Minister of Finance Pravin Gordhan has said that the
fiscus can't sustain the uncertainties around e-tolls. Well, a great many motorists and companies are also uncertain of what impact e-tolling is going to have on their monthly costs. After much to-ing and fro-ing, the monthly bill was capped at R550 per month for light vehicles, but in this report, Gordhan is reported as saying "statistics derived from the gantries on the highway showed that people would not be paying more‚ on average‚ than R150 or R100 a month. He said inflated numbers were being put out to the public." Clear as mud?
These tolls are going to impact on every one of us, everywhere in the country, because every company based in Gauteng, having operations in or through Gauteng or dealing with any such company, will face increased costs. And guess who will have to pay...
On the mobile front, Lax Faure discusses
the technology tsunami... No other development in the history of the world has caused so much change, in such a short time period, he writes.
Food-crop improvement by conventional plant breeding, without resorting to GMO (Genetically Modified Organism) technology, is the goal of the African Centre for Crop Improvement (ACCI) and its work has borne fruit and
African farmers can now select seeds for their needs.
Thinking of travelling to the US? Think again...
Travel chaos is looming as the US cancels flights thanks to Cyclone Sandy. Air France, British Airways, Virgin and other European airlines cancelled all flights into New York, Baltimore, Washington, Boston and Philadelphia on Monday, while US airlines called off thousands of domestic flights and diverted planes away from Sandy's path. There is likely to be a knock-on effect, so check with your travel agent or airline if you're due to travel to the US.
Rod Baker, content director
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Vodacom's share price rose 4.77% to close at R108.50 on news that the company's first half headline earnings per share were likely to rise by as much as 25%. 
The Department of Basic Education and the South African Institute of Chartered Accountants (SAICA) recently invited Grade 10 - 12 learners in the Pretoria area to a symposium on chartered accounting. The event was held at Kgomotso Comprehensive School in Soshanguve, Pretoria and aimed at giving learners comprehensive information on the chartered accounting profession. 
Visa Inc and Fundamo, the Visa-owned mobile money platform, recently announced the results of a study that reveals consumers in six developing countries are already highly aware of mobile money services - the ability to make payments or send funds simply by accessing an account on their mobile phone. Nearly 90% of consumers surveyed by Visa expressed interest in making use of these services in the future. 
There are still "some difficulties" that need to be addressed before the Gauteng e-tolls can be implemented‚ Business Unity SA (Busa) said on Friday. 
South Africa's sound institutional framework, built on the foundation of the Constitution, will hold the country in good stead as it faces uncertainty at home and abroad, the Minister of Finance Pravin Gordhan said yesterday. 
Departments will have to consolidate programmes and activities, and seek greater value for money from what is available in the Fiscus, the Minister of Finance Pravin Gordhan said earlier this week. 
