Sunday Tribune 2024-06-30

The travel industry was one of the hardest hit sectors during the Covid-19 pandemic and has been picking itself up from the floor since 2020. According to data released by the global report from the Mastercard Economics Institute – “Travel Trends 2024”, the sector is expected to pick up this year. The report found that consumer spending on travel is robust, with significant increases in passenger traffic. Despite fluctuating exchange rates and varying levels of affordability, the desire to travel remains stronger than ever. From South Africa, the top five trending destinations to escape the winter, are Dubai, Mauritius, Istanbul, Frankfurt, and Nairobi. Cape Town is among the top three trending destinations from Saudi Arabia. Globally, Japan (#1), Ireland (#2) and the UAE (#9) are among the global front-runners for…

As several annual general meetings have taken place across the South African Financial Services sector this month, progress towards gender parity has been high on the activist shareholders’ agenda. In its annual round-up reports non-profit shareholder activism organisation, Just Share has so far put the leadership of Absa, Nedbank, Sanlam and Old Mutual on the spot over a range of gender parity issues. Shareholder concerns include the lack of transparent reporting on the current numbers of women in senior leadership positions or if reported, the low percentages achieved, and the lack of strategic, CEO-backed plans to address critical gender imbalances in the high echelons of their corporations. Amid this local flurry, the World Economic Forum (WEF) has released the Global Gender Gap 2024 report. Only one African country made it…

Born and raised in the vibrant community of Soweto, Percy Maphologela's journey from a disadvantaged background to becoming the 24-year-old founder and chief executive of a revolutionary fintech firm, is nothing short of inspirational. Maphologela's groundbreaking fintech business stands at the forefront of innovation and harnesses the power of artificial intelligence (AI), asset tokenisation and decentralised finance (DeFi). Maphologela’s story is rooted in the unwavering encouragement he got from his mother, Lebogang Maphologela. With both an honours and master’s degree in human resources, his mother instilled in Maphologela the value of hard work, resilience and the importance of education from an early age. Spanning a career at both Vodacom and Masana Technologies, it was she who introduced him to technology, sparking a passion that would drive him to later defy…

ALTHOUGH coffee is typically enjoyed as a morning beverage, it can be used to enhance recipes by adding a deep and rich flavour. Coffee can even be used as a secret ingredient in variety of chocolate baked goods. It’s also a great ingredient to use when cooking, due to its high acidity and powerful flavour. Adding coffee to your recipes can enhance the complexity of the flavour overall. Use coffee like you use spices, and try adding it to soups, stews and marinades to see how it blends with other flavour profiles. You can even add a sprinkle of coffee grounds to your next cheeseboard to improve the strong cheese flavours. Here are ways to cook with coffee that you probably haven’t tried yet: Enhance the flavour of fajitas Do…

In recent years, we’ve seen an exponential rise in digital content creation. The ever-present nature of the internet has afforded Millennials and Gen Zs far more career options in comparison to those from previous generations, and they are able to venture into many more avenues outside of ordinary office jobs. Scores of people from all corners of the globe are now able to make a living by expressing their creativity in the digital sphere, which comes with an abundance of new opportunities. South African fashion and beauty content creator Sinethemba Duma is one of the many infleuncers who has made a name for herself in the industry. Hailing from Ladysmith in Kwa-Zulu- Natal, Duma, who is now based in Cape Town, has thousands of followers who watch her every move…

The annual Hollywoodbets Durban July (HDJ) is almost here! Taking place at the Greyville Racecourse on Saturday, fashionistas and horse racing fans are going to want to watch this event with other like-minded fans. So, why not make a party out of it? The task of getting your friends and family together for a themed event may seem daunting, but there is really not much to throwing the perfect HDJ watch party. With a trip to the grocery store and the party supply store, you are already almost at the finish line. The first thing is to understand that you do not need to actually host a party if all you want to do is eat good food and have a few drinks with your family and friends. Many areas…