THE first phase of a R140m retail centre called The Crossing in Mafikeng, North West, has been officially launched, say developers McCreedy Friedlander.

Lately, Black Economic Empowerment or BEE in short has become a hotly debated issue in Africa and Namibia is no exception. Continuous deliberations from local experts have been on how best to redress the past inequalities and assist previously disadvantaged Namibians to also benefit from the BEE cake, which is largely seen to only benefit the elite few in the country.

South African banking group First National Bank (FNB) - part of Firstrand (FSR) - is to establish a banking operation in Lesotho.

South Africa is boosting spending on roads, railways and ports in a bid to get business moving after a decade of fiscal austerity.

Last month Credit Agricole Indosuez donated one of its buildings to the CIDA City Campus, a virtually free tertiary education facility for people from previously-disadvantaged backgrounds

The industry has grown rapidly since 1998 due to the lack of barriers