March 6, 2024

Stevie® Awards Announce Finalists in 18th Annual Stevie® Awards for Sales & Customer Service

Finalists in the 18th annual Stevie® Awards for Sales & Customer Service, an international competition recognizing excellence in customer service, contact centers, business development, and sales, were announced today.

FAIRFAX, Va., March 06, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Finalists in the 18th annual Stevie® Awards for Sales & Customer Service, an international competition recognizing excellence in customer service, contact centers, business development, and sales, were announced today.

A diverse group of organizations and individuals worldwide have been recognized in awards categories for sales executives, solution providers, contact centers, new products and services, and more.

Organizations with five or more Finalist nominations include Allianz Services Pvt Ltd (Trivandrum, Kerala, India), Avetta (Lehi, UT USA), Blackhawk Network (Pleasanton, CA, USA), Capital Rx (New York, NY, USA), CivicPlus (Manhattan, KS, USA), Datasite (Minneapolis, MN, USA), DHL Express Vietnam (Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam), DHL Express (worldwide), Element Electronics (Winnsboro, SC, USA), IBM (Armonk, NY, USA), Inspiro (Makati City, Philippines), Intuit (Toronto, ON, Canada), Loveholidays (London, United Kingdom), OpenGov (San Francisco, CA, USA), Purpol Marketing Limited (Chippenham, United Kingdom), QNB Finansbank (Istanbul, Turkey), Qualitest Group (Bridgewater, NJ, USA), Sales Partnerships, Inc. (Broomfield, CO, USA), SAP (worldwide), Support Services Group, Inc. (Waco, TX, USA), Toco Warranty (Los Angeles, CA, USA), TransPerfect Translations (New York, NY, USA), UPMC Health Plan (Pittsburgh, PA, USA), ValueSelling Associates Inc. (Carlsbad, CA, USA), VIZIO Inc. (Irvine, CA, USA), VMware (Broadcom) (Palo Alto, CA, USA), and Voya Financial (New York, NY, USA).

For a full list of Finalists by category, visit www.StevieAwards.com/Sales.

All Finalist nominations ultimately will be named Gold, Silver, and Bronze Stevie Award winners. The placements will be revealed during a gala banquet on Friday, April 12 at The Bellagio in Las Vegas, Nevada. Tickets are now on sale.

The awards are presented by the Stevie Awards, organizers of several of the world’s leading business awards shows including the prestigious International Business Awards® and The American Business Awards®.

More than 2,300 nominations from organizations of all sizes and in virtually every industry were evaluated in this year’s competition. Finalists were determined by the average scores of more than 200 professionals worldwide in seven specialized judging committees. Entries were considered in more than 60 categories for customer service and contact center achievements, including Contact Center of the Year, Award for Innovation in Customer Service, and Customer Service Department of the Year; 60 categories for sales and business development achievements, ranging from Sales Director of the Year to Sales Training Practice of the Year, and Achievement in Sales Automation; and categories to recognize new products and services and solution providers, among others.

All nominated finalist customer service departments will be included in voting for the People’s Choice Stevie® Awards for Favorite Customer Service. Beginning today through March 29, the general public may vote for their favorite providers of customer service in the People’s Choice Stevie Awards for Favorite Customer Service. Voting is open at http://peopleschoice.stevieawards.com. The nominee with the most votes in each category will receive a special crystal People’s Choice Stevie Award. Winners of the People’s Choice Stevie Awards in multiple industries will be honored at the awards gala in Las Vegas on April 12.

Nominations for a special prize, the Sales Partnerships Ethics in Sales Award, remain open through March 15. There are no entry fees to submit nominations for this award, which will recognize outstanding examples of ethical sales practices since the beginning of July 2022. Winners will also be announced and recognized at the April 12 ceremony.

About the Stevie Awards
Stevie Awards are conferred in nine programs: the Asia-Pacific Stevie Awards, the German Stevie Awards, the Middle East & North Africa Stevie Awards, The American Business Awards®, The International Business Awards®, the Stevie Awards for Great Employers, the Stevie Awards for Women in Business, the Stevie Awards for Sales & Customer Service, and the new Stevie Awards for Technology Excellence. Stevie Awards competitions receive more than 12,000 entries annually from organizations in more than 70 nations. Honoring organizations of all types and sizes and the people behind them, the Stevies recognize outstanding performances in the workplace worldwide. Learn more about the Stevie Awards at http://www.StevieAwards.com.

Sponsors of the 18th annual Stevie Awards for Sales & Customer Service include Sales Partnerships, Inc. Support Services Group, Inc., and ValueSelling Associates, Inc.

Media Contact:
Nina Moore
+1 (703) 547-8389
Nina@StevieAwards.com

A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/d842dc2e-f7a4-40ca-a10c-1690e076d935

GlobeNewswire Distribution ID 9058607

March 6, 2024

Zenas BioPharma Appoints Patricia Allen to its Board of Directors

WALTHAM, Mass., March 06, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Zenas BioPharma, a global biopharmaceutical company committed to becoming a leader in the development and commercialization of inflammation and immunology-directed therapies, today announced the appointment of Patricia Allen to its Board of Directors, on which she also will serve as Chairperson of the Audit Committee. Ms. Allen joins the Zenas Board of Directors with over 20 years of experience leading finance, investor relations, business development, human resources, operations and IT at global public and private biotechnology companies.

“We are pleased to welcome Patty to our Board of Directors,” said Lonnie Moulder, Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Zenas BioPharma. “She has successfully led cross-organizational functions and served on the board of directors of both private and public global biotechnology companies. We look forward to Patty’s contributions to the next phase of Zenas’ growth as we advance our mission to develop and commercialize transformative immunology-based therapies for patients in need.”

“I look forward to collaborating with the experienced Zenas team and Board of Directors, who are building a leading of inflammation and immunology-focused global biopharmaceutical company through disciplined pipeline execution and business development,” said Ms. Allen. “This is an exciting time for Zenas as they seek to progress multiple programs through the clinic to ultimately improve the lives of those living with autoimmune diseases.”

Ms. Allen most recently served as the Chief Financial Officer at Vividion Therapeutics, from where she recently retired. While at Vividion, she co-led led fundraising and the company’s acquisition by Bayer AG, as the company grew and advanced multiple programs towards the clinic. She currently serves on the board of directors and as chair of the audit committee of Deciphera Pharmaceuticals, SwanBio Therapeutics and Anokion, in addition to holding past board member and audit committee chair roles at Inversago Pharma and Yumanity Therapeutics.

Prior to Vividion, Ms. Allen was the Chief Financial Officer at Zafgen, Inc. (now Larimer Therapeutics). Earlier, she was Vice President of Finance and Treasurer, Principal Financial Officer of Alnylam Pharmaceuticals, Inc.; Director of Finance at Alkermes, Inc.; and Auditor at Deloitte & Touche, LLP. She received a B.S. in Business Administration from Bryant College.

About Zenas BioPharma

Zenas BioPharma is a global biopharmaceutical company committed to becoming a leader in the development and commercialization of inflammation and immunology-directed therapies for patients in need around the world. With clinical development capabilities and operations globally, Zenas is advancing a portfolio of potentially differentiated autoimmune therapeutics in areas of high unmet medical need. We leverage the experience and capabilities of our executive management team and our established networks throughout the biopharmaceutical industry as we seek to develop therapies that can improve the lives of those facing autoimmune and rare diseases. For more information about Zenas BioPharma, please visit www.zenasbio.com and follow us on X (formerly Twitter) at @ZenasBioPharma and LinkedIn.

Investor and Media Contact:
Argot Partners
Zenas@argotpartners.com

GlobeNewswire Distribution ID 9058707

March 6, 2024

Namibia and Angola seek cooperation in energy, agriculture and water

WINDHOEK: The leaders of Angola and Namibia have expressed the need for the two southern African countries to collaborate in various economic sectors.

This is among the outcomes of President Nangolo Mbumba’s bilateral talks with his Angolan counterpart, João Lourenço, when they met in Luanda on Tuesday.

‘The two presidents underlined the need to strengthen cooperation in the areas of oil and gas, energy, agriculture, and water,’ Press Secretary Alfredo Hengari said in a statement.

He said that President Mbumba, who took his first bilateral visit to Angola, emphasised that Namibia had a lot to learn from Angola in the oil and gas sectors. To give effect to the Agreement on Cooperation in Petroleum and Natural Gas, Mbumba toured the Sonangol Integrated Logistics Services (SONILS). The hub was created in 1995 to provide logistical support and related services to the Angolan oil, gas, and energy sectors.

As a result, Hengari said President Mbumba encouraged the leadership of SONILS to work with their Namibian
partners based on a solid and transparent partnership for the benefit of both countries.

Hengari said the two leaders also agreed to convene the Namibia-Angola Binational Commission in the coming months to scale up mutually beneficial cooperation between Namibia and Angola. Additionally, Mbumba and Lourenço also agreed to inaugurate the Cassinga Memorial in the coming months.

Hengari also noted that President Mbumba thanked his Angolan counterpart for the extraordinary material and emotional support his government provided to the people of Namibia following the death of former President Hage Geingob.

Mbumba also toured the Karam Group, a diversified company with steel, nails and pipe operations in Luanda and other parts of Angola.

According to Hengari, the company expressed interest in setting up similar operations for the amount of N.dollars one billion, with a potential 350 employment opportunities.

‘The management team of the company informed the president that they had secured land in Windhoek and we
re hoping to reach a stage when they would commence operations in the near future,’ he said.

Source: The Namibia Press Agency

March 6, 2024

Macroeconomic Performance Indicates Ethiopia’s Economy to Grow by 7.9 Percent: MinistryOver N.dollars 100 million paid in tax refunds so far

The better performance in most of the macroeconomic indicators of the second quarter of the fiscal year, would help the Ethiopian economy to grow by 7.9 percent, Planning and Development Ministry said.

Inthe presence of Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, the Council of Ministers has commenced the second quarter performance review on Tuesday.

The review began with presentations on activities undertaken, focusing on four sectoral areas of governance and justice, social, and economic sectors, it was indicated.

Planning and Development Minister, Fitsum Assefa presented the economic performance report of the second quarter of the fiscal year.

In her report, she pointed out that Ethiopia’s economy grew by 7.2 percent in 2023.

The country’s economy is also expected to grow by 7.9 percent in the current 2023/2024 Ethiopian fiscal year that started on July 8, the minister added.

According to her, the performance recorded in the main macroeconomic sectors during the past six months indicates the projection will be attain
ed.

For example, Fitsum indicated that a total harvest of 496.9 million quintals has been obtained over the past six months alone. It has increased by 65 million quintals compared to the same period last year.

Sheexplained that this is one indicator that a 7.9 percent economic growth will be recorded.

Similarly, the minister added that 10 percent growth was recorded in the industrial sector.

In her report, she pointed out that the performance during the past six years is better in many aspects, particularly in the export sector. For instance, Ethiopia has earned over 4.5 billion US dollarsfrom service export alone.

The Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) sector has also registered better performances.

On his part, Education Minister Professor Birhanu Nega presented the social sector performance report and he revealed better activities have been recorded in the spheres of education, health, women and social affairs as well as culture and sports.

For example, he pointed out that education for the generation
movement alone has helped to improve the standard of more than 14,000 schools and built more extra schools in six months.

Minister of Justice, Gedion Timothewos said that Ethiopia has achieved considerable legislative activities in the justice system during the past six months.

Among the better performance witnessed in the sector, the minister mentioned that the transitional justice policy document was prepared in a participatory manner.

According to him, the document is expected to become effective as of its date of approval.

Source: Ethiopian News Agency

SWAKOPMUND: The Namibia Revenue Agency (NamRA) has so far paid over N.dollars 100 million to more than 46 000 individual taxpayers since the commencement of the mass tax refund exercise in December.

The refund which spans from 1991 to 2023, according to NamRA is to benefit over 63 000 taxpayers, with the lowest refund amount being N.dollars 100 while the highest is N.dollars 101 959.

In a press release issued on Wednesday, NamRA Chief of Strategic Communications and Support Engagements, Yarukeekuro Ndorokaze, highlighted the positive strides made and the impact on taxpayers by NamRA.

He noted that out of the 78 441 tax returns processed, 46 941 refunds were successfully paid to 46 772 individual salaried parsons and pensioners.

‘The cumulative value of these successful refunds was N.dollars 100.9 million, a significant financial relief provided to eligible taxpayers. While the majority of refunds were successfully processed, unfortunately 31 500 refunds, totalling N.dollars 56.9 million, were rejected for
various reasons,’ Ndorokaze said.

He explained that the rejection criteria encompassed outstanding returns, unpaid liabilities and no bank account numbers, amongst other factors.

The revenue agency has therefore urged taxpayers to proactively address the identified shortcomings to avoid refund rejections going forward, and ensure the swift release of their refunds.

The Minister of Finance and Public Enterprises, Iipumbu Shiimi during the tabling of the 2024/25 budget last week also announced a N.dollars 1.4 billion Government settlement in once-off legacy tax liabilities for selected public enterprises whose funding was severely reduced due to fiscal consolidation in previous years.

The enterprises include the University of Namibia (UNAM), TransNamib, the Namibian Broadcasting Corporation (NBC), New Era Corporation, the National Fishing Corporation of Namibia (FishCor) and the Roads Contractor Company (RCC).

Shiimi said this is an exceptional once-off exercise to clear the legacy debt of public enterpris
es accumulated prior to the establishment of NamRA.

Source: The Namibia Press Agency

March 6, 2024

Education budget should deliver healthy balance between learners and students: Mbumba

WINDHOEK: President Nangolo Mbumba said a lot has to be done to ensure that budget allocations in education are spent to deliver a healthy balance between the operational expenditure and funds spent on the welfare of both school-going and university students.

Mbumba in his capacity as the patron of the Unam Foundation during the launch of the foundation’s brand and fundraising projects on Wednesday said the issue of textbook shortages, infrastructure deficiencies, quality of lecturing, curriculums and education aids must be attended to efficiently and effectively, which are addressing the realities on the ground.

He explained that collective obligations should be geared towards the outcomes facilitated by the education infrastructure and equipment that facilitates better instruction, improves student outcomes, and reduces dropout rates.

‘This year alone, the Minister of Finance announced a budget of N.dollars 18.3 billion to education, which was the second highest allocation. I hope this will translate int
o a higher ceiling of allocations for institutions of higher learning. In this way, many Namibians can obtain quality education and actively become their own emancipators in the fight against structural and historical poverty,’ he said.

Mbumba, who is also the chancellor of Unam, stressed that a well-educated labour force, which is globally competitive is essential for the industrial development of the country, specifically with the latest developments in the energy sector such as investments in the Green Hydrogen sector and discoveries of oil and gas quantities which will require skilled and professional human resources to ensure that Namibia derives maximum gains from the utilisation of its local mineral resources.

At the same event, Unam Vice Chancellor, Kenneth Matengu said the foundation aims to promote and facilitate the development and achievement of higher education objectives as a non-profit organisation.

‘Over the next five years our focus will be on expanding educational opportunities and foster
ing an environment conducive to academic excellence, personal growth and a shift to education for industrialisation,’ he noted.

Source: The Namibia Press Agency

March 6, 2024

Young Namibians willing to engage in entrepreneurship: Masua

WINDHOEK: Swapo Party parliamentarian Patience Masua said that young Namibians want to engage in entrepreneurship but lack the necessary startup funds.

Despite the financial challenges faced by young people, Masua said in the National Assembly on Tuesday that efforts are being made to support small and medium enterprises (SMEs).

‘Many young people have an appetite for business, they have the talent, skills, ideas, and brilliance – all ingredients to build a successful business. They simply do not have the funding or the degree,’ she said while contributing to a debate on SME financing and its importance to the economy.

‘SMEs are important for the growth and diversification of the economy. They create job opportunities, stimulate innovation, and contribute to the overall economic growth of our country,’ said the youthful lawmaker.

However, Masua said the government has taken steps to make it simpler for SMEs to obtain finance. This includes the skills-based lending facility offered by the Development Bank
of Namibia (DBN).

‘The DBN has provided crucial financial support to young entrepreneurs looking to start their own businesses. Additionally, the government has also introduced various training programmes and mentorship initiatives to help SMEs grow and succeed in a competitive market.’

Masua also said that the allocation of funds toward small businesses in the 2024/25 budget towards the youth loan scheme is a step in the right direction to empower young entrepreneurs.

The budget of the Ministry of Industrialisation and Trade this new financial year was increased by 31.7 per cent to N.dollars 365.5 million and a total of N$1.2 billion over the Medium Term Expenditure Framework.

Finance and Public Enterprises Minister Iipumbu Shiimi said that funding has been allocated to the Equipment Aid Scheme, Start-Up Namibia, and EMPRETEC Namibia to facilitate domestic trade activities and build domestic entrepreneurship capacity, especially for SMEs.

When tabling the budget, Shiimi announced the lifting of the mand
atory registration threshold for value-added tax (VAT) from N.dollars 500 000 to N.dollars 1 000 000.

He said this will relieve approximately 23 000 SMEs from VAT administration to focus on their core activities while simultaneously freeing capacity at the Namibia Revenue Agency to focus on large taxpayers.

Source: The Namibia Press Agency

March 6, 2024

Yaounde 6 council says Eto’o statue not destroyed by acts of vandalismBlaauw vows to develop football at grassroots level

The Yaounde 6 council has debunked claims that Samuel Eto’o’s statue at the premises collapsed as a result of vandalism.

The communique addressing the incident, indicated that the statue fell on Saturday, March 2, as a result of an ‘accidental collapse’.

Several reports had said unknown individuals were responsible for the damage on the monument.

‘The damage was in no way a result of acts of vandalism’ the communication unit of the council said. It indicated that the ‘accident’ occurred after a storm on March 2.

The Mayor of the council, Jacques Yoki Onana, is said to have instructed ‘competent services to ensure its rehabilitation as soon as possible’.

Source: Cameroon News Agency

KEETMANSHOOP: Newly elected ||Kharas football second division league executive committee (exco) chairperson Emrico has vowed to ensure that all teams in the league register a young team or adopt a school team to develop the sport at the grassroots level.

This, he said, will allow an exchange of expertise in the game of football as well as develop a working relationship with schools in the region.

In an interview with Nampa on Wednesday Blaauw said during his five-year tenure he will also make women’s football a priority, with at least one ||Kharas women’s team in the Elite Women Super League.

‘Teams from the second division are faced with the challenge of transportation of players and officials to attend away games as it is costly and there is a need to source funding from the public and private sector,’ he said.

The chairperson further said the new exco is busy fostering a working relationship with South Africa’s Football Association in the Northern Cape, to build relations and cooperation in the area of
football between the ||Kharas Region and the Northern Cape.

‘Since our players from the south find it very difficult to penetrate through the Windhoek route, we can make use of the twinning agreement between the ||Kharas Region and the Northern Cape, to ensure our players and teams play there. We know we have talent in the south and we can sell our players that side. We believe if we sell our players, the small teams from the first and second division from our region will make more money and this will also allow our players to be scouted in South Africa,’ he said.

Other exco members include Renaldo De Klerk as vice-chairperson, Zayne Beukes as secretary and Luken Shivela as treasurer, while Fanny Boois, Vyvion Kheibemab and Lesley Boois are additional members.

Blaauw emerged victorious during an election that took place here over the weekend, where 11 out of the 17 member teams voted in favour of Blaauw.

He competed against Mesag Natanael, who received only six votes.

Source: The Namibia Press Agency