Growth has traditionally been achieved within Lusitania via a combination of organic growth and strategic acquisitions of new customers and distributorships, building upon its extensive range of products and services as it does so.

Maintaining such a proactive philosophy requires not only stringent planning and market expertise, but also a positive, can-do approach, which the business prides itself on.

“The major contributing factor to the success of the business over the past 24 months has been the people,” Kotze says. “with some restructuring in several departments and strategic appointments we have a great balance of experience and expertise.

“The daily challenges that the hospitality sector send us are met with our ‘can do’ approach and positive attitude.”

Our growth in the last two years has been above market expectation

This ethos is where the company believes it sets itself apart from competitors, instilling the same drive in each of the 180 personnel, and similarly transferring that same determination across all branches, as well as customers and partners, to keep as streamlined an offering as possible.

“The Johannesburg branch has undergone some realignment over the past 18 months with regards to the facilities, sales representatives and telesellers/ traders,” Kotze notes. “Each area has a dedicated business unit managing an area.

This has improved communication and we have become more consistent.

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“Our understanding of our customer and their requirements has also improved. This was seen at our Gauteng Open Day where over 300 visitors attended the one-day show jointly hosted by our suppliers.”

The company’s sales team is also encouraged to buy into the integrated philosophy, receiving regular supplier product reviews and visits to the suppliers to discuss, prepare and taste existing and new products; thus promoting a hands-on feel throughout the entire value chain.

The management team believes that Lusitania’s greatest asset is its people who are committed to service excellence, and are offered an ongoing training programme to enhance product knowledge, technical skills and customer support.

“Lusitania knows that a close, unified company, with a determination to fulfil mutual goals, means a successful and happy organisation.

Life-long career opportunities encourage dedication to the company, also benefiting a loyal customer base,” the company states.

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Managing Efficiencies

Having the drive and workforce to succeed is one thing, but the Lusitania package is completed through an equally well-formed strategy in terms of processes and operations, beginning right at the very top.

The company has strategic alliances in Botswana, Mozambique and Swaziland to bring its services closer to the customer, while it is also able to utilise resources within the group, including logistics and an in-house outsourcing business to manage overheads, ensuring the most efficient service to clients.

Kotze continues: “While competition is good, all distributors have large areas to service. Making sure that we are consistent with our offer, ensuring stock availability and on-time delivery has paid dividends in growing certain areas where the competition has not been focused.

The Mpumalanga region is a good example of this, where we have seen business grow five-fold.”

As well as Mpumalanga, the company also has sales representatives in Gauteng, Limpopo and the North West, Free State, ensuring it is able to engage first-hand with customers to create a customised, mutuallybeneficial service.

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Fish On Line

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ish On Line offers a wide range of seafood products and services, with a very specific, yet simple, business approach; without the long-term sustainability of the product we import and export, the people we work with, and the customers we serve… we would have no future… and far less fish for that matter!

Fish On Line has become one of SA’s leading suppliers to the seafood food service and wholesale sectors and offers a range of seafood distribution services including: • Importing of Seafood • Seafood Warehousing & Distribution • Seafood Quality Assurance

www.fishonline.co.za

Ensuring the freshness and safety of the products is of paramount importance, making the local focus even more prevalent and the extent of imported products kept to a minimum where possible.

The company adds: “Lusitania is set to strengthen its position in a highly competitive market through International Company, a carefully structured consolidation Operating Locally programme, supported by the launch of new food products, to meet exact As a proudly South market demand.

African company “Lusitania works hard at operating nationally, relationships and has secured the the company also tries distribution agreements for some to aid efficiencies, where possible, through of the most respected brands in the frozen and chilled food sector.” the procurement These include the likes of McCain, of locally sourced Heinz, Unilever and DairyBelle, products, distributed epitomising the position that via its national fleet of Lusitania currently holds within 34 vehicles fitted with the industry. freezer units.

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Sustainable Future

The extension of existing supply routes and the addition of vehicles to routes where capacity and frequency are a challenge has increased the gap between the company and its market rivals further, not only ensuring that it provides a superior service, but also a geographical advantage.

“Some improvements with regards to IT infrastructure are also being initiated with the end result aimed at growing the overall basket with all clients.”

Moving into a larger Johannesburg facility is also a medium-term strategy for Lusitania as it nears capacity, consequently enhancing even further the range and flexibility it is able to offer its customers moving forward, while also keeping in mind the seafood origins from which this business grew from as part of its sustainability strategy.

The company concludes: “Lusitania is setting a new trend in South Africa by influencing the choices people make through reliability, consistency and excellent customer service.”

“Transformation in the seafood market to a sustainable basis will safeguard the oceans for future generations.”

Blue Atlantic Trading, one of the largest seafood import companies in South Africa, supply both imported & local seafood products to wholesale markets in South Africa and its neighbouring countries.

Blue Atlantic Trading proudly subscribes to the MSC principles of responsible fishing practices and is MSC Chain of Custody Certified.

All Blue Atlantic Trading’s products are subjected to testing and compliance of the National Regulator for Compulsory Specifications (NRCS) providing peace of mind that all products meet required standards.

Many of the retail product lines offered are marketed in the trusted Ocean Catch Brand, and in addition to this BAT exclusively supply the well-known Marfrio, and Atlantic Brands, as well Leroy Frozen Salmon in the region.

PO Box 42891 | Ottery Cape Town | 7785

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Tuskys supermarkets are the most pronounced chain stores found in Nairobi city centre and the surrounding areas Writer Emily Jarvis Project Manager Callum Philp upermarkets are rapidly penetrating urban food retail in Kenya and spreading well beyond their initial market niche among the urban middle class and into the food markets of lower-income groups.

Having penetrated the processed and staple food markets much earlier and faster than fresh foods, they have recently begun to make inroads into the fresh fruits and vegetables category. East African supermarkets, such as Tuskys, already buy about half the volume of produce exported, and thus represent a significant new ‘dynamic market’ opportunity for farmers.

The important changes in their procurement systems bring significant opportunities and challenges for small farmers, and have implications for agricultural diversification and rural development programmes and policies.

African Supermarkets

Supermarkets are very demanding customers.

They require higher and more consistent quality, consistent year round delivery, larger volumes, more stringent payment terms, and so on.

Suppliers who are successful in meeting these criteria face great growth opportunities, but those who can’t make the grade are likely to be dropped. As the market share of supermarkets in food retailing grows, the effects of this supplier rationalisation process will not be marginal. This has raised considerable concern on how small producers, processors, distributors and retailers will adapt. They may not adapt, leading to exclusion. Alternatively, some small firms and farms may adapt, through collective action, investments and learning, taking full advantage of the growth opportunities offered by supermarkets.

Convenience is a Must

Over time, Kenyan shoppers bought their household necessities from the estate outside their court. They would then go across the road for their vegetables. Other items such as hand brushes would be bought from the hardware shop in the nearest town as the seller at the estate hardware store would charge exorbitant prices for his goods.

With the introduction of supermarkets in Kenya, this is no longer the case. Kenyans can do all

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The Rise of Supermarkets in Kenya

or most of their shopping under one roof. Today, Tuskys stock all sorts of goods that meet the average household needs: television sets, beds, gas cookers, clothes, you name it. Chain stores such as this have even gone as far as selling cooked food to Kenyans. Traditional retail outlets, with limited assortments, presented in drab decors, where consumers can’t pick-up items to look at them at their leisure and where they have to scramble for the attention of the shop attendant behind the counter, leave consumers unsatisfied, creating a pent-up demand for better alternatives.

The latter is provided by the emergence of the “all under one roof” premise, handling up to 50,000 different products which offer consumers the convenience to buy practically everything that in the past involved a day of numerous errands.

If, at the same time, these products can be offered at competitive prices, consumers will flock to supermarkets.

Tuskys have around 50 branches in all the major towns across Kenya.

With the ever increasing population in Nairobi, there are more supermarkets found within the Central Business District as compared to any other town in the country.

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While the supermarket as a concept is not new to Kenya (the first supermarkets arose in the 1960s), their rapid growth to market dominance is a very recent phenomenon, having taken off since the mid-1990s.

Self-service stores in general and supermarkets in particular have popped-up all over the country with the current count standing in excess of 300 supermarkets. In the main urban areas - Nairobi, Mombasa and Kisumu - we find the larger-format supermarkets (hypermarkets of up to 175,000 square foot in size) and the larger chains. In the smaller towns and main crossroad towns, convenience stores and smaller chains have emerged.

Central Location

Tuskys supermarkets are the most pronounced chain stores found in Nairobi city centre. There are at least six stores of the same brand within the city.

Tuskys’ store management has given the chain stores different names for ease of identification. Tuskys’ pioneer store is found at the far end of the city along Moi Avenue. It neighbours the 1998 August bomb blast memorial park and serves shoppers in downtown Nairobi.

Then, there is Tuskys Hakati, which is just off Mfangano Street; head North in the city and there is Tuskys Magic along Ronald Ngala Street and Tuskys Imara along Accra Road, which serves shoppers around the central area of the city.

Along the Northern edge on Tom Mboya Street are Tuskys Beba and Tuskys Daima. The two of them serve shoppers in the uptown parts of the city. This widespread placement of the Tuskys chain stores has greatly contributed to the brand’s popularity.

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Spice World limited

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eputed as a key player in the food industry for the past 36 years, Spice World Limited has grown from supplying their products not only regionally but also to international markets.

Our flagship Brand Butterfly is well established and is a market leader in the food category retail sector.

The success of Spice World Limited’s partnership with Tuskys over 24 years has enabled us to further our sales into various sectors. Spice World Limited grows with Tuskys by ensuring reliable delivery, convenience and value for money, thereby encouraging seamless long run working practices.

www.spiceworldltd.co.ke

Mjengo Limited

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ince being established in 1991, Mjengo Limited has grown from one of Kenya’s largest Trading & Distribution Companies into a renowned Manufacturer.

Our “Malbros Daawat” brand has grown to become one of East Africa’s leading Brands, having been awarded the “Superbrands” certification 2009/2011 & 2012/2014 as the only distinguished Rice Brand in its category. In 2014, the company introduced Spaghetti & Pasta as a brand extension of its “Malbros Daawat” portfolio.

Our Biscuit Brand “NuVita” also boasts of approximately 50% market share in Kenya & looking to expand our distribution to the region.

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Mjengo Limited, P.O. Box 1536 - 01000 Thika, Kenya, E-mail: daawat@mjengo.com, www.mjengo.com

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Sandton Convention Centre Johannesburg South Africa

2 0 t h - 2 2 n d J a n ua ry 2 0 1 5

11 th -12 th February 2015

1 0 th- 1 1 th M a r c h 2 0 1 5

Ports and Harbours West Africa

Customer Experience 2015

The Eko Hotel & Suits Laos Nigeria www.offshorewestafrica.com

Kofi Annan International Peacekeeping Centre Accra Ghana

26 th -28 th January 2015 www.portsharbourswestafrica.com

4th Annual Dredging and Port Expansion Africa Durban South Africa

www.watermanagementmining.com

Cape Town South Africa

16 -19 th

www.africadredging.com

February 2015

African Energy Indaba

http://bit.ly/12M7ITA

February 2015

www.africaenergyindaba.com

AITEC East Africa ICT Summit

18 th -19 th February 2015

Powering Africa Summit

2 8 t h - 3 0 t h J a n ua ry 2 0 1 5 www.energynet.co.uk

NG Telecoms Africa Summit

17 -18

th

28 th -29 th January 2015

Grand Hyatt Washington DC USA

www.upstreamwestafrica.com

Sheraton Pretoria Hotel South Africa

Dar es Salaam Tanzania www.agri-eastafrica.com

2 3 th- 2 5 th M a r c h 2 0 1 5

Sandton Convention Centre Johannesburg South Africa

Kenyatta International Conference Centre Nairobi Kenya

AGRI Business Conference East Africa

Upstream West Africa Summit Accra, Ghana

www.africacustomerexperience.com

th

2 7 th - 2 9 th J a n ua ry 2 0 1 5

th

www.terrapinn.com/exhibition/ retail-world-africa

www.aitecafrica.com

Aitec Banking & Mobile Money Uganda Africana Hotel Kampala Uganda

4 th- 5 th M a r c h 2 0 1 5 www.aitecafrica.com

1 4 th- 1 6 th A p r i l 2 0 1 5 World Travel Market Cape Town International Convention Centre, South Africa

1 5 th- 1 7 th A p r i l 2 0 1 5 www.wtmafrica.com

Aviation Africa 2015 Le Méridien Dubai Hotel & Conference Centre Dubai, United Arab Emirates

1 0 th- 1 1 th M a y 2 0 1 5 www.aviationafrica.aero

2015 Africa Assembly InterContinental Le Grand Paris, France

2 3 r d - 2 5 t h J u ne 2 0 1 5 www.oilcouncil.com/event/africa

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Our proven productive solutions are setting the standard for surface and underground mining world wide.

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