WANNA SURF the Net and get full access to the Safto (SA Foreign Trade Organisation) web site - probably the most extensive data-bank of trade statistics and information in the country? Answer: Become a student at the Institute of Export's distance education programme.
As from next year, all registered students at the Institute will have access to the Safto Members Area on the Internet - an access-restricted extension of the web site.
It includes both volumes of the Exporters' Manual - and will be accessed by a password, which will be allocated to students upon registration. A search facility has been installed to assist with navigation, and to make the manual more user-friendly.
The manual is a comprehensive publication which will serve as an effective on-line reference source for students' technical and market-related questions, said Victor Muhlberg, manager of the Institute's export education programmes. It provides our students with a further research tool, and equips them with a novel way of finding solutions to their work and study problems.
Having the manual on-line also means we can update sections as-and-when required. Entry to that Members' Area also automatically provides access to The African Trading Space on the Net. This is a system used by Safto to publish the trade enquiries it receives daily from around the world.
This site can be used by students not only for receiving relevant trade enquiries, but also posting their own. According to Muhlberg, this should be of benefit to students working both for SMMEs (small to medium-sized enterprises) and large companies alike. It offers further support for students in gaining a practical, working knowledge of the international trade arena, he said.
Registration for the 1998 academic year commences on December 1. The prospectus can be acquired from Jacqi Smal - at Safto's Sandton headquarters.
Safto's website can be accessed at http://www.safto.co.za
