Things I've written

The leading provider of philanthropic news, views, trends and analysis for the Arab region.

Inc. Arabia, the regional edition of Inc., is a magazine for growing companies in the Middle East and North Africa, delivers information and advice for region's ever-increasing band of innovative business builders. Covering virtually every business and management task, including marketing, sales, finding capital and managing people, Inc. Arabia helps the region's business owners and CEOs start, run and grow their businesses.

A first-of-its-kind English and Arabic parenting magazine, targeted at local and expatriate families in the UAE. Covering education, healthcare, parenting advice and lifestyle, I helped set up and edit the English side of the publication. 

eNews Channel Africa - Launched in May 2013, eNCA.com is the extension of the eNCA brand into the online space, to allow consumers to access signature news coverage on any device. A 24-hour television news broadcaster, focusing on South African and African stories. The broadcaster became South Africa's first & most watched 24-hour news service when it launched in June 2008. 

eNews Channel Africa •

Political furore grows over Gupta debacle | eNCA

Prominent South Africans took to social media to express outrage over the controversial Gupta family flying an entire wedding delegation into the military base in Waterkloof. Congess of SA Trade Unions’s (Cosatu) spokesperson Zwelenzima Vavi said this was something unheard of in our 19 years of democracy. “Some family with not a single scar to show for a struggle for democracy now using national key point for wedding. This is just a scandal,” he said. Vavi said that heads would roll.
eNews Channel Africa •

Will Zimbabwe have free and fair elections? | eNCA

HARARE - Early voting began this weekend in Zimbabwe ahead of elections on July 31, as security forces who are expected to keep the peace on polling day cast their ballots in advance. The procedure was condemned by Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai, 61, who claimed the police voter rolls were inflated with thousands of fake names. He said it was just the opening salvo by President Robert Mugabe's Zanu-PF party, to try to rig the vote. In 2008, Tsvangirai's first-round lead fell just short of an outright majority, but Mugabe went on to be declared the winner of a presidential run-off which Tsvangirai had pulled out of in protest over violence...
eNews Channel Africa •

US: We are not spying on you | eNCA

Snowden’s unabashed leaking of America’s seemingly not-so-well guarded secrets has sparked various reactions globally. Many protests have been staged expressing outrage and calls for the US to stop spying on its citizens. There seem to be three kinds of reactions to the situation. The first are people who feel betrayed by their government and have dubbed Snowden as a hero. There are those that have criticised Snowden for acting rashly and who believe that Prism is a security measure. Then there are those that enjoy a good scandal and have watched the story unfold with no less than a bowl of popcorn and sarcastically utter statements like “ What a shock! Spies spy?”
eNews Channel Africa •

Who is Edward Snowden? | eNCA

"I'm neither a traitor nor a hero. I'm an American." The 29-year-old joined the army in 2003 to fight in the Iraq War, telling British newspaper The Guardian: "I felt like I had an obligation as a human being to help free people from oppression." But, he said, "Most of the people training us seemed pumped up about killing Arabs, not helping anyone." He never made it to Iraq as he broke both legs in a training accident and was discharged from the military...
eNews Channel Africa •

Snowden: A modern spy-thriller | eNCA

Eluding a spy-hunt, the lone whistleblower, Edward Snowden is on the run from the US justice system after blowing the lid off a controversial top secret electronic surveillance programme. In what has become a real-life spy thriller, Edward Snowden has won sympathy internationally, but Washington has cast him, at best, as a misguided fool, at worst as a traitorous villain in the pay of hostile powers. For his supporters, the former NSA contractor's exposure of the many-tentacled eavesdropping...
eNews Channel Africa •

The 'Three Ts', The G8 and its economies | eNCA

Taxation, Trade and Transparency. If Europe is the weak link and Asia the strongest, then the US and Canadian economies are squarely in the middle. The two countries are experiencing steady, if not spectacular, economic growth and job gains. In the US, the once-battered housing sector has been recovering for the past year. Home sales have reached three-year highs. And prices have jumped this spring by the most in seven years. That has encouraged builders to start work on more homes...
eNews Channel Africa •

G8 Summit 2013 and its Africa agenda | eNCA

Eight of the world’s leading financial powers will be attending the 2013 G8 summit in Northern Ireland this week. The mood is lighter this year than previous anti-G8 demonstrations but the message is clear – in an age of austerity and economic crisis, the world’s economic leaders should shoulder some of the blame. For some protestors, it was time for the banking sector to come under the spotlight, for others it was to draw attention to hunger in Africa...
eNews Channel Africa •

Gugulethu wine tasting raises eyebrows, and glasses | eNCA

Cape Town  – Wine tasting and the culture surrounding viticulture will play a big role in community integration at the third Gugulethu Wine Festival. eNCA.com spoke to one of the festival’s founders, Lungile Mbalo and asked him why Gugulethu was chosen as the venue for what is typically not an activity one associates with the impoverished community. Mbalo said the aim was to distinctly promote racial integration and tap into the hospitality and tourism industries found in Cape Town. “We are a...
eNews Channel Africa •

First government head rolls over Guptagate | eNCA

Chief of state Protocol, Ambassador Bruce Koloane has been put on special leave after the influential Gupta family used Waterkloof Air Force base to fly in family members for a wedding. The move follows a preliminary probe into the saga, according to the Department of International Relations. It says no authority was granted, either by International Relations or the Presidency for the Gupta wedding plane to land at the Waterkloof base. But the Department says flight clearances were secured with the involvement of some government officials. Government now wants to know who gave the plane permission to land...
eNews Channel Africa •

Syrian refugee: be counted | eNCA

FLORENCE – At least 5 million Syrians are displaced inside the country alone, with plenty more refugees having spilled out over the borders into their neighbouring countries. This is according to a study released last month done by Salam Kawakibi, a Syrian political scientist from the Migration Policy Centre at the European University Institute. According to the report, it is an “enormous number when it is remembered that Syria had a prerevolt population of some 23 million.” The report says t...
eNews Channel Africa •

SA volunteers to return from volatile Syria | eNCA

DARKOUSH – Nineteen SA Gift of the Givers volunteers were due to return from Syria this weekend. A further three have confirmed they wished to return home after dozens of members of the Free Syrian Army attacked the hospital where South African medical teams were providing aid to the displaced Syrian civilians on Friday night. The surgeons were in the process of operating when the shots were fired inside the emergency room. Meanwhile, Russia and Egypt called for a ceasefire in Syria ...
eNews Channel Africa •

Oscar slams social media slurs | eNCA

PRETORIA - Oscar Pistorius' family released a statement on Thursday in which they express their concern about recent social media comments. "Oscar, and the Pistorius family, are deeply disturbed by the tone of a number of recent reports in the South African tabloid press as well as commentary on various social media platforms," they said in the statement. "There is not a moment in the day that Oscar does not mourn for his girlfriend and Reeva's family, and all those who were close to her...
eNews Channel Africa •

Name and shame meat culprits | eNCA

JOHANNESBURG – The Red Meat Industry Forum (RMIF) has said it would not be taking action against meat producers accused of mislabelling their products. “We will supply the information to relevant authorities which is the department of health, they are responsible for testing,” said Ford. The names of retailers whose meat was sampled to determine its actual ingredients would be handed over to the Red Meat Industry Forum and Media 24 next week. The University of Stellenbosch said it would compl...
eNews Channel Africa •

Holy smoke: A new Pope | eNCA

Vatican – Jorge Bergoglio of Argentina was elected as the new Pope. Now known as Pope Francis, he is the first non-European Pope to serve the church. White smoke billowed from the chimney of the Sistine Chapel on Wednesday evening, announcing the 115 cardinals in a papal conclave had elected a new leader for the world's 1.2 billion Catholics. The smoke was produced by burning the ballots and setting off smoke flares in two stoves installed in a corner of the chapel. After a church official an...

A niche and beautifully crafted coffee table book collection, that showcased the luxury industry of South Africa and beyond. Published quarterly, the title covered topics that matter to an audience of high net-worth individuals including travel, art, motoring, fashion, food and real estate.

LIVEOUTLOUD •

Green Fingers

What exactly are we eating and drinking and is it good for us and the environment? These are questions that South African consumers are increasingly asking. Two leading wine farmers shed some light on where green wine farming is today. Jonathan Grieves from Avondale Wines is the innovative creator of the BioLogic farming method, reintroducing natural cycles, organisms and processes into the ecosystem, completely eliminating chemicals altogether. Paul Cluver Wines won the Nedbank Green Wine Awards 2011 for best environmental practices, and its winemaker Andries Burger was behind it all.
LIVEOUTLOUD •

Untamed

With his designs that include a vast range of colour, remarkable twists on rock ‘n roll and classic style, his garments promise glass-cut tailoring and radiate exclusivity. Collins speaks fondly of his childhood in Nigeria, spent in the company of good friends who always had an eye for style and a flair for individuality. Now based in London, Collins has ventured out to South Africa, bringing his creations to the Johannesburg public through 24 Fevrier Homme boutique clothing store at the Radisson Blu Gautrain Hotel in Sandton.
LIVEOUTLOUD •

A Zulu Paradise

T he road from Johannesburg to Pongola has the worst reputation, simply because it was punctuated with potholes that could swallow a bus whole, however our recent trip to Pakamisa Game Lodge in Pongola revealed the efforts of a road makeover that proved a rather pleasant and bump-free drive. Upon arrival, the winding dirt road leading up to the lodge took us on a steep incline up a mountain with breathtaking views. A family of kudus were near the entrance, as if on cue to welcome us.