Article – Accountancy SA

https://www.accountancysa.org.za Home Tue, 01 Sep 2026 04:36:19 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=7.1.2 Lifestyle: HONOR Launches Robot Phone https://www.accountancysa.org.za/lifestyle-honor-launches-robot-phone/ Tue, 01 Sep 2026 04:36:19 +0000 https://www.accountancysa.org.za/?p=29769

The world’s first robotic smartphone with a fully integrated 4-DoF mechanical gimbal, AI-powered motion control, and ARRI Image Science officially launches

Global leading AI device ecosystem company HONOR announced the launch of the highly anticipated HONOR Robot Phone. A revolutionary, category-creating device, the Robot Phone shatters the physical boundaries of traditional mobile technology by integrating a fully motorized 3-axis mechanical gimbal directly into its premium smartphone design. It combines selected elements of ARRI Image Science and professional cinema workflows, going beyond a traditional smartphone to serve as an active physical companion and a formidable mobile production studio.

“Looking back at a century of imaging, every major leap has come from the evolution of both light capture and intelligent processing,” said James Li, CEO of HONOR. “Hardware sets the foundation for image quality, while algorithms deliver the leap. But technology is only the foundation, what ultimately defines great imaging is aesthetics. A century of filmmaking has shown us the power of precise control over light and shadow, a deep understanding of colour and emotion, and the ability to make every frame tell a story. Together with ARRI, we will continue to push the boundaries of creation and inspire a new generation of creators.”

The Industry’s First Smartphone with a 4-DoF Titanium Agile Gimbal

The HONOR Robot Phone integrates an ultra-compact 4-DoF mechanical system featuring the HONOR Titanium Agile Gimbal. Developed through 60 manufacturing processes, the system integrates more than 100 precision components and is supported by more than 100 patents. Compared with mainstream gimbals, HONOR has reduced the overall system size by 65% while increasing structural strength by 200%.

Its 2.6g Titanium Gimbal Motor enables control speeds of up to 360° per second, while the HONOR Super steel Flip Motor delivers a torque density of 120 N·m/L. Together, these technologies enable fast, precise movement and stable positioning within a pocketable flagship design.

Intelligent Imaging Through the HONOR–ARRI Cinematic Imaging Partnership

The HONOR Robot Phone marks the first product milestone under the Cinematic Imaging Partnership between HONOR and ARRI, the world-renowned designer of professional cinema cameras. Moving beyond simple filters, the device adapts selected elements of ARRI Image Science and professional cinema workflow for use in a smartphone.

The rear camera setup is anchored by a Dual 200MP Camera system, featuring a 200MP Agile Gimbal Main Camera with a 1/1.28-inch sensor and f/1.6 aperture, paired with a 200MP Periscope Telephoto Camera with a 1/1.4-inch sensor and 2.7x optical zoom. The 200MP Agile Gimbal Main Camera supports 10-bit ARRI LogC3 recording in ARRI CINEMA mode, while a 50MP Ultra-Wide Camera with a 122° field of view completes the versatile imaging system.

For creators, ARRI LogC3 preserves more highlight and shadow information for post-production, while ARRI Wide Gamut 3 provides a broader colour space and ARRI Looks offer controlled cinematic colour styles. Footage can also be taken into professional editing tools such as DaVinci Resolve, where creators can directly apply ARRI LUTs as part of a complete mobile capture-to-post-production workflow.

More information on the SA launch, prices and detailed specs, visit https://www.honor.com/za/ where HONOR will share more details.

]]> Lifestyle: Galaxy S26 FE Launched https://www.accountancysa.org.za/lifestyle-galaxy-s26-fe-launched/ Tue, 01 Sep 2026 04:17:39 +0000 https://www.accountancysa.org.za/?p=29766

First in the Galaxy S26 line-up to launch with One UI 9, Galaxy S26 FE pairs advanced camera capabilities with the latest Galaxy AI

Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. has announced Galaxy S26 FE, the newest addition to the Galaxy S26 family and the first in the line-up to launch with One UI 9 – bringing users the latest premium Galaxy innovations from day one. With enhanced camera capabilities and more context-aware Galaxy AI, it helps elevate how users capture, create and connect every day. Now available with Wi-Fi 6E, and built around what users value most in a slim design, Galaxy S26 FE carries the iconic Galaxy S experience forward.

“Galaxy S26 FE is purposefully designed to deliver the signature strengths of Galaxy S, ensuring every feature makes a meaningful difference in users’ daily lives,” said Executive Vice President and Head of Customer Experience Office, Mobile eXperience Business at Samsung Electronics. “Packed with the beloved Galaxy camera and AI experiences, backed by the latest One UI 9, Galaxy S26 FE comes to life as an ideal choice for those who know exactly what matters most to them.”

Sharper Capture, Effortless Editing

Galaxy S26 FE delivers a more capable camera experience from capture to edit, with an enhanced triple rear camera and advanced image processing that help users capture and refine the moments that matter – whether shooting still scenes or fast-moving action.

Galaxy AI, Always One Step Ahead

Powered by the latest One UI 9, Galaxy S26 FE brings a range of intuitive, context-aware Galaxy AI experiences that make daily life easier – adapting to users’ routines to keep them informed and organised, while helping them handle everyday tasks faster and more seamlessly.

Built to Keep Up with Your Day

Galaxy S26 FE brings meaningful upgrades to the everyday essentials users rely on most – including a long-lasting battery and a bright display built for work, entertainment and creativity from morning to night.

A long-lasting 4,900mAh battery keeps users going while maintaining the slim and refined design of the Galaxy S26 line-up at just 7.4mm thin and 193g. With 45W fast charging, users can power up quickly and stay connected for longer.
A 6.7-inch Dynamic AMOLED 2X display with a 120Hz refresh rate provides smooth, immersive visuals with enhanced brightness of 1,900 nits for clear visibility even in direct sunlight, and 2340 x 1080 (FHD+) resolution for streaming, gaming, browsing and creative work.

Users choosing Galaxy S26 FE as their next device will feel the power of Galaxy experience from day one. Improved Smart Switch helps users get set up more easily, making the move to Galaxy feel like a warm welcome – while long-term software updates and Samsung Care+ provide added confidence over time.

Upgraded Smart Switch makes moving to Galaxy easier than ever. Whether switching from an Android or iOS device, users can scan a QR code to wirelessly transfer data – from passwords and passkeys to call history, accessibility settings and eSIM data – with no extra apps and less setup time.
Galaxy S26 FE is built to last, with seven generations of OS upgrades and seven years of security updates – so users can enjoy the latest features with confidence for years to come.
For added peace of mind, Samsung Care+ offers comprehensive coverage optimised to users’ needs, including tailored benefits that protect the value of the device.
A 6-month free trial of Google AI Pro will bring expanded AI capabilities and 5TB of cloud storage valued at R429.99 per month.

Together, these enhancements deliver the Galaxy experiences users rely on every day in one thoughtfully crafted device.

Availability and Pricing

Galaxy S26 FE will be available in South Africa through operators, retailers, Samsung.com/za and Samsung Experience Stores starting 04 September 2026 in Blueberry, Graphite and Pistachio. It will be available at these recommended retail prices;

Galaxy S26 FE 128GB – From R599pm (R15,499)
Galaxy S26 FE 256GB – From R649pm (R17,999)

For more information on Galaxy S26 FE, please visit: Samsung.com.

]]> Focus: A CA with an eye for design https://www.accountancysa.org.za/focus-a-ca-with-an-eye-for-design/ Sat, 01 Aug 2026 10:51:12 +0000 https://www.accountancysa.org.za/?p=29756

Sebenele Radebe CA(SA) turned a floral-arrangement course into LND Decor Design, a Midrand floral styling and event décor business. Drawing on her experience in audit and finance, she is building the company while continuing her career as a chartered accountant. She plans to grow LND Decor Design into a luxury South African brand, create jobs and show how CA(SA) training can give women the commercial skills to pursue opportunities beyond traditional finance roles.

LND Decor Design reached a turning point when Sebenele Radebe received her first order from a complete stranger. Until then, relatives, friends and acquaintances had made up most of her client base. This customer had discovered her work independently and trusted her to deliver. For Radebe, it was proof that the business could stand on its own and attract clients well beyond her personal network.

Radebe launched LND Decor Design in 2025 after completing a floral-arrangement course at the South African School of Weddings and Events. She signed up looking for a creative outlet outside accountancy. By the end of the course, she had a business idea.

“I never imagined that I would leave it with so many ideas,” she says. “As I learnt more about floral design and event styling, I saw an opportunity to turn something I enjoyed into a business.”

Based in Midrand, LND Decor Design styles weddings, corporate functions and private celebrations. The business also creates personalised stationery and signage.

More than one career

Radebe grew up in a rural community near the Oshoek Border Post in Mpumalanga. The surrounding mountains, rivers and forests fed her early interest in flowers and beautiful spaces.

Accountancy caught her attention at school, when she heard a Ligwalagwala FM discussion about the profession and the shortage of women entering it. She enjoyed working with numbers, while a Thuthuka career publication her sister brought home showed her how to become a CA(SA).

Her parents ran small businesses to support the family and encouraged their children to look beyond the opportunities available locally. Her father died when she was in Grade 9, leaving her mother to support her education.

The move from rural Mpumalanga to the University of Cape Town was a major academic and cultural adjustment, and Radebe sometimes questioned whether she belonged. Her CTA year brought further personal loss when her mother died, making an already demanding period even more difficult.

Radebe went on to complete her BCom and postgraduate accounting studies before joining PwC for her training contract. She has since built a career in audit and finance, mainly in financial services.

Throughout those years, her interest in design continued to grow. At events, she studied the décor and wondered how each element had come together. The floral course gave her the practical skills to take that interest further.

“I eventually realised that I did not have to choose between being analytical and being creative,” she says. “The two can complement each other.”

Turning ideas into events

Radebe starts every LND Decor Design project by asking about the occasion, the client’s ideas and the budget. She then develops the concept, sources the materials and plans each detail.

“It starts with listening,” she says. “Every client has their own vision, style and budget, so it is important to understand exactly what they hope to achieve.”

Bringing that vision to life takes more than an eye for colour. Flowers are perishable, preferred varieties may be unavailable and event dates cannot move. Radebe plans ahead and maintains strong supplier relationships, which help her respond when something changes at short notice. She sets clear terms from the outset and discusses any substitutions with the client. Rather than impose her own style, she interprets what the client wants and finds a way to deliver it within budget.

“When clients see the final result, I want them to feel that I have brought their ideas to life,” she says. “Their reaction is my favourite part of the job. Satisfied clients are the best measure of success.”

The CA(SA) advantage

Radebe applies the commercial discipline of her CA(SA) training to LND Decor Design. Pricing is one of her toughest decisions. She must work within clients’ budgets while covering her costs and protecting the business’s profit margin. She also needs to invest in equipment as the company grows. Her professional experience helps her make those decisions and put sound systems in place.

“My training has helped me in many ways,” she says. “It taught me discipline, financial management, time management and the importance of compliance.”

“Entrepreneurship allows me to combine my accounting knowledge with my creativity while building something meaningful that reflects who I am,” she says.

Her focus now is attracting more clients. She uses Instagram, TikTok and Facebook to share completed projects and show what LND Decor Design can do.

Building something that lasts

Radebe plans to grow LND Decor Design into a South African luxury floral and décor brand, expand its services and eventually open an events venue. She wants that growth to create jobs.

“I hope the business can become self-sustaining and create jobs,” she says. “South Africa has a high unemployment rate, and one of my long-term goals is to grow this into something that provides employment.”

She also wants to introduce young people from rural communities, particularly girls, to professional opportunities they might not otherwise discover.

For Radebe, the CA(SA) designation creates choices rather than limiting people to conventional finance roles.

“Do not feel that you have to fit into one box,” she says. “Being a CA(SA) gives you an incredible foundation, but it does not mean you must limit yourself to one career path.”

]]> Focus: Give women the power to lead https://www.accountancysa.org.za/focus-the-changing-role-of-accounting-education-in-a-digital-world-2/ Sat, 01 Aug 2026 09:58:24 +0000 https://www.accountancysa.org.za/?p=29693

Maureen Makole Manyama CA(SA) knows that a senior title counts for little without the authority to influence decisions. Her career has taught her how setbacks can test self-belief and how often women must prove themselves again, regardless of their experience. She believes organisations should trust women with difficult work and give them genuine power at executive level. Women should also lead as themselves rather than feel pressured to imitate men. Appointments may improve the numbers, but the real gender dividend comes when women have the freedom and authority to lead in their own way.

MAUREEN MAKOLE MANYAMA’S first cash book was a two-quire notebook in her parents’ hardware store in Mokwasele village, Ga-Modjadji. During the school holidays, she recorded sales, balanced the day’s takings and helped with stocktaking. She may not have known it at the time, but the family business was teaching her a lesson that would stay with her throughout her career – every transaction has to be accounted for.

The family business also introduced her to timber products and the wider supply chain. Years later, when she became CFO of the South African Forestry Company Limited (SAFCOL), she returned to the same industry from the producer’s side.

Now she is taking that experience into the energy sector. In July 2026, Manyama was appointed CFO of the National Transmission Company South Africa. She joins NTCSA as it builds the financial capacity to invest in new transmission infrastructure which is part of the Transmission Development Plan, and support South Africa’s changing and transforming electricity market.

The opportunity first came her way in September 2024, when a headhunter approached her about the position, which she could not pursue. At the time, she was leading a finance transformation programme at Wits University and wanted to finish what she had started. NTCSA, through a leading search company, approached her again towards the end of 2025. This time, she was ready to pursue the role and opportunity at hand.

Manyama began studying at the University of Cape Town at the age of 16. She had little career guidance at high school but knew that she wanted to become a chartered accountant. Accounting appealed to her because it explained how a business worked.

She was used to doing well academically, so failing CTA and the Board examinations on her first attempts came as a shock. She wrote again and passed.

FAILURES ARE TEMPORARY DETOURS

‘Never camp in your failures,’ she says. ‘Failures are temporary detours.’

She began her career at an audit firm as part of the bursary obligation and transferred her articles to another auditing firm and became a manager while completing her articles. Her work included reviewing the audit of United Nations peacekeeping missions and headquarters, checking whether funds were spent and accounted for in line with the prevailing laws and legislations. She later put that experience to work at SARS and the Department of Trade and Industry, in the internal audit departments. In 2004 she changed her career into finance and, she also began serving on boards and audit committees.

After qualifying in 2003, she set her sights on becoming a CFO. She chose roles that widened her experience and brought her closer to executive decision-making. In 2010, SAFCOL appointed her CFO.

By then, her time at Postbank had already changed her understanding of finance leadership. As executive for finance and support, she contributed to the benchmarking work behind its corporatisation and establishment as a separate legal entity.

Her immediate supervisor (2006–2009), Totsie Memela (Managing Director: Postbank), also showed her what good sponsorship could achieve. Manyama calls her a ‘boss from heaven’.

Memela trusted her with responsibilities beyond her formal position. She asked Manyama to prepare strategic presentations, represent Postbank internationally and sometimes chair executive committee meetings. She did more than telling Manyama that she had potential. She gave her the chance to demonstrate it.

Manyama now tries to do the same for other women. Encouragement has its limits, she says. Talented people need demanding work and access to the rooms where decisions are made.

At SAFCOL, Manyama put that executive experience to work. The organisation had recorded two years of losses, and its management structure had become too costly.

As CFO and acting CEO, she helped lead a restructuring that reduced the executives from 11 positions to four integrated portfolios.

Employees and organised labour were consulted through a CCMA-facilitated process,and the proposals went through the required governance channels.

CHANGE MUST BE LED

‘People are more willing to embrace change when they understand why it is necessary and when they feel heard,’ she says. ‘Change cannot simply be announced. It must be led.’

SAFCOL returned to profit, recording R51 million. Employees also received their first salary increases in two years.

For Manyama, the turnaround showed that finance should do more than report what has already happened.

‘The most effective CFOs help answer “What happened?” as well as “What does it mean?” and “What should we do next?”’

She wants finance teams to help decision-makers see what lies ahead rather than simply report what has already happened. Dashboards and balanced scorecards can link financial results to operational performance, but only when leaders choose the right measures and know how to interpret them.

Her later roles prepared her for the work at NTCSA. At Airports Company South Africa, she dealt with infrastructure funding and capital allocation in a regulated sector. She also led the integrated reporting process, and ACSA’s reports received several awards between 2014 and 2016.

She went on to help improve the Agricultural Research Council’s financial position. At Wits, she led a multi-year overhaul of the university’s finance operating model.

At NTCSA, Manyama is again building a finance function while the organisation goes through major change. Her first priorities are to establish how finance will operate and appoint its leadership team. She will also put in place the controls and funding approach needed to support the Transmission Development Plan.

She wants finance involved in investment decisions from the outset while building confidence among lenders and regulators. NTCSA must secure the funding to expand South Africa’s transmission network without putting its own financial sustainability at risk.

Manyama also knows how quickly women’s authority can be questioned. She has faced assumptions that women are promoted to meet diversity targets and seen their mistakes judged more harshly. Having entered university at 16 and moved into senior roles while still young, she also met people who equated age with experience.

LETTING HER WORK SPEAK FOR ITSELF

She dealt with those doubts by preparing thoroughly and letting her work speak for itself. She never believed women had to copy traditionally masculine leadership styles to be taken seriously.

For Manyama, gender diversity must go beyond appointments. Women need real authority, important portfolios and the opportunity to take part in executive decision-making. ‘The real test of inclusion is whether women have decision-making power,’ she says.

]]> Profile: The art of possibility – Hayley Lombard CA(SA) https://www.accountancysa.org.za/profile-the-art-of-possibility-hayley-lombard-casa/ Sat, 01 Aug 2026 09:31:27 +0000 https://www.accountancysa.org.za/?p=29744

Hayley Lombard CA(SA) built a successful career in corporate finance before becoming a contemporary artist. Motherhood and COVID made her reconsider what success meant, but changing direction didn’t mean losing her professional identity. Accounting gave her the discipline to turn painting into a business. Art gave her the freedom to create. The two have far more in common than people think.

THE FIRST CANVAS Hayley Lombard bought was three metres long. It wouldn’t fit into her car, so she hired a delivery van to take it to her first art class. She’d never studied art, even at school, and had little idea what she would do with a canvas that size. ‘I think I had more audacity than ability,’ she says.

For about an hour, Lombard stood in front of it, mixing colours and stepping back as if considering her next move. In truth, she was putting off the moment when she’d have to begin. Eventually, she started throwing and splashing paint. ‘I didn’t feel impressive,’ she says. ‘I just felt alive.’

Lombard and her husband moved to Canada soon after they married, expecting to stay for a year. They remained for a decade, during which she built a successful career as a chartered accountant and CFO.

She enjoyed corporate life, particularly building businesses and developing people. After becoming a mother, however, she became more aware of the cost of long hours. Meeting a late deadline could mean missing bedtime with her children.

A SMALL YES

COVID made her question what she wanted from her career. Lombard accepted a consulting assignment that was meant to last two weeks. Instead, she had to lay

off hundreds of people, including the person who had hired her.

She and her husband had a newborn and two toddlers, and her father-in-law was critically ill in South Africa. Unsure whether they’d see him again, they decided to return home. They had a week to pack as countries began closing their borders. They expected to stay for six months. Six years later, they’re still in South Africa.

Soon after returning, Lombard reconnected with a close friend who told her, ‘You’re so creative. You should paint.’ Lombard responded with what she calls ‘a small yes’.

‘Somewhere along the way, as happens to a lot of us, achievement became essential and creativity became optional,’ she says. ‘She reminded me that I’d forgotten something.’

Lombard began by painting for her own home. When visitors asked to buy the works on her walls, she assumed they were being polite. When they called the next day, she realised they were serious.

The business grew from those first sales. Lombard now works from a studio on the KwaZulu-Natal North Coast. Her paintings are held in private collections in South Africa and abroad and she has completed commissions for hospitality venues and companies including Investec and Holland Insurance Brokers.

The coastal landscape influences her use of light and movement. She works with plaster, pigment, charcoal and glazes, building each painting in layers. She starts without a fixed idea of how the work will turn out and leaves viewers to decide what it means to them.

STRUCTURE MEETS FREEDOM

Working without a predetermined outcome may seem far removed from accountancy, but Lombard sees a clear connection. Accountants seldom have perfect information. They test assumptions, use judgement and make sense of complex information.

Technical knowledge provides the foundation, but original thought remains important.

Her CA(SA) background also determines how she works and runs her business. It taught her to handle pressure, solve problems and maintain high standards.

‘I don’t feel as though I left accounting behind,’ she says. ‘It prepared me for everything I needed.’

She doesn’t see art and accounting as opposing ways of thinking. ‘One brings structure and the other brings freedom. I need both.’

The two came together in Butterfly Effect, a large-scale work commissioned by Investec for its Sandton head office. The painting explored how small, deliberate actions can have far-reaching consequences. A film crew recorded Lombard at work from sunrise to sunset. Used to painting alone, she initially found the cameras distracting and imagined she was speaking to a close friend. Investec screened the film at an awards ceremony at Sun City before unveiling the painting and presenting limited-edition prints to its top seven employees.

‘The work was about the ordinary, consistent decisions we make throughout our days, including those no one sees, and the extraordinary impact they can ultimately have,’ Lombard says.

She hadn’t intended to paint butterflies but noticed them when she stepped back from the finished work. The commission also made her think about how her art career had developed.

‘Mine was not one bold action or decision. It was one conversation, one little brushstroke and a series of small yeses.’

CREATIVITY AT WORK

Lombard has also brought art into the workplace. During a strategy workshop, employees each produced a canvas. She combined them into one large artwork for the company’s boardroom.

Her interest in creativity at work later became the focus of her TEDx talk. She painted on stage as she spoke, showing the audience the uncertainty involved in producing a work. Actor Denim Richards, who attended the event, later bought the finished painting.

‘My TEDx talk was less about becoming an artist than about giving people permission to create, play and be fully themselves,’ she says.

Lombard believes creativity helps accountants question assumptions, connect information and find practical answers. As technology automates more routine financial work, accountants will add value through their judgement and ability to explain what the numbers mean for a business.

She now plans to produce more large-scale work, collaborate with organisations and help younger South African artists reach wider markets.

‘Our qualification opens extraordinary doors, but it doesn’t define the limits of our identity. The discipline, resilience and analytical thinking it develops prepare us for countless paths. We don’t need to choose between logic and creativity. I think the most meaningful lives make room for both.’

Seven things Hayley Lombard learnt from changing direction

Let your idea of success change

Success can mean different things at different stages of life. You can value what you’ve achieved while choosing work that suits who you are now.

See your qualification as a foundation

A qualification gives you knowledge, discipline and professional skills that you can use throughout your career.

Make time for your other abilities

Work and achievement can demand much of your attention. Give your other interests and abilities time to develop.

Begin before you feel ready

Take the first step and learn as you go. Experience builds confidence and helps you decide what comes next.

Take your skills with you

Skills gained in one career can help you build another. Discipline, judgement and problem-solving remain useful when the work changes.

Use creativity at work

Creativity helps you question assumptions, connect ideas and find practical answers. Accountants use it more often than they may realise.

Combine structure with freedom

Structure helps you work consistently and run a business. Freedom gives you room to try new ideas. You can have both.

Author
Monique Verduyn

]]> Profile: The girl who couldn’t see – Shehnaaz Suleman CA(SA) https://www.accountancysa.org.za/profile-the-girl-who-couldnt-see-shehnaaz-suleman-casa/ Sat, 01 Aug 2026 08:48:57 +0000 https://www.accountancysa.org.za/?p=29741

Long before the diagnosis, my family had reached firm consensus on one thing: I was clumsy. I bumped into furniture, tripped on stairs and misjudged distances. It was the family’s most reliable running joke and, as with most family running jokes, everyone was completely wrong. I was not clumsy. I just could not see. But nobody thought to check, because ‘clumsy’ is a much easier diagnosis than ‘hereditary genetic bingo’.

THE ADAPTATIONS CAME FIRST

For about two and a half years, my vision quietly declined. I noticed the adaptations before I noticed the loss: larger fonts, High Contrast Mode, sitting closer in lectures, zooming in on shared screens and avoiding printed pages. Crossing roads became difficult; driving was out of the question. I blamed screen fatigue, age and general exhaustion − the professional equivalent of blaming the tea for the taste of the mug.

THE DIAGNOSIS, AND WHAT IT TURNED OUT TO MEAN

It began with headaches, then daily migraines. The optometrist sent me to an ophthalmologist, who diagnosed a hereditary condition affecting my photoreceptors, hereditary ‘clouds’ in my eyes, and cataracts in both eyes. The first specialist told me to come back after 40 for surgery. What I could not explain then was that I had never seen well. The ‘clumsy’ label had stuck so completely that no one thought to look further.

THE BREAKING POINT

By September 2025, I had lost depth perception entirely. I could not tell how far away a car was, where the pavement ended, or which step was real and which was shadow. What frightened me most was not losing sight itself; it was losing independence. How would I take care of myself, manage, or support myself? This time, the familiar 3 am questions carried a different weight.

I called the ophthalmologist’s rooms for a second opinion. The receptionist said they were booked until June 2026. I told myself the universe had its reasons. It did − but it also had a receptionist with poor triage judgement.

On 25 November 2025, the specialist Whatsapped me. The waiting list was only for new patients. Could I come in at 8 am? I said yes, then remembered I had a flight to Johannesburg for a 17 km BDO team-building hike at Castle George. The next morning, I told her I could not watch TV, read, drive or walk outside alone. She scheduled the surgeries immediately: first eye on 1 December, second eye on 8 December. Two weeks. Two eyes. Two Mondays.

CASTLE GEORGE

I did the hike anyway. My team had been quietly holding me up for months, summarising documents, letting me memorise slides, and walking me across streets without making it a thing. At Castle George, they gave me a wooden staff so I could feel the ground before stepping. I fell more times than I can count. They slowed down. They picked me up every time.

The staff, the falls and the slower pace prepared me for what surgery would ask of me a week later: to trust, stop bracing and let someone else take the weight.

With no time to process or panic, I flew back to Cape Town after the hike, spent three days with family in Durban, and returned on 30 November frozen with fear. Eyes are one of the most vulnerable places on the body, and I had carried that vulnerability without a name for years. Unnamed things get heavier, not lighter.

DECEMBER 2025

I went into hospital with my best friend, who had brought me a small stuffed swan with a crown. The nurses let me hold her into surgery. The procedure took about 15 minutes. Afterwards, during the follow-up eye test, I flew through the letters for the first time in my life and cried halfway through the chart. I had never cried at a chart before, although my previous relationship with charts had been almost entirely negative.

Then came six weeks of recovery in the windiest city in the country: no cooking, wind, steam or showers. My husband cared for me. Friends sent flowers. The universe sent the right people and, for once, in the correct order.

SEEING AGAIN

Getting used to my own face took time. Everyone I met, I met again: dimples I had never seen, body language I could suddenly read, colour on a jacket, water, trees and light. I cried quietly and often with concentrated gratitude. I started driving again. Reading again, books until 3 am, which I am not sorry about.

WHAT THE BODY WAS DOING THAT I DID NOT NAME

For two and a half years, some part of me had been running silent adjustments: choosing larger fonts, sitting closer, reading less at night and accepting a smaller world without formally accepting it. None of it appeared on a to-do list, in a performance conversation, or in a promotion letter. It was invisible work, the only work that never shows up in the reconciliation.

In our profession, women especially do this constantly. We absorb overload without naming it. We adapt to a new standard, team, care responsibility or health event so smoothly that it looks as if nothing has happened. Only when the circumstance lifts do we realise how much we had been carrying, rather like discovering, retrospectively, that you were doing IFRS 9 with a broken calculator.

THE PROFESSIONAL COST

The cost of not seeing well was not simply missed reading. It was fear. When you cannot see clearly, almost everything becomes a threat. You move from fear, receive people from fear and react from fear. I turned down travel, presented less, spoke more quietly and deferred too easily, quite an oversight for someone who reviews financial statements for a living.

One moment of leadership will stay with me. When I told my boss, Lance September, what was happening in early 2023, I asked for a day to process it. He said: ‘Take the week. This is a journey you will go on. You need to pace yourself.’ Then he asked how BDO could support me, a larger screen, bigger fonts, a brighter cursor. He solved the problem without making me the problem.

THE RECLAMATION

This is not a wellness piece or a resilience piece. Both frames would flatten what happened.

What happened was a reclamation: the return of ordinary things, reading a page, driving at night, seeing the water, that I had, without realising, given away. It was also the return of energy spent silently compensating.

In our profession we are trained to look for materiality:

to notice what has changed and by how much. We are less practised at noticing what has been quietly subtracted from attention, stamina, sight or imagination. The subtraction rarely announces itself. It becomes visible only when something is restored, by which time we have often forgotten the baseline.

SEEING BETTER

In October this year, I turn 40. In October, I also sit for the final exam of my Executive Development Programme, 16 years after beginning articles at PKF Durban in 2010.

It will be the first birthday, and the first exam, that I will read clearly in a long time.

But ‘seeing better’ now means more than eyesight. It means clearer perspective: reading a room, zooming out when things feel heavy, sensing when someone is struggling, and setting stronger boundaries because I can finally see where to place them.

If this is useful to someone reading quietly on a Tuesday night, someone steadily adjusting to a smaller world and not yet naming it, I would want her to know this: you do not have to go through the scary things alone. There are people rooting for you, even when you do not know they are. There is never only one pathway forward. You are never truly cornered. And if it feels like you are, that is usually a sign to look up rather than a fact to accept.

As Maya Angelou said, ‘Have enough courage to trust love one more time and always one more time.’ Have enough courage to look at fear, feel it and name it, but do not get stuck in it.

The most material adjustment any of us will ever make is the one we finally allow ourselves to see.

And the bravest is the one we finally name.

Author
Shehnaaz Suleman is a Partner at BDO South Africa and leads their dedicated IFRS Technical Centre for Financial Services clients − both audit and advisory. She genuinely loves her job (she must, she has been doing it for sixteen years). She is a creative mind with a warm and transparent leadership style and can be spotted enjoying the trees at Green Point Park almost every other weekend − usually not tripping over anything now, thank you for asking.

]]> Lifestyle: HUAWEI nova 15 Max https://www.accountancysa.org.za/lifestyle-the-ford-ranger-wildtrak-x-2-3/ Fri, 24 Jul 2026 03:42:58 +0000 https://www.accountancysa.org.za/?p=29703

This As South Africans become more selective about their technology purchases, devices such as the HUAWEI nova 15 Max are helping to redefine what value in a smartphone really means.

Over the past few years, smartphone prices have steadily climbed. Rising component costs, larger memory configurations and increasingly sophisticated technology have all contributed to pushing prices upwards.

Yet for many consumers, the experience hasn’t always improved at the same pace.

Nobody buys a smartphone because it has a particular chip or memory specification. They buy it because they want a device that lasts all day, takes great photos, survives everyday life and helps them stay connected.

The challenge for manufacturers is finding ways to deliver those experiences without forcing consumers into premium price brackets.

The features that people care about

Ask most smartphone users what frustrates them and the answers are surprisingly consistent. Battery life runs out too quickly. Phones are expensive to repair after a drop. Cameras perform brilliantly in perfect lighting but struggle when life happens after sunset. Screens can be difficult to see outdoors.

These aren’t glamorous problems, but they are the problems people experience every day.

That’s why practical innovation is becoming increasingly important. Rather than chasing specifications for their own sake, many consumers are prioritising features that make a noticeable difference to their daily lives.

Why battery life

As smartphones have become our cameras, GPS devices, entertainment hubs and communication centres, battery performance has become more important than ever. A larger battery doesn’t just mean longer usage. It means fewer charging stops, less reliance on power banks, and more confidence when travelling, working remotely, or spending long days away from home.

The HUAWEI nova 15 Max is a good example of this. Equipped with an 8500mAh HUAWEI Super Battery, it is designed to keep pace with modern lifestyles. Real-world testing shows it can support up to 23 hours of continuous video playback, while reverse charging allows the device to share power with compatible Huawei products when needed.

Getting more without spending more

The conversation around smartphone value is increasingly moving beyond price alone. Consumers still want excellent cameras, durable construction and immersive entertainment experiences. They simply want those features delivered in a way that feels accessible.

The HUAWEI nova 15 Max reflects that changing mindset. Its 50MP Ultra Vision Camera uses Huawei’s advanced RYYB colour filter array to improve light intake by 40%, helping users capture brighter and more detailed images even in challenging lighting conditions. AI Best Expression helps refine group photos, while the Extra-durable Body combines SGS Premium Performance Mark 5-Star Drop Resistance certification with IP65 dust and water resistance.

The device also features a 6.84-inch OLED Eye Comfort Display with up to 4000 nits of dynamic peak brightness, making it easier to enjoy content indoors and outdoors alike.

These are the kinds of features that directly influence everyday ownership rather than simply looking impressive on a specification sheet.

For more specs, please visit https://consumer.huawei.com/za/phones/nova15-max/

]]> Lifestyle: Minor Hotels Partners with Saving the Wild to Launch Wine Collection in Support of Conservation https://www.accountancysa.org.za/lifestyle-the-ford-ranger-wildtrak-x-2/ Thu, 16 Jul 2026 12:14:06 +0000 https://www.accountancysa.org.za/?p=29668 Minor Hotels is proud to announce a new partnership with Saving the Wild, a groundbreaking Africa-based conservation charity, with the launch of three ‘Saving the Wild’ wines which will be served in several Minor Hotel properties in Africa. The wines are produced by Hoopenburg Wine Estate, an award-winning wine farm, and feature a fine art label highlighting the need to protect three key species targeted for illegal poaching.

The conservation collection includes a Cabernet/Merlot blend, a Sauvignon Blanc and a Rosé. Hoopenburg Wine Estate in the Stellenbosch region of South Africa is nourished by pure underground water, and the unique dry-land bush-vine vineyards produce grapes of exceptional taste and flavour.

A percentage of the proceeds from the Saving the Wild wine collection supports Saving the Wild’s work to advocate for specialised courts and better legislation for all endangered species.

Each bottle is a canvas featuring fine art photography donated by award-winning wildlife photographers:

RHINO – Cabernet / Merlot – William Fortescue.
ELEPHANT – Sauvignon Blanc – James Lewin.
PANGOLIN – Rosé – Aaron Gekoski.

The fine-art photography is creatively enhanced with a gold foil embossing the rhino horn, elephant tusks, and pangolin scales – and drawing attention to the features for which these animals are illegally poached. Saving the Wild works across Africa to protect these, and other, endangered species.

With every glass, guests can learn, discover, and engage with the conservation stories behind the wines as each bottle has a QR code that launches short film content produced by Saving the Wild.

Follow Saving the Wild on Instagram: @saving_the_wild and Facebook: SavingTheWild.

]]> Lifestyle: Chery Tiggo 7 CSH https://www.accountancysa.org.za/lifestyle-the-ford-ranger-wildtrak-x-2-2/ Wed, 01 Jul 2026 08:03:48 +0000 https://www.accountancysa.org.za/?p=29698

The Chery Tiggo 7 CSH is one of those cars that quietly rewrites expectations. At first glance, it looks like a sensible, well‑proportioned family SUV. Spend real time with it, though, and you realise this is a vehicle that has been engineered with a much clearer understanding of how people actually drive.

AT THE HEART OF THE TIGGO 7 CSH is Chery’s plug‑in hybrid system, and on paper the numbers are attention‑grabbing. Chery talks about over 265 kW and more than 500 Nm of torque − figures that sound borderline outrageous for a family‑focused front‑wheel‑drive SUV. The brand even claims a 0–100 km/h time of 5,4 seconds, which immediately grabs attention.

In the real world, however, the story is a little different.

Driven hard from a standstill, the Tiggo 7 CSH is clearly traction‑limited. With all that torque being sent to the front wheels, wheelspin comes into play quickly, especially on imperfect or dusty road surfaces. As a result, real‑world 0–100 km/h times are noticeably slower than the headline figure, typically landing in the mid‑eight‑second range when measured and repeated consistently.

That might sound like a let‑down on paper, but it doesn’t feel like one when you’re actually driving the car.

Where the Tiggo 7 CSH really delivers is in everyday performance. The instant torque from the electric motor gives it strong, immediate acceleration at urban speeds and during rolling overtakes. From 40 to 80 km/h, or when slipping into gaps in traffic, it feels quick, alert, and responsive. You don’t drive this car chasing standing‑start sprints − you drive it appreciating how easily it moves through real traffic.

Refinement is another area where the Tiggo 7 CSH stands out. It is exceptionally quiet, particularly in electric mode. Around town, it glides along with very little noise or vibration, and even on the highway the cabin remains calm and well insulated. It’s the kind of quiet that lowers your shoulders after a long day rather than exciting your pulse.

Efficiency is central to the Tiggo 7 CSH’s appeal. Used properly − charged regularly and driven with intent − it can cover most daily trips on electric power alone. In this mode, fuel consumption drops dramatically. Once the battery is depleted, the car transitions seamlessly into hybrid operation, still delivering sensible consumption figures for a mid‑size SUV.

Crucially, this Chery offers DC fast‑charging capability, which is rare in the plug‑in hybrid space. This means quick top‑ups are possible on longer routes, while home charging via an AC wallbox fits neatly into daily routines. It’s a hybrid that feels flexible rather than restrictive.

Practicality hasn’t been sacrificed in the process. Passenger space is generous, the boot remains usable despite the battery packaging, and the cabin layout feels intuitive and well thought through. Nothing about the Tiggo 7 CSH feels experimental − everything simply works.

Value for money remains one of its strongest cards. The Tiggo 7 CSH is well equipped, impressively refined, and delivers genuine electrified motoring benefits without forcing a major lifestyle adjustment.

The Tiggo 7 CSH isn’t a hot SUV in the way marketing numbers might suggest. Its real‑world acceleration is slower than the headline claim, but its usable, everyday performance is where the car shines.

And in reality, that’s the performance that matters most.

Specifications

ENGINE: 1.5 Turbo Engine – Hybrid EV

POWER: 265 kW

TORQUE: 530 Nm

Combined Range: 1 200 km on a full tank and charge

Acceleration: 0 to 100 km/h in 5.4 seconds

PRICE: From R619,900

Author

Torque Talk is a member of the South African Guild of
Mobility Journalists

]]> Recommend: The silent collapse of South Africa’s social contract https://www.accountancysa.org.za/recommend-what-auditing-in-the-listed-environment-demands-2/ Wed, 01 Jul 2026 07:47:18 +0000 https://www.accountancysa.org.za/?p=29695

South Africa is living through a quiet breakdown of its social contracts, and young people are carrying the heaviest cost. Promises about education, hard work, democracy and opportunity have collided with a stubborn reality of mass youth unemployment, deep inequality, and rising disillusionment.

AT THE CENTRE OF THIS COLLISION sits a critical factor: failure, dysfunction, and weak professionalisation of the public sector. A functional, effective government is not a side issue. It is one of the primary mechanisms through which those social contracts were meant to be honoured.

WHEN THE SOCIAL CONTRACT MEETS A WEAK STATE

For a generation of young South Africans, the story was simple and compelling: study hard, obey the law, participate in democracy, and the system will gradually open doors. That story assumed a capable, ethical, steadily improving state. One that could convert policies, budgets and plans into visible progress in classrooms, clinics, streets and local economies.

Instead, many encounter municipalities that cannot deliver basic services, departments that underspend or waste critical funds, schools that fail to equip learners, skills programmes that exist more on paper than in practice, and chronic implementation gaps across sectors. The social contract is not just about values; it is about institutions. When those institutions are weak, politicised and under-professionalised, the promises they carry collapse.

‘Study hard and you’ll be fine’

The first major promise to youth is that education would be the great equaliser. Yet the education to work pipeline is shaped at every stage by the performance of the public sector.

Schooling quality still depends heavily on where you live and which public system serves your community.
Weak subject competence, poor infrastructure, overcrowded classrooms, and erratic accountability in many public schools severely limit the real value of
‘12 years of education’.
Universities, TVET colleges and other public institutions suffer from outdated curricula, weak industry linkages, governance problems, and administrative failures that undermine quality and have eroded their own value.
Even public sector funding, internships and graduate programmes (which could be powerful bridges into the labour market) are often poorly managed, politicised, under-scaled relative to need, and largely not fit for purpose.

What looks like a broken promise at the individual level (‘I studied, but I’m still unemployed’) is, in many cases, the cumulative effect of systemic dysfunction: a network of public institutions that have not been professionalised to deliver consistently and at scale. The problem is not only that there are ‘not enough jobs’; it is also that the education and training pipeline is not being run with the rigour, expertise and long term planning required to convert learning into real, marketable capability.

PROMISES UNDONE BY WEAK IMPLEMENTATION

The second big promise was that democracy would open doors. That participation, peaceful contestation and constitutionalism would steadily produce a ‘better life’, particularly for the previously excluded. That promise presupposes a state that can plan, execute and account.

Yet public trust surveys and lived experience tell a different story. People see:

Service delivery and other protests as almost routine, signalling that many communities feel unheard through formal channels and resort to disruption to be noticed.
Auditor-General reports and other investigation mechanisms repeatedly highlighting poor financial management, irregularities, and a lack of consequence for failures.
Employment, empowerment and other initiatives that sound impressive in speeches but fail in implementation (poor targeting, patchy monitoring and short-termism).

When democratic institutions are staffed, led and managed in ways that normalise mediocrity and shield under performance, democracy itself loses credibility.

EFFORT, COMPLIANCE AND THE WRONG PEOPLE REWARDED

Young people were told another story: that if they obeyed the law, worked hard and stayed away from crime, they would be rewarded in time. That narrative collapses quickly in the face of a public sector where −

High-profile corruption scandals demonstrate that political proximity can matter more than competence.
Procurement systems, poorly safeguarded by professional expertise, are regularly abused to channel resources into the hands of a few.
Consequence management is slow, inconsistent and often selective, leaving many with the impression that accountability is for the powerless not the powerful.

This is a professionalisation problem at its core. When key posts are filled on the basis of loyalty rather than expertise, when professional norms and ethics are not enforced through independent bodies, and when internal controls are treated as obstacles rather than safeguards, the rule of law itself becomes a negotiable concept. People see rules as elastic for some and rigid for others.

The social contract that says ‘play by the rules and you will be rewarded’ cannot survive in a context where public power is frequently exercised arbitrarily, and where those who break rules at scale often seem to thrive.

THE STATE AS BRIDGE TO OPPORTUNITY

The public sector is also the largest single employer in the country and a major convenor of opportunity. In principle, it can play three crucial roles for youth: direct employer, capability-builder, and catalyst of inclusive growth. But doing so requires high levels of professionalism.

Without that professionalism, well-intentioned programmes become:

Short-term projects designed to absorb funding rather than build Long-term capability.
Poorly coordinated initiatives that duplicate effort in some areas and leave huge gaps in others.
Bureaucratic mazes that deter precisely those young people who lack networks, information or transport money.

A professionalised public sector would treat youth opportunity as a system design challenge: aligning education, economic policy, spatial planning, transport, digital infrastructure, and social protection into a coherent pathway.

A dysfunctional one treats youth programmes as stand alone interventions, often launched with fanfare, left to drift, and quietly redesigned when they disappoint.

For the young person navigating this environment, the message becomes: ‘You’re on your own.’

BACKGROUND AND THE PLAYING FIELD

Finally, there was an implicit promise that, over time, where you were born would matter less. That required a state capable of systematically equalising foundational conditions: early childhood development, basic services, healthcare, quality schooling, safe public spaces, reliable transport, and functioning local economies.

Instead, public sector failure (amongst others) is often seen as amplifying inequality of opportunity:

Poorer municipalities with weaker tax bases require competent, professional management the most. Yet, in reality, they are often the most dysfunctional and fail to attract talent.

Infrastructure maintenance is neglected until collapse, strangling local economic potential and pushing costs onto households and small businesses. Many are left to live with the failure.

Spatial planning remains fragmented. Many youth are still growing up in areas far from jobs, with weak services, unsafe environments, and little institutional support.

When the machinery that is supposed to level the playing field is itself uneven, under-resourced and inconsistently led, birthplace becomes destiny more than ever. The state does not only fail to reduce inherited disadvantage; in many cases, it reinforces it.

RE WRITING THE CONTRACT: PROFESSIONALISE OR PERISH

If we accept that youth opportunity is collapsing alongside public sector capability, then the conclusion is unavoidable: South Africa cannot repair its broken social contracts without a serious project of public sector professionalisation.

That means:

Treating key public roles as true professions, with clear standards, independent oversight, and real consequences for misconduct or incompetence.
Insulating core administrative systems from narrow political interference, while still ensuring democratic control at the strategic level.
Investing in management, technical and ethical capability − not just in new policies and slogans.
Making transparency and communication non-negotiable, so that young people can see not only what is promised but what is delivered, where, by whom, and with what result.

More deeply, it means restoring a simple but powerful idea: that the public sector exists to serve, not to extract; to enable, not to obstruct; to steward public resources with care, not to treat them as spoils.

Young South Africans are not only asking for jobs. The question is whether the system they were born into is capable, fair and worth believing in. Without a competent, ethical, professional public sector, the answer will increasingly be ‘no’ and the social contract will continue to fray.

The foresight challenge for leaders, professionals and institutions is stark: either we build a state that can keep its promises, or we inherit a society where a generation decides those promises were never real in the first place.

Author
Msizi Gwala, Lead: Public Sector Thought Leadership at SAICA

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