This is an interesting development.

I see that Pick'n'Pay supermarkets are a partner of Avios SA and of BAEC and that P'n'P points can be transferred to either at a normal rate of 8:1, so one Avios per full 8 rand spent.

Unfortunately for those of us who are customers of both P'n'P and BA but who do not live in the Republic, we are excluded from this benefit. A South African address is required for P'n'P registration, and they do not send mail or even e-mail outside SA.

Of course, this is typical South African shortsightedness when it comes to loyalty programmes and is not confined to P'n'P. On no account should loyalty be expected of visitors. I suppose we should count our blessings that we can earn points from airlines and hotels in SA.