Cape Town’s MindZu has made it into the finals of the Global Edtech Startup Awards. Over 3,000 companies from more than 80 countries entered the GESAwards competition, which provides an unmatched showcase for the most innovative companies from across the world.

Godfrey Parkin, co-founder of MindZu (www.mindzu.com), said, “Being selected for the finals is a huge endorsement for a company that has an ambitious mission. Through quality gamified maths education we improve the lives of millions in South Africa, and worldwide – irrespective of how dire or non-existent their school circumstances are.”

MindZu provides a full year of the highest quality maths education, via the learner’s own phone, for the price of a meal.

“The education system has failed the masses in South Africa and throughout the developing world,” says Parkin. “Most edtech operates within this failed system, so it too fails the masses.” MindZu is disrupting education by going direct to learners.

The company’s focus is on maths, particularly the final years of high school. To MindZu, learning maths is more than just being able to regurgitate Pythagoras or pass exams. “The early teenage brain is evolving faster than at any time other than the first years of life,” says Parkin. “The teen brain is ‘wiring’ itself to process complexity, and the quality of that wiring is determined by what stimulates or challenges it. Learning maths creates teenage minds which excel at creativity and complex problem-solving. It multiplies an individual's prosperity options. And as a consequence it collectively lifts the economy – not over decades but almost immediately.”

Learning maths - the most important developer of 21st century mental skills capacity in teens - should never be dumbed down in educational curricula, and the already disadvantaged should never be deprived of the upliftment benefits it brings. Yet our school system and our teachers struggle to teach the subject.

Across sub-Saharan Africa, the majority of youngsters aged 15-17 are not even in school, and this will get worse as migration levels grow. How do you get maths education to mobile, un-schooled or poorly schooled kids? The only way is to make it truly inexpensive, and deliver it via their mobile phone in a format which is compelling, exciting, and gamified. This is what MindZu does.

“We are solving not just a South African maths problem. We are solving a developing world prosperity problem. And we can do it profitably, which means we grow without depending on grants or donations,” says Parkin.

The GESAwards are a joint project of leading edtech organizations from across the world. In South Africa the awards are sponsored by the UK South Africa Tech Hub, a UK government initiative.

Cape Town startup MindZu (www.mindzu.com) has made it into the finals of the Global Edtech Startup Awards. Over 3,000 companies from more than 80 countries entered the GESAwards competition, which provides an unmatched showcase for the most innovative companies from across the world.

Godfrey Parkin, co-founder of MindZu, said, “Being selected for the finals is a huge endorsement for a company that has an ambitious mission. Through quality gamified maths education we improve the lives of millions in South Africa, and worldwide – irrespective of how dire or non-existent their school circumstances are.”

MindZu provides a full year of the highest quality maths education, via the learner’s own phone, for the price of a meal.

“The education system has failed the masses in South Africa and throughout the developing world,” says Parkin. “Most edtech operates within this failed system, so it too fails the masses.” MindZu is disrupting education by going direct to learners.

The company’s focus is on maths, particularly the final years of high school. To MindZu, learning maths is more than just being able to regurgitate Pythagoras or pass exams. “The early teenage brain is evolving faster than at any time other than the first years of life,” says Parkin. “The teen brain is ‘wiring’ itself to process complexity, and the quality of that wiring is determined by what stimulates or challenges it. Learning maths creates teenage minds which excel at creativity and complex problem-solving. It multiplies an individual's prosperity options. And as a consequence it collectively lifts the economy – not over decades but almost immediately.”

Learning maths - the most important developer of 21st century mental skills capacity in teens - should never be dumbed down in educational curricula, and the already disadvantaged should never be deprived of the upliftment benefits it brings. Yet our school system and our teachers struggle to teach the subject.

Across sub-Saharan Africa, the majority of youngsters aged 15-17 are not even in school, and this will get worse as migration levels grow. How do you get maths education to mobile, un-schooled or poorly schooled kids? The only way is to make it truly inexpensive, and deliver it via their mobile phone in a format which is compelling, exciting, and gamified. This is what MindZu does.

“We are solving not just a South African maths problem. We are solving a developing world prosperity problem. And we can do it profitably, which means we will be able to grow without depending on grants or donations,” says Parkin.

The GESAwards are a joint project of leading edtech organizations from across the world. In South Africa the awards are sponsored by the UK South Africa Tech Hub, a UK government initiative.

Cape Town’s MindZu has made it into the finals of the Global Edtech Startup Awards. Over 3,000 companies from more than 80 countries entered the GESAwards competition, which provides an unmatched showcase for the most innovative companies from across the world.

Godfrey Parkin, co-founder of MindZu, said, “Being selected for the finals is a huge endorsement for a company that has an ambitious mission. Through quality gamified maths education we improve the lives of millions in South Africa, and worldwide – irrespective of how dire or non-existent their school circumstances are.”

MindZu provides a full year of the highest quality maths education, via the learner’s own phone, for the price of a meal.

“The education system has failed the masses in South Africa and throughout the developing world,” says Parkin. “Most edtech operates within this failed system, so it too fails the masses.” MindZu is disrupting education by going direct to learners.

The company’s focus is on maths, particularly the final years of high school. To MindZu, learning maths is more than just being able to regurgitate Pythagoras or pass exams. “The early teenage brain is evolving faster than at any time other than the first years of life,” says Parkin. “The teen brain is ‘wiring’ itself to process complexity, and the quality of that wiring is determined by what stimulates or challenges it. Learning maths creates teenage minds which excel at creativity and complex problem-solving. It multiplies an individual's prosperity options. And as a consequence it collectively lifts the economy – not over decades but almost immediately.”

Learning maths - the most important developer of 21st century mental skills capacity in teens - should never be dumbed down in educational curricula, and the already disadvantaged should never be deprived of the upliftment benefits it brings. Yet our school system and our teachers struggle to teach the subject.

Across sub-Saharan Africa, the majority of youngsters aged 15-17 are not even in school, and this will get worse as migration levels grow. How do you get maths education to mobile, un-schooled or poorly schooled kids? The only way is to make it truly inexpensive, and deliver it via their mobile phone in a format which is compelling, exciting, and gamified. This is what MindZu does.

“We are solving not just a South African maths problem. We are solving a developing world prosperity problem. And we can do it profitably, which means we grow without depending on grants or donations,” says Parkin.

The GESAwards are a joint project of leading edtech organisations from across the world. In South Africa the awards are sponsored by the UK South Africa Tech Hub, a UK government initiative.

SEOPros web design is a division of the award winning SEOPros digital marketing agency that started out in Nelspruit, Mpumalanga with a small, but dedicated team with one united focus – to become the best website design and digital marketing agency in South Africa.

Since then the company has experienced phenomenal growth and yesterday, Founder and CEO of SEOPros, Louis Schoeman has announced the opening of a new website design office in Pretoria.

When asked what it is that SEOPros does different to set it apart from all the other companies that offer website design Pretoria services, Mr Schoeman replied  “ In today’s digital age, web design is a vital, if not the most important element of the overall online marketing success of any business. All marketing channels lead to a business’ website and studies and experience in web design have taught us that a website that does not convert is pointless.  Having a professional converting website is probably the biggest investment that any business owner can make. Our expert team of developers make sure that they create a website that specifically targets a customer’s industry and converts prospective visitors into clients. We serve all industries including B2B, B2C, Ecommerce, Enterprise, Education, Non-profit, Start-ups.”

He continued by saying that the website design team in Pretoria has a website portfolio of more than 150+ professionally designed websites that include mobile compatible optimizations. They have clients in almost every industry and over the years they have learned which website layouts convert the best. With their website design team in Pretoria’s critical approach to every industry, they make sure that they have every angle covered for a conversion friendly website. They make use of the available tools such as sitemaps and Google Analytics and they are very data-driven in their web design strategies. They also make sure that they stay on top of improvements on web design at all times. “Our website design team is passionate about what they do and over the years they have succeeded in growing our client’s businesses by 174%” 

Mr Schoeman concluded by saying that he and his website design team is looking forward to assist businesses, not only in Pretoria, but around the country with exceptional website design services –“ if a client’s business succeeds – so do we”. 

At a recent online conference, a team of ACCA experts who are involved in reviewing and marking ACCA exams offered their insights on the Applied Skills, Strategic Professional and Options (UK tax) exams. The conference provided a unique opportunity for Approved Learning Partners, like IBTC, tutors and other strategic partners to come together, network, and gain practical insights into ACCA’s examinations.

During the conference they reviewed the 2018 September and December exams to provide students with direction and guidance when writing their exams this year. Here is what they had to say about The Advanced Taxation- UK

According to the examiners, there are a few changes in the ATX UK subject. The technical changes you need to be on the lookout for are the following:

• Deemed domicile changes for personal taxes (IT, CGT and IHT)
• Changes to corporate loss relief
• Income tax implications of lump sum payments
• Changes to SSE conditions

Apart from these changes, the examiners found that there are several areas that students struggle in and definitely need to improve on.

"Candidates need to consider the scenario given before they start writing their answer and not simply state general tax rules. A lot of students make this mistake. Students need to understand that each client has their own set of circumstances, which the tax rules must be applied to. Each scenario is unique and must be treated as such," said the examiners.

The examiners gave the following advice:

• Slow down
• Note initial thoughts and plan
• Think, then write
• Think, then calculate
• Clearly address the requirements and be specific
• Provide clear, short and concise explanations
• Avoid irrelevant explanations/calculations
• It is suggested that students spend 1.8 min per mark

About International Business Training College

IBTC is a registered course provider delivering classroom tuition and distance learning courses for internationally recognised professional qualifications, such as CIMA, ACCA, CAT, ICB and CFA - offering a combination of distance learning and classroom courses designed to prepare students for their professional examinations.

Operating from Cape Town since 1995, IBTC provides classroom courses in major cities around South Africa and a comprehensive Home Study programme supported by experienced international tutors.

All our courses include a complete set of internationally acclaimed study material which has been developed to ensure that students have maximum control over what they learn, the way they learn it, and the pace at which they work.

IBTC also works closely with a variety of professional institutions to support skills training and education. We believe in providing local students with access to international qualifications, bringing you closer to your professional goals and success in the workplace.

IBTC’s role is to support students in the accounting and business management field in successfully completing their exams.

Courses include:

• CIMA - Certificate, Operational, Managerial, Gateway Assessment, and Strategic Level
• ACCA - Fundamental & Professional Level
• FIA - Introductory, Intermediate, Diploma and Certified Accounting Technician Level
• CFA - Level 1 – 3
• ICB ACCOUNTING - Foundation, Intermediate, Upper Intermediate & Advanced Level
• ICB ADMINISTRATION - Foundation, Intermediate & Advanced Level

Fifty (50) learners futures were disrupted and playballed by the very bodies that represent and advocate skills development.CAD4ALL receives an offer to do a DG Project with the CETA & FITA, the deadline is 18 July 2018 for submission.

CAD4ALL recruits 50 learners to start 3 November 2018 and by February 2019 no learners nor the training provider is paid. CAD4ALL received the offer on August 2018, and on behalf of the CETA and FITA went through a process of pre-assessment and recruiting of learners to start the 03 November 2018.

In addition a motivational letter was sent to CETA from CAD4ALL by the instruction of FITA months prior to the project starting 50 learners prepared to be studying and earning a monthly stipend from CETA on a monthly basis, as per detailed induction presented by CAD4ALL and CETA delegates only in Cape Town.

This initiative undesirable backfired and left us all to be to be horribly disappointed as the CETA and FITA failed to make learner stipend payments and furthermore paid CAD4ALL for the first time only on 20 February 2019. Payments made were always short paid of 17 learners that left due the programme due to no stipend payments from the CETA and FITA for 3 months.

CAD4ALL will be releasing an official report which will be distributed indicative of the torrid experiences and the incompetence of CETA. The impetus of this maladministration over the years and the struggle to effectively heed progressive results due to CETA only having 2 staff members which serviced the entire Western Cape.

We are extremely concerned when an ETQA makes a statement that the type of learners managed on a learnership is why they leave the project with zero regard. If learners GET treated with respect and the CETA does not mismanage industry money, individuals will not leave citing non credibility of CETA programmes.

This public entity needs to be held accountable for their incompetence and no compunction about brushing off a status of a government funded project.This project had failed, industry levy funds have been wasted and CETA and FITA expects the stakeholder submit to their notions of non-compliance and walk away?

CETA policies for payment of stipends and training provider payments is designed to manage financial control which they dismally and continuously failed at.

Relevant media outlets have been informed of this atrocity we invite further stakeholders to air their grievances of abuse of power and state funds. For more information email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

No answers or assistance from CETA for 5-year certification delay.

Why must an accredited training provider resort to legal action for CETA to print learners’ certificates?CAD4ALL was founded in 2008 and embarked by selling a new alternative CAD & BIM Software which is developed in Greece, this software provided a solution in 2008 to the AEC (Architecture, Engineering and Construction) industry in South Africa which is still on the increase today. After adding value to so many clients in the AEC Corporate space, the dire need was made apparent by industry for CAD4ALL to apply for training accreditation so that the companies can benefit from the SDL funds they are paying monthly to the CETA.CAD4ALL applied for accreditation to CETA in 2012 and was granted full accreditation in late 2013. The 2014 academic year immediately led off with a class of enthusiastic, private students and we were too awarded a DG (discretionary grant) learnership project funded by CETA, in which we had to pay the learners a monthly stipend for 12 months.

From the outset this engagement with CETA was disconcerting if not horrific.

Dealing with the construction CETA from then until current has been nothing short of disastrous leading to consequences of catastrophic devastation. The incompetence and poorly led CETA as our ETQA, has caused us too many an embarrassment, negative association and presents itself as a rhetoric of smokescreen and mirrors to the public not familiar with the qualifications of Architecture, CAD and Draughting. An injustice to the very industry they are supposed to service.The CAD4ALL experience will be outlined and this intentionally will unveil the magnitude of how inefficient and discriminatory this ETQA, CETA is.

By early 2017, CAD4ALL still received ZERO certificates from CETA since 2014, as well as no accreditation site visits, no JPMT meetings, continuous loss of documentation and procrastination all the while we sent ongoing communication which went ignored. This ignorance resulted in addition to a physical visit to the CETA head office in Midrand, JHB to Robert Semenya who was the acting CEO whom CAD4ALL was scheduled to and met in January 2018.In a nutshell, because we received no positive response to the delayed certificates, no re-accreditation visits for renewals of certain qualifications, failed DG projects and outstanding funds owed to CAD4ALL the necessary action was pursued. The pressure was on to meet and fly up on the 31 January 2018, and I travelled once again to Johannesburg and met with acting CEO of CETA, Mr Robert Semenya on the 31 January 2018. Robert was assigned to handle our meeting.CAD4ALL detailed ALL the damaging issues we were experiencing with CETA for the years prior and he promised to prioritise, and have it all sorted in 60 days. CAD4ALL is in possession of Roberts email that confirms all the items that we discussed on the 31 January 2018 and his reproach to it. Shockingly up until this point,19 months later, he has made unkept promises to CAD4ALL, his stakeholder.

Robert only responded under duress to meet in Cape Town in July 2019 when we had our attorneys send him a Letter of Demand. He conveniently orchestrated to meet as he was in Cape Town to attend a budget speech for the SETA’s, yet his contingencies were fruitless and only worsened in my opinion, his lack of credibility by virtue. The solution he offered and we at the time thought favourable, was to engage with acting COO, Innocent Ngezi which untimely dawdled on issues and was no asset in any manner. His procrastination and severe lack of understanding meant there again was NO progress. This means that another chunk is added to the 5 years, of CETA doing nothing.

After CAD4ALL has invested so much over the years and being so advanced and long in an industry like this, it will be shameful not to expose the negative effects the CETA has had on our business and the AEC industry with our related qualifications.

This incompetency and insufficiency of support is a skills disaster and a playball with learner careers. There is a massive trail indicative of how over the consecutive years, CETA continuously paid us and learners’ months late resulting in them leaving the projects and losing out on other opportunities. CETA’s actions are repetitive with other training providers in the past and is in direct contradiction of current CETA, acting CEO Mr Robert Semenya, utterances he expressed in the newspaper article of 22 February 2018 Knowledgeable ETQA’s understand the importance of co-operation with their stakeholder so that a progressive relationship will be fostered to ensure a seamless flow of skilled individuals. The very industry CAD4ALL services with integrity and recognition in its private capacity.

Many individuals now from these impoverished communities will now lose the opportunity to capitalise on this scarce and critical skill.

Construction CETA is light years behind the other SETAS resulting in an obsolete and dysfunctional operation.Mr Robert Semenya and CETA and their interaction with CAD4ALL over this drawn out period effectively subverts the objectives initiated by the Skills Development Act of 1998.

CAD4ALL has an esteemed reputation and a positive brand image in industry that was built over the years but our continued alliance with CETA incompetence has thus caused irreversible damage and unwanted chaos. This public negativity, lack of accountability and downward spiral created by CETA was the trigger point to activate migration.CAD4ALL has evolved to a level that has changed the playing field in industry and for this very reason we have a clearer view of what the future of this critical and scarce skill will look like.

Our vision will be unattainable if CETA remains our ETQA of choice so strategically CAD4ALL positioned itself to vigorously migrate to DHET where our value proposition will be enabled more effectively with subject matter experts.CAD4ALL was recently nominated and selected in the top ten as a finalist in a national design competition where our competitors derived from top universities and institutions in SA. CAD4ALL’s passion in education is displayed in the many accolades it receives and it will not be tarnished or dominated by an inept, substandard Construction CETA.

Please email cad4all on This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

CIMA student, Athenkosi Biko, failed Strat ICS in February. Luckily, he is an IBTC student and could make use of our Pass Assured Promise. Athi returned to the exam room in May and left a champion!

Here, in his own words, is his CIMA story and road to success.

“I have always dreamt of being a qualified finance professional and originally started studying towards a CA(SA). Sadly, life got in the way and I had to abandon my studies and start working. First, I was a call centre agent. I then moved into accounting and product control within financial services and banks. It was here that I learnt about CIMA. After some research, I realised CIMA was the route I had to go. I had finally found a global qualification that combined both finance and business.

While studying I enrolled at IBTC Professional Business Education and attended their Strategic Case Study classes. The classes followed a different format to your traditional ‘knowledge dump’ lecturing. Studying for the Case Study exam requires a reasoning and application approach. The candidate needs to know the material and how to apply it. My lecturer, Kuda, understood this.

I thought I was ready, so I booked and wrote. I failed. Let’s face it, failing is never fun, but giving up just wasn’t an option. That’s the thing with CIMA, you need to keep your head down, keep going and not lose momentum. It’s hard to get back into the race if you stop running. I didn’t fail by much. I was literally a few marks short of a pass. I realised that I knew my subject, but my delivery required work. Luckily, I could make use of IBTC’s Pass Assured Promise. So, I booked again for the May sitting, wrote and passed.

My CIMA journey is almost over but I have grown in my career and as a person. I have learnt to balance technical, business and people skills in each task I complete. I can now look at a problem from every angle and solve it holistically. This helps daily in my job as a Finance Business Partner, to me this is priceless.

My advice to anyone thinking of studying CIMA? Do your research. Only then will you realise the real value of a CIMA qualification and how it will change your life. With CIMA the sky really is the limit.”

Study CIMA with IBTC
All our CIMA courses are Pass Assured. To study CIMA with IBTC go to www.ibtc.co.za and click on the book now button. Alternatively, you can call Robert on 0861 111 411 and he will gladly help you get started.

The Place of a Mercy and Hope continues to astound! Grand opening of Baby and Toddler Care Centre in Addo, Eastern Cape, South Africa

The Place of Mercy and Hope known for its mission for helping the poor in the Sunday’s River Valley, Eastern Cape, South Africa for the past 13 years opened its newest project, a Baby and Toddler Care centre. The Place of Mercy and Hope Baby and Toddler Care centre has capacity for caring for over twenty children (ages 0-3years) allowing parents to continue their daily work on orange farms knowing their children are in a safe and caring environment.

he Addo area, famous for the Addo Elephant Park, has Formal and informal settlements with many disadvantaged communities. For the past 13 years, the Place of Mercy and Hope has been helping these communities by providing a Creche, Pre School, Soup Kitchen, Adult Education Courses, a Clinic and assisting families obtain birth certificates, identity documents and social grants. Hundreds of children and adults are educated and helped annually.

The Place of Mercy and Hope not only helps communities but employs locals from the Addo area and provides educational development when funding is available. Currently, the Non-Profit Organisation has a staff of thirteen dedicated people that help the Place of Mercy and Hope achieve its mission. The Place of Mercy and Hope follows the ethos of the Marist Brothers and Sisters of Mercy, religious organizations who were responsible for founding the Place of Mercy and Hope.

Sr Martha, one of the Directors of the Place of Mercy and Hope, was thrilled to see a new division of the Place of Mercy and Hope become a reality and expressed his gratitude to a significant funder, Cape Span for making a dream possible.

To find out more about the Place of Mercy and Hope, you can visit their website www.placeofmercyandhope.com

Over the last year we've been focusing a lot on growing the company and growing as leaders. One of the things I've learnt in the process is that the founder's story matters. The story of our past informs our future. Where we come from, says a lot about who we are and where we're going. So here is my story. The story of the origin of IBTC.

For this story, I must go right back to the start.

Leaders make more leaders

My first real job was at a private distance learning college. I stayed there for 12 years and had no plans to leave. It was a great place to learn and grow. One of my managers changed the course of my life. He was generous with his time and knowledge and gave me an opportunity to learn about business, strategy, finance, product management and people management. From him I learnt the value of reading business books and studying other companies. Under him, three of the four senior managers who reported to him went on to start their own businesses. In retrospect, he was a 'king maker' of sorts. Today I know that great leaders make more leaders. 

The truth is that I didn't set out to become the CEO of my own college - it wasn't even in my frame of reference. But someone came along who believed in me and wanted the best for me - and in the process enabled me to achieve what I didn't even have the courage to dream.

Values matter

In 2008 my manager and I independently decided to leave the college after it changed hands. We felt the new owners didn't put the students first and blindly pursued money. We were more interested in adding value to people's lives and wanted to leave people richer because they bought from us, not poorer. Then an opportunity came along to buy a small tuition provider operating from Hout Bay and we felt it could be a place where we can live out our values. We raised some capital (which was an extremely stressful time) and bought this small college. There were only 2 permanent staff members (the owners) and a temp. We inherited the temp. Six months after we took ownership, Rob passed away. It was a huge shock to lose someone so unexpectedly and a daunting task that lay ahead of me. I felt I still had so much to learn, but also knew that I had learnt enough. So, I picked up the reigns, moved the company to Cape Town and started applying everything I knew.

Now it's 11 years later and we've grown tenfold. We have campuses in Cape Town Sandton and Pretoria and we've expanded our product range to include exclusive online classes. I really feel we've grown into a remarkable company with remarkable people and that the best is yet to come.

Pay it forward

The moral of the story is that someone believed in me and changed the course of my life. IBTC is my chance to pay it forward. It's a company where we pursue meaning over money - that means putting the student and their success first. It's a place where we recognise that people buy a promise from us and we must deliver on that promise. This holds true for members of our staff and our students. Everybody buys into the promise of IBTC - a promise of learning and growth, a promise of being taken care of and a promise of people believing in you and being generous with their time and knowledge. 

IBTC aims to fulfil its promise to all stakeholders (staff first), of being a place where we build relationships, we grow, we deliver results and we give people remarkable moments.