Andrew Stegmann

Mom’s deportation fear after Home Affairs blunder

A FISH Hoek woman, born in Denmark but married to a South African, fears police might deport her because the Department of Home Affairs bungled her application for permanent residency.

Mitte Kirsten has lived in South Africa for five years after relocating from Denmark with her husband and two children in 2011.

ON EDGE: Mitte Kirsten, with her husband Lloyd and their children Lola and Pablo, in Fish Hoek. A bungle by Home Affairs officials in Barrack Street has made her fear being wrongfully deported. Credit: supplied

She arrived in South Africa on a tourist visa in 2011 and then applied for a spousal 
visa, while at the same time seeking permanent residence. Her latest visa expired on May 15, 2015.

Two weeks ago her application for permanent residency was rejected by the Department of Home Affairs in Pretoria due to an incomplete “good cause letter”, which should have been filed by Home Affairs officials dealing with her application at the department’s Barrack Street branch.

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Andrew Stegmann

Emerging source market shows over 50% annual growth

Markets that have experienced significant growth over the last six months, and that already have over 1 000 arrivals include Saudi Arabia and Ireland. Arrivals from Saudi Arabia are up 56% for the first six months of the year, compared with 2015. By comparison, overseas arrivals are up 19% for the same period compared with 2015.

Tourism Minister, Derek Hanekom has highlighted this market as a growth market for SA, citing May arrivals of over 1 000. “We will watch with interest to see if these numbers are sustained from this relatively small, but high-spending market,” he said.

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Andrew Stegmann

New EU deal will boost local jobs, parly hears

Cape Town – The recently signed partnership between the European Union (EU) and seven of the Southern Africa Development Community member states will go a long way to create new job opportunities, said the ANC’s Joanmariae Fubbs in the National Assembly on Tuesday.

Fubbs, who is chairperson of the portfolio committee on trade and industry, was introducing the new economic partnership agreement (EPA) between the EU and the SADC countries for ratification by parliament.

The new EPA replaced the former Trade Development and Cooperation Agreement (TDCA) with the EU, which had less favourable terms than the new agreement.

“It’s great news,” Fubbs said, “as it’s  replacing the chapter on trade in the TDCA. The new agreement will enable South Africa to increase exports of value-added products to the EU, which is South Africa’s largest trading partner.”

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Andrew Stegmann

China deal to create over 2 000 jobs in SA

Johannesburg – An auto plant by a Chinese state-owned car manufacturer will create more than 2 500 jobs in South Africa.

The Beijing Automotive International agreed to build an R11bn ($759m) auto plant in South Africa, the biggest investment in a vehicle-production facility in the country in four decades.

The Beijing Automotive International plans to start production at the facility in 2018, chief executive officer Dong Haiyang told reporters in the southern coast city of Port Elizabeth on Tuesday.

The plant will be built in partnership with South Africa’s state-owned Industrial Development Corp. and have a capacity of 100 000 units a year by 2027, he said at the the industrial development zone where the factory will be located.

“South Africa’s automotive industry has received a major shot in the arm with the announcement of the biggest greenfield investment in 40 years,” the companies said in a joint statement.

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