Wesgro welcomes four new Board Members
Provincial Minister of Finance and Economic Opportunities in the Western Cape, Mireille Wenger, welcomed four new Board Members to Wesgro, after appointing them in consultation with the Mayor of Cape Town, Geordin Hill-Lewis, at the end of last month.
“I am very pleased to announce that Dr Shirley Zinn, Natalie Jabangwe, Sabine Lehmann and Velani Mboweni have joined Wesgro’s Board of Directors. Working in key areas in the public and private sectors as well as non-profit organisations, each professional brings with them a unique, valuable, and diverse perspective and skillset. All four appointments bring an unyielding drive to work with Wesgro to facilitate foreign direct investment into the Western Cape, grow the exports of products and services from the region and differentiate the province as a competitive business and travel destination globally,” said Wenger.
Zinn has a strong background in corporate governance and academia, including being a Professor at the University of Pretoria’s Faculty of Economics and Management Sciences and an Adjunct Professor at the University of Cape Town, and has an extensive history in numerous capacities within the public service and private sector, spanning various industries and non-profit organisations.
Furthermore, she is the proprietor of her own consulting company. Minister Wenger has appointed Zinn as Chairperson of the Board.
Jabangwe is a Chief Digital Executive Officer and Investment Professional, with over a decade of international expertise in financial services and technology, encompassing regions such as Europe, the US, the Middle East, and Africa.
In addition to her professional accomplishments, she serves on the Board of Commerce for digital financial trading across Africa and is a member of the Young Presidents' Organisation.
Lehmann has more than 25 years in the tourism and visitor attractions management industry in South Africa. She is the founder and CEO of a specialised consultancy focusing on attractions and tourism futures.
She also spearheaded a campaign to include the Cape Town Table Mountain Cableway as one of the Natural Seven Wonders of the World.
Mboweni is the Co-Founder and CEO of a tech start-up and is a fellow of the Harambeans Entrepreneur Alliance (US) and an Alibaba eFounders Fellow (China).
The new appointments will join the existing Board Members.
Minister Wenger also thanked outgoing Board Members Andrea Böhmert, Ian Bartes, Paul Bannister and thanked outgoing Board Chairman David Green, for their dedication to their roles on the Board.
New GM for popular Umhlanga hotel
Protea Hotels by Marriott appointed Joe Segers as the new General Manager of the Protea Hotel Fire&Ice! by Marriott Durban Umhlanga Ridge, effective from August.
In his new role, Segers will provide leadership and oversee the operations of this 205-room hotel located in Umhlanga, Durban.
Segers has previously served in various key roles within the Protea Hotels by Marriott and Autograph Collection Hotels brands from 1995 until 2017, including the opening GM for the first Protea Hotel Fire&Ice! by Marriott in Cape Town.
“Segers has immense industry experience and has played a critical role in the development, growth, and success of our business over the years and possesses excellent leadership and strategic skills. His appointment to this role underscores the high calibre of our team and our commitment to strengthening our position in the South African hospitality landscape.” said Sean Maher, Market Vice President: South Africa, Marriott International.
New chef at Paarl hotel
The Grande Roche Hotel and Restaurant in the Winelands town of Paarl in South Africa has recently appointed Chef Christiaan Campbell to its executive team.
Campbell trained as a naval chef at the South African Navy Culinary School. His culinary career spans some thirty years and includes The Priory in Bath, England, two months working in the kitchens of Le Manoir aux Quat’Saisons by Chef Raymond Blanc (OBE) in Oxfordshire, The Restaurant at The Capital Hotel in Knightsbridge, London, Chewton Glen, La Gavroche and Gravetye Manor.
Johann Bouwer, GM of the Grande Roche Hotel and Restaurant, said: “To have someone of Campbell’s calibre join our team is very exciting to us. Campbell’s career experience, his passion to share his knowledge and upskill his teams together with his genuine ethos of sustainable consumerism makes him an ideal and natural appointment as Grande Roche heads into a revived and reimagined chapter.”
