Lorge Botswana scoops CAAB accounting contract

| Wednesday September 29, 2010 00:00

Denzil Moorcroft, Business Development Manager for Lorge Botswana, said the solution will be installed at Botswana's six main airports and will be linked to a further 20 smaller airfields countrywide.

CAAB Director (Finance), Patrinah Masalela, commented that the CAAB has taken over the functions of the former Department of Civil Aviation (DCA) and that the Authority has a mandate to regulate air transport, provide air navigation services, manage airports and advise the Botswana government on all aspects of civil aviation.

'We are also responsible for implementing and adhering to sound commercial and financial principles and to ensure as far as possible, that our revenue is sufficient to meet the expenditure properly chargeable to our revenues. The accounting and ERP solution Lorge is implementing for us will ensure that we achieve these objectives,' added Masalela.

'Furthermore, over and above, the usual General Ledger, Accounts Payable and Accounts Receivable functionalities, a complex solution which meets international standards, is required; offering features such as transactional analysis, multi-currency capability and a full purchasing workflow facility that is linked to central management for purchase approval and authorisation.'

The Sage ERP Accpac solution will include software to manage the charging and receipt of airport and Botswana airspace usage fees. The intention is to fully automate the charging and collection of fees as far as possible. All the relevant fees will automatically be billed to Accpac as soon as an aircraft enters the Botswana airspace.

Norming asset management is also another important feature of the solution for CAAB. It will monitor and record the status of specialist airport equipment such as radar and other air navigation facilities.

'Features like this and a very comprehensive reporting facility within the Sage ERP Accpac solution will ensure that CAAB meets both local and international aviation reporting requirements,' Masalela concluded.

Moorcroft added that the project is of strategic importance to Lorge Botswana and the Logic Group of companies.'We will therefore ensure the successful implementation of this project within the agreed timelines.'Softline Accpac VP Sales, Keith Fenner, said the contract demonstrates the potential for growth in the Southern African market. 'We have a tried and tested basket of financial and ERP software solutions and a highly competent and experienced channel of partners to sell, implement and service solutions in this market.'

The Accpac solution implementation and commissioning is expected to be complete by the end of October 2010.