Groenewald returns to OPSA

The Malawi Leather Industry Association says it is struggling to meet the annual demand for shoes, producing only 200 000 pairs against demand of 15.5 million, largely due to competition from imports and forex shortages hindering raw material imports.Data from Small and Medium Enterprises Development Institute (Smedi), which is championin ...more

Durban, KZN, SA – Zamani Oliphant has been appointed as the incoming executive director of the Southern African Footwear & Leather Industries Association (SAFLIA). She will start on 01 February 2026, and will work alongside outgoing executive director Jirka Vymĕtal for a handover period.An attorney, she joins from LexisNexis, w ...more

I met Colin Pedlar for the first time when we had the opportunity to take over a production plant in Lesotho.It was quite a daunting prospect starting a new business in a foreign country.Colin was very involved right from the start and tackled every hurdle calmy, from negotiating with the Lesotho Government to moving machinery to Lesotho. ...more

There are a number of legal instruments working their way through the European Union’s (EU) parliament. Like many EU instruments, these statutory guides have a way of working their way into legislation that the rest of the world adopts. Like US legislation, especially the California Proposition 65 legal example, these laws sometimes ...more

On more than one occasion I have reported on brands being caught using illegal labour in their supply line. From what I understand several brands regularly, but indirectly, use illegal labour and of course always deny their knowledge of this happening. The problem is that everybody knows and nobody can prove this because the brands buy fr ...more

ICLT – no need to mourn too muchRegretfully the University of Northampton decided in 2023 to close the Institute of Creative Leather Technologies, which in a variety of forms can be dated back to 1891. Apparently, the number of students declined over the years, the costs increased and the institution became unsustainable leading to ...more

We are being flooded with in the innovation of Artificial (narrow) Intelligence and the risk of its use within the Occupational and Construction Health and Safety fields where the machine learning and artificial intelligence data sets are not locally sourced.However, when it comes to personal protective equipment (PPE), the future is in t ...more

Why traditional radios and CCTV are no longer enough in complex threat environments Global case studies showing measurable impact on response times, safety, and transparency How LTE, 5G, and AI enable continuous, multi layered intelligence for faster, more effective decisions The opportunity for South Africa to leapfrog legacy sy ...more

Johannesburg, Gauteng, SA (17 September 2025) – Fidelity Services Group has acquired a majority shareholding in SSG Holdings, following all requisite regulatory approvals. The acquisition will expand Fidelity’s footprint to more than 256 locations and grow its workforce to approximately 69 200 employees across Southern Africa. ...more