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In the last few months, there has been much discussion in South Africa about AGOA, which stands for the African Growth and Opportunity Act. The Act was passed by the United States Congress in 2000, granting qualifying African countries duty-free access to the US market for their exports.

While this may seem to many in our country to be a rather distant, even obscure, topic, AGOA is an important instrument for growing and transforming our economy. The benefits of AGOA are felt in the lives of our people through increased economic activity and the jobs that such activity created.

Trade, Industry and Competition Minister, Ebrahim Patel, has thrown his weight behind the swift reauthorisation of the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA), albeit with refinements that do not require lengthy discussions.

Patel made the remarks at 20th AGOA Forum held at Nasrec in Johannesburg in November.

“One idea that's come up from the discussions is whether we should consider a two-stage programme. But the first stage firmly focused on reauthorisation as rapidly as possible, maybe with a modest package of refinements that does not require lengthy discussions.

A young, curious farmer’s quest to pivot from farming traditional crops has seen her become an environmental warrior. Zinhle Ngidi now cultivates seeds that produce biofuel.

For the Nkandla-born and now Durban-based farmer, it all began in 2017.

“I was running an agricultural business and looking for alternative energy crops that can grow in KwaZulu-Natal (KZN), just to try and move away from the clichéd crops," she said.

She then stumbled across an article about an Italian company exploring the possibility of growing the Solaris seed in KZN.

As the 16 Days of Activism for No Violence Against Women and Children campaign nears, South Africa will once again shed some light on the progress made in its efforts to combat gender-based violence and femicide (GBVF).

The campaign is commemorated annually from 25 November to 10 December. However, the success of this campaign rests on citizens’ daily individual and collective actions to safeguard the society against this cycle of abuse.

At least 40 000 disadvantaged youth in Gauteng are expected to get free learner’s licences, thanks to the provincial campaign themed “Wrong Side of the Road”.

This was made possible by the partnership between the Gauteng Provincial Government,  Diageo South Africa, the Department of Roads and Transport, and the Department of Economic Development.

Business is on the rise for 23-year-old recycling and art enthusiast Minenhle Simelane.

Simelane owns Umlazi Arts and Recycling and crochets recycled plastic into mats – a skill that he learnt at the feet of his grandmother.