Well, Mangaung has come and gone - as has the end of the world, the festive season and New Year, and we've survived them all and now we're back on stream with our newsletters.
Taking centre stage has been the
violent protests by farmworkers in the Western Cape. These protests need to be brought to an end; they're damaging Brand SA and have the potential to seriously curb exports (and hence foreign earnings) as customers overseas turn to more reliable suppliers.
On the education front, the
Matric pass rate increased to 73.9% but critics are asking whether a requirement of 30% to pass is enough to equip school-leavers with an adequate standard of education. Many employers reckon not - they're prepared to train new staff in the roles the new recruits will have to take up in the company - but those recruits need to be literate and enumerate to a level that will enable them to acquire and apply their new knowledge properly.
If you're in business, you're in IT... perhaps not directly, but every time you use a computer, you're operating within the IT world. So what are the
23 business attitudes to IT security you should be looking at? Kaspersky Lab research has some answers for you.
Finally, for all you petrol heads out there, our scorchingly good-looking motoring editor Henrie Geyser takes you for a drive in the
Mercedes SL 500 and shows off his tough, rugged side with the
Land Cruiser 70 double cab.
Rod Baker: Content Director
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tourismnews@bizcommunity.com. Exclusive contributions may be sent to
contributors-tourism@bizcommunity.com.
Hotels and gaming group Sun International has‚ in the past three weeks‚ opened two new hotels with an overall capacity of 420 rooms‚ strengthening its position in the key commercial and tourism markets. 
SA's hotel operators are generally more upbeat about the outlook of the local industry after a difficult period characterised by a combination of oversupply and lower demand from leisure and business travellers. 
Air Seychelles has announced an additional weekly service to Johannesburg, effective 24 March 2013. The change brings return services between the Seychelles and Johannesburg to a total three per week. Johannesburg services will also move to daytime departures and arrivals, shifting from the current overnight services, which will greatly enhance connectivity across South Africa. 
Joining up with a travel group is a great way to see Idaho. In the winter, there is plenty to do and numerous ways to enjoy the snow, including skiing. This is the perfect location to get some fresh air and enjoy the outdoors. And you'll find it a great deal cooler than South Africa right now. 
Tourism in Cape Town is reaping the benefits of its iconic landmark, Table Mountain, being named one of the New Seven Wonders of Nature, with latest figures showing that the mountain's cableway had a record-breaking holiday season. 
Etihad Airways has surpassed its target of carrying 10 million passengers in 2012 and is set to achieve a 22% increase on the total of 8.41 million passengers for 2011. 
South African Airways (SAA) has won Global Traveler's highest honour, being named "Airline of the Year" by the publication for global business travellers and fans of luxury travel. 
