In the latest installment of Letsema Talks, we talk to Luke McLachlan and Robert Crichton, CEO and Operations Manager at South African chemicals solutions manufacturer Cirebelle about the challenges, and opportunities, posed by running a manufacturing business in the COVID-19 era. Letsema Talks · How a manufacturing business has adapted to the COVID-19 era To […]
The COVID-19 pandemic is not just an existential threat to human health and economic wellbeing but represents the schism of local markets relying on international suppliers for essential goods. When those supply chains are interrupted, the availability of such goods is compromised. Despite significant economic growth in East Africa, averaging 5.8% annually from 2015-2019, the […]
In situations of extreme stress, where assumptions are exploded and the most carefully planned budgets and projections prove ineffective, problems appear so large they can seem insurmountable. According to organisational theorist Karl E. Weick’s seminal January 1988 paper, Small Wins: Redefining the Scale of Social Problems, a problem’s size “often precludes innovative action” because the […]
Essential to the execution of international trade between buyers and sellers are Incoterms®, or International Commercial Terms. Incoterms® rules exist to provide specific guidance to individuals participating in the daily import and export of global trade. These rules account for the assumed cost risks and responsibility for importers or buyers at each point of […]
Small, Medium and Micro Enterprises (SMMEs) are widely recognised as the driving force of the South African economy. The National Development Plan (NDP) has stipulated actions to stimulate the growth and sustainability of the SMME market, envisaging that SMMEs will create 90% of new employment opportunities and contribute between 60-80% to national Gross Domestic Product […]
Financial institutions are constantly being confronted with greater scrutiny, increasing tax audits, and regulatory changes. The requirement to find more efficient and effective ways of conducting global tax information reporting, including but not limited to the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act and the Common Reporting Standard, has become a vital business need. In the past, […]
On Wednesday, 6 May, the Umlambo Foundation, in partnership with Letsema, Funda Wande, and Africa Teek Geeks hosted a webinar focused on technology and education in a post COVID-19 world. The panel featured: Dr. Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka – UN Under Secretary General & Executive Director of UN Women, founder of the Umlambo Foundation and former Deputy […]
Ten years ago, Letsema acquired an SME called Cirebelle. The firm is a exporter and manufacturer in the specialty chemicals value chain, and at the time had 12 employees. Cirebelle provides invaluable insights into the requirements for successfully exporting as an SME from a developing country that is far away from major markets. Developing countries […]
Prior to the global outbreak of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19), there was already indicative research illustrating that our society has become increasingly socially distant, and lonely. In a 2018 survey, The Economist and the Kaiser Family Foundation (KFF) found that more than two in 10 adults in the United States (22%) and the United Kingdom […]
The Bulungula Incubator (BI) has been operating in the Xhora Mouth Administrative Area in the Eastern Cape since 2007, with their work having already begun in 2004 through the Bulungula Lodge. As South Africa gets to grips with COVID-19, Rejane Woodroffe, director of the BI, spoke to Letsema about the challenges facing rural areas in […]
