In today’s struggling economies reducing actual spend can have a significant impact on the health of your company. Your procurement function can play a critical role in achieving this.

Procurement is about managing your third party spend and there are three key improvement focus areas:

Cost savings

How to achieve cost savings in the current spend base by managing it more effectively;

Strategy and process

How to effectively prioritise strategic and non strategic spend, have consistent standards and procedures and manage your supply base;

Operating model

How to organise the procurement function into the most effective structure and ensure right skills and capabilities are in place.

Organisations that gain control of their third party spends can deliver significant savings to their P&L by reducing operating costs.  In addition, improved working capital can positively impact the balance sheet.

Procurement needs to focus on a number of key areas to provide financial improvements to the organisation. Key to this is challenging demand. Through assessing demand before committing to going to market, procurement can add significant value with savings achieved by some organisations of between 10-15 percent. There are seven key demand levers that successful procurement functions consider:

·         Eliminate demand - how often does your organisation make unnecessary purchases?

·         Review volume required- can you use less?

·         Reduce volume frequency. If you buy less often can you make savings both in terms of discount but also in terms of the cost of undertaking procurement? Administration costs  money

·         Consider alternate ways of filling demand. Can you maybe lease rather than buy?

·         Encourage re-use. How often do you dispose of items that could be refurbished?

·         Simplify or standardise your specifications. Can you go with a less complex, “off the shelf” rather than a bespoke component or commodity?

·         Reduce the range and complexity. Do you need the variety? People always like a choice but is it necessary for the business to perform optimally?

Asign of the growing maturity of the procurement function is that there is more emphasis on managing suppliers instead of being managed by them. Supplier Relationship Management is key to the success of all procurement functions globally but even more so when the aim is to develop local and inexperienced suppliers.

Companies need to ensure that they do not set unnecessary entry barriers to new/growing suppliers while balancing this with the need for suppliers to perform effectively, as non performance will generally add cost to the bottom line.

Identifying and working with strategic suppliers and supporting the concept of Supplier stability provides you with a competitive advantage in a volatile economy. It offers the option to work more closely with critical suppliers to protect your Supply Chain.

Organisational structure is also a key factor. It is critical that the procurement function is structured to meet the needs of each organisation. Different procurement structure options need to be developed e.g. centralised, decentralised, hybrid solutions and relevant pros and cons of the different structures need to be properly analysed to ensure “fitness for purpose”.

Closely linked to the structure is the need to have the right skills and capabilities. Procurement is not a function that should be considered as just another administrative task. It requires knowledge of markets and commodities, commercial acumen and ability to lead and work with multi–functional teams.

In developing procurement functions across Africa indigenous representation in management structures is important, both for local knowledge and employee engagement. The absence of strong supporting management and a leadership development infrastructure results in mediocre management strength and high mobility of top talent

Businesses are thus challenged to invest in building local leadership capability, and improve expatriate mobility programmes so as to get the right mix of diverse leadership and skilled labour.

Across Africa there are a number of developing agreements to encourage use of local suppliers. Some of these are supported by legislation whilst others are the result of organisations’ commitment to grow local suppliers. For example

A major brewer is now marketing a Cassava based lager thereby supporting local farmers in Mozambique and Nigeria.

A major chocolate bar manufacturer has committed to sourcing certified cocoa for all products by 2020 supporting West African cocoa farmers

An effectively managed procurement function can make a significant financial contribution to any business. This can be achieved by managing the spend base through use of the seven key demand levers.

Supplier Relationship Management is a strategic approach that will reduce cost and improve quality and sustainability of supply.  Having the appropriate organisation structure and the right mix of skills is a vital foundation for an effective procurement function. 

Nigeria-based Interswitch Transnational Holdings, a pan-African integrated payment processing and transaction company has announced the spin-off of two of its core divisions, Verve International and Switching and Processing, as separate autonomous businesses.

These entities are to be called Verve International and Interswitch Switching and Processing.

 The transaction forms part of Interswitch’s planned strategy to separate its core divisions, allowing each division focus on its core competencies and best facilitate regional and international expansion, with a clear mandate to provide the” best services at the lowest cost”.

Mitchell Elegbe, Group Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Interswitch Transnational Holdings said: “It has always been our desire to evolve into an integrated payments holding business where the various parts of the business are driven to deepen and broaden their relationships with their various customers by creating innovative products and services of real value. 

“Creating the right governance structure to herald this new phase of sustainable growth has been the focus of the board and management in the last few months. I am elated that we have successfully completed this separation, which took effect from April 1st 2013.”

The separation will result in no disruption to services enjoyed by the business’s clients; the two companies will further strengthen the existing teams by identifying and attracting key talents from across the continent that will focus on delivering the best services.

 This separation is also in line with the CBN’s guidelines as contained the Payments System Vision 2020 and will ensure that Interswitch Group’s corporate structure is geared to CBN’s goals of developing effective payment systems in Nigeria.

Both businesses will have separate management teams and Boards. The Switching and Processing division will be led by Akeem Lawal while Verve International will be led by Charles Ifedi.

 Transaction Switching and Processing which was the core switching and processing platform of Interswitch and has over a decade offered issuers, acquirers, card schemes and networks with array of services which include but are not limited to: transaction switching, payment processing, settlement reporting services.

The company will continue to provide these services with a focus on multiple markets, while also enhancing customer experience with product innovation and extensions, at the least costs.

 The switch is connected to all 20 banks in Nigeria including seven Microfinance institutions and 16 Mobile Money operators. In addition, the switch processes local and international transactions originating from payment cards such as UnionPay of China, MasterCard, VISA and Discover Financial Services (Discover and Diners Club).

 Verve offers issuers, cardholders and organizations with payment card products and solutions in Nigeria and it’s pan-African chip + PIN payment card, is the first chip card accepted across all payment channels in Nigeria.

 Verve has more than 20 million cards in circulation and access to more than 119,631 points of sale (“POS”), 11,287 ATMs and more than 1,000 online merchants. Verve has been developed with unique value added services available to cardholders in Nigeria, including loyalty and Reward Money® at specific merchant locations.

 Following the  announcement, Verve will drive the payment card business internationally with a focus on ‘issuing’ and ‘acquiring’ while also driving awareness of the Verve brand.

This separation will also enable Verve leverage, to the maximum extent, its recent strategic alliance with the ‘Discover’ network. The alliance will enable the acceptance of Verve cards on Discover and Diners Club International Network of ATMs and POS in over 185 countries around the world for international purchases and cash access.

Driving these unique offers across the region will be a major strategic focus for Verve International, post-separation.

Africa’s best known entrepreneur Aliko Dangote, who heads up the Dangote cement group, has become the continent’s first $20 billion man.

Already the richest man in Africa, he is also now in the top 25 of the world’s richest men  since becoming the first African to lay claim to a $20 billion fortune thanks to the performance of Dangote Cement.

In the first quarter of 2013, the stock value of Dangote Cement has risen by about three-fourths making it the first Nigerian company to achieve a market capitalisation of more than $20 billion.

The news was revealed in Forbes magazine, which reported that Dangote’s 93 percent stake in the cement company is now worth $19.5 billion.

Aliko’s wealth is spread out with his significant interests in other publicly-listed companies including Dangote Sugar and National Salt Company of Nigeria.

He also has interests in blue-chip firms including UBA Group and Zenith Bank as well as an extensive property portfolio as well as the usual trappings of wealth including ownership of private jets and yachts.

He is now richer than some of the world’s most notable billionaires including Russia’s richest man, Aisher Usmanov and India’s Lakshmi Mittal, and is not far behind some of America’s wealthiest businessmen including Google’s founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin.

The Dangote Cement had recorded an unprecedented surge in its share price largely due to market response to the company's impressive results in the first quarter of this year.

The cement manufacturer's unaudited results for the three months ending March 31 had showed that the company's pre-tax profit rose to $339 million, representing an 80.6 percent increase from last year.

This year’s listing shows that MTN moved up an impressive nine places to position 79th, with an overall increase in brand value of 23 percent. MTN debuted at position 88 in the survey last year. A leading emerging market mobile operator, and one of the world’s largest, MTN is again the only African brand in the 2013 survey.

“The Millward-Brown BrandZ Top 100 Global Brands 2013 listing is particularly exciting and timely, as we embark on our new vision to lead the delivery of a bold, new Digital World to our customers,” says Jennifer Forrester, Executive for Group Marketing, MTN.

Developed by leading research agency, Millward Brown Optimor, BrandZ Top 100 Most Valuable Global Brands is the only brand rankings that include consumer data as a component element in arriving at the brand value. The rankings survey over 150 000 people around the world.

Forrester adds: “MTN is particularly proud of this accolade because the listing recognises that for a global brand to connect with its consumers, it needs to reflect them. Consumers want to see themselves in the brands they admire. They want to see that a brand, local or global, understands them, and knows what they want and need. As MTN, this is further acknowledgement that we are on the right track with our on-going efforts to enhance customer experience in our various touch-points in the markets. To this end, we pledge to continue with our quest to make the lives of our customers a whole lot brighter.”

With nearly 200 million subscribers across Africa, Asia and the Middle East, MTN is a market leader in 70 percent of the 22 countries where we operate.

“We owe this recognition to the commitment and loyalty of our customers to the MTN brand. This accolade gives us even more zest in our endeavour to fulfil our new vision,” concludes Forrester.

Launched towards the end of 2012, MTN’s new vision, mission and strategy better addresses customers’ needs, putting them at the centre of our efforts as a business. Among other, the new strategy offers a more comprehensive range of offerings.

Tourism has proven to be a huge money maker for cities such as Johannesburg, Cape Town and Cairo in Africa, and Uganda believes that its capital has the potential to be mentioned in the same breath as these notorious locations.

With plans to expand the boundaries of Kampala to reach 20 square kilometers for the four million-strong population, directors in the city believe that the excess space and the opportunities within it will act as the perfect area for tourists.

Nairobi in Kenya is a great example to follow on from, and with numerous tourist attractions already gracing Kampala – including the Uganda Museum, National Theatre, the Kasubi Tombs, Lubiri Kings Palace and Independence Monument among others – the general consensus is now that if a few kinks can be ironed out, tourists will begin to flock.

To transform the metropolitan city into a hub of tourism, the main factors needed to be addressed will are transport links as well as the drainage and sanitation systems within the urban areas.

"Development of tourism products that can make tourists stay in Kampala longer, tourist advisories (information) is very vital, trained guides and drivers as well, road signs, cleanliness, awareness, an aquarium would be very good for Kampala to be competitive," said Herbert Byaruhanga, the President of the Uganda Tourism Association.

While Kampala aims to improve this side of the city in order to challenge Africa’s most visited cities, Ambrose Atwooko, the deputy Director Education at the Kampala Capital City Authority (KKCA) believes that they can even be surpassed, given Kampala’s already-established reputation for safety and security; it was voted the safest city in the world by Lonely Planet Magazine in 2012.

"These cities are very expensive, the security of tourists is not guaranteed and some, their image has been tainted by robbing and stabbing of tourists," Atwooko said.

Kampala already leads the way in this respect and hopes to close the gap over the coming years as the country’s development picks up the pace. 

Pecold / Shutterstock.com

National GDP grew by 0.9 percent, down from 2.1 percent in the last quarter of 2012, according to data released by Statistics South Africa.

The slow growth was led by a contraction in the manufacturing industry (-1.2 percent), which accounts for 15 percent of the economy, in addition to a drop in the agriculture, forestry and fishing industry and the electricity, gas and water industry, which each contributed -0,1 of a percentage point.

The main contributors to the increase in economic activity in the first quarter of 2013 were the mining and quarrying industry and finance, real estate and business services (each contributing 0,7 of a percentage point); general government services (0,3 of a percentage point) in addition to the wholesale, retail, motor trade, catering, accommodation, transport, storage and communication industries, which each contributed 0,2 of a percentage point.

The largest economy on the continent, South Africa’s emerging markets rely heavily on the European market to purchase a third of all exports, according to the Financial Times. The country, which is beset by unemployment and poverty, has further weakened the rand, which is currently at a four year low in comparison to the dollar. 

 Total cost control is delivered over a real time global mobile platform to completely eliminate data roaming “bill shock”.

Craig Lowe, execMobile founder, said the solutions are targeted at executives who have to travel overseas regularly and need solutions which are both convenient and reduce the average international data cost of around R100 per MB.

execMobile offers corporates the options of “arrive connected” convenience in 74 countries or a data bundle service which offers greater coverage in 128 countries at even better rates. All services are billed at month end with no fixed monthly costs.

Lowe said: “The international data market is a $45 billion dollar industry and 67 percent of the market is made up by corporate employees who travel overseas and need to be connected from wherever they are.

“Around 5.2 million people travel out of South Africa every year, of which 505 000 are business travelers, where time and convenience are extremely important.”

The international per MB price of data is so high because the foreign mobile network determines around 80 percent of the cost for users wanting to roam onto their network.

 Lowe said the reason execMobile is able to offer such a markedly lower price is due to the various partners they are working with who have negotiated near local rates in various countries. execMobile has built a management platform to control roaming subscribers and offer them cost reduction, control and above all convenience.

“Local data costs will always be cheaper, but that requires buying a SIM card in that country or using WiFi where available. The SIM might require a RICA-equivalent process and will require the user to forfeit their mobile number and modify their device settings,” Lowe said. 

“For leisure travellers this is generally not a problem as they have the time to do this. However, for an executive who has time constraints, needs secure Internet access on multiple devices (laptop, smartphone, tablet) and may travel to multiple countries (multiple SIMs required), this becomes problematic.”

execMobile’s PocketWifi offers their Global or Giga SIM which is placed into a wireless router to allow up to five devices to be connected to it at one time, eliminating these obstacles and offering convenience and savings.

Lowe said this is particularly important for BlackBerry users as BIS and BES services may not be available with the foreign SIM. However, by connecting the BlackBerry wirelessly to the PocketWifi, all BlackBerry services will continue to work, which is important given that 80 percent of South African corporates run BlackBerry services.

The wireless router is also an important security feature for corporate as their employees don’t have to use Wi-Fi networks in public places and the user has to use a secure password to access the router.

execMobile’s solutions have no monthly contract fees and users are simply billed for any data or data bundles consumed in the period.   “Users are only sent a bill for the month in which they use the data card, making it the easiest way to stay connected when travelling overseas,” he added.

South Africa already has a number of great money transfer solutions, however the real challenge is not getting another banking app, but rather finding locations for these applications to convert credit into cash as well as cash into credit, says Bevan Ducasse of wiGroup.

 “Mobile money is growing tremendously,” said Ducasse. “Every one of the big four banks as well as Capitec has a mobile banking solution, and we have MTN and Vodacom offering money transfer services as well.

“The problem of how to enable people without traditional bank accounts to transfer money has been solved. If someone has a cellphone number, you can send them money.”

 What does still need to be solved, said Ducasse, is the problem of how to spend money sitting in mobile accounts and wallets.”

“At some point you still need to be able to deposit and withdraw cash and everything points to the retail footprint in South Africa being the answer,” he said.

wiGroup is a South African pioneering software business with a focus on the development of mobile transaction and application technology, and specializes on the integration into a retailers point of sale software.

 Ducasse believes the logical next step will see retailers teaming up with mobile banking operators to provide that final link.

 “Retailers already have the infrastructure that’s needed,” he said. “They have the bricks-and-mortar presence in every small town, the communications networks, the cash, the security and the customers. Opening up retail points of sale to act as cash deposit and withdrawal points is a no-brainer.”

 Retailers, banks and consumers all stand to benefit with an increase in foot traffic into the store as well as the opportunity to earn a small fee per transaction.

“For the banks and mobile transaction operators, there is the chance to offer a better service to a larger market, at a fraction of the cost of rolling out an entire new ATM network, especially considering rolling out into Africa. And for consumers, there is greater flexibility and access to their money,” said Ducasse.

 “The technology platform to enable this already exists and has been proven. Within the next 12 months to three years I expect to see consumers being able to walk into their local branch of most national retailers, and to transact with the bank of their choice.”

Kenya’s leading integrated communications company Safaricom has reported strong growth in the past financial year seeing its profits rise by almost 50 percent.

The company announced a net profit of Sh25.5 billion for the financial year ending March 31, 2013, up 47 percent on the previous year.  The growth was driven by a 16 percent rise in total revenue up to Sh124.3 billion.

Chief Executive Officer Bob Collymore said: “The full year results demonstrate our continued strong commercial and financial performance across our service portfolio, we are committed to our Best Network in Kenya initiative through continued investment in our network and services.”

As a result of the strong performance, shareholders will receive a 41 percent rise in dividend per share up to Kshs 0.31.

Safaricom now has 19.4 million customers and is successfully growing usage across all service revenue streams.

M-PESA, Safaricom’s mobile money payment method, has also witnessed strong growth with a 29.5 percent growth in revenue driven by an increase in 30-day active users which now stands at 10.5 million.

Some 26,000 new M-PESA agents have been added in the year bringing the total number of agents up to 65,547.

On M-PESA, the firm's plans to reduce systems failures while growing retail and e-commerce payments.

Collymore said: "We also aim on ensuring geographical system redundancy for M-PESA and have begun an 18 month programme to locate a new M-PESA system in Kenya."

The company has invested some Kshs 24.9 billion in improving and upgrading its networks through site roll out, RAN modernisation and radio optimisation, transmission improvements and energy efficiency.

Collymore also announced 30 percent growth in SMS revenue to Sh10.13 billion, 21 percent growth in mobile data revenue to Sh6.3 billion and percent increase in active mobile data customers to 7.1 million which is 37 percent of total customer base.

Safaricom intends to increase population coverage of its 2G and 3G networks, completing network modernisation in six cities in the country and the rollout of fibre to at least 40 percent of sites in Nairobi with particular focus on the Central Business District.

Written by Jonathan Williamson

With continued support from the Dubai Chamber, the city and wider region is being opened up for many African businesses, with 135 owned or partnered companies from South Africa alone currently registered with the Chamber and operating within the emirate.

Well known examples include Nando’s, Ina Paarman, Mugg & Bean, The Butcher Shop & GRILL, Spinney’s, Barloworld Logistics and Afrisource FZCO. At the same time, many of Dubai’s home-grown businesses are increasingly seeking mutually beneficial partners in Africa.

Managing Director of Al Islami Foods (part of the Dubai Co-Operative Society), Saleh Abdullah Lootah said: “The important thing going forward is to create the link between the capabilities which Dubai has with the opportunities Africa has. Africa is booming, especially in terms of agriculture which is of particular interest to us.”

Al Islami Foods, whose subsidiary is the international fast food restaurant chain Al Farooj Fresh, provides Halal food products, making Africa’s sizeable population of Muslims an enticing prospect.

“We are in discussions with a number of different parties from across the continent with the aim of creating a manufacturing or agriculture venture, the difficulty however lies in finding the right partner who can help to deliver your objectives,” the MD said.

Fully branded

In regards to opening Al Farooj Fresh outlets in Africa, Lootah added: “If you look at Europe, the US, India, China, they are all fully branded. There aren’t many countries left in the world which aren’t which makes Africa very attractive to us going forward.”

Another Dubai-grown company looking towards African expansion is global luxury five-star hotel brand Jumeirah Group, attracted by the continent’s steadily emerging markets.

“There are certain countries in Sub-Saharan Africa which are doing very well economically, such as Ghana, Nigeria and Angola, the most important factor for us though is are they able to sustain our brand,” Cherif Hosny, Jumeirah’s Senior Vice-President for Development, Middle East, South Africa & South Asia said.

“Not everywhere in Africa can sustain Jumeirah, but we are very keen to explore opportunities. Things in Africa are changing, people are travelling and countries are thirsty for new luxury hotels,” Hosny added.  

Playing host to the upcoming Africa Global Business Forum is just one example of how Dubai has successfully positioned itself on the world stage, transforming itself from humble fishing and pearl diving port to internationally renowned commerce hub in just four short decades.  

Oil was discovered in the 1960s and was a major contributing factor to Dubai’s meteoric rise to global prominence. However, it already constitutes just three percent of the GDP (Gross Domestic Product). The vast majority of the Dubai economy, over 70 percent, is now based on services, with tourism and trade forming the backbone of the city.

Enviable position

Being so dependent on tourism, Dubai was hit hard by the recent international economic depression, but has since recovered and emerged stronger than ever, as Yong Wei Lee, Head of Middle East & North Africa Equities at Emirates NBD attested.

He said: “Very few countries are in the same position Dubai currently finds itself in, for example the city and the region are running huge budget surpluses. Compared to many other nations where the exact opposite is true, it’s a very enviable position to be in.”

Wei Lee went on to explain how Dubai will continue to improve and strengthen its position.

“Geographically it’s set up perfectly to be a global trading hub, sitting in between China, South Asia, South East India, and Africa, and supported by a very strong logistics infrastructure,” he said. “What Africa has in great abundance is commodities and what the East really needs is commodities, Dubai is therefore ideally positioned as a common meeting point for both supply and demand.”

Arguably more than anything else, it’s Dubai’s location that has empowered the city and will continue to propel it to greatness. Additionally, the mutually beneficial relationship forged with domestic flight operator Emirates Airlines is playing an increasing role in bringing the two to the world’s attention.

Conceived in 1985, Emirates now operates more than 2,500 weekly flights to over 120 cities in 74 countries across six continents. The fact that given a six-hour flying window, you can reach the vast majority of the world has been responsible for opening up not only Dubai’s businesses with the world, but the global business community to it.

Alongside its world class ports and free zones the city’s main airport, Dubai International, has also been instrumental in helping both businesses and tourists capitalise on the abundance of opportunities offered by Dubai and the region.

Last year Dubai International received 10 million tourists, surpassing France’s Charles de Gaulle in terms of capacity with a record 57 million passengers flowing through its gates. Currently ranked as the world’s number two in terms of international passengers, should growth continue at the same speed, it is likely to surpass the current number one, London Heathrow, by 2015. 

This vibrant, ultra-modern city has certainly come a long way from its traditional roots, utilising the trade relationships forged throughout the centuries to sustain itself way beyond the day the oil supply eventually runs dry. 

Oragroup, the Togo-based, regional commercial banking holding company with operations spanning six countries in West and Central Africa, has announced that it has closed a first tranche of equity fundraising at US$18 million from investors including Development Finance Institutions BIO and PROPARCO.

This investment marks a new milestone in an ongoing focus on fundraising and growth expansion at Oragroup, led by pan-African private equity firm, Emerging Capital Partners (ECP).

 In order to support its ambitious acquisition programme, the group will seek to raise funds in the region of US$50 million through a combination of debt and equity financing from a diversified investor base which includes local, regional and international investors, adding both retail and institutional shareholders to Oragroup’s share capital.

Commenting on the equity fundraising, Patrick Mestrallet, CEO at Oragroup, said: “This capital injection represents a major landmark for Oragroup; highlighting our existing investors’ confidence in our business model and in the pan-African markets in which we operate.

“Through this additional investment, we will be able to undertake the next steps in our expansion plans, supported by market leading private equity firm ECP.”

Commenting further, William Nkontchou Director of the ECP Paris office, said: “ECP has been active in the African financial services sector for over a decade, and Oragroup is a cornerstone investment.

“This latest round of successful fundraising demonstrates that Oragroup’s investors are backing its long-term development and we look forward to moving our relationship forward into its next phase of growth.”

In November 2011, Oragroup announced that it had attracted a US$20 million growth equity investment from BIO ($7million) and PROPARCO ($13 million).

Oragroup is a regional banking group spanning six countries (Benin, Togo, Guinea, Chad, Gabon, Mauritania) and four monetary zones, with a total balance sheet of €1,100 million.

Emerging Capital Partners (ECP) is a private equity firm that has raised more than US$2 billion for growth capital investing in Africa. Founded in 2000, ECP was one of the first firms dedicated to Africa which, today, translates into investments in more than 50 African companies through seven funds. 

Western Union, a global leader in payment services, and KCB Group, East Africa’s largest indigenous bank, has announced the launch of Account Based Money Transfer service (ABMT) for its customers in Kenya and the Region allowing them to receive and send money from more than 200 countries around the world.

KCB Customers in Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, South Sudan, Rwanda and Burundi can direct their Western Union international money transfers into their bank accounts via online banking, mobile phone banking, call centre as well as through the retail branch network. 

Similarly, KCB Customers can also send Western Union international money transfers via the same banking channels vice versa.

 The new electronic service launch is an extension of the two companies’ successful collaboration across East Africa to provide seamless money transfer services on real time. 

Account-Based Money Transfer (ABMT) allows recipients to move funds directly into their KCB accounts in minutes once it has been sent  from any of Western Union’s 510 000 Agent locations worldwide; allowing KCB’s customers to access their funds 24/7 at any KCB branch within the markets in which it operates as well as from KCB Mtaani Agents.

 Richard Malcolm, regional vice president, Southern & East Africa, Western Union, said: “Western Union is pleased to strengthen this mutually productive and beneficial relationship with the inclusion of banking channels that are customer-centric and technologically advanced.

“This partnership with KCB demonstrates Western Union’s continual commitment to providing reliable and convenient world-class money transfer services in addition to expanding our user base.”

 KCB Group Chief Executive Officer, Joshua Oigara, said: “Our customers, at home and abroad, now have three options to choose from that allows them to receive money from Account Based Money Transfer Services (ABMT).

“The money transfer services can be done through the contact centre, mobile banking, internet banking and at the teller counter enabling our customers to enjoy faster services, extended banking hours and convenience.

 “In addition, our focus for our customers this year is to provide seamless and value-adding banking and financial services in the markets in which we operate.  As a Bank we do believe that leveraging on partnerships is the way to go in facilitating access to banking services for both banked and non-banked customers taking financial inclusion to the next level,” he said.

 Over the years Diaspora remittances have recorded steady growth - according to the Central Bank of Kenya Report, Diaspora remittances inflows reached Kshs 8.7 billion (US$ 102.4 million) in February 2013.

KCB Group entered into collaboration with Western Union in 2005 to offer Western Union services in Kenya. Since then, Western Union services have been introduced in KCB Bank Tanzania, KCB Bank Uganda, KCB Bank South Sudan, KCB Bank Rwanda and KCB Bank Burundi.

The acquisition will give Aspen the right to intellectual property licenses, net assets and shares in the Infant Nutrition (IN) businesses presently conducted by Pfizer, who distribute a portfolio of IN products in Australia and certain Southern African territories such as South Africa, Botswana, Namibia, Lesotho, Swaziland and Zambia.

The IN portfolio covers all age stages (infants, toddlers and early childhood) and consists of premium, specialty and standard ranges supported by strong umbrella brands including S26 Gold, S26 and SMA.

The revenue for the Australian and Southern African IN businesses amounted to AUD83 million and ZAR180 million respectively in 2012.

Aspen Group Chief Executive, Stephen Saad commented:

“These transactions support Aspen’s stated ambitions to extend our infant nutritional business. We understand the potential of these products as we are familiar with the brands having marketed these in South Africa under licence in the recent past.”

Australian competition authorities have approved the acquisition and the transaction will be effective from 28 April, 2013. South African and Namibian approval is pending the sanction of competition authorities.

Aspen has stated the nature of the transaction and the assets to include:
• Aspen will have the exclusive right of use of the Nestlé (previously Pfizer) S26® and SMA® IN product trademarks for a period of 10 years in Australia and Southern Africa
• Aspen will also have the right to co-brand the licensed products over the initial 10 year period and to transition these products to Aspen branded products over the period
• For a further 10 year period, commencing after expiration of the initial 10 year exclusive licence period, Nestlé will be precluded from commercialising the licensed products, effectively providing Aspen with a 20 year period to establish equivalent Aspen branded IN products
• Aspen will have a perpetual licence to the IN technology, technical know-how and formulations existing at the effective date plus access to an agreed licensed product pipeline together with related technology developments for a period of 5 years from the effective date
• Aspen will be provided with transitional service arrangements by Nestlé and Pfizer including the manufacture and supply of licensed products under a non-exclusive arrangement. These arrangements will provide Aspen with the flexibility to transition the manufacture of IN products to its own sources of supply including to its own IN manufacturing facilities within a 3 year period.

Sub-Saharan Africa is likely to reach more than five percent annual economic growth on average in 2013-2015 as a result of high commodity prices worldwide and strong consumer spending on the continent, ensuring that the region remains amongst the fastest growing in the world.

The Africa Pulse, a bi-annual analysis of the issues shaping Africa’s economic prospects, forecasts that medium-term growth prospects remain strong and will be supported by a gradually improving world economy, consistently high commodity prices, and more investment in regional infrastructure, trade, and business growth.

In 2012, about a quarter of African countries grew at 7 percent or higher and a number of African countries, notably Sierra Leone, Niger, Cote d’Ivoire, Liberia, Ethiopia, Burkina Faso and Rwanda, are among the fastest growing in the world.

Faster Progress

Following the study results, the World Bank’s Vice President called on the need for faster progress in areas such as electricity and food in the vulnerable areas of The Sahel and the Horn of Africa, and that significantly more energy and agricultural productivity were needed to raise the quality of life for Africans throughout the continent and reduce poverty significantly.

“African countries will need to bring more electricity, nutritious food, jobs and opportunity to families and communities across the continent in order to better their lives, end extreme poverty, and promote shared prosperity,” said the World Bank’s Africa Vice President Makhtar Diop. “Without more electricity and higher agricultural productivity, Africa’s development future cannot prosper. The good news is that governments in Africa are intent on changing this.”

Diop also urged African governments and their development partners to upgrade the continent’s statistical capacity so that citizens could better measure and monitor their development progress and analyze the reasons for its success and failure, especially in resource-rich countries and fragile states, where data gathering and analysis remained weak.

New mineral discoveries drive growth

Africa’s Pulse says that recent discoveries of oil, natural gas, copper, and other strategic minerals, and the expansion of several mines or the building of new ones in Mozambique, Niger, Sierra Leone, and Zambia, together with better political and economic governance, were sustaining solid economic growth across the continent.

Looking forward, it is expected that by 2020, only four or five countries in the region will not be involved in mineral exploitation of some kind, such is Africa’s abundance of natural resources.

The World Bank says that given the considerable amounts of new mineral revenues coming on stream across the region, resource-rich African countries will consciously need to invest these new earnings in better health, education, and jobs, and less poverty for their people in order to maximize their national development prospects.

Consumer spending and private investment up

Consumer spending, which accounts for more than 60 percent of Africa’s GDP, remained strong in 2012. 

This trend was driven by declining inflation, which fell from 9.5 percent in January 2012 to 7.6 percent in December 2012; improved access to credit, for example in Angola, Ghana, Mozambique, South Africa, and Zambia; lower interest rates--for every interest rate hike there were three cuts; and a rebound in agricultural incomes, thanks to more favorable weather conditions in countries such as Guinea, Mauritania and Niger, which all experienced better rains compared with the 2010/2011 crop year; and the steady remittance inflows, which are estimated at $31 billion in 2012 and 2011.

Increased investment flows are supporting the region’s growth performance. In 2012, for example, net private capital flows to the region increased by 3.3 percent to a record $54.5 billion; and foreign direct investment inflows to the region increased by 5.5 percent in 2012 to $37.7 billion.

The report also noted that exports are also driving the continent’s growth and that the traditional destination of these goods over the last decade is changing as well. Since 2000, the overall growth of Sub-Saharan exports to emerging markets, including those of China, Brazil and India, and to countries in the region has surpassed that to developed markets. Total exports to Brazil, India and China were larger than to the EU market in 2011.

Adapted from a statement by the World Bank

Telkom Business has launched the latest in a range of new mobile plans that aim to help businesses of all sizes improve productivity and reduce communication costs.

A unique feature of these plans is unlimited on-net calling, meaning colleagues can talk to each other as much as they want without incurring additional cost.

These plans also include unlimited calls to one landline, unlimited access to a nationwide network of wifi hotspots and unlimited SMS on selected contracts.

The new plans follow the recent launch of the unlimited all-net tariff by Telkom, another South African first, offering unlimited calls to any network, any time for only R1.199 per month.

Acting Managing Executive for Mobile Solutions at Telkom Business, Megan Nicholas, said: “Telkom Business understands the need to be connected with colleagues and customers at all times while managing communication costs.

“The new plans have been designed with this in mind - businesses can now talk and message as much as they want without fear of additional cost."

"The new plans are in line with Telkom Business’ strategy to disrupt the mobile voice market and bring high quality, unique and affordable communications solutions to businesses," Nicholas said.

Telkom has successfully increased its mobile customer base by over 200 percent in the past year, thanks to disruptive voice and data offerings.

“Telkom Business plans to launch several more disruptive mobile products over the coming months, including converged services that will add even more value to South African businesses,” Nicholas concluded.

Standard Bank Group has walked away with 11 acccolades at the 2013 EMEA Finance Achievements Awards, including being named best merger and acquisition house, best securitisation house and best syndicated loan house in Africa. 

This is the sixth consecutive year that Standard Bank Group has received multiple awards from EMEA Finance, which continue to recognise the group's leading position in the African capital markets.

 EMEA Finance is a leading bimonthly global industry publication that reports on the major financial events and happenings initiated and influenced by the international financial industry active in Europe, Middle East, and Africa (the EMEA region). 

Some of the notable transactions for which EMEA Finance recognized Standard Bank in 2013 were the group's work on Tiger Brands' acquisition of 63.35 percent of Nigeria's Dangote Flour Mills and China's Jinchuan Group's US$1.3-billion acquisition of JSE listed copper miner Metorex in 2012.

Standard Bank was recognized for being the best syndicated loan house in Africa largely because of facilitating the raising of a US$600-million two-year term loan on behalf of the Kenyan government. 

The group was also recognised in the following categories:

·         Best sovereign syndicated loan for taking part in Kenya's US$600-million capital raising

·         Best supranational syndicated loan for its part in Afreximbank's US$500-millon, five-year Eurobond issuance

·         Best M&A deal in Africa for Tiger Brands' acquisition of Dangote Flour Mills

·         Best corporate bond in Africa for facilitating JD Group's issue

·         Best IPO in Africa for the listing of Ugandan power distributor Umeme Limited's shares on the Nairobi Securities Exchange

·         Best follow-on funding in Africa for Dangote Flour Mills of Nigeria

·         Best securitisation deal in the EMEA region for South Africa home loans' recapitalisation.

David Munro, Chief Executive of Standard Bank Group's corporate and investment banking division, said: "Standard Bank has a clear, strategic focus on Africa and these awards demonstrate our desire to provide excellent service to our clients as we work towards the development of the continent we call home". 

"Our bank's deal-making teams across the continent have helped to structure and deliver these transactions for African companies and sovereigns. Leveraging our global footprint, expertise, experience and on-the-ground presence enables us to work with our clients to help them deliver their strategic goals." 

Over the years, Standard Bank Group has built strong in-country advisory capabilities in a number of key global markets, including South Africa, Nigeria, Kenya, Ghana, Mozambique, China and London, delivering a full range of corporate and investment banking services to clients across various emerging markets. The bank's strategy is to remain committed to Africa, with a particular focus on natural resources and infrastructure. 

Standard Bank Group operates under the name of Stanbic Bank in some of these countries. 

The latest EMEA Finance Achievement awards add to Standard Bank Group's list of accolades already received so far in 2013. These include winning: the African Deal of the Year award for Konkola Copper Mines financing in recognised in the 2013 Project Finance Deal of the Year Awards; Commercial Deal of the Year in the 2013 Trade & Forfaiting Review Deals of the Year for arranging finance for commodities trader Export Trading Group; and being named Best Trade Finance Bank in Africa by Global Finance. 

The Rockefeller Foundation and the Tony Elumelu Foundation have announced in Cape Town, the launch of the Impact Economy Innovations Fund (IEIF) at the Impact Investing in Africa: Accelerating the Industry Regionally Forum.

The event, hosted by The Rockefeller Foundation, the Tony Elumelu Foundation, and the Bertha Centre for Social Innovation & Entrepreneurship at the University of Cape Town (UCT) Graduate School of Business, provided a platform to introduce the investment and entrepreneurial community from all over Africa to the concept and practice of impact investing. 

Impact investing includes those investments aimed at solving social or environmental challenges, while generating a financial return. 

The impact investing industry has the potential to steer significant capital to market-based solutions in sustainable agriculture, affordable housing, affordable and accessible healthcare, clean technology, financial services for the poor and other sectors addressing the world’s most pressing problems.

Through a series of presentations and panel discussions, participants developed a better understanding of the barriers to and opportunities for unlocking greater investment capital for impact at scale, while strengthening the sector’s entrepreneurial talent and African ecosystem. 

Eme Essien Lore, Acting Managing Director at The Rockefeller Foundation, said:  “Throughout its 100 year history, The Rockefeller Foundation has worked to enhance the impact of innovative thinkers and actors.

"Now, during our Centennial year, our work is helping accelerate the growth of the impact investing industry in Africa as we partner with organisations that are at the forefront of helping to achieve equitable growth for all, such as The Tony Elumelu Foundation and the Bertha Centre for Social Innovation and Entrepreneurship.”

Dr François Bonnici, Director of the Bertha Centre at the UCT Graduate School of Business said: “We are conducting research on impact investing in South Africa to provide an annual barometer to track the trends and practices in the sector.

“With the support of The Rockefeller Foundation and The Tony Elumelu Foundation, the possibilities for impact investing in Africa are considerable.”

The IEIF will fund proposals geared toward projects that seek to enable capital solutions, foster entrepreneurial ecosystems and promote impact investing industry infrastructure – ultimately aimed at impacting the lives of poor or vulnerable people throughout Africa. 

Dr Wiebe Boer, Chief Executive Officer of the Tony Elumelu Foundation, said: “Impact Investing is a critical tool in driving our agenda of promoting entrepreneurship for lasting economic and social development in Africa.

“We want to see more deals of this nature and our commitment to support this new fund is just the beginning.” 

The IEIF will be managed by The Global Impact Investing Network (GIIN) in close collaboration with The Tony Elumelu Foundation and The Rockefeller Foundation.  A Request for Proposals (RFP) has been issued, calling for submissions to the IEIF that align with the Fund’s objective of boosting the development of robust regional markets. Click here for more information on how to apply for IEIF funding.

Banking customers want to be in control of the transaction which is why omnichannel banking is set to revolutionise the way banks are doing business.

Creating an anytime, anywhere, any platform (triple A) digitalised service is the way forward says Ronald Fons, Global Head of Financial Services Industries for Huawei Technologies Ltd, a leading global information and communications technology solutions provider.

Huawei has a major presence in Africa since it first opened an office in Cairo, Egypt in 1999. It now employs more than 5,800 people in 18 offices and seven training centres across the continent as well as a Research and Development Centre in South Africa.  Its solutions are deployed by more than 60 operators in some 20 African countries.

Fons said: “For banks to harness the triple A service and embrace an omnichannel world they will need to make changes to infrastructure architecture as well as business process work flows.”

“The customer wants to be in control of the transaction and by this I mean, if you take into consideration the physical attributes of that triple A, they want to begin a transaction, suspend it resume it and conclude it and that could be on three or four different platforms.”

Spreading the word

Fons was spreading the word of omnichannel banking to a plethora of South Africa’s banking CEOs, financial gurus and experts at the continent’s largest banking and technology show last month.

He was a keynote speaker at Future Bank Africa 2013, held at the Sandton Convention Centre in Johannesburg, where he gave a presentation about the challenges banks face in evolving integrated omnichannel services.

Just before taking the podium, Fons spoke to African Business Review about some of the transitions the banking industry in South Africa and the rest of the continent faces if it is to keep step with constantly evolving technology platforms used by its customers.

“Our lives are changing and not just from social networking, but from the very advanced technology that is in people’s homes right now,” he said.  “Obviously, banks need an underlying infrastructure that can seamlessly bring in 4G, 3G, online, internet, self-service kiosks which traditionally in consumer banking have been tied to one technology.

“For many years banks have talking about multi-channel integration, but what I think that really means is how the bank finds out information and can interact with the customer in terms of knowing what the customer wants.”

Making better use of on-line video is one example of where banks could heighten their infrastructure to meet the demands of customers.

For example, if a customer wanted to have a meeting with an advisor, but they didn’t want to go into the bank, they should be able to make a video call through their HDTV at home to an advisor who might be working on a tablet at their home via the bank’s infrastructure.

Smarter banks

For the past year Huawei, has been leading the debate on innovative or smart bank branches. Changing the face of retail banking to provide customers with an array of digitalised services the minute they walk through the door would effectively help banks to offload high volume, low revenue transactions traditionally carried out by tellers, making them more efficient and appealing to consumers.

“I would say that because of the heavy loading of consumers still wanting to go in a bank and conduct transactions the innovative or smart branch idea in Africa will come up pretty robustly,” he said.

To help banks make the transition to being smarter and more in tune with their customer’s needs, Huawei Technologies has the solutions.

Fons said: “The message we want to bring is that whatever banks are looking for in terms of carrier-based technologies, social media enterprise, any platform triple A, we have all the solutions.

 “From an Africa point of view we have some unique qualities we can offer that can help with issues such as less bandwidth. For Huawei mobile telecommunication is bread and butter to us, just like WIFI and traditional land-based technologies we can integrate all of these seamlessly compared to some of our rivals, because we are major innovators and manufacturers in each of those sectors.”

Fons believes that South Africa banks are well placed to take advantage of the omnichannel world, although there is a need to re-architect a lot of things and security issues to address.

“The omnichannel focus is really on how you can bring self-service to a new level by not only offering banking services, but things such as cross-selling, vouchers, cinema tickets, book flights and a whole lot more, which brings me back to my original statement that the customers wants to be in control,” he concluded.

Sanlam Emerging Markets (SEM), the division within the Sanlam Group tasked with international expansion, says it is well on track to deliver on its mandate of supporting the Sanlam Group objective of becoming a leading financial services player in selected emerging markets.

This is in line with the Sanlam Group strategy which defines emerging markets as one of the key areas to be exploited for potential growth in the business. 

Sanlam Group Chief Executive Dr Johan van Zyl has stated that: “In 2011 Sanlam’s international business contributed around 15 percent of operating profit (pre-minorities).

“Our view is that this contribution can be doubled over the next five years as these markets are seen as key growth engines. Considerable work continues to be done to identify core markets for expansion.”

Earlier this month Sanlam Group announced financial results for the year ended December 2012 and reported that SEM delivered gross operating profit of R850 million, up 30 percent from R656 million in 2011. SEM is expected to deliver a compounded annual growth rate of (CAGR) 17 percent between 2011 and 2015.

SEM CEO Heinie Werth said the company is pleased with the progress made by the business cluster responsible for Sanlam’s expansion in emerging markets outside South Africa.

Currently, SEM is doing business in 10 countries in Africa, excluding South Africa and Namibia, as well as India and Malaysia. In 2012 SEM concluded transactions to the value of roughly R3 billion. In the first quarter of 2013 a further transaction worth approximately R1 billion with Shriram Transport Finance Company was concluded.

For the 2012 financial year, SEM managed to increase gross operating profit from its Indian operation (Shriram) by 750 percent from R4 million to R34 million. With the Shriram transactions completed in 2012, a contribution of approximately R400m in profit is expected in 2013.

Gross operating profit for Namibia increased 10 percent to R225 million and 20 percent for Botswana to R499 million. For the rest of Africa, the businesses managed to increase gross operating profit by 134 percent to R117 million.

Among the highlights was the Nigeria operation which has managed to break even within two years of its launch, testimony to SEM’s low cost expansion model in Africa.

Werth said: “We are making steady progress towards our objectives and we are satisfied that the cluster is well positioned to increase its contribution to the Group over the next five years as the markets we operate in are seen as key growth engines.”

In addition, Werth said strong local partnerships play an important role in the company’s performance: “We rely on strong local partners and management to drive business growth within each country and this has been mutually beneficial in India and in our operations in Africa.”

Standard Bank South Africa's home loan book for the affordable housing market grew by 30 percent to R14-billion in 2012 as South Africa's largest residential mortgage lender continued to attract first-time homebuyers in this segment. 

Thabani Ndwandwe, head of credit management for inclusive banking at Standard Bank South Africa, said:  “More than R2bn or close to 80 percent of loans granted, was disbursed to first-time homebuyers in 2012 alone. The income band distribution also shows that we are not just financing the upper end of affordable housing market, but continue to increase access to home ownership for customers in the low income segment.”

The term affordable housing refers to the market with household incomes of up to R18 000. 

The milestone means that Standard Bank has now helped place more than 80,000 South Africa customers into homes since it took the decision five years ago to enter the affordable housing mortgage market. 

Nicholas Nkosi, head of affordable housing at Standard Bank South Africa, said: "One in three of all the houses sold in the affordable housing market continue to be financed by Standard Bank. Although there is still much to be done to address the extent of the country's housing challenge, this is a significant milestone.” 

He said what is also encouraging is that more and more people in this market segment are starting to put down deposits when they purchase houses, which dispels some of the notions about consumers not saving. 

“Our experience is also an indication that demands in this segment of the housing market has remained resilient despite weak economic conditions. There is still high demand for affordable housing. Standard Bank also expects to attract more prospective homebuyers that are seeking to move out of the rental market and become home owners. 

"Our figures confirm our commitment to getting as many people as possible into homes. Standard Bank has an appropriate and well-managed risk appetite that has enabled us to widen our product offering in the affordable housing market." 

Nkosi said although the start of the implementation of Basel III regulatory capital requirements on banks is going to put pressure on customers' affordability, Standard Bank is developing innovative ways to ensure that users in the affordable housing market continue to enjoy lower costs and get into their first homes. 

For details of Standard Bank South Africa's home loan offerings, visitwww.standardbank.co.za.