Source: South Africa News Agency
South Africa’s black industrialists are this week exploring trade and investment opportunities in Mozambique.
Led by the Department of Trade and Industry (dti), the delegation will participate in a Bilateral Business Forum with the Confederation of Associations of Mozambique (CTA).
The delegation, which also comprises representatives o… See more
Source: Africa Press Organisation – English – Report:
Headline: African capital markets indicate recovery in 2017 with overall increase in value and volume of equity capital market (ECM) transactions
Overall, African equity capital market transaction volume and value improved in 2017 over 2016. In terms of value, 2017 saw the largest initial public offerings (IPOs) over the trailing five-year period, and an increase in the total value of equity capital market (ECM) transactions of 49% between 2016 and 2017 in US dollar terms.
PwC (www.PwC.com) released its 2017 African Capital Markets Watch (https://goo.gl/vogf7a) publication today, which analyses equity, and debt capital market transactions that took place between 2013 and 2017 on exchanges throughout Africa, as well as transactions by African companies on international exchanges. This report lists all new primary market equity initial public offerings (IPOs) and further offers (FOs) by listed companies, in which capital was raised on Africa’s principal stock markets and market segments. The report also includes IPO and FO activity of African companies on international exchanges or non-African companies on African exchanges, on an annual basis.
Andrew Del Boccio, PwC Capital Markets Partner notes: “Capital markets in Africa saw a recovery in 2017 with the positive impact of commodity stabilisation on economies such as Cote d’Ivoire and Nigeria, which emerged from five successive quarters of GDP declines, and resilience in the face of economic and political uncertainty in South Africa.”
Since 2013, there have been 519 African ECM transactions raising a total of $52.7 billion, up 17% in terms of capital raised over the previous five-year period. Overall, ECM activity in 2017 was the second highest since 2013 in terms of volume with 121 issuances, up 25% over the prior year, and the highest since 2013 in terms of value, driven mainly by a few significant IPOs and FOs during the year.
“We are optimistic about the pipeline of companies seeking to access the capital markets in 2018, including cross-border IPOs of African companies, given encouraging indicators in large markets such as South Africa, Egypt, and Nigeria, and the continued economic growth in East Africa and the Francophone West African countries,” Del Boccio comments.
African ECM activity in 2017 was largely driven by the financial services sector for FOs, and the consumer services sector for IPOs, though both of these statistics were impacted by a few very sizable transactions during the year. Businesses in sectors such as telecommunications, consumer goods and services, financials, and healthcare continued to form a significant component of African ECM activity.
Although levels of market capitalisation for many of Africa’s exchanges remain low in a global context, a number of initiatives have taken place to deepen liquidity and provide investment opportunities for foreign and domestic investors alike. Regulators in some African countries have made efforts in recent years to encourage companies in specific sectors to list shares on their domestic stock exchanges. Additionally, enhanced regulatory capital requirements have driven financial services companies to access both the debt and equity capital markets over the past year.
2017 also saw a greater focus by exchanges on small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) with the introduction of junior or alternative boards. In South Africa, the entry of four new exchanges altered the South African listing environment. Although there have been a number of listings on these new boards, with more activity in 2018, the listings to date have been technical in nature, with no new equity proceeds raised.
African IPO market
2017 saw the second-largest volume in IPO activity (28) over the past five years and is the largest in value, with $2.9bn raised in IPO proceeds, exceeding 2015 (the year with the next-largest value raised over the past five years) by 42%. Over the past five years, there have been 134 IPOs by African companies on both African and international exchanges, raising $9.1bn, a 37% increase in capital raised over the preceding five year period, 2012-2016.
Despite the policy gridlock and economic and political uncertainty South Africa has experienced over the past five years, the JSE has maintained its dominant role in the African capital markets. In 2017, capital raised from IPOs by companies on the JSE in US dollar terms increased by 178% as compared to 2016. Since 2013, capital raised from IPOs by companies on the JSE alone of $4.8bn represents 52% of the total African IPO capital raised.
Over the five-year period, the Bourse de Tunis with 23 issuances, and the EGX with 13 issuances followed the JSE in terms of volume of IPO transactions. In terms of value over the past five years, the next largest value of IPO proceeds raised was on the EGX at $1.3bn.
While a stronger year for some exchanges in sub-Saharan Africa, IPO activity on the North African stock exchanges – Egypt, Morocco, Tunisia and Algeria – decreased by 61% in terms of the value of IPO proceeds. There was also no IPO activity in Ghana compared to 2016, which saw $102.0 million raised on the Ghana Stock Exchange.
In contrast, elsewhere on the continent, 2017 saw some significant increases in IPO value on exchanges in Namibia, Rwanda and Tanzania compared to the prior year.
The top 10 African IPOs by value took place in South Africa, Egypt, Tanzania and the Francophone West African region, represented by the BRVM. On a sector basis, for the first time in five years the consumer services sector dominated the African IPO market with 44% of total value, followed by the financial services sector with 26%. In terms of volume, financial services accounted for the greatest volume of IPOs with 50%, followed by consumer goods with 14%.
African FO market
In 2017 FO activity was on a par with 2015 levels in terms of transaction volume, at 93 FOs – this represented an increase of 27% on the prior year. In terms of proceeds raised, 2017 saw an increase of 42% on the prior year, though it fell short of the highs noted in 2015. Over the past five years, there have been 385 FOs by African companies, raising $43.6bn on both African and international exchanges.
Over the five-year period, the vast majority of FO activity took place in South Africa representing 65% and 86% of total FO volume and value, respectively. This is broadly consistent with the 2017 year, when South Africa accounted for 51% and 86% in total FO volume and value, respectively. Egypt accounted for the next largest amount of FO volume for the 2017 year at 14% and for the five-year period 2013-2017 at 6%, respectively. In terms of FO value, Mauritius accounted for the next-largest FO proceeds raised in 2017 at 5%, and Nigeria the next-largest proceeds for the five-year period at 4%.
During 2017, the sector composition of African FO activity was largely consistent with the five-year average in terms of value and volume, with the financial services sector contributing 56% of the total FO value, followed by the basic materials sector at 14%.
Inbound, outbound, domestic and cross-border activity, 2013-2017
In 2017, domestic activity represented 76% of total ECM activity in terms of volume, and 87% in terms of value. For African ECM data, this statistic is driven by significant activity on the larger exchanges such as the JSE and EGX. There was an overall drop of 17% and 44% in cross-border activity in 2017 compared to 2016 in terms of both volume and value respectively.
Outbound ECM volume in 2017 remained on a par with prior periods, ranging between a five-year low in 2016 of ten, and a high of 17 in 2014. However, there was a significant drop of 89% in the value of outbound ECM activity in 2017 compared to 2016.
African debt markets
In respect of DCM activity, non-local currency corporate issuances totaled $7.5bn, an increase of 68% in terms of value and 110% in terms of volume over the prior year, with several large first-time issuers tapping into a market with sustained appetite for emerging market yields. Most of this funding was targeted at refinancing existing debt, but there were also instances of these proceeds being put to use for acquisitions or strategic capital expenditure.
The year ahead
Del Boccio comments: “In terms of capital markets activity, we expect that the recovery seen in 2017 will gain momentum in 2018 against a more stable political and economic backdrop. This will likely include an increase in cross-border ECM activity for regional players looking to compete in global markets, the continued impact of partial privatisation efforts through the capital markets, and the effect of other regulatory drivers that will lead African companies’ capital markets.”
Distributed by APO Group on behalf of PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP (PwC).
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Email: Andrew.Del.Boccio@PwC.com
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Email: Bontle@ChangeTC.co.za
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Email: Sanchia.Temkin@PwC.com
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Source: Africa Press Organisation – English – Report:
Headline: Africa: Conflicts and weather patterns strain food security
High levels of food insecurity persist in the world, due largely to conflicts and to adverse climatic shocks that are taking a toll, particularly in East African and Near East countries, where large numbers of people continue to be in need of humanitarian assistance, a new FAO report notes.
Some 37 countries are in need of external assistance for food, unchanged from three months ago, according to the Crop Prospects and Food Situation report issued today.
Civil war and insecurity are direct reasons for high hunger rates in 16 of those countries, ranging from Burundi to Yemen. Conflict is displacing millions of people, hampering agricultural activities and, in many cases, also driving basic food prices up sharply, the report notes. Inflation in the Democratic Republic of Congo more than doubled in 2017 to a 42 percent annual rate. Violence has disrupted traditional trade routes around the Sahel, driving up prices, while food shortages are reported around southern and eastern Libya.
Meanwhile, inadequate and erratic rainfall poses a growing threat to food security in Southern Africa as well as in Eastern Africa, where many rural households have suffered from four consecutive drought-affected agricultural seasons.
Dry weather impacts East Africa
The overall cereal output rebounded in Africa in 2017, mostly due to strong gains in Southern Africa following the sharply reduced harvest in 2016.
Cereal production in East Africa, however, saw a 7.2 percent drop, leading to increased stress in various countries. Recently-concluded harvests of secondary season cereal crops are forecast to be below average in southeastern Kenya, northeastern Tanzania and southern Somalia, the report warns.
Aggregate cereal production from Somalia’s “deyr” rainy season is estimated to be 20 percent below average as seasonal rains had a late start and an early cessation. A similar pattern in rainfall and yields was observed in northeastern Tanzania. South Sudan’s cereal output from the 2017 planting seasons is estimated to be the smallest since the conflict started at the end of 2013.
Drought conditions in parts of Ethiopia and Somalia have eased, but not enough to fully offset accumulated deficits in soil moisture. Pasture availability is still below average and livestock body conditions are generally poor. In Kenya, seasonal rainfall was up to 80 percent below average levels, warranting close monitoring of rangeland conditions in eastern areas of the country.
Prices of staple cereals are also high in Ethiopia and the Sudan, where retail prices of sorghum, millet and wheat have doubled since last October in the majority of local markets. The price jump was triggered by the removal of government wheat subsidies, which increased demand for substitute cereals, and by weakening currencies.
Unfavourable seasonal rains in southern Madagascar are expected to result in a further drop in crop yields in 2018, which, coupled with historically high prices of rice, should put additional stress to food security conditions especially in southern areas.
Elsewhere, in Southern Africa, production is expected to fall from the record highs of 2017, heightening concerns about food security, which FAO flagged in a Special Alert issued last week.
The 37 countries currently in need of external food assistance are Afghanistan, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Congo, Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Djibouti, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Guinea, Haiti, Iraq, Kenya, Lesotho, Liberia, Libya, Madagascar, Malawi, Mali, Mauritania, Mozambique, Myanmar, Niger, Nigeria, Pakistan, Sierra Leone, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Swaziland, Syria, Uganda, Yemen and Zimbabwe.
Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO).
Source: Africa Press Organisation – English – Report:
Headline: Head of the UN Office of Counter-Terrorism concludes visit to Egypt
Under-Secretary-General Vladimir Voronkov, Head of the United Nations Office of Counter-Terrorism (UNOCT) concluded today a three-day visit to Cairo at the invitation of the Government of the Arab Republic of Egypt.
During the visit, Mr. Voronkov met with General Magdy Abdel Ghaffar, Minister of Interior; Ambassador Ihab Fawzi, Assistant Minister of Foreign Affairs for Multilateral Affairs and International Security; and General Mohamed El Kishky, Assistant Defence Minister for International Cooperation. He also met with the Grand Imam of Al-Azhar, Ahmed el-Tayeb, and visited the Al-Azhar Observatory for Combating Extremism.
The Under-Secretary-General commended Egypt’s leadership during its recent Chairmanship of the United Nations Security Council Counter Terrorism Committee, under which “a number of crucial resolutions were adopted to upgrade the counter-terrorism responses of Member States,” he said.
Mr. Voronkov stressed that promoting international cooperation to prevent and counter terrorism in the context of all four pillars of the United Nations Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy, is a high priority for the Secretary-General and the United Nations. Mr. Voronkov noted in a meeting with senior Egyptian officials and representatives of the diplomatic community organized by the Cairo International Center for Conflict Resolution, Peacekeeping and Peacebuilding, that the “UN Counter-Terrorism week,” which will encompass the sixth Review of the United Nations Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy and the High-Level Conference of Heads of Counter-Terrorism Agencies of Member States that the Secretary-General has convened in New York in June, will be an unprecedented opportunity to enhance Member States’ collaboration.
The Under-Secretary-General also discussed with his interlocutors a number of areas of common interest in which the United Nations and the Arab Republic of Egypt could exchange good practices, including countering the financing of terrorism, strengthening border controls and aviation security, countering terrorist narratives, and the terrorist use of improvised explosive devices.
During his visit, Mr. Voronkov met with Mr. Hossam Zaki, Assistant Secretary-General of the League of Arab States, to exchange views on the evolving terrorist threat at the regional level and strengthen collaboration between both organizations to effectively address it.
The United Nations Office of Counter-Terrorism was established in June 2017 to provide leadership on the implementation of General Assembly counter-terrorism mandates, to enhance coordination and coherence, and to strengthen the delivery of the United Nations counter-terrorism capacity building assistance to Member States.
Distributed by APO Group on behalf of UN Information Centre in Cairo.
Source: Africa Press Organisation – English – Report:
Headline: Seychelles submits written statement to the International Court of Justice
In June 2017, the United Nations General Assembly adopted a Resolution, initiated by Mauritius, to refer the issue of sovereignty of the Chagos Archipelago to the International Court of Justice (ICJ), the principal judicial organ of the United Nations, for an Advisory Opinion. The Resolution was adopted by a vote of 94 to 15, with 65 abstentions. Seychelles was one of the countries which supported this Resolution in respect of valuing the guidance that may emanate from this prestigious institution on this complex issue.
Following this Resolution, all UN Member States were invited to submit written statements to the ICJ in a view to assisting the Court with its deliberations. On 28th February 2018, following Cabinet approval, the Government of Seychelles through the Department of Foreign Affairs submitted its written contributions to the ICJ.
As noted by Ambassador Barry Faure, Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, “Seychelles’ submission requests that the voices and unique perspectives of the Chagossian community in Seychelles be taken into account by the ICJ during its proceedings. As a people who have genuine connections and interests towards the Chagos Archipelago, and who have faced a myriad of indignities and difficulties in a dispute that has spanned over decades, their plight must be taken into account within any international deliberation on this matter.”
The ICJ will be delivering its opinion in mid-2018. Although without binding effect, Advisory Opinions of the Court carries great legal weight and moral authority. They are often an instrument of preventive diplomacy and have peace-keeping virtues. Advisory opinions also, in their own way, contribute to the clarification and development of international law and thereby to the strengthening of peaceful relations between States.
Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Seychelles.
Source: Africa Press Organisation – English – Report:
Headline: South African Companies to Showcase Products at Foodex Trade Fair in Japan
Twenty-eight South African companies will showcase their products and services at the Foodex Trade Fair in Chiba City, Japan from 6-9 March 2018. The companies received financial support from the Department of Trade and Industry’s (the dti) Export Marketing and Investment Assistance Scheme (EMIA) to participate in the trade fair as part of the department’s commitment towards increasing trade and investment relations between South Africa and the Japan.
Foodex 2018 will display a full range of food and beverage products from around the world. The annual exhibition is Asia’s largest, dedicated to food and beverage sectors across Japan and the whole world. Over the four days of the exhibition, thousands of buyers from food service, distribution, and trading companies attend. Some of the products to be showcased by South African exporters will include bottled wine, mixed herbs and spices, olive oils, canned fruit and vegetables, nuts, fruit juices, dried fruit, rooibos tea and sauces.
The fair affords South African exporters with an opportunity to promote a broader food and beverage sector with a view of establishing a more prominent market presence and reputation for South Africa’s agro-processing sector in the Japanese market.
According to the Deputy Minister of Trade and Industry, Bulelani Magwanishe, the trade fair will expose South African companies to available trade and investment opportunities and highlight their products and services in order to gain access to the multi-billion-rand Asian food and beverage market. It will also be an excellent platform to promote existing and potential exporters to new customers in different sectors from around the world.
“Japan has a more diversified economy and has invested significantly in productive sectors which sustain their high levels of productivity as well as the development of new knowledge and technology. These present opportunities for South Africa and Japan to collaborate with a view to increasing trade and investment, capacity building, and exchange of expertise,” says Magwanishe.
He adds that South Africa’s participation in the trade fair will have a positive impact in terms of increasing export sales from the South African agro-processing industry, particularly the food and beverage sector. This is in alignment with the country’s industrialisation programme and the Integrated National Export Strategy.
Japan is among the largest economies in the world and traditionally one of South Africa’s key established trading partners in the world. Two-way trade between South Africa and Japan was valued at R93.2 billion in 2017, with a trade balance amounting to R17.8 billion in favour of South Africa. South Africa exported goods worth above R55.5 billion, whereas, it imported goods worth R37.7 billion.
Distributed by APO Group on behalf of The Department of Trade and Industry, South Africa.
Source: Africa Press Organisation – English – Report:
Headline: United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) survey shows poor nutrition status among refugee children in South Sudan
Over 24 thousand or 44% of refugee children under the age of 5 in South Sudan suffer from growth retardation or stunting, according to a nutrition survey findings published by UNHCR today.
The survey which was conducted among refugee children under 5 years old in 8 refugee camps and settlements across South Sudan in December 2017 revealed that 6.2 per cent or 3,391 out of the total of 54,172 refugee children under 5 years old were suffering from acute malnutrition. Although below the emergency threshold of 15%, 6.2% prevalence indicates poor nutrition status of refugee children. The survey also revealed that 48% or 26,000 of refugee children were suffering from anaemia.
Overall nutrition status of refugee children has improved as compared to previous years, however the number of children suffering from stunting, acute malnutrition and anaemia remains to be a matter of high concern.
“Both stunting and anaemia can have long-term negative consequences for children and affect children’s immune system as well as intellectual capacity and mental development,” UNHCR Representative in South Sudan Johann Siffointe said, adding that more efforts and resources need to be invested in preventive measures.
In addition to the nutrition status of refugee children, the survey also looked into families’ coping mechanisms to offset lack of food. Over 80% of those polled during the survey stated resorting to negative coping strategies, including selling assets that would normally have not been sold, cash and food borrowings and reducing meal quantities and frequency.
Working closely with partners and other UN agencies, in particular, UNICEF and WFP, UNHCR is implementing a number of initiatives and programs that are called to address the problem of malnourished refugee children. In particular, UNHCR together with partners have been implementing Comprehensive Management of Acute Malnutrition for all identified malnourished children, Blanket Supplementary Feeding Program for children under 2 years old and pregnant and lactating women as a malnutrition preventive measure.
In addition to awareness raising sessions aimed at promoting early initiation of breastfeeding and appropriate infant and young children feeding practices, UNHCR and its partners have also embarked on the implementation of a strategy that addresses the problem of anemia and micronutrient deficiencies.
“The solution to the problem of malnutrition among refugee children in South Sudan requires a holistic approach and should include, among others, provision of adequate healthcare and water and sanitation services and expansion of livelihoods activities to allow refugees to attain food security at a household level,” UNHCR Representative in South Sudan emphasized.
Distributed by APO Group on behalf of United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).
Source: Africa Press Organisation – English – Report:
Headline: World Food Programme Calls for More Investment in School Meals by West African Governments
The United Nations World Food Programme today (March 1, 2018) urged governments in West Africa to invest more money in school meal programmes so these can act as a catalyst for improved economic and social welfare communities across the region. The call was made on African Day of School Feeding which is being celebrated for the third year in a row.
WFP partners on school meals programmes with some 40 countries in Africa, providing more than nine million school children annually with daily meals in school. In some countries, WFP itself implements the school meals programme while in others it offers technical support to the government provider. In most countries, WFP offers a combination of both services.
“It is a win-win opportunity which governments must seize,” said Abdou Dieng, WFP Regional Director for West and Central Africa. “Children enjoy healthy meals that make it more likely that they will stay in school and learn for a better future while jobs are created and businesses develop.”
Increasingly, school meals in Africa are of the home-grown variety. This means that the food for the meals is sourced from smallholder farmers within the community. The idea is that home-grown school meals provide local farmers and businesses with a predictable outlet for their products, leading to more stable incomes, more investment, higher productivity and the creation of jobs for youth and women in the communities concerned.
In Burkina Faso, for example, the introduction of yoghurt in school meals has had multiple benefits – a women’s group that collects milk locally has recently set up a processing plant for yoghurt that is now delivered to schools by young people on motorcycles.
Some governments in the region are showing a growing interest in investing more in national school meals programmes. The Government of Benin has allotted US$47 million to feed 400,000 children over the course of five years in partnership with WFP, using a home-grown school meals model.
“We applaud Benin for showing leadership in investing in its future generation. This is a standard that other governments in the region should follow,” Dieng said.
WFP’s regional school meals programme, which aims to assist about 2.7 million children this year, faces a US$60 million funding gap. Without proper financing, the programme will fall short, leave many vulnerable students hungry and at risk of dropping out of school.
Distributed by APO Group on behalf of World Food Programme (WFP).
Source: Africa Press Organisation – English – Report:
Headline: African broadband operators increase investment to meet soaring data demand
An urgent requirement for new investment into telecom and broadband infrastructure in Africa is driving a fresh flurry of mergers, acquisitions, IPOs, investment and financing activity, as the region’s key players jostle for position to meet the soaring demand for data across the continent, says global news provider, TMT Finance (www.TMTFinance.com).
Joseph d’Arrast, EMEA Editor, TMT Finance said: “The continent’s growth in the digital economy and the rising demand for data is helping to boost investor confidence in major broadband projects, of which there are many currently underway or in the pipeline. In response to this, many telcos, investors and specialised operators are looking to plough significant amounts of money into key projects, with a number of IPOs, new capex financing and M&A also in the pipeline,” he added.
To discuss the next wave of opportunities, chief executives and leading heads of finance and strategy from Africa’s key broadband infrastructure companies, private equity investors and telecom operators are meeting on a dedicated panel at TMT Finance Africa in Cape Town 2018 (www.TMTFinance.com/capetown) on March 15.
The TMT Broadband Infrastructure panel, which will discuss strategies for regional growth, includes: Nic Rudnick, CEO, Liquid Telecom; Brandon Doyle, CEO, Convergence Partners; Byron Clatterbuck, CEO, SEACOM; Brian Jakins, Managing Director of Africa, Intelsat; and Thomas Hintze, CEO, Wananchi Telecom; and will be chaired by Keith Webb, Investment Banking, Infrastructure Finance, Rand Merchant Bank.
Over 70 key speakers have been announced for the event, with CxOs and senior executives also confirmed from companies including Vodacom, Telkom BCX, MTN, Standard Bank, American Tower Corp, Millicom, Google, Econet Wireless, MainOne, Teraco, Alcatel Submarine Networks, DLA Piper, IFC World Bank, Rack Centre, Investec Asset Management, Citi and Credit Suisse.
Other key session themes announced include: Telecom Leadership Africa; Digital Africa; Mobile Tower Strategies; Mergers and Acquisitions; Private Equity Africa; Spectrum sharing; Regulation and Policy; Financing TMT; Investing in Mobile Data and Services; Mobile Payments and Banking, Fintech and M-Health; and Media and Convergence.
Distributed by APO Group on behalf of TMT Finance.
For more information or to register go to www.TMTFinance.com/capetown
For sponsorship or speaking opportunities, contact Enquiries@TMTFinance.com.
Source: South Africa News Agency
In light of the Listeriosis outbreak, the Department of Basic Education (DBE) has assured parents that no processed meat products are used as part of the National School Nutrition Programme.
“The Department of Basic Education (DBE) would like to reassure parents, learners and members of the public that there are no processed meat products used as part of the National School Nutrition Programme,” the department said on Monday.
The department’s statement is in light of revelations announced by Health Minister Aaron Motsoaledi which pinpointed processed meats as the source of a deadly listeriosis outbreak.
Processed meat products such as polony, viennas, sausages and other processed cold meat products often consumed by children, were referred to as no go zones by the Health Minister.
“The food served to over nine million learners daily as part of the NSNP is safe and excludes these types of meat products,” said the department.
But the DBE is leaving nothing to chance, warning parents and the greater school community to remain vigilant as these food items often form part of packed lunches or are sold to learners by external food vendors outside of schools or at tuckshops.
Despite being preventable and treatable, the deadly disease has so far claimed 180 lives since its outbreak last year.
In a bid to prevent any loss of lives, the DBE has issued a circular to all provincial education departments and schools on measures to take in order to prevent the spread of listeriosis.
Schools have been advised of the following:
Members of the public have also been cautioned to practice the basic food hygiene principles as outlined in the World Health Organisation’s ‘Five Keys to Safer Food’ programme. The core ‘commandments’ of food hygiene are:
The DBE has also advised teachers and parents to report to the nearest health care facility if learners present signs of diarrhoea, headache, neck stiffness, confusion, loss of balance and flu like symptoms.
“In instances where children are involved it is better to be safe than sorry as this is a preventable and treatable disease.
“We urge parents to heed the advice from Health Minister Motsoaledi when preparing lunch boxes for their children to ensure that it contains no food items that may carry listeriosis,” said the DBE. – SAnews.gov.za