Absa Group will exceed its goal of equipping 1,500 staff members across Africa with cloud-computing skills this year through its cloud incubator initiative. Absa launched the cloud incubator programme in March to support its digital transformation journey. A total of 1,496 participants successfully completed the training by the end of October 2021 and a further 280 are anticipated to complete the programme by the end of the year.

The initiative was undertaken jointly with Amazon Web Services (AWS), whose global Skills Guild programme was designed to help large enterprise organisations accelerate their cloud adoption journey and build cloud fluency for employees. Absa employees from several countries, including South Africa, Kenya, Ghana, Botswana, Zambia, Tanzania, Mauritius and others, participated in the programme.

“At Absa, our goal is to ensure that employees are equipped with the right skills and, through the cloud incubator programme, we were able to bridge the skills gap in cloud technologies. Empowering our employees with cloud skills will unlock further potential for innovation and solutions that ultimately improve the way in which we serve our customers,” said Ebrahim Samodien, Chief Information Officer: Group Services at Absa.

Absa is accelerating cloud adoption and is already one of the largest cloud adopters in Africa. Companies that store their data in the cloud have access to powerful ‘cloud-computing’ capabilities. It means they can analyse, interpret, process and manage data faster and at a larger scale.

A report titled ‘Cloud in Africa 2020’ generated by World Wide Worx said 97% of respondents in a survey had either increased their spend on cloud or that their spend had remained the same in the past year.

The key outcome from the cloud incubator programme was for participants to be able to identify cloud opportunities and to create more efficient, scalable services and solutions. The employees can now use their understanding and knowledge to drive the broadscale digital transformation in the bank.

The cloud incubator programme offered the employees a range of learning opportunities, including workshops that focused on the impact of cloud technology on the business, training sessions that looked at how cloud reduces operational costs as well as how cloud enhances business processes.

“Since the establishment of the cloud incubator initiative, I feel like Absa is really taking the cloud revolution seriously. Prior to the Cloud Incubator initiative, I used to feel like cloud computing was just a talking point,” says Phumlani Mbabela, a Lead Product Engineer at Absa who participated in the programme. “The initiative has also helped me to improve my cloud proficiency and technical skills,” said Mbabela.

Participants in the cloud incubator initiative were able to experiment with cloud technologies outside of their roles while improving their skills.

“I began taking advantage of the many free training sessions and acquired the AWS Solutions Architect – Associate Certification. I’m now preparing to renew my developer certification and level up with a professional-level certification as well,” said David Quagraine, a Lead Architect at Absa Bank Ghana. “As if getting access to these free resources were not enough, I also have access to hands-on labs that allow me to experiment with cloud technologies not directly related to my current role such as data analysis and machine learning, which I enjoy very much.”

The Absa Group and Absa Bank Boards have resolved, in terms of section 71(3)(b) of the South African Companies Act, to remove Mr Sipho Pityana as a director of the Boards, with immediate effect.

The decision followed a 23 November 2021 meeting during which Mr Pityana was provided an opportunity to address the Boards’ allegations that he had neglected or had been derelict in the performance of his functions as a director of the Boards and had failed to conduct himself in the interests of Absa.

After careful consideration of the matter and Mr Pityana’s responses to the allegations, the Boards arrived at the view that, amongst others, Mr Pityana pursued his own personal interests to the detriment of Absa and thereby created a material and sustained conflict between his interests and those of Absa.

While the Boards respect Mr Pityana’s individual right to administrative fairness, unfortunately in this matter, the Boards concluded that the pursuit of his personal interest at the cost of the Group’s interest created a sustained and irresoluble conflict. Absa has a duty to its stakeholders to put the Group’s interest before individual interests.

The decision to remove Mr Pityana as director followed an earlier decision on 12 November 2021 to remove him as lead independent director and Chairman of the remuneration committee. 

Developments in the litigation instituted by Mr Pityana

On 23 November 2021, Absa filed its answering affidavit in the application instituted by Mr Pityana against the Prudential Authority, in which he cited Absa as a respondent.  Absa opposed the application because the advice Absa has received is that the relief sought by Mr Pityana implicates Absa in participating in what he alleges was an unlawful informal process by the Prudential Authority.  Absa has been advised that it is likely that the court case will be heard during the course of next year.

Johannesburg, 8 November 2021: In a landmark transaction highlighting confidence in the township and rural commercial property, Absa Bank acted as Sole Global Coordinator and Bookrunner in the strategic refinancing of Exemplar REITail Limited’s R3.135bn debt package.

The transaction includes R1.791bn of ‘sustainability-linked’ loan, with margin reductions, applied subject to the Borrower’s successfully achieving pre-agreed environmental targets (solar energy, carbon offset, and water intensity). Uniquely, the facility includes use-of-benefit provisions, for which the Borrower has undertaken to utilise any interest cost savings arising from the sustainability-linked loans to invest in community initiatives in their property catchment areas.

Exemplar is a market-leading developer, owner, and manager of the township and rural retail shopping centers in South Africa. The Mall of Thembisa, developed by McCormick Property Development and one of Exemplar REITail’s recent acquisitions, was earlier this month named the ‘Best Retail Development’ and awarded a 5-star nomination by the judging panel of the International Property Awards.

The R3.135bn senior, secured, syndicated debt package establishes a flexible platform to support Exemplar’s future growth. Beyond refinancing existing debt, the facilities will be used for capital expenditure and will increase Exemplar’s flexibility by increasing available working capital for the business.

The transaction was well supported by the market, garnering an appetite that exceeded triple the original transaction size. As a result of this strong demand, the transaction was upsized to re-finance the majority of Exemplar’s debt. In addition to its role as Global Coordinator and Bookrunner for the transaction, Absa Commercial Property Finance provided over 50% of the funding requirement and is acting as facility agent.

Jason McCormick, Exemplar REITail Limited CEO, comments: “We are delighted with the successful conclusion of this landmark transaction highlighting the confidence of the market in the strength of the Exemplar business. The proceeds of this transaction have, in part, been earmarked for the continued expansion of the business, helping us to provide retail services to more of the most under-serviced regions of our nation. We have always put our local communities first which is once again emphasized by this transaction. All interest savings generated will be invested directly into our communities, ensuring their ongoing upliftment and development in-line with our #ChangeforGood mantra.”

Klaus-Dieter Kaempfer, Head: Commercial Property Finance and Equity Investments, Absa said: “This landmark transaction is a great example of how Absa CIB is working in partnership with clients, acting as both lead arranger and funder. Despite the challenging market backdrop in the commercial property sector, the fundraising was a huge success, and a testament to the quality of the Exemplar’s business and management, as well as our expertise in managing capital markets transactions of this nature.”

“We are also particularly proud of our leading role in developing an innovative new Sustainable Finance solution, whereby the benefit received by the Borrower for meeting environmental KPI’s is reinvested into CSI initiatives, allowing lenders and the borrower to play a role in addressing the challenges in the societies within which we operate.”

Absa is set to launch their latest virtual exhibition in collaboration with the Artist Proof Studio (APS) on 4 November 2021. The exhibition will run until the end of this year. 

With this collaboration, Absa seeks to continue playing a shaping role in society by nurturing and supporting fledgling artists from the APS. Twelve final year students will also be awarded bursaries to the value of R580 000. 

Business Practice Masterclasses will be led by leading personalities in the arts such as Banele Khoza, Kim Siew and Sarah McGee. The masterclasses will equip the APS students with the necessary business acumen to better manage their business as they launch their careers and also how to market their artwork.

The virtual exhibition will see 23 artists from the innovative and engaged APS community showcasing their artwork on the Absa Art Hot Spot platform.

“We recognise that the growth we want to achieve is inextricably linked to our firm commitment to be an active force for good in the communities where we operate. The partnership with APS will allow us to continue showcasing our advanced online capabilities and will also help us to meaningfully impact the development of young artists,” says Absa Senior Specialist Art Curator, Dr Paul Bayliss.

“We have used the restrictions brought about by the pandemic to entrench ourselves as a leader in showcasing art digitally. This ranges from launching the Absa Art Hot Spot webinar series, to hosting several online art exhibitions, masterclasses, and the Absa L’Atelier Awards virtually as well as migrating certain elements of our art-related sponsorships and partnerships to this innovative online platforms,” he adds.

APS Managing Director for Marketing and Business Development, Nathi Simelane, says this partnership with Absa will allow them to showcase some of their growth in an exciting way since students have had to adapt to a hybrid communication learning process over the past 18 months.

“This exhibition will allow our more senior students to re-examine their own identities, through an investigation of their cultural ideologies, practices, personal and collective histories,” he says.

“Some will celebrate and honour fundamental aspects of their cultural identities whilst others question  prevailing patriarchal traditions. In many of the pieces, the ‘personal’ is laid bare. This is sometimes explored through representations of the body or a particular place and space. The notion of ‘home’ as a state of mind, or something less representative and tangible, emerges in the senior student’s work. It marks and narrates a journey experienced by many through lockdown and beyond of introspection, probing and reconciliation,” he adds. 

The Masterclass series kicked-off on 29  September when renowned artist, gallerist and curator, Banele Khoza, hosted a session that focused on developing, identifying, maintaining, and making the most of opportunities in developing an artist’s career.

The next session was hosted by Kim Siew on 27 October and dealt with maintaining and growing relationships with peers, gallerists, curators, donors, buyers, and industry leaders.

Sarah McGee will host the final session in the series on 10 November when she will take a closer look at galleries, teaching students how to engage with galleries, the pricing of artwork, contracts and issues around consignment.

All the masterclass sessions can be viewed on the Absa Art Hot Spot

Absa Group today announced the appointment of Saviour Chibiya as Group Executive: Absa Regional Operations (ARO). Saviour will be responsible, together with RBB and CIB for the Group’s ARO businesses and for the Group’s strategy, collaboration and relationships with its key stakeholders across those businesses.

Saviour will be a member of the Group Executive Committee and will thus provide input in terms of the Group’s strategy overall and, in particular, the strategic choices for Absa’s growth in the ARO banks and will support and enable the Managing Directors in the countries in their strategic delivery. He will report directly to the Group Chief Executive.

Saviour joined the Group in 2010 as Managing Director and CEO of Barclays Bank Zambia Plc, after nearly two decades at Citibank. In 2017, he joined the ARO leadership team as Regional Managing Director, assuming increasingly pan-African regional responsibilities.

“Saviour is a seasoned banker with deep institutional knowledge of the Group, as well extensive and diversified banking experience, at both country and regional level across the continent,” said Jason Quinn, interim Chief Executive for Absa Group.

“We are proud that this appointment is drawn from within our leadership structures. Saviour’s experience will contribute immensely to the strength and diversity of our executive leadership team and we are excited about the perspectives that he will bring,” Jason added.

Saviour is a Fellow of the Zambia Institute of Banking and Financial Services and holds an Economics degree from the University of Zambia.

“Our strong franchise across ARO is critical to the future growth of Absa Group. In most of the countries in which we operate, we are among the top financial services providers and we have strengthened this position through innovative product and service offerings catering to both our local customers and global clients,” said Saviour.

“I am excited to be embarking on this journey, and look forward to collaborating with colleagues, customers, regulators and the communities in which we operate to bring Africa’s possibilities to life,” he added.

• The Absa Group Limited Board today announced the appointment of Sello Moloko as independent non-executive director and Chairman-designate with effect from 1 December 2021.
• Sello Moloko is to commence the role as Absa Group Chairman on 1 April 2022.

Sello will take over from Wendy Lucas-Bull who will step down on 31 March 2022, which marks the end of the nine-year period during which Wendy would have served as an independent director and as Chairman of the Absa Group Board. Absa advised of the Chairman’s impending retirement in October 2020.

“We are delighted to welcome Sello to the Absa Board. He brings extensive experience as a leader in the financial services industry, with a proven track record as an executive, entrepreneur and a board member at companies across several industries,” said Wendy.

Sello has a career spanning close to 30 years in the financial services industry. He is a former CEO of Old Mutual Asset Managers. Thereafter, he founded Thesele Group, an investment holding company where he is the Executive Chairman.

He has served as Chairman on the boards of Alexander Forbes Group Holdings Limited, Sibanye-Stillwater Limited and General Reinsurance Africa Limited (a Berkshire Hathaway company), among others. He is also a trustee of the Nelson Mandela Foundation.

He currently serves as Chairman on the board of Telkom SA SOC Limited and Momentum Metropolitan Holdings Limited.

“I am honoured by the opportunity to join Absa. As one of the largest banks on the continent, Absa can support the economic growth of our continent in a significant way,” said Sello. “I have been inspired by the way in which Absa has evolved into a strong, standalone African bank that is recognisable across the continent. I commend the Board and executive team for this accomplishment and I look forward to being part of the company’s future journey,” he added.

Soweto-born Sello obtained a BSc with Honours in mathematics and a Post Graduate Certificate in Education (PGCE) from the University of Leicester in the UK. He has completed various business courses, including the Advanced Management Program from the Wharton Business School. Sello is also committed to community development initiatives in Soweto and Cape Town.

To view a replay of the online event where the winner of the 2021 Absa/City Press Money Makeover Challenge was announced, click here

• Read all the contestant stories here Money Makeover (news24.com) or here City Press Money Makeover (shorthandstories.com).  
• Attached you will find two high-res images of Nocawe, our 2021 winner, with and without her family. 
• Both our winner Nocawe, and our runner-up Gugu, are available for media interviews to share their respective journeys to financial freedom.  

Absa in collaboration with City Press newspaper proudly announced an emerging poultry farmer from Mbombela in Mpumalanga as the winner of the 2021 Money Makeover Challenge at an online event. 

“While we’ve all been hunkered down in the second year of the global pandemic, participants in the 2021 Challenge have once again proven that good money habits will see you through any season and all crises,” says Mondli Makhanya, City Press editor-in-chief. 

This year’s six City Press readers and Absa clients Nocawe, Gugu, Stephan, Maryke, Audrey and Lwandile, like all those who have gone before them, have claimed their financial freedom. 

However, it is Nocawe who came out tops – not only changing the fortunes of her family for the better by following the few simple rules of good financial management, but even getting set to start her own small business. With the help of Absa’s small business team, she is making use of her family’s ancestral land to start a poultry business. Read all about it here: https://media24.shorthandstories.com/counting-your-chickens/index.html

The Absa/City Press Money Makeover Challenge is a six-month, cross-format challenge in which six readers are selected to take part according to strict guidelines. The six month-long journey tests their resolve and asks of them to take tough decisions on every aspect of their finances. Each candidate is paired with an Absa financial adviser who guides them through the steps to gain their financial freedom. 

This year, in addition to wanting to achieve their budgeting, saving, investing and wealth management goals, the candidates either wanted to start a small business or had a side hustle they wanted to develop to generate additional income and secure some savings. They were paired with an Absa banker who assisted them to write a winning business plan. 

“Small businesses are vital to enable job creation in South Africa and will play a key role to jumpstart our economy as it recovers from the impact of COVID-19. One of our key strategies is to engage and empower entrepreneurs and SMEs throughout their lifecycle, and it is our sincere hope that the knowledge our contestants have gained and the lessons they’ve learned throughout this journey will stand them in good stead as they continue to grow their financial assets and take their business savvy to the next level,” says Bongiwe Gangeni, Deputy Chief Executive, Absa Retail and Business Banking. 

“The stories of our six contestants underscore the importance of taking well-considered risks and not being afraid of failure. While failure can be devastating in the short-term, it is often the learnings from these events that become the springboard for future ideas and success,” Gangeni adds.  

What is perhaps most incredible and unique about this competition is how, no matter who takes home the big prize, every contestant wins something that is infinitely more valuable – control of their finances and the ability to plan and save for their life goals and their families.

“For me the most surprising outcome of this year’s challenge was how quickly the contestants managed to pay off their short-term debt. These were people who claimed that they did not have enough money to settle their debts and start saving, yet within six months and after some sacrifices, almost all of them are now completely debt-free and have amassed an emergency fund. Gugu, one of the contestants, who deserves a special mention, managed to settle three times her monthly salary in debt, a mean feat especially given the challenges brought about by the pandemic,” says personal finance expert Maya Fisher-French. She worked closely with the candidates and their advisers to showcase their stories and hopefully inspire other South Africans to start their own personal journey.  

“Money is an integrated aspect of our lives, and consumers have to deal with a large number of day-to-day choices when it comes to dealing with money matters. Financial topics are often perceived to be complex, and many of us grew up in households where money was never discussed around the dinner table. Financial education changes lives, it is about helping people make responsible and well-informed choices that pave the way to financial freedom and a healthy financial future for themselves, their families and society as a whole. With some careful planning, financial freedom may not be as difficult to attain as it seems,” says Theo Motha, Acting Group Executive: Marketing and Corporate Relations, at Absa. 

This is the fifth consecutive year that City Press hosted the Money Makeover Challenge and the fourth year for the Absa sponsorship. 

Absa is set to host a unique auction of mainly sculptural artworks in conjunction with leading fine art auctioneers and art consultants Strauss & Co to raise funds for the global bicycle charity, Qhubeka.

The Qhubeka Art Auction forms part of Absa’s ongoing efforts to support communities and improve education outcomes and will take place between 18 and 25 October. It will be held concurrently with this year’s Absa Cape Epic, one of the toughest and most beautiful mountain bike stage races in the world.  

The 2021 edition of the race will see avid mountain bikers from around the globe cover 619 kilometres and 15 250 metres of vertical ascent from the iconic slopes of Table Mountain National Park to the luxury of Val de Vie Estate outside Paarl.

The proceeds of the auction will go toward supporting Qhubeka Charity, an organisation that distributes bicycles to change lives. Qhubeka is a Nguni word meaning ‘to carry on’, ‘to progress’, or ‘to move forward’, and is fittingly an official charity partner of the Absa Cape Epic.

A recent Statistics SA General Household Survey, which measures the living circumstances of South African households, estimates that around 67% of South Africa’s school-going children have no access to any means of transport. When driving on secondary roads around South Africa, one sees many uniformed children walking more than 30km per day to get to and from school. As an accessible, reliable and affordable form of personal transport, owning a bicycle can make a profound difference in under-resourced communities.

Bicycles can change lives, and Qhubeka Charity uses bicycles to raise standards of living by improving access to schools, clinics and jobs. The hand, which features as symbol on the Qhubeka Charity logo, illustrates that bicycle beneficiaries are receiving a hand up in their lives, and not a handout. To date, through the Absa sponsorship, a total of 900 bicycles have been donated to grade 10, 11 and 12 learners across schools in South Africa.

The online Qhubeka Art Auction, which was scheduled to take place in 2020 but was postponed due to the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic, will be hosted by Strauss & Co. Once registered, online bidders will receive a bidder number and will be able to place bids on the lots between 18 and 25 October. 

“We are really looking forward to hosting this auction. It has been a tough couple of months for the arts community as well as society at large, and to get an opportunity to host an auction where the proceeds will directly impact and benefit communities, is a privilege we don’t take for granted,” says Strauss & Co Executive Director, Susie Goodman.

A total of 25 lots will be on show during the auction and will include 21 artworks from a selection of artists from across Africa, as well as three specially designed Qhubeka bicycles and one special reserve 2021 Absa Top Ten Pinotage wine case.

A highlight of the auction will undoubtedly be the three Qhubeka bicycles, transformed into artworks for the auction by 2019 Absa L’Atelier Ambassador Nkhensani Rihlampfu, as well as renowned sculptors Angus Taylor and Izanne Wiid.

Rihlampfu, whose distinct work using cotton rope is entitled ‘Concept of Tenacity’, explains that it is an expression of the moment when people are in their element. “It is that moment when mind, body and soul are aligned, and your imagination is your own limit. I thoroughly enjoyed the brief, it’s a unique way to merge sport and art and I am happy it will benefit those who need it the most.”

Absa Senior Specialist Art Curator, Dr Paul Bayliss, says the bank is committed to making a meaningful contribution to the communities where they operate. “The visual arts afford us the opportunity to play a shaping role in society and this initiative is a great example of how we are increasingly leveraging our ecosystem to ensure that we unlock opportunities for communities.” 

“The auction is a truly unique collaboration as it unites art and sport, thereby enabling Qhubeka Charity to address socioeconomic challenges at the most basic level – helping people to get where they need to go,” he says.

Bayliss further explains that the Qhubeka Art session in the auction will be viewable on the Strauss & Co website from Saturday, 16 October and opens for bidding from Monday, 18 October 2021.

Potential buyers can view the lots and register to bid on the Strauss & Co website

View videos detailing the story behind each bicycle artwork on auction below:

• Nkhensani Rihlampfu’s Tenacity bike: view video
• Izanne Wiid’s Cheetah bike: view video
• Angus Taylor’s Dagga Boy bike: view video

For more information, or if you would like to make a donation to Qhubeka Charity, please visit the Cyclelab website

Innovations in sustainable finance and digital transformation, alongside important initiatives in transparency and regulation, will help reinvigorate Africa’s financial markets as they recover from the impact of Covid-19, according to research in the latest African Financial Markets Index from Absa and OMFIF.

• Out of 23 countries in the index, 19 score lower than last year. This decline reflects more difficult market conditions, methodological changes and the inclusion of environmental, social and governance indicators in the index. Despite the fall in scores, few examples reveal an underlying deterioration in the policy, regulatory or developmental environment in any of the index countries. 
• The inclusion of ESG initiatives in the formal scoring highlights important developments and opportunities in this area, though at the cost of impacting the scores of those countries for which work is at an early stage. Only 13 countries in the index have ESG-focused policies in financial markets and nine countries have introduced sustainable finance products.
• South Africa, Mauritius and Nigeria maintain their lead in the index, though with scores slipping in 2021 for all three. 
• Ghana and Uganda enter the top five for the first time, both earning points for progress in Pillar 6: Enforceability of standard master agreements.
• Nigeria gains the lead in Pillar 3: Market transparency, tax and regulatory environment. Namibia maintains its lead in Pillar 4: Capacity of local investors, while Egypt tops Pillar 5: Macroeconomic opportunity. South Africa remains on top for Pillar 1: Market depth and Pillar 2: Access to foreign exchange. It ties for first with Ghana and Nigeria in Pillar 6: Enforceability of standard master agreements.

The index measures financial market development in 23 countries from across the African continent, highlighting economies with the most supportive environment for effective markets. The aim of the index is to show how economies can improve the market framework to bolster investor access and sustainable growth, and act as a benchmark for investors and policy-makers.

As a reflection of the global push towards sustainability, this is the first year that the index has included ESG indicators. The availability of sustainable finance products, such as green bonds and equities, now contributes to countries’ scores for Pillar 1: Market depth. The index also scores countries on policies that promote ESG initiatives in financial markets for the first time.

The introduction of these sustainability-focused indicators weighs down the scores for many countries in the index as developments in this area are often at an early stage. The average score in the index fell to 46.4 out of 100 in 2021 from 50.8 in 2020, reflecting markets’ muted performance in these new indicators. However, the new measures serve as targets for countries to work towards.

Charles Russon, chief executive of corporate and investment banking, Absa, said of the index’s findings: ‘While some might find it disheartening to see the average score across the board drop, Africa is navigating an extremely tricky economic atmosphere. Recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic has not been as straightforward as we would have hoped last year, and this has had a large impact on the twin challenges the continent faces in reinvigorating financial markets post-pandemic, while strengthening market infrastructure.’

‘However,’ he continued, ‘We’ve seen a lot of positive progress in countries’ efforts to upgrade market infrastructure and regulatory support through the development of technology-based tools which will help future-proof Africa’s financial markets. With countries using innovation to boost local markets and build a broader investor base, there are plenty of reasons to be hopeful about the future of Africa’s macroeconomic landscape.’

In Pillar 1: Market depth, scores dip by an average of 1 point to 40.5 from 41.5 in 2020 due to lower equity market turnover, which has persisted since the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic. While market capitalisation rose in almost all of the countries in the index, it was not enough to offset weak trading activity. Only nine countries have introduced financial products that can be classified as ‘green’ or ‘sustainable’, with green bonds available in seven countries, either on exchanges or over the counter. Kenya and Morocco score highest in this indicator for having green or sustainable bonds, equities and mutual funds in their markets.

Foreign exchange reserves grew by 24% in Pillar 2: Access to foreign exchange, with South Africa coming first and Eswatini moving up 11 places. However, a lack of liquidity in the FX markets, as measured through interbank figures, weakened across almost all countries.

Nearly all countries’ scores declined in Pillar 3: Market transparency, tax and regulatory environment due to lower marks in capital market development. Poor performance on the new indicators that look at incentives for issuance of sustainable financial instruments, integration of sustainability factors in financial market standards and adoption of climate stress testing also contributed to the decline.

Namibia tops Pillar 4: Capacity of local investors once again, earning full marks for having a deep pension market relative to the size of its population and securities market. However, weak potential on the part of the domestic pensions market meant that 19 countries failed to score over 50.

Countries generally performed best in Pillar 5: Macroeconomic outlook, achieving an average score of 62. Egypt regains the lead – which it lost to South Africa last year – propelled by strong gross domestic product growth in 2020. The macro impact of the pandemic continues to be felt in this sector with economic growth for many countries subdued and public finance showing strain.

Ghana, Nigeria and South Africa earn full points in Pillar 6: Enforceability of standard master agreements. Mauritius, Uganda, Zambia and Malawi miss out on joining these countries at the top of the pillar by not yet fully adopting standard master agreements.

‘The index is evolving to stay relevant, recognising the greater role that sustainability plays in market development, as well as the importance of mitigating climate-related risks to the financial system, especially for African countries that are more vulnerable to the effects of environmental deterioration,’ said David Marsh, chairman of OMFIF. ‘Innovations in sustainable finance and market infrastructure will be critical to ensuring that African markets remain competitive and future-proof.’

Absa in partnership with the South African National Association for the Visual Arts (SANAVA) proudly announced the four category winners of the prestigious 2021 edition of the Absa L’Atelier at an online event hosted on the Absa Art Hotspot.  The audience was enthralled by the music of the Mzansi Youth Choir, while dancers from Mzansi Ballet graced the platform.

Since its inception 35 years ago, Absa L’Atelier has showcased, and continues to invest, in some of Africa’s finest young artists between the ages of 21 to 40. This year the competition established itself as the first African art competition to be hosted completely virtually; from entry, submission, and adjudication of the artworks, to hosting a series of masterclasses and a mentorship programme for the 2019 Absa L’Atelier ambassadors, culminating in the online awards ceremony. 

After receiving a record number of registrations, hundreds of eligible entries were judged by an independent panel of adjudicators and one Ambassador per group was chosen from the three groups of African countries.

•  In Group A (Mozambique, South Africa, Uganda and Zambia), the winner was Adelheid von Maltitz from South Africa.
• In Group B (Mauritius, Nigeria, Seychelles and Tanzania) the winner was Ayobola Kekere-Ekun from Nigeria. 
• In Group C (Botswana, Ghana, Kenya and Namibia) the winner was Blebo Michael Jackson from Ghana.

These artists now take on the title of Absa L’Atelier Ambassador 2021, while the winner in this year’s Absa L’Atelier Gerard Sekoto category was Cape Town-based artist Abongile Sidzumo.

The Ambassadors received trophies that depict hands, symbolising the physical manifestation of creation, designed, and produced by established South African artist Roberto Vacarro, while the Gerard Sekoto trophy depicts a bull, representing prosperity and resilience.

The criteria for selecting the Ambassador included technical execution i.e. the artist’s expert handling of material and techniques; conceptual and thematic engagement i.e. how they revealed an honest and intellectual reasoning or rationale; freshness of artistic vision within the context of the contemporary African art landscape i.e. how the artist engaged with honest and fresh ways of seeing; as well as aesthetic appeal which implies that the artist must have shown great consideration for visual quality and conceptual concerns, and whether the portfolio of artworks was a cohesive submission carrying the intended message or thematic idea. 

Group A winner, Adelheid von Maltitz, is currently studying towards her PhD in Fine Arts at the University of the Free State in South Africa, where she also lectures primarily in sculpture and drawing. Her winning entry, presented in partial fulfilment of the requirement for her Doctor of Philosophy degree, is concerned with the transformative potential of dynamic threshold places such as roadside shrines. For her, making sculpture and installation art involves processes that allow her to constructively engage personal anxieties around death and loss. 

Her interest in roadside shrines was sparked when she observed, what looked like a mother and sister continually, over months, rebuilding and maintaining a roadside shrine which she passed regularly on her daily commute. By initially examining the nature of roadside shrines in relation to her own art-making processes, she was struck by the similarities in the ways in which death and loss may be engaged with, constructively and in a healing manner, through art.

Group B winner, Ayobola Kekere-Ekun, hails from Nigeria and, like Adelheid, is also pursuing a PhD in Art and Design from the University of Johannesburg.  Fascinated with lines, her brightly coloured work is driven by three foundation pillars: lines, neutrality of paper and fabric. Ayobola transforms traditional Nigerian fabric and paper with a technique called quilling, whereby strips of material and paper are individually shaped, placed, and secured to capture pockets of light and shadow, giving her works a three-dimensional effect. It is a methodical and labour-intensive process; a single piece can take her between three and seven weeks to complete.   

Group C winner, Michael Blebo, also known as Troy, was born in Accra, Ghana. Specialising in sculpture, he is a Fine Arts graduate from the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology in Kumasi. His work combines sculpture, installation and drawing, and explores the environment and the decay of domestic architecture. As an emerging artist, he combines unconventional material such as white clay, charcoal, natural pigment, brown paper and chipboard to erect large scale works. Scale plays a major role in his work and he is influenced by the large scale works of American artists Richard Serra, Laurie Lipton and Adonna Khare as well as fellow Ghanaian Ibrahim Mahama.  

Established 17 years ago, the Gerard Sekoto award goes to a South African artist, aged between 25 and 35 years, who has continued to demonstrate integrity in the quality of their artwork. The Award is made possible by the Embassy of France in South Africa, the French Institute of South Africa (IFAS), which is the cultural arm of the Embassy, and the Alliance Française network in South Africa.

“With our partners Absa and SANAVA, we are proud to support the Gerard Sekoto award and to accompany young artists to share their work both nationally and internationally. We believe in this award which grants a talented young South African artist an amazing opportunity: to expand his or her horizons with a 3-month artistic residency at the Cité Internationale des Arts in Paris, and, of course, gain greater exposure as a result. The artists are inspired and inspire. They learn, and they teach. They explore, and exhibit, allowing people in France and in South Africa to learn more about their individual style and vision”, said Aurelien Lechevallier, who is France’s Ambassador to South Africa. 

The 2021 Absa L’Atelier Gerard Sekoto category winner Abongile Sidzumo was born in Cape Town, where he currently lives and works. Abongile completed his degree in Fine Arts at the Michaelis School of Fine Arts in 2019. He works with leather offcuts and repurposed materials to create works that reflect and interrogate humanity, the way we co-exist and our relationship with nature. He also revisits memories and connects them to spaces he has lived in as well as the everyday life of marginalised communities. 

Leather is often associated with luxury, wealth and power. Through his process of restitching and weaving leather, Abongile proposes that we start thinking about repurposed materials. By his process of stitching, he is connecting to notions of healing trauma and in a sense, his practice also functions as a manner of interrogating the continuous healing of black communities in post-apartheid South Africa.  

The adjudicators for this award were acclaimed artist and Director at BKhz, Banele Khoza as well as Armelle Dakouo, independent curator and artistic director at AKAA Art & Design Fair.

Though Covid-19 provided its challenges, the past two years were likewise a period of innovation and technological progression. “The pandemic has allowed us to advance our digital art presence with the launch of the Absa Art Hotspot. This unique virtual experience platform made it possible for us to host live events such as webinars, art exhibitions, art masterclasses, and art auctions, while certain elements of our art-related sponsorships and partnerships such as this year’s awards event were also migrated to the platform,” said Paul Bayliss Senior Specialist Art Curator at Absa.

Hosting the competition digitally allowed for the removal of any barriers to entry, all the artist required was a smart phone or access to the internet. “With this year’s theme ‘The Act of Art’, we called our continent’s fearless creators to act and to enter. This years’ competition once again provided an opportunity for visual artists to respond and make their voices heard. We are committed to putting the basic building blocks in place to ensure that young artists from across the African continent can reimagine their futures and bring their possibility to life,” said Bayliss. 

SANAVA President, Dr Avitha Sooful, commended her partners, Absa, for forging ahead and continuously seeking ways to impact the African visual arts scene even during the ongoing pandemic.

“The Covid-19 pandemic derailed our plans for 2020, but through some innovative thinking we were able to come back stronger this year and we actually have more entries than we have ever had for this competition. I commend the work that our partners, Absa, have done in making sure that African artists continue to reap the rewards of their hard work,” Dr Sooful said.

“We look forward to working with this year’s ambassadors and Gerard Sekoto winner and providing the next generation of young African artists with the support, recognition, and exposure they need to solidify their careers and build their brands,” concluded Bayliss.

For further information about Absa L’Atelier winners, please visit https://latelier.absa.africa