Tag Archive for: COVID-19

Andrew Stegmann
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FNB and Fetola Launch Hotline to Give Entrepreneurs Advice

FNB and Fetola have partnered to launch the Mentor Hotline, a free, rapid response platform that gives entrepreneurs easy access to a variety of industry experts.

The launch of the platform is in response to the Covid-19 pandemic and national lockdown.

The Mentor Hotline pairs entrepreneurs with a network of volunteer specialists, based on the required skill set for the entrepreneur’s specific challenge. It aims to help entrepreneurs to stabilise, identify new growth opportunities and rebuild in the context of radical uncertainty and a challenging economy.

More than 600 businesses on the Mentor Hotline requesting business advice, it is clear that businesses need assistance during these uncertain times.

The hotline will give young entrepreneurs to access technical or specialist advice, draw their attention to common mistakes or pitfalls, or simply act as a sounding board for new ideas.

Mentor Hotline is a simple-to-use online platform that provides support to all business types across South Africa, from small start-ups to established concerns.

The Mentor Hotline, which is owned and fully administered by Fetola, is a complementary service to Fetola’s traditional mentorship service, which focuses on longer-term relationships between entrepreneur and mentor.

Heather Lowe, SME Development Head for FNB Business, describes the pressing need that led to the creation “During the initial Covid-19 lockdown we found that most entrepreneurs were simply overwhelmed by the circumstances they found themselves in”.

“We also found that many experienced entrepreneurs and mentors who were not able to work during the lockdown period were very willing to assist on a pro bono basis to help these other entrepreneurs navigate the direct impact the pandemic had on their businesses. Together with Fetola and other partners we found that we could work collectively to get a very relevant form of help to SMEs during a time when quick actions were of the essence,” added Lowe.

Catherine Wijnberg, Fetola’s Founder and Director, said, “The Mentor Hotline is currently in what we’re calling a ‘beta phase’. Its longevity will be dependent on crafting a model that doesn’t depend entirely on volunteers, and which addresses ongoing needs post-Covid-19. We have been blown away by the sense of wanting to contribute to help others succeed, especially in this time of crisis. Truly shows the incredibly heart-warming quality of our society”.

The current phase of the Mentor Hotline will run until the end of December 2020. For more details, and to access the Mentor Hotline, visit the Fetola website and select “Mentor Hotline” from the top navigation bar.

 

For information as to how Relocation Africa can help you with your Mobility, Immigration, Research, Remuneration, and Expat Tax needs, email info@relocationafrica.com, or call us on +27 21 763 4240.

Sources: [1], [2]. Image sources: [1], [2].

Andrew Stegmann
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Relocation Africa’s Ghanaian Immigration Interview: November 2020

Our Immigration Lead, Lynn Mackenzie, recently had the pleasure of speaking to Paa, our Ghanaian immigration partner, about Ghana’s current immigration landscape.

To listen to Lynn and Paa’s conversation about immigration in the current context, click here to view the recording, or view it below.

We would like to say a huge thank you to Paa for his insights. We hope you enjoy the recording.

 

For information as to how Relocation Africa can help you with your Mobility, Immigration, Research, Remuneration, and Expat Tax needs, email info@relocationafrica.com, or call us on +27 21 763 4240.

Sources: [1], [2]. Image sources: [1], [2].

 

Andrew Stegmann
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South African Pharmaceutical Company Aspen Agrees to Make Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 Vaccine in South Africa, if it’s Approved

Aspen Pharmacare Holdings Ltd. agreed to make the Covid-19 vaccine candidate being developed by Johnson & Johnson at a factory in South Africa, a move that could help with distribution on a continent with otherwise limited manufacturing capacity.

Africa’s biggest drug maker has the capacity to produce 300 million doses a year at the plant in Port Elizabeth if the shot is approved, the company said in a statement on Monday. J&J’s experimental inoculation against the virus that’s swept the world this year is still in clinical trials, after a brief pause last month after a patient became sick.

The race to develop and gain regulatory approval for a Covid-19 vaccine is seen as a critical step toward controlling the pandemic, which has killed more than 1.2 million people around the world and shows little sign of dissipating. Yet there’s concern poorer nations will be left without due to the huge demand from richer countries from the U.S. to China.

“Johnson & Johnson’s public commitment has been really strong in terms of assisting developing countries,” said Aspen Chief Executive Officer Stephen Saad, who is self-isolating at home after two family members tested positive for Covid-19. “It’s good to get that manufacturing in South Africa.”

Aspen shares jumped as much as 8.1%, the biggest intraday gain in almost two months, and traded 6.7% higher at 112.64 rand as of 11:42 a.m. in Johannesburg.

South Africa had been looking to sign a deal to help produce a vaccine earlier in the year, when The Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations, a global organization funding vaccine development, said it was considering state-owned Biovac Institute as a fill-finish site. South Africa is also a host country for clinical trials of various vaccines.

“The fact that we are involved in all these trials is really positive about our ability to manage,” Saad said. “We’ve got good clinical expertise. I think a lot of it is built up around some of the communicable diseases we’ve had such as HIV/AIDS.”

J&J’s vaccine candidate would be made and packaged at a plant in which Aspen has invested about 3 billion rand ($184 million). The South African company relocated the production of drugs for late-stage cancer, Parkinson’s disease and some auto-immune illnesses to the southern coastal city of Port Elizabeth from Europe in 2018.

The deal remains subject to discussions around technology-transfer activities and commercial-manufacturing terms, Aspen said.

The move marks the second time the pharma group has found a way to generate business from the coronavirus. The company also makes the generic anti-inflammatory drug dexamethasone, which was found to be an effective treatment for Covid-19 earlier in the year.

 

For information as to how Relocation Africa can help you with your Mobility, Immigration, Research, Remuneration, and Expat Tax needs, email info@relocationafrica.com, or call us on +27 21 763 4240.

Sources: [1], [2]. Image sources: [1], [2].

Andrew Stegmann
,

Relocation Africa’s South African Immigration Interview

Our Immigration Lead, Lynn Mackenzie, recently had the pleasure of speaking to Tracy, our South African immigration partner, about South Africa’s current immigration landscape.

To listen to Lynn and Tracy’s conversation about immigration in the current context, click here to view the recording, or view it below.

We would like to say a huge thank you to Tracy for her insights. We hope you enjoy the recording.

 

For information as to how Relocation Africa can help you with your Mobility, Immigration, Research, Remuneration, and Expat Tax needs, email info@relocationafrica.com, or call us on +27 21 763 4240.

Sources: [1], [2]. Image sources: [1], [2].