This article was written by our Director, Rene Stegmann, after her return from EuRA’s 2019 Conference in Munich.
Travel to Europe
Over time, with all the international business travel I have done, I have come to realise that Europe is a long way away from home, and each time I prepare to go, I pack way too much. So, on this trip I wanted to see why I overpacked, and I came to the following conclusions:
• I am so far away from home I don’t want to leave anything behind
• I like options, and my own wine
• The weather overseas ranged from 2 degrees to 22 degrees Celsius
• I took a large suitcase, which out of habit just needed to be filled
So next trip (note to self), take a smaller suitcase and realise that Europe’s 2 degrees and a conference means you don’t leave the hotel. You taxi to restaurants, thereby not requiring that big coat! Oh, and I guess drink the local wine!
I did also realise that most of the other conference attendees coming from Europe fly in last-minute and leave as soon as the conference is over. I think because a few of us travel from so far away, we certainly like to make more of a meal of our travels and include the “pudding”.
Berlin (The Pudding)
As has become customary, we have a diverse global “bubbles group” of four ladies, who travel from Australia, South Africa, Dubai and Ireland, and meet before the EuRA Conference at a new city that we’ve not visited before. This year that city was Berlin.
We absolutely loved Berlin, with its eclectic and authentic charm, which is lost in so many modern, Westernised cities that have a McDonalds and a Starbucks on almost every corner. Not to say Berlin did not have these, but it seemed to somehow be more supportive of the local business community, with made-in-Berlin items seeming to have a strong presence in the areas in which we travelled. It is a fairly spread-out city, and while I certainly felt we saw so much that Berlin has to offer, I would definitely go back to experience even more of the city’s authenticity and culture.
It was lovely to change the pace of work at home and laugh with friends in our industry who just enjoy life (and “pudding”).
TIRA (The International Relocation Associates)
We then made our way on EasyJet to Munich. These low-cost airlines really do offer no frills at all. But then again, that’s what you’re paying for, so they live up to their names.
We then enjoyed a day of education on “Scaling Up”, which is a fantastic approach for the TIRA members to start looking at their own businesses, and to see if and how we can scale our businesses. I certainly had many takeaways from this workshop – my main one being simply the four things we should all focus on to maintain a successful business; strategy, implementation, people, and cash. I know it this is easier said than done, but I keep coming back to these basic principles at Relocation Africa, and I am hoping to scale based on having these four principles top of mind.
We also hosted our TIRA annual general meeting. This year, I am stepping down as TIRA President, and will play a more supportive role as Immediate Past President for the next year or two. We believe in developing and diversifying the board at TIRA, and keeping ideas fresh, and this requires a roll-over of the board every few years. We now have a new board and great goals for the future, with the plan being to announce the new president at the next board meeting, at the end of May. For more information about TIRA, feel free to visit our new website here.
EuRA Conference
I started out at the EuRA Conference feeling motivated as a result of the inspiring Scaling Up workshop the day before, and was ready to hit the ground running. We attendees all probably over-book our calendars at the EuRA Conferences, feeling the need to see as many people as possible. After so many years of doing business, you’d think we would have other, more holistic strategies for these conferences, but sadly it seems we need to fill every gap in our diaries to make the most of the opportunity to engage with as many of the EuRA participants as possible. We certainly did so, and this year we also managed to fit a couple of educational sessions in, to learn about some of the trends in the relocation industry. Like most industries, ours is rapidly changing, and we consistently need to ensure that our business is nimble enough to alter course if necessary, as opposed to being too stuck in its ways. It’s about balancing the traditions that have allowed us to get to where we are, with being open to necessary changes in order to keep up with our ever-evolving industry. And it’s a balance I think we’ve achieved at our business.
I would say our biggest takeaway from the Conference relates to the assignee (customer) experience (CX), and the methods we can use to ensure that the journey of relocating using our services is one that creates a positive and powerful individual experience. Emphasis on the individual, as each relocation is unique, and therefore requires an individualized approach from our side.
Emphasis was not on the technology component of the Conference as much as it was in previous years, but rather on finding ways to humanize our processes, ensuring our effort is focused on customer experience. The rest of the technology and processes will then follow suit. That’s what we believe, at least.
Luckily I managed to have a sightseeing day in Munich, during which I had a chance to absorb the English Gardens, the Town Hall, and the view of the city from the 90-odd stairs up St Peter’s Church, as well as enjoying great food, a museum, and of course, pudding at Café Luitpold.
We also had a lovely evening at a brauhaus, and even rented outfits to experience more of the local culture.
Below is a gallery of some of the beautiful sights in Munich, so you can share in the environment that I was fortunate enough to enjoy during my trip.
Here’s to a prosperous second half of 2019, until the next conference has us packing and jetting off once again!
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], [3], [4], [5], [6], [7].
Italian Oil & Gas Company Eni Discovers New Light Oil in Angolan Waters
Eni has made a new light oil discovery in Block 15/06, in Angola’s deep offshore. The well was drilled on the Ndungu exploration prospect. The new discovery is estimated to contain up to 250 million barrels of light oil in place, with further upside.
The Ndungu-1 NFW well is located a few kilometers from Eni’s West Hub facilities, and has been drilled by the Poseidon drill-ship in a water depth of 1076 meters and reached a total depth of 4050 meters. Ndungu-1 NFW proved a single oil column of about 65 meters with 45 meters of net pay of high quality oil (35° API) contained in Oligocene sandstone with excellent petro-physical properties. The result of the intensive data collection indicates a production capacity in excess of 10,000 barrels of oil per day.
Ndungu is the first significant oil discovery in Angola inside an already existing Development Area. It certifies the concrete validity of the recent legislation, promoted through the Presidential Legislative Decree No. 5/18 of 18 May 2018, which defines a favorable legal framework on additional exploration activities within existing Development Areas.
Being located about 2 km from the Mpungi field, the new discovery can be fast-tracked to production due to the proximity to the Sub Sea production system. Production will be routed to the N’goma FPSO, therefore extending the West Hub’s production plateau.
Ndungu is the fourth discovery of commercial nature since the Block 15/06 Joint Venture re-launched its exploration campaign in mid-2018. It follows the discoveries of Kalimba, Afoxé and Agogo; the four discoveries altogether already estimated to contain up to 1.4 Billion barrels of light oil in place. The appraisal phase of these discoveries will target their additional upside.
These important discoveries further demonstrate the upside potential of the block and the effectiveness of the proprietary technologies that Eni used and will use to explore Block 15/06.
The Block 15/06 Joint Venture, composed by Eni (operator, 36.8421%), Sonangol P&P (36.8421%) and SSI Fifteen Limited (26.3158%), will work to fast track its development.
Angola is a strategic Country for Eni’s organic growth. Eni has been present in the Country since 1980 and currently accounts an equity production of about 150,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day. In Block 15/06 the two oil development projects, West Hub and East Hub, currently produce about 155,000 barrels of oil per day (100%). Eni is also operator of Cabinda Norte Block, located onshore.
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: lewis pratt [1], [2].
SA President Ramaphosa: Tourism is the New Gold in Africa
South African President Cyril Ramaphosa has said tourism is now emerging as “the new gold” in Africa.
Speaking at the conclusion of the Africa Travel Indaba in Durban, President Ramaphosa hailed the continent for being a tourism hub saying, if nurtured well, the sector would benefit not only individual countries, but also its citizens.
“Tourism is the new gold; it’s the new gold mines that our countries can come across…It is a sector that is thriving and has tremendous potential for further growth, and more particularly for job creation,” said President Ramaphosa.
He said South Africa was determined to take advantage of its tourism potential by overhauling the visa process to encourage more visitors to the country.
The leader also called on other African countries to develop the sector so as to reap the most from it.
During discussions with journalists on Friday, South African Minister of Tourism Derek Hanekom acknowledged that visa restrictions and tedious application processes, especially for Nigeria, had discouraged people from applying for the travel document.
Yet, Nigeria was one of the biggest tourism sources for the country outside southern Africa.
Ramaphosa added that crime should be dealt with across Africa so that the continent is not branded an unsafe destination for travel.
He praised Kenya, Uganda and South Africa efforts to ensuring tourists’ safety through Kenya Tourism Federation Safety and Communication Centre, the Uganda Tourism Police and the National Tourism Safety Monitors programme in South Africa.
Tourism offers an opportunity to showcase a country’s arts, culture and industries.
“We tend to think of tourism as being associated with pleasure motives such as visiting iconic sites and getting involved in recreational activities, but it can also embrace business, education, health or religion as a basis for travelling,” said Ramaphosa.
The Africa Travel Indaba is a tourism marketing expo and networking forum that showcases tourism products in Africa.
It is organised by the South African Tourism and attracts regional and international buyers and sellers.
This year’s edition attracted more than 1,000 exhibitors and buyers, including regional tourism board and government agencies.
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: Nemanja .O. [1], [2].
Relocation Africa’s EuRA Munich 2019 Key Takeaways
This article was written by our Director, Rene Stegmann, after her return from EuRA’s 2019 Conference in Munich.
Travel to Europe
Over time, with all the international business travel I have done, I have come to realise that Europe is a long way away from home, and each time I prepare to go, I pack way too much. So, on this trip I wanted to see why I overpacked, and I came to the following conclusions:
• I am so far away from home I don’t want to leave anything behind
• I like options, and my own wine
• The weather overseas ranged from 2 degrees to 22 degrees Celsius
• I took a large suitcase, which out of habit just needed to be filled
So next trip (note to self), take a smaller suitcase and realise that Europe’s 2 degrees and a conference means you don’t leave the hotel. You taxi to restaurants, thereby not requiring that big coat! Oh, and I guess drink the local wine!
I did also realise that most of the other conference attendees coming from Europe fly in last-minute and leave as soon as the conference is over. I think because a few of us travel from so far away, we certainly like to make more of a meal of our travels and include the “pudding”.
Berlin (The Pudding)
As has become customary, we have a diverse global “bubbles group” of four ladies, who travel from Australia, South Africa, Dubai and Ireland, and meet before the EuRA Conference at a new city that we’ve not visited before. This year that city was Berlin.
We absolutely loved Berlin, with its eclectic and authentic charm, which is lost in so many modern, Westernised cities that have a McDonalds and a Starbucks on almost every corner. Not to say Berlin did not have these, but it seemed to somehow be more supportive of the local business community, with made-in-Berlin items seeming to have a strong presence in the areas in which we travelled. It is a fairly spread-out city, and while I certainly felt we saw so much that Berlin has to offer, I would definitely go back to experience even more of the city’s authenticity and culture.
It was lovely to change the pace of work at home and laugh with friends in our industry who just enjoy life (and “pudding”).
TIRA (The International Relocation Associates)
We then made our way on EasyJet to Munich. These low-cost airlines really do offer no frills at all. But then again, that’s what you’re paying for, so they live up to their names.
We then enjoyed a day of education on “Scaling Up”, which is a fantastic approach for the TIRA members to start looking at their own businesses, and to see if and how we can scale our businesses. I certainly had many takeaways from this workshop – my main one being simply the four things we should all focus on to maintain a successful business; strategy, implementation, people, and cash. I know it this is easier said than done, but I keep coming back to these basic principles at Relocation Africa, and I am hoping to scale based on having these four principles top of mind.
We also hosted our TIRA annual general meeting. This year, I am stepping down as TIRA President, and will play a more supportive role as Immediate Past President for the next year or two. We believe in developing and diversifying the board at TIRA, and keeping ideas fresh, and this requires a roll-over of the board every few years. We now have a new board and great goals for the future, with the plan being to announce the new president at the next board meeting, at the end of May. For more information about TIRA, feel free to visit our new website here.
EuRA Conference
I started out at the EuRA Conference feeling motivated as a result of the inspiring Scaling Up workshop the day before, and was ready to hit the ground running. We attendees all probably over-book our calendars at the EuRA Conferences, feeling the need to see as many people as possible. After so many years of doing business, you’d think we would have other, more holistic strategies for these conferences, but sadly it seems we need to fill every gap in our diaries to make the most of the opportunity to engage with as many of the EuRA participants as possible. We certainly did so, and this year we also managed to fit a couple of educational sessions in, to learn about some of the trends in the relocation industry. Like most industries, ours is rapidly changing, and we consistently need to ensure that our business is nimble enough to alter course if necessary, as opposed to being too stuck in its ways. It’s about balancing the traditions that have allowed us to get to where we are, with being open to necessary changes in order to keep up with our ever-evolving industry. And it’s a balance I think we’ve achieved at our business.
I would say our biggest takeaway from the Conference relates to the assignee (customer) experience (CX), and the methods we can use to ensure that the journey of relocating using our services is one that creates a positive and powerful individual experience. Emphasis on the individual, as each relocation is unique, and therefore requires an individualized approach from our side.
Emphasis was not on the technology component of the Conference as much as it was in previous years, but rather on finding ways to humanize our processes, ensuring our effort is focused on customer experience. The rest of the technology and processes will then follow suit. That’s what we believe, at least.
Luckily I managed to have a sightseeing day in Munich, during which I had a chance to absorb the English Gardens, the Town Hall, and the view of the city from the 90-odd stairs up St Peter’s Church, as well as enjoying great food, a museum, and of course, pudding at Café Luitpold.
We also had a lovely evening at a brauhaus, and even rented outfits to experience more of the local culture.
Below is a gallery of some of the beautiful sights in Munich, so you can share in the environment that I was fortunate enough to enjoy during my trip.
Here’s to a prosperous second half of 2019, until the next conference has us packing and jetting off once again!
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], [3], [4], [5], [6], [7].
Angola Launches Electronic Import Licensing Service to Reduce Bureaucracy, Entice Investors
Angola Ministry of Economy and Planning has launched a new Electronic Goods Import Licensing Service to improve the business environment and motivate economic activity.
With the entry of this new service, importers in the sectors of Industry, Agriculture, Fisheries and goods of the basic basket will only have to wait three days to have the import pre-licensing processes completed.
During the ceremony, the Minister of Economy and Planning, Pedro Luís da Fonseca, said that the initiative demonstrates the will of the state to improve administrative productivity and create a better business environment by reducing bureaucracy, simplifying and decentralizing the pre-licensing process.
The minister also stressed that the Executive’s economic policies and reform are promoting greater openness to private investment, making them the most important pillar of structural changes in the economy, the creation of employment par excellence and income multiplier.
“A good business environment is surely a valuable indicator for private capital investment decisions,” he said.
Pedro Luís da Fonseca said that the Executive is implementing the process of facilitation and economic simplification with the help of different institutions, seeking to maximize synergies.
In turn, Refriango’s administrator, Stephen Daniel, said that the new Electronic Import Licensing Service, under the auspices of the Agriculture and Forestry, Industry, Fishing and Sea sectors, is welcome once that there was a lot of bureaucratization in the treatment of import pre-licensing processes.
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: chuttersnap [1], [2].