The end of the bleak economic winter

As we move into spring, we must hope that the warmer weather will herald the end of the bleak economic winter the freight industry has suffered. Word of fragile conditions in the US and the UK and recent warnings from the CEO of Standard Bank suggest otherwise, and industry leaders will need to remain vigilant for some time to come. The industry sadly lost another stalwart during the past month. John White’s father Jack, at the age of 87, passed away peacefully at his home in Port Elizabeth. The Whites have been actively involved in Saaff for over 50 years. John is currently the Saaff director responsible for the association’s finance portfolio. Saaff’s vice-chair Keith Horn advises that the adjudication of entries for this year’s ‘Logistics Achievers Association’ awards is well under way. There are 16 entries, including three from the clearing and forwarding industry. The winners will be announced at a gala banquet to be held at Emperor’s Palace in September. Networking in Maputo On September 29 the Maputo Corridor Logistics Initiative (MCLI) holds its 6th AGM in Maputo. This is always a popular and festive affair, normally accompanied by lashings of Mozambican prawns washed down with several cold Laurentina beers. On a balmy evening MCLI members will mingle with various luminaries and network with colleagues from far and wide. The perfect end to a late night has to be a stay at the recently renovated Polana Hotel, followed the next morning by a lazy breakfast served on the verandah overlooking the Indian Ocean. What more could anyone want? Mozambique is a country that continues to thrive and expand – and this is one event on the calendar not to be missed. Tambo Springs I recently attended a fascinating presentation by Franco Eleuteri, a South African-born resident of the US who has partnered with Inframax Holdings to develop 1200 hectares of land south of Johannesburg into the next generation inland port and logistics gateway. To be known as ‘The Tambo Springs Development’, this hugely ambitious project aims to twin the deep water port of Ngqura near Port Elizabeth, and OR Tambo international airport. The facility will provide manufacturing, warehousing and regional distribution services to the Gauteng region. Eleuteri is actively engaging with all stakeholders, including commerce, government and Transnet. He indicates there is significant interest in the concept which has been seven years in the planning. This development could provide intriguing competition to the Maputo corridor. Fiata diploma The chairman of Fiata's advisory body on vocational training, Thomas Sim, visited South Africa again recently. Sim advises that Fiata is close to finalising the alignment of the NQS standards with the minimum requirements for the Fiata diploma. He hopes this will be completed within the next six months. Five local companies will be in a position to offer the required training for the ‘Freight Forwarding and Customs Compliance’ qualification. Once candidates have achieved this milestone they will be able to apply for their Fiata diploma. South Africa will join 52 countries whose training programmes have been validated by Fiata. The Association has also introduced the Higher Diploma in Supply Chain Management for those with an appetite for studying. The good news is that South Africa will soon have a standard qualification of real value to employers for assessing industry applicants. In the words of Henry Ford, “Anyone who stops learning is old, whether 20 or 80. Anyone who keeps learning stays young.”