RFA cancels convention

KEVIN MAYHEW
LACK OF support has forced the cancellation of the annual Road Freight Association Convention for 2006, due to be held in May. The event will now be staged in 2007. According to chairperson of the RFA, Thandeka Mgoduso, some sponsors stipulated that unless a certain number of registrations had been received by the end of March, they would withdraw sponsorship. “Unfortunately the RFA could not meet the targets set,” said Mgoduso. Delegates who have already paid registration fees will be refunded. Comment Last year, after a potentially very good conference was poorly attended with at least one speaker, a managing director of a leading freight company, facing an audience that comprised an FTW representative, we cautioned against conference overload in the supply chain sector. This development vindicates that warning. FTW said at the time that it was important for the industry to participate in a few prime conferences as there was a need for such events in the challenging environment of transport in southern Africa. Already there is a potential clash with the 5th Intermodal Africa conference and exhibition that is to be held in Durban in March next year. Should the RFA intend holding its conference at the same time, it will just not be feasible. Possibly, they should be talking to each other about collaboration – less is more sometimes.