According to data revealed by Flight Centre Business Travel (FCBT), the fastest growing international business destinations for South African travellers in 2018 were London, Lagos and Mauritius.
London saw a spectacular year-on-year growth of 47%, while Lagos and Mauritius reported year-on-year increases in numbers of respectively 35% and 34%. In fourth and fifth place are Harare and Dubai: traffic to Harare from South Africa increased by 24% and flights to Dubai were up 17%.
1. London
“Year after year, the city of London remains at the top of South African lists for both business and leisure travellers,” said Andrew Grunewald, FCBT team leader. He said that 2018 was no different despite the threat of Brexit.
“The city of London itself is also enjoying rapid growth with independent studies continually ranking it above rivals such as New York and Hong Kong,” said Grunewald. “It is one of the world’s leading finance centres and offers a huge variety of business venues and conference centres.”
2. Lagos
With more South African companies seeking to exploit opportunities north of our borders, it is not surprising to see Lagos place as the second fastest growing business destination for South African travellers, according to Grunewald.
“This African city is the main financial, economic and commercial centre of the Nigeria,” he said. “Lagos accounts for over 60% of industrial and commercial activities in the nation and is a financially viable city.”
3. Mauritius
The fact that Mauritius with its attractive tax regime and stable economy is the third fastest growing business destination comes hardly as a surprise, Grunewald said. The country ranked as the highest economy in Sub-Saharan Africa on the World Bank’s ‘Ease of Doing
Business’ Index and the country’s banks have become beacons of growth and stability in sub-Saharan Africa.
4. Harare
Harare places fourth for South African business travellers. Grunewald explains that the latest EY Africa Attractiveness report 2018 shows that Zimbabwe is the second most popular foreign investment destination in Southern Africa.
5. Dubai
In fifth position, Dubai with its strategic position, has become a hub for international business. The city’s regular summits, conferences and expos bring together business leaders from around the globe, Flight Centre said.
In South Africa
Within South Africa, FCBT reported that although Johannesburg, Cape Town and Durban continue to be the most popular air travel routes, the three fastest growing domestic airports in 2018 were in fact George (with a 70% growth year on year), followed by Kimberley (36%) and Lanseria (31%).
The phenomenal growth George experienced in 2018 as a business destination might come as a surprise, but this Garden Route town was in fact hailed as one of the Western Cape cities offering the highest quality of life, beating Cape Town.
“George has become increasingly popular as a business and investment destination thanks to its ideal location and low crime rate,” said Grunewald.
The Northern Cape and Kimberley remain an important business destination thanks to its mining and agriculture sectors. The area is also growing as a result of its renewable energy initiatives with a great number of solar plants developed over the past few years.
Kimberley Airport and Upington International Airport were voted in 2019 as the best airports in Africa by size and region, in the under 2 million passengers category.
Lanseria is steadily gaining ground as the third fastest growing domestic airport, Flight Centre said. This growth is not likely to slow down as the airport has announced it is aiming to double its passenger numbers to more than 4 million within the next six years.
For information as to how Relocation Africa can help you with your Mobility, Immigration, Research, Remuneration, and Expat Tax needs, email marketing@relocationafrica.com, or call us on +27 21 763 4240.
Sources: [1], [2]. Image sources: Luca Micheli [1], [2].
Gauteng’s New Online School Application System is Live
The application and placement process for the 2020 academic year for Grades 1 and 8 in Gauteng public schools went live on Monday (20 May).
The Admissions Online Application System was introduced to make it easy and convenient for parents to submit applications rather than queue at a school.
It has also provided accurate information to the Department of Education for planning purposes, such as the allocation of resources including educators, classrooms, learning and teaching study materials.
The department assured that the online process has improved and now has the capacity to accommodate 50,000 simultaneous users.
Parents or applicants with children in Grade R in the current school as well as for Grade 8 in Schools of Focused Learning or Schools of Specialization should also be made online.
When applying online, parents have a choice to submit a maximum of five applications using the following options:
First come, first serve
The rankings are subject to the availability of space in the school and will be conducted on a first come, first serve basis and on the following prioritization.
For this reason, applicants and parents are urged to use their own valid cell phone number or email address, the department said.
All communication with the parent regarding username, password and waiting list reference number will be conducted through the supplied cell phone number or email address.
Parents are urged to store the login details and reference number in a safe place.
Applicants and parents should then submit the following documents to the school within seven working days:
Upon submission of documents, parents must sign a register to indicate that documents were submitted and receive a confirmation of submission of documents receipt.
Placement of learners by the department will take place between 27 August – and 20 September 2019.
Parents/applicants will receive SMS notification of a successful and unsuccessful application to the school.
They have an obligation to accept or reject the placement offer within seven days. Failure to accept this within the given period will result in the offer being forfeited and it will be given to the next person on the queue.
To visit the online application website, click here.
For information as to how Relocation Africa can help you with your Mobility, Immigration, Research, Remuneration, and Expat Tax needs, email marketing@relocationafrica.com, or call us on +27 21 763 4240.
Sources: [1], [2]. Image sources: [1], [2].
SA Home Affairs Visitor Visa Directive
Visitors visas issued in terms of Section 11(2) of the SA Immigration Act to conduct short term work
The first visitors visa issued in terms of Section 11(2) of the SA Immigration Act (issued at the SA Missions), may be approved for a maximum duration of 3 months. Where a further extension is required within the RSA, an extension may be requested for a final period, not exceeding another 3 months.
Any person who has been issued with a visitors visa in terms of Section 11(2) of the SA Immigration Act and has had it extended for a further 3 months, shall not qualify for another visitors visa in terms of Section 11(2) of the SA Immigration Act, within that same calendar year. If such visa is issue with dates which overlap into a new calendar year, the dates falling into the new calendar year must be calculated as part of the new calendar year.
Back to back applications within the same year, by the same applicant, may not be accepted by the SA Missions and applications for extensions will only be accepted once in each calendar year.
It should further be noted that the DHA adjudicators have been instructed that when processing applications for extensions in terms of Section 11(1)(a) of the SA Immigration Ac (from within the RSA), they must ensure that the applicant does not end up having more than 180 days in a year.
For more information about visitor visas, visit the VFS website here.
For information as to how Relocation Africa can help you with your Mobility, Immigration, Research, Remuneration, and Expat Tax needs, email marketing@relocationafrica.com, or call us on +27 21 763 4240.
Sources: [1], [2]. Image sources: [1], [2].
5 Fast-growing Business Destinations for South Africans
According to data revealed by Flight Centre Business Travel (FCBT), the fastest growing international business destinations for South African travellers in 2018 were London, Lagos and Mauritius.
London saw a spectacular year-on-year growth of 47%, while Lagos and Mauritius reported year-on-year increases in numbers of respectively 35% and 34%. In fourth and fifth place are Harare and Dubai: traffic to Harare from South Africa increased by 24% and flights to Dubai were up 17%.
1. London
“Year after year, the city of London remains at the top of South African lists for both business and leisure travellers,” said Andrew Grunewald, FCBT team leader. He said that 2018 was no different despite the threat of Brexit.
“The city of London itself is also enjoying rapid growth with independent studies continually ranking it above rivals such as New York and Hong Kong,” said Grunewald. “It is one of the world’s leading finance centres and offers a huge variety of business venues and conference centres.”
2. Lagos
With more South African companies seeking to exploit opportunities north of our borders, it is not surprising to see Lagos place as the second fastest growing business destination for South African travellers, according to Grunewald.
“This African city is the main financial, economic and commercial centre of the Nigeria,” he said. “Lagos accounts for over 60% of industrial and commercial activities in the nation and is a financially viable city.”
3. Mauritius
The fact that Mauritius with its attractive tax regime and stable economy is the third fastest growing business destination comes hardly as a surprise, Grunewald said. The country ranked as the highest economy in Sub-Saharan Africa on the World Bank’s ‘Ease of Doing
Business’ Index and the country’s banks have become beacons of growth and stability in sub-Saharan Africa.
4. Harare
Harare places fourth for South African business travellers. Grunewald explains that the latest EY Africa Attractiveness report 2018 shows that Zimbabwe is the second most popular foreign investment destination in Southern Africa.
5. Dubai
In fifth position, Dubai with its strategic position, has become a hub for international business. The city’s regular summits, conferences and expos bring together business leaders from around the globe, Flight Centre said.
In South Africa
Within South Africa, FCBT reported that although Johannesburg, Cape Town and Durban continue to be the most popular air travel routes, the three fastest growing domestic airports in 2018 were in fact George (with a 70% growth year on year), followed by Kimberley (36%) and Lanseria (31%).
The phenomenal growth George experienced in 2018 as a business destination might come as a surprise, but this Garden Route town was in fact hailed as one of the Western Cape cities offering the highest quality of life, beating Cape Town.
“George has become increasingly popular as a business and investment destination thanks to its ideal location and low crime rate,” said Grunewald.
The Northern Cape and Kimberley remain an important business destination thanks to its mining and agriculture sectors. The area is also growing as a result of its renewable energy initiatives with a great number of solar plants developed over the past few years.
Kimberley Airport and Upington International Airport were voted in 2019 as the best airports in Africa by size and region, in the under 2 million passengers category.
Lanseria is steadily gaining ground as the third fastest growing domestic airport, Flight Centre said. This growth is not likely to slow down as the airport has announced it is aiming to double its passenger numbers to more than 4 million within the next six years.
For information as to how Relocation Africa can help you with your Mobility, Immigration, Research, Remuneration, and Expat Tax needs, email marketing@relocationafrica.com, or call us on +27 21 763 4240.
Sources: [1], [2]. Image sources: Luca Micheli [1], [2].
Direct Flights Restore Historic Link Between Cape Town and St Helena
Cape Town will again connect the world with St Helena, one of the world’s most remote islands, when a direct flight begins in December.
“This new route is very exciting, providing fresh opportunities to market tourism to both the Western Cape and St Helena, capitalising on the historic links between the two,” MEC of economic opportunities Beverley Schäfer said.
The RMS St Helena, a cargo and passenger liner which originated in Cape Town, was the key lifeline for St Helena for 28 years until its retirement in 2018.
Airlink began operating the island’s first plane route in 2017, a six-hour flight from Johannesburg to St Helena Airport, which was built by SA construction company Basil Read.
The new Tuesday flights will operate between December 3 and March 31 2020.
News of the new route follows US-based United Airlines’ announcement that it would start direct flights between Cape Town and Newark, New Jersey, in the US.
Tim Harris, CEO of Wesgro, which promotes investment, trade and tourism in Cape Town and the Western Cape, said: “By connecting Cape Town to other tourist attractions around the world, we are able to help visitors put together itineraries with Cape Town at the centre.
“This strengthens our tourism offer considerably.”
St Helena, where Napoleon Bonaparte died in exile in 1821, gives tourists a chance to see his residence, volcanic coastlines and whale sharks.
For information as to how Relocation Africa can help you with your Mobility, Immigration, Research, Remuneration, and Expat Tax needs, email marketing@relocationafrica.com, or call us on +27 21 763 4240.
Sources: [1], [2]. Image sources: [1], [2].