Tag: governance

As organisations navigate the maze that is the Protection of Personal Information Act (POPIA), many still struggle to understand the implications and requirements of the Act. The importance of bridging the gap between cyber and legal aspects when addressing data privacy concerns under POPIA is highlighted.

Written constitutions are meant to limit government scope and power. Bills of rights are meant to safeguard individual freedom from government overreach. This is as true in South Africa as it is anywhere else. Does the South African Constitution have a provision that allows government to ‘weasel’ its way out of strictly recognising and protecting our rights, or have we misconstrued section 36 entirely?

For many years, the South African banking sector has strived to comply with international financial regulations, such as Basel II and its successors, in order to ensure cost effective access to global markets. With its focus on proving the accuracy of risk measures, Basel drove the adoption of data management principles within South Africa’s major banks, but with a risk focus.

Kicking off a debate over how best to make meaningful change through investment, we explore private equity’s unmatched ability to deliver capital to the places it’s needed most. Impact investment, at its core, is the task of identifying a change the world needs and deciding how to make it happen.

Every society is built around the rule of law and adherence to that law. However, the custodians of the law (police and lawmakers) can't be present in every instance where there is a breach of legal and ethical behaviour. Citizens must be equally invested in being law-abiding citizens and exposing instances where questionable behaviour occurs.

As South Africans prepare themselves for higher stages of load shedding in the coming colder months there remains a growing concern around the possibility of a total grid failure. A grid failure is described as a total or partial interruption or suspension of electrical power supply from the national, regional, municipal or private grid supplier resulting in widespread power outages.

The contentious issue of quiet quitting in the workplace or putting in minimal effort to avoid termination is considered by some to be a logical repercussion of COVID-19. But businesses are under extraordinary pressure of the Great Resignation trend, local talent moving abroad for better opportunities and a general shortage of skills.

All eyes were on the President’s recent cabinet reshuffle; the vast majority of which was to see who would be appointed the new Minister of Electricity; responsible for putting an end to South Africa's load shedding woes. But amid all the noise (and Instagram memes!), you might have missed some interesting additions to the cabinet, including a new Deputy Minister for the Department for Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation.

We urge government to fast track professionalisation of local government finance units. This follows the Auditor-General (AG), Tsakani Maluleke’s presentation on the 2021-22 Local Government Audit Outcome to the Standing Committee of the Auditor-General (SCOAG) on Wednesday, 31 May which continues to reflect poor audit outcomes as a result of poor financial planning, inadequate financial controls, skills and capacity, governance and accountability.

For us liberals, it matters little who makes a million dollars every other day, or how the world’s most endowed billionaires spend their wealth. As long as legitimate effort is exerted in an environment of free market competition; where entrepreneurship is recognised and rewarded on the basis of good business ethics and hard honest work.