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Is the Reserve Bank justified in placing VBS Mutual Bank under curatorship?

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Is the Reserve Bank justified in placing VBS Mutual Bank under curatorship?

The South African Reserve Bank has placed a small bank – VBS Mutual Bank – under curatorship. The decision was based on concerns that the bank was facing a liquidity crisis and could collapse, devouring depositors’ funds. Some have criticised the decision. Sibonelo Radebe from The Conversation Africa asked Jannie Rossouw to explain the process.

What is curatorship?

In simple terms curatorship of a bank means that its board and executive management are relieved of their duties. A curator is appointed by the South African Reserve Bank in consultation with the National Treasury and the Minister of Finance. The curator takes over the full management functions of the bank with the purpose of rehabilitating it.

Curatorship is triggered by concerns about the management or financial viability of the bank. For example, if the board or executive management are found guilty of fraud, the central bank can remove them and appoint a curator to manage the bank until new management is put in place.

Financial viability concerns can trigger curatorship if a bank faces liquidity or solvency problems. This is what happened at VBS. The central bank’s view was that it faced a liquidity crisis – in other words it was running short of cash to meet its obligations, mainly repayment of deposits.

Liquidity problems happen when bank deposits are withdrawn at a faster rate than they can be replaced by new deposits. This is normally a temporary problem, as a well functioning bank can restore its liquidity levels by taking in new deposits or by reducing its lending activities.

Banks can also face solvency problems. This is different to a liquidity crunch: it’s when a bank goes bust because loans it has made can’t be repaid. In 2001 a South African bank, Regal Treasury Bank went insolvent.

Although the South African Reserve Bank can still appoint a curator when a bank experiences solvency problems, the chances of recovery are slim. This was the case with Regal Treasury Bank which was placed under curatorship but never recovered. It was subsequently liquidated.

Is there an alternative to curatorship?

The alternative to curatorship is liquidation which involves winding down the operations of a bank.

Whereas curatorship is primarily aimed at rehabilitating the operation, liquidation is all about closing it down.

If a bank can’t meet its commitments (and a curator isn’t appointed speedily to save the situation), it’s likely to go bust and head straight into liquidation.

A bank can re-emerge from curatorship, but not from liquidation.

An example of successful rehabilitation after when a curator was appointed is African Bank. After being placed under curatorship in 2014, it developed into a healthy operation again. Curatorship in this case helped to restore confidence in the bank.

This is likely to apply in the case of VBS because it remains fully operational. At the same time its employees – but not the board members and the executive management – are protected as they still have their jobs. This would not be the case if the bank was forced to close.

Was curatorship the right answer for VBS?

Yes, without any doubt. VBS is a perfect example of a bank being saved from liquidation through curatorship. If the bank was not placed in curatorship, it would have had to be liquidated and forced to shut up shop. This would have meant job losses.

The reason VBS got into trouble was that it took deposits it shouldn’t have. As a mutual bank, registered under the Mutual Banks Act of 1993, it should not have accepted deposits from municipalities because the Municipal Finance Management Act of 2003 prohibits it.

Only commercial banks registered in terms of the Banks Act of 1990 may accept deposits from municipalities. In taking deposits from municipalities, VBS contravened a law that protects the financing of local government authorities. The law doesn’t allow mutual banks to accept municipal deposits. The aim is to mitigate risks for both the bank and the municipalities.

Taking deposits from municipalities was also inviting liquidity problems for VBS. As the South African Reserve Bank governor put it:

It was highly risky for VBS to take sizeable municipal deposits that were short-term and lend them out long term.

This meant that there was a mismatch between the bank’s deposits and its exposure to loans it was giving out.

Once it was established that VBS had broken the law, it was ordered to return the municipality deposits. This put it under even more pressure from a liquidity point of view.

The board and executive management of VBS are to blame for the problems at the bank and for its curatorship. They were in clear dereliction of their duties in accepting municipal deposits in the first instance. Accepting these deposits was in clear contravention of the law – something the board, the executive management and the compliance officer should never have agreed to. They should be taking the blame for the curatorship rather than to try and blame others. They might even have to face charges.

Fortunately, VBS is a very small bank in the South African banking landscape and its impact is too small to have triggered a systemic banking crisis. It is also reassuring to note the continuation of employment of the staff members of VBS Bank.

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TV addiction is real

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TV addiction is real

Adam de Paor-Evans

Veteran American hip hop group Public Enemy need no introduction when it comes to paradigm shifts in that music genre. From the moment leader and rapper Chuck D, fellow rappers Flavor Flav and Professor Griff, group DJ Terminator X and the S1W group (aka Security of the First World) launched off the Def Jam record label’s platform in 1987, their acute sociopolitical presence resonated throughout hip hop culture and far beyond.

With their debut album “Yo! Bum Rush The Show” (1987), it was clear that Chuck D’s lyrical pressure was destined to confront racism, destitution and a myriad of other issues connected with African American life.

However, the song I would like to discuss here is the lesser-celebrated “She Watch Channel Zero?!” from their 1988 sophomore album “It Takes A Nation Of Millions To Hold Us Back”. Dealing with the subject of television addiction, Chuck D reaches beyond the sphere of the African American and into most of westernised existence.

‘She watch Channel Zero?!’ by Public Enemy.

This reach is further exemplified through the sonics of the song. Its driving metal edge also championed the rap-metal fusion sub-genre. It not only forged collaborations with the American heavy metal band Anthrax, but also opened the door for Rage Against The Machine, Linkin Park and Papa Roach.

The ills of television

The track appears second on side two, after the serene yet curt non-rap “Show ‘Em Whatcha Got”, and follows Flav’s intro speech:

You’re blind baby, you’re blind from the facts
oh, y’are ’cause you’re watching that garbage.

And so, successive to a brief five seconds of white noise, a metal-laden foray strikes on the ills of television. Four bars of bellicose guitars sampled from the intense “Angel of Death” by American thrash metal band Slayer underpinned with sharp metallic samples and purposely muffled TV snippets construct the atmosphere for Chuck D’s contextual assault:

The woman makes the men all pause
And if you got a woman she might make you forget yours
There’s a five letter word to describe her character
But her brains being washed by an actor.

Chuck D constructs a narrative about a woman who is addicted to soap operas. She becomes wholly obsessed with certain characters in the shows. This obsession damages her ability to distinguish between real life and television representation. As she becomes more overcome by “osmosis” through her television sceeen, desperation sets in as she channel-surfs “cold lookin’ for that hero”.

As broadcasts across channels meld into one, she could be watching any channel. And so she does indeed “watch channel zero”, amplifying the emptiness of all television channels. The song’s timing was highly apposite; the Baby Boomers were seduced by soap operas and Generation X sucked into MTV, and the message here is twofold. The song’s message is that the TV watcher, under the illusion that the heroes she seeks do not exist in reality, she ostracises herself from the realities of life, including her family:

But her childrenDon’t mean as much as the show, I meanWatch her worship the screen.

She measures herself and her desires against this “perfect” world:

And she hopes the soaps are for real
she learns that it ain’t true, nope…

Yet, she still denies the real and continues her futile diversion.

After Chuck’s first verse, Flav reappears, this time taking the traditional role of the male partner:

Yo baby, you got to cut that garbage off
Yo! I want to watch the game
Hey yo, lemmie tell you a little sommin’:
I’m’a take all your soaps
An’ then I’m gonna hang ‘em on a rope.

The male antagonist here also longs to watch television, resorting to threats if he too can’t consume his televised ball game.

Hostile drone

Repeated no less than 24 times throughout the song, the phrase “she watch” morphs into the music’s relentlessly repetitive yet hostile drone, echoing the experience of television addiction. It’s a metaphor for the process of hyperreality. This story of course, is representational of broader and even current society. Whilst the song’s elements are conventional, the dialogues and sonics reveal the ominousness of screen dependence, the second facet of the song’s message.

French philosopher Jean Baudrillard’s notion of “hyperreality” is a valuable theory to explore this situation. Within the frame of hyperreality, the idea of the simulacra or likenesses replaces that of reality. Characters on TV shows, or indeed, stage sets, film locations and sometimes the actors themselves become signs which can consume and distort one’s sense of reality.

When these signs become more important than the real, one’s real relationships break down. Signs and reality are no longer juxtaposed; rather the sign supplants the real. Once the real disappears, positioning the imaginary against the everyday becomes impossible, leading to problematic social engagement.

Following the explosion of screen-based personal devices such as smartphones and tablets, currently perceived as essential components of contemporary life, the risk of users slipping into hyperreality has multiplied enormously since the television age. As a result the Boomers and Generation X have become highly critical of Millennials (born between 1979 and 1991) and Generation Z (people born after 1992), and anxious for anyone born after 2010 – Generation Alpha – and their future of living life through a screen.

However, we need to remember that the simulacra that have resulted in this way of life started way before the arrival of the smartphone. The message in “She Watch Channel Zero?!” is more pertinent today than ever, and not only for young people.

This article is part of a series featuring Songs of Protest from across the world, genres and generations.

Adam de Paor-Evans is a Principal Lecturer in Cultural Theory / Research and Innovation Lead, School of Art, Design and Fashion, Faculty of Culture and the Creative Industries, University of Central Lancashire

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Michael Komape’s memory will live on

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Michael Komape’s memory will live on

MaryAnne Gontsana

Michael Komape ‘s father is determined to “fix” schools in Limpopo, he started with school libaries. Michael’s lifeless body was discovered by his mother on January 20, 2014. His hand protruded from a pool of human excrement in one of the pit latrines at Mahlodumela Lower Primary School in Chebeng Village, Polokwane.

The school principal had written numerous letters to the Department of Education in Limpopo asking for new toilets to be built for safety reasons.

The letters went unanswered.

Michael’s father, James Komape, said he did not want the memory of his son to be forgotten. This is why he is starting school libraries in poor schools where he lives.

“This is something that I am doing not only to help the children, but I am also doing it in honour of Michael,” said Komape.

“I don’t want my son to be forgotten, I want his name and memory to live on … Even before he died, we had planned to do this library initiative together, so I am continuing it. Once we manage to build a library, it will be named after him,” he said.

“Our community needs development … I approached the local chief here at Chebeng [village] … I was granted a piece of land, but now I am seeking donations to help me build the library.”

“In the meantime, I have started the library drive at Hosea Ntsoane Primary School in Chebeng,” said Komape. “Books and desks were donated to us, with most of the donations coming from Section 27.”

The library is already almost fully stocked and is open from 6am to 8pm every day. It caters for grades 5 to 7.

He said it pained him deeply that since his son’s death, there has been no visible development or improvement in terms of toilets in the schools in their area.

Komape, his wife Rosina, son Lucas and daughter Lydia were all present at the Bhisho High Court in the Eastern Cape last week to observe the case brought by Equal Education as part of its FixOurSchools  and #FixOurNorms campaign.

At a round table meeting held before the court case, Komape expressed his disappointment and pain about what had happened to his son and also the lack of school infrastructure not only in Limpopo but the Eastern Cape as well.

“I am a person who loves children and education. It absolutely hurt me when I visited one primary school in Limpopo and the whole class was sharing a textbook because they did not have any [books]”.

“The schools and classes are overcrowded. I wish the government would build toilets, libraries and provide water in schools,” Komape told the meeting.

The day before the court case another five-year-old, Viwe Jali, died in a pit latrine at Luna Primary School in Bizana, Eastern Cape.

How kids in a low-income country use laptops: lessons from Madagascar

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How kids in a low-income country use laptops: lessons from Madagascar

Sandra Nogry

Every child, no matter what country they’re from or their social background, should have the chance to use and learn about technology. That’s the thinking behind a number of projects led by international organisations like UNESCO and UNICEF. They hope to bolster education and economic growth by making digital technologies available in the developing world.

The One Laptop Per Child project was a pioneer in this field. This educational project, launched by the MIT in 2005, produces laptop computers suitable for children aged between 6 and 12. These are loaded with an operating system that features free educational software called Sugar. The programme has been rolled out at schools in more than 30 countries.

The project aims to equip all primary school children and all teachers with computers in a way that involves communities and that ensures everyone feels a sense of responsibility for the equipment. For example, kids aged six to 12 own their computers and can take them home to use.

Research shows that using technology in school makes children more engaged with learning. We wanted to know how children in low-income countries use laptops in their everyday lives; in school and after class. To find out, we embarked on a study in a village in Madagascar four years after the project was launched there.

Our results show that the use of computers in low-income countries supports formal and informal learning activities at home. It provides easy access to information, educational games and tools for self-expression.

Use at school

Madagascar, an island nation off Africa’s southeast coast, is extremely poor: 75% of the population (25 million) live below the poverty line, and the country scores low on the human development index, performing poorly in areas like education and living standards.

The study was conducted in a village located on the island of Nosy Komba, in the northeast of the country. Laptops are seen among residents there as high status objects because they cost a lot of money. None of the parents we interviewed could afford to buy one. They also have a high symbolic value: parents believe that if their children can master laptop use they will become more intelligent and develop professional skills.

A programme was rolled out in the village by One Laptop Per Child France and another French organisation, Gducœur. They supplied laptops and provided technical, logistical, administrative, financial and educational support. The laptops were given to 160 children aged between 5 and 15 enrolled in the village’s primary school.

Our analysis was both quantitative and a qualitative. We examined logs that showed which applications the children had used on their laptops during the previous 12 months; we analysed what they’d produced – for instance, recorded files. And we interviewed the children and their parents.

The results showed that the laptops were used very differently at school and in the children’s homes. At school, computers were generally used to learn about word processing, to play educational games and to support creative activities (drawing, digital story telling). Computers were also used as a virtual learning environment that offered a range of resources unavailable in the classroom like calculators, ebooks, maps, a watch, measuring tools and so on.

 

At home the children, like their peers in developed countries, largely used computers to take photos or make videos, listen to music, play games, share content and do homework. The younger children tended to use fewer reading and writing applications. Those in the equivalent of fourth and fifth grade used more digital books; they also shared images and videos more frequently with their friends.

Similarities and differences

Our findings suggest that developing countries like Madagascar have something in common with western nations when it comes to laptop use, such as how the children used the computers at home.

But there was one marked difference: computer use in Madagascar tended to be a collective rather than an individual practice. Children and their families would gather around one laptop to play educational games, take photos or make videos. Computers were being used to strengthen existing social relations among siblings, parents and peers.

All of this is important and valuable. Laptops have introduced the children of Nosy Komba to previously inaccessible tools. But we found that original projects were limited. While applications used were designed to foster creativity, children need support to develop creativity skills.

Educators have a crucial role to play here. They can help to nurture children’s creativity: the can help them to connect their lived experience and to express their imagination to produce original content. This will unlock new forms of expression and different kinds of literacy, including visual.

This article was co-authored with Pierre Varly, an international consultant in quantitative methods in education. He runs a blog on education in developing countries.

Sandra Nogry: Professeure associée en Psychologie de l’éducation, Université de Cergy-Pontoise

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School did not prepare us for the future

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School did not prepare us for the future

Matthew Botsime

I started formal schooling in 1994 and matriculated in 2005.

During my schooling career we were taught and told that if we worked hard, passed and went to universities were will have better and brighter future.

This is exactly what we did. We worked hard and some of us managed to get to institutions of higher learning. We worked hard despite adversities we encountered in our journeys to attain diplomas and degrees.

At these institutions of higher learning, we were only prepared for the jobs what we were going to do or aspired to do in our future.

The main focus seemed to be acquiring this knowledge and transferring it to a piece of paper at the end of the semester or year.

Three or four years later we leave with our degrees without solutions for real life problems or challenges.

The main focus post-graduation is employment.

At no point were we encouraged to think beyond our qualifications. We were not taught to create our own jobs or opportunities, nor were we encouraged to establish our own companies.

In primary and high schools, children have Economic and Management Sciences as a compulsory module. They are taught about the importance entrepreneurship and theories behind creating business plans. However, the knowledge acquired is not adequate or useful; it cannot be retrieved at a later stage in life.

For the past years, I have seen how the #hireagraduate trend has grown drastically. Graduates are standing on the streets with placards begging for jobs. I really think schooling and higher education in this sense has truly failed us. It had indeed produced graduates for graduates. It only gives us information but not the dexterity we need to invent our own things.

During my schooling career we were taught and told that if we work hard and pass we will have better and brighter future and it was guaranteed that we will become successful individuals. This was further exacerbated Dr Choice Makgethe, the former Student Director of the University of Free State, to our school. She spoke under the theme: Preparing you for the future. The main intention of her speech was motivate and encourage us to get into university and get into postgraduate studies. “Education is the only way out,” she said and this drove me to only focus on my studies in Matric.

I could see myself being in a university and graduating in record time. This would be followed by buying an expensive house in the suburb and driving luxurious cars. This was my understanding of success.

I started my University career in 2006 at University of the Free State. I remember the very first time I held my student card in my hands. I simply could not believe I had made it. Coming from whence I came, faced with poverty and difficulties at home, it was not in my cards to make it, yet there I was. But I was completely unprepared for what was to come.

My first years did not go very well. I could not afford my fees and became academically excluded. A year later, I was forced to change universities. I left UFS to attend Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University (NMMU) in Port Elizabeth.

I completed my degree in 2009. In my final year I was very certain that I am going to be employable with my degree. I could knock on any door and my degree will speak on my behalf. I applied for various post in both public and private sectors, I was very confident because most of the jobs I applied for I the met requirements.

I did not receive any response nor acknowledgements from any of the jobs for which I applied.

This is when it suddenly hit me. Universities prepared me to be an employee. I could not think beyond my degree. I did not even think of using the skills that I acquired to create a job for myself. I was more focused on applying for jobs.

Over the past few years, I have seen a trend of graduates standing at street corners, with placards begging for jobs.

This is why I believe the current education system has failed us and continues to fail us.

It only gives us information but not the dexterity we need to invent, create or produce our own good and services. It really saddens me to this day that we still believe that education is tantamount to success.

Every year the numbers of students registering in the institution of higher learning increases. This is quickly followed by the number of unemployed graduates.

It should become mandatory that institutions of higher learning have programmes in various faculties that will equip students with skills and knowledge to create their own jobs in case they do not find employment.

For instance, if a student is studying fine arts they should have the all the skills and knowledge to establish and run a gallery. The programme should be aligned to what the student is studying.

It is precisely for this reason that I intend to establish an academy for students with barriers to entrepreneurship and lack of access to information.

In my seven years of teaching, I have realised how the education system marginalises the masses and also fails to prepare children for the future.

The objective of my academy will be to equip my students with the skills and knowledge that will enable them to be self-reliant. They should depend on themselves and create their own businesses rather than seeking employment.

The core module for each student will be entrepreneurships. Students will be equipped with knowledge and skills to be innovative and start up their own businesses.

Matthew Botsime is an educationist and a community developer.

 

Teaching the girl child empowers communities

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Teaching the girl child empowers communities

Nicole Walters

Children are among society’s most vulnerable citizens and studies continue to show the girl child as the most vulnerable member in our predominantly patriarchal societies.

The impact of gender inequality begins in the early years of life, it is with this in mind that we as Valued Citizens Initiative (VCI) decided in 2011, through our professional development programme, to change the narrative and help fight the discrimination of the girl child in vulnerable spheres of our society.

The girl child is at the centre of our iSIQALO professional development programme, which will see 189 social workers receive their accredited certificates on Friday, 16 March 2018.

These certificates, which are accredited with 40 Continuing Professional Development (CPD) Points, are testament to increased knowledge and skills of these social workers in relation to dealing with the girl child; as well as an increase in their own personal awareness and development.

After completing a 10-week- long course of interactive workshops, role playing, modeling of skills and techniques to engage the clients they serve, and enhancing their professionalism, these social workers have also noted the value-add to their day-to- day duties.

They learnt how to detach from the cases they deal with while enabling their clients to find their voice and stand dignified. It also empowered them with effective communication tools to reach out to their clients from a bully girl child to a mother perpetuating the cycle of victimisation towards her children.

“The aim of the programme is to standardise the quality of services rendered to children and in particular the girl child throughout the Gauteng Province while protecting the rights of the girl child and ensuring the empowerment of girl children in all spheres namely: physical, emotional, social and mental”, says Carole Podetti Ngono, Founder of Valued Citizens Initiative.

“By so doing, the programme indirectly strives to empower the girl child in their core spheres of existence with life skills which are essential to develop her, not as a victim or wounded child, but as a dignified human being and future responsible woman.”

The programme, now in its seventh year, has trained 1147 social workers, auxiliary social workers and victim-empowerment counsellors since its inception.* It has contributed to the competence and elevated esteem of social workers in and around Johannesburg.

Mishel Manhenga, an iSIQALO alumni said the programme changed her life. "I have learnt to accept myself the way I am physically, emotionally and psychologically. I have come to the realisation that no state is permanent and if I do not like the way I am feeling, looking or thinking I am the one who has the responsibility to change it.

With this self-acceptance I am now able to stand-up for my choices; As
emotional as the experience was for Manhenga, iSIQALO is something she wishes others would benefit from.

Training provided in this programme helps social workers challenge the status-quo on gender equity in as far as it applies to the girl child.

“We believe every social worker holding a certificate at today’s ceremony has not only grown personally through the duration of this course, but professionally as well. It is our
sincere wish that the pearls deposited in them during this time would manifest in the lives of the children and the girl children in particular they encounter in their professional journey. We wish them well as in all of them is the power to mould a safer and brighter future for girls in this province,” says Podetti Ngono.

*This figure is inclusive of this year’s trainees.

Teaching the girl child empowers communities

Inside_Education
-
0
Teaching the girl child empowers communities

Nicole Walters

Children are among society’s most vulnerable citizens and studies continue to show the girl child as the most vulnerable member in our predominantly patriarchal societies.

The impact of gender inequality begins in the early years of life, it is with this in mind that we as Valued Citizens Initiative (VCI) decided in 2011, through our professional development programme, to change the narrative and help fight the discrimination of the girl child in vulnerable spheres of our society.

The girl child is at the centre of our iSIQALO professional development programme, which will see 189 social workers receive their accredited certificates on Friday, 16 March 2018.

These certificates, which are accredited with 40 Continuing Professional Development (CPD) Points, are testament to increased knowledge and skills of these social workers in relation to dealing with the girl child; as well as an increase in their own personal awareness and development.

After completing a 10-week- long course of interactive workshops, role playing, modeling of skills and techniques to engage the clients they serve, and enhancing their professionalism, these social workers have also noted the value-add to their day-to- day duties.

They learnt how to detach from the cases they deal with while enabling their clients to find their voice and stand dignified. It also empowered them with effective communication tools to reach out to their clients from a bully girl child to a mother perpetuating the cycle of victimisation towards her children.

“The aim of the programme is to standardise the quality of services rendered to children and in particular the girl child throughout the Gauteng Province while protecting the rights of the girl child and ensuring the empowerment of girl children in all spheres namely: physical, emotional, social and mental”, says Carole Podetti Ngono, Founder of Valued Citizens Initiative.

“By so doing, the programme indirectly strives to empower the girl child in their core spheres of existence with life skills which are essential to develop her, not as a victim or wounded child, but as a dignified human being and future responsible woman.”

The programme, now in its seventh year, has trained 1147 social workers, auxiliary social workers and victim-empowerment counsellors since its inception.* It has contributed to the competence and elevated esteem of social workers in and around Johannesburg.

Mishel Manhenga, an iSIQALO alumni said the programme changed her life. "I have learnt to accept myself the way I am physically, emotionally and psychologically. I have come to the realisation that no state is permanent and if I do not like the way I am feeling, looking or thinking I am the one who has the responsibility to change it.

With this self-acceptance I am now able to stand-up for my choices; As
emotional as the experience was for Manhenga, iSIQALO is something she wishes others would benefit from.

Training provided in this programme helps social workers challenge the status-quo on gender equity in as far as it applies to the girl child.

“We believe every social worker holding a certificate at today’s ceremony has not only grown personally through the duration of this course, but professionally as well. It is our
sincere wish that the pearls deposited in them during this time would manifest in the lives of the children and the girl children in particular they encounter in their professional journey. We wish them well as in all of them is the power to mould a safer and brighter future for girls in this province,” says Podetti Ngono.

*This figure is inclusive of this year’s trainees.

What led to world’s worst listeriosis outbreak in South Africa

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What led to world’s worst listeriosis outbreak in South Africa

South Africa has had the biggest listeriosis outbreak in the world that resulted in more than 180 deaths to date. The Conversation Africa’s health editor Candice Bailey spoke to Prof Lise Korsten about the challenges around food safety in the country.

What’s challenging about the pathogen that causes listeriosis?

The pathogen – listeria monocytogenes – causes the deadly disease in nature and uses food as a vehicle to invade the human body. Once it enters the body it “switches gears” and becomes lethal, causing symptoms such as nausea and diarrhoea – and even death.

As with many other food-borne pathogens, listeria can coexist with other microorganisms in water and soil ecosystems or on plants. The bacteria can survive even under stressful conditions, such as refrigeration. It can proliferate even when other microorganisms die off. And it even competes with other microorganisms for nutrients and space.

What does the outbreak tell us about food safety in South Africa?

South Africa was ill prepared for this devastating food safety outbreak. It is perhaps a reflection of the weaknesses in the whole food system.

There are several problems. Pieces of legislation that manage how food safety is handled remain outdated. It means that the systems in place are inadequate. This includes detecting and verifying potential problems.

On top of this there is a critical shortage of regulators, inspectors, laboratory personnel, scientists and auditors.

These shortcomings were all evident in the extensive delay between the first reported case in January 2017, the announcement of the outbreak in December 2017 and the source being identified in March 2018. In the intervening 14 months, more than 180 people died and close to a thousand were affected.

In addition to outdated legislation South Africa has been dealing with a lack of effective regulation in the food sector. Industry has relied on self regulation in the absence of an effective regulatory system. Product recall is also not common despite being a requirement in food safety systems.

Due to the gaps in the system companies can become complacent and provide sub-standard products if not pressured to effectively self regulate.

A food safety outbreak was imminent and the scientific community was aware that it could happen – but not on this scale.

What does this mean from a food safety perspective?

Listeria is a potential hazard in food production, processing and food handling environments all over the world.

The pathogen can be difficult to trace and kill, particularly if effective cleaning schedules are not followed. Once the bacteria is introduced, it is able to hide in difficult to clean places and often survives in microbial biofilms (slimy layers), where it is protected against harsh cleaning agents. It prefers to breed in wet areas, particularly near drains which are difficult to effectively manage.

Once introduced into a processing plant, listeria is difficult to remove and can easily spread through a factory. Effective monitoring is as important as good cleaning programmes.

The emphasis should be on continually improving food safety management systems. But companies can be tempted to take short cuts as they balance between consistently delivering affordable, nutritious and safe food and turning a profit.

How do we solve the problem?

The South African government should consider establishing a national food safety authority. The idea has been proposed with suggestions of different governing models over the past 10 years. But none of these have gained traction.

The fact that there is no central authority or coordinated framework is problematic as it means there is no coordinated central point or one stop shop that deals with all import, export and local food control to protect consumers.

A central authority would shorten the time frame between the initial outbreak, identifying the source and product recall. It could also control imports and prevent illegal dumping and movements of counterfeit goods more effectively.

It would mean that technical experts in food science, food microbiology, plant pathology and animal science etc. could be used more effectively to benefit a national food safety framework.

At the moment most commercial South African companies involved in food production and processing particularly those who export, have to go through expensive certification. This is a self-regulatory system that relies on good auditors and accredited certification bodies. The challenge is that the country has a serious shortage of competent auditors/inspectors and local certification bodies.

Another problem is that when there are threats of a foodborne disease, the government, industry and academia work in silos and don’t share knowledge or technologies that could benefit the whole country.

In addition to a centralised food safety authority, there have also been suggestions that the agricultural and food legislative framework should be revised and the fragmented and outdated regulations be amended or new legislation promulgated.

Lastly, certification bodies responsible for certifying food safety management systems and test laboratories must reassess their role in supporting an effective food safety system.

Lise Korsten is a Professor in the Department of Microbiology and Plant Pathology and Co-Director at the Centre of Excellence in Food Security, University of Pretoria

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The Fin.Lit Corner: Lessons for ages 6-10

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The Fin.Lit Corner: Lessons for ages 6-10

Mduduzi Luthuli

Most parents excel when it comes to teaching safety and good manners, but with money few know where to start. Money skills can be a blind spot because many feel financially inept themselves.

As a society in South Africa, we don’t talk about money – it is seen as a massive taboo.

Unlike other parts of parenthood, there is no playground chatter about the topic and, as a result, parents revert to what they know – passing their habits down to children.

We must ensure wrong habits are not being passed.

In my second lesson about educating children about money, we focus on how to educate children about making wise spending decisions. Multiple parents have expressed that they feel money management is an imperative piece of education that needs to be taught while children are still under their care.

Between the ages of six to 10, children can adequately grasp the concept of choice and consequence. At this age, it’s important to explain to your child that money is finite and it’s important to make wise choices.

They should be made to understand that once they spend the money they have, they won’t have more money to spend. In the words of the great Spanish novelist, Miguel De Cervantes Saavedra, “The gratification of wealth is not found in mere possession or in lavish expenditure but in its wise application.”

One of the best ways to teach your children about responsible spending is to let them have control of their pocket money – or at least a portion of it. Let them choose what to spend their money on each week. Some kids will spend all of it at once on little items like games, toys or chocolate. That’s fine and it’s the first important lesson for them to learn about spending – once the money’s been spent you can’t get it back!

When your child first earns some money via their household chores, their natural impulse is to want to rush out to the candy store and spend it all. Their lack of understanding of nominal value makes any amount seem large and thus they are injected with the impulse of what can I buy with this much money?”

When they get to the store and are slapped in the face by the reality of inflation and value, their question is answered as, you can’t by much. They are left feeling dejected and frustrated. Much like most of us on pay-day unfortunately. This predicament is a learning moment though, one which you should take advantage of. Children are much more inclined to learn and implement principles they see in you than concepts that are preached to them.

Show them how: Teach them to Manage the Money they earn

Dave Ramsey teaches a system for managing finances, designed for kids to manage their finances. It is simple and can be understood from a very young age. Have three jars…

  • A Giving jar: give at least 10% to charity.
  • A Saving jar: Pay yourself first. You can split this into long and short term saving if you would like.
  • A Spending jar: They need to have a jar that is available to them to spend on whatever they would like to spend it on

The saving and spending jars can be broken up however you and they agree upon, but each of these areas are important to managing money in a healthy way. This is an extremely uncomplicated way to break down their money in a way they can understand and a way that you can successfully help them with. This simple concept can encourage your children to plan and save money to achieve their desired goals.

Putting money away for them and allowing them to watch their money grow will teach them to be more patient and disciplined with their money. Help them to draw up a budget each month and let them take control of their spending. Whenever possible, go shopping with them and guide them when necessary. It is never too early to teach your children the principle of “paying themselves first”, by first allocating any pocket money to their budgeted savings before spending, and not saving only if there is anything left over after their monthly spending. To keeping this article short, I’ll elaborate further purely on the spending jar.

Spending Jar

You might not think you have to teach your kids how to spend money, but this is the one area where most people’s money problems begin. Teaching your kids how to spend their money wisely is crucial. This is where tough love and “learning from your mistakes” comes into play.

Try allocating a minimum of 40% of your child’s “income” in the spend jar, and it’s up to them to decide what they want to do with it. If they want to take it all and raid the candy store in one fell swoop, so be it, but they need to be taught that once the money is gone, it’s gone.

Teach your kids the value of items, how much things cost, needs versus wants, and how to buy only what you can afford. Guide them in their spending decisions, but don’t be afraid to let them make the final choice.

  • Pre-schoolers: Start teaching your pre-schooler the names of coins, how to count them, and how they fit together. Show them when you’re at the store how you trade money for items you want. Read age-appropriate books about money.
  • School Aged: Step back and let your child pay for their items themselves. Have them count out the notes and coins, let them give the money to the cashier, and allow them to take the receipt and change. Show your child you have confidence in their abilities and let them feel like a little adult for a moment!
  • Teens: If your teen has a cell phone, start having them be responsible for paying their cell phone bill. This will give them a taste of the real world, help them value their “stuff” more, and teach them about prioritised spending.

Moms and dads, make sure to set a good example for your kids when it comes to being money-savvy. It’s important to show your kids that you’re also smart about where you spend your money, and that you’re not simply spending it willy nilly. Kids learn a lot by following their parents, and money is no exception!

Mduduzi Luthuli is the CEO of Luthuli Capital, a Pan-African, multi-specialist advice-based practice that offers an independent global approach to your wealth-management portfolio

2.5 million people at risk of not receiving social grants on time

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2.5 million people at risk of not receiving social grants on time
Barbara Maregele  

Provincial heads of the South African Social Security Agency (Sassa) have identified “problematic areas” where beneficiaries may experience delays getting their social grants. This may happen when its contract with Cash Paymaster Services (CPS) come to an end on 31 March.

Sassa has applied to the Constitutional Court to extend its invalid contract with CPS until 30 September.

The agency says this will allow for a smooth transition to the South African Post Office (Sapo) and the new contractor meant to make cash payments of social grants. (The Post Office will be managing the payments of grants from 1 April, except for cash payments).

The Constitutional Court is expected to rule on the matter soon.

On Wednesday, Sassa told Parliament’s Portfolio Committee for Social Development that tenders for the cash payments were still being evaluated. It said a new service provider was expected to start paying grants from 1 July 2018.

This means that if the court does not grant Sassa the extension, there is a risk that nearly 2.5 million beneficiaries will not get their grants on time.

Sassa’s Dianne Dunkerley told MPs that officials were meeting with cabinet to work out a national contingency plan to ensure that the payments are uninterrupted next month.

Earlier in the briefing, Dunkerley told MPs that Sassa’s temporary contingency plan for cash payments was to offer direct deposits into accounts that can be accessed using Sassa cards with ID proof at a post office.

Banks could provide mobile vehicles, or “as a last resort” beneficiaries could be transported to the nearest ATM, merchant or cash point.

The nine provincial heads of Sassa, who spoke to MPs this week, raised concern with getting grants to certain rural areas where there is little to no alternative financial infrastructure.

Here is what each provincial head had to say:

Northern Cape

Tsebeletso Makhetha, acting regional executive manager in the Northern Cape, said there were 69,022 beneficiaries affected by the cash payments contingency plan. Makhetha said there were 395 pay points across the province.

Makhetha said the areas of most concern was the John Taolo Gaetsewe District Municipality (Kgalagadi). “This area is mostly rural with 135 pay points, ten SAPO outlets, and only two merchants in Kuruman. In terms of people who are getting their money at banks, merchants and ATMs, we are ready,” she said.

Free State

Sibongile Setlaba, acting regional executive manager in the Free State, said it was important for them to determine where the nearest post offices were to the existing pay points.

“In Lejweleputswa (Welkom area) almost all our local pay points are nearby to a post office, except for Hennenman which is more than five kilometres away from a post office. This is where we might have to [transport] people to where they can get their money,” she said.

“In Fezile Dabi (around Sasolburg) 16 of the 17 pay points are within five kilometres from a post office, except Vierfontein which has 24 beneficiaries and is more than 30 kilometres from the nearest post office. This is where we have a risk should there be no cash payment arrangement nationally. In Mangaung, we have two post offices and the current pay points are within a 5km range to them,” she said.

Setlaba said they have requested that the post office’s only mobile truck be deployed to Thaba Nchu where there are no outlets or permanent pay points. “This will be to register beneficiaries. The one issue we found was that it needed an electrical point, so SAPO will have to see where they can plug it in or if they’ll buy a generator,” she said.

She said the pay points in the mostly rural Gariep area were between 5 to 10km from a post office, except for De Bruin where the nearest town is Petrusburg [between Bloemfontein and Kimberley] some 54km away.

“In Thabo Mofutsanyana, many towns are close to post offices, but in Qwaqwa, there is only one post office in Phuthaditjhaba,” she said.

Limpopo

Matshidiso Mamabolo, acting regional manager in Limpopo, said they were concerned with the payment of 549,056 out of 1.6 million beneficiaries in the province.

“This was the number we had at the end of February which might change with those opting to use merchants or banks. We have 236 post offices within five kilometres of pay points. If all goes well with the contingency plan, we have a lot of new malls with banks mushrooming in rural areas in the province,” she said.

Mamabolo said they were working with community and traditional leaders to remind beneficiaries that “not everyone gets paid on the 1st; it is done on scheduled days throughout the month”.

North West

Fanie Sethokga, acting regional manager of the North West, said there were 230,906 beneficiaries who got their grants by cash. “We have established which post offices are within two kilometres as well as where the nearest ATMs are and so on. We relooked at the workload assessment to deal with the 890,000 beneficiaries in the North West,” he said.

“We have a draft contingency plan, but we are aware that some changes might have implications on the ground, either on the financial side or … beneficiaries not getting their money one day but instead a day or two later. What we’re saying is, people will be paid within the month,” he said.

Western Cape

Bandile Maqetuka, acting regional manager in the Western Cape, said only 10% of the provinces 1.1 million beneficiaries collect at cash pay points on a monthly basis. “The other 90% get their grants in their bank accounts, ATMs or at merchants using their CPS cards. Of these 8% get grants in their private bank accounts, 60% go to ATMs and 23% go to merchants and various shops,” he said. There are 262 cash pay points and 178 post offices, he said.

Maqetuka said areas of concern were in the West Coast “where there is no banking infrastructure” and the Karoo. “Albertinia falls under the Eastern Cape but is being paid by the Western Cape. As well as Uniondale where there is no infrastructure at all,” he said.

He said despite being nearby to ATMs and banks, most elderly beneficiaries indicated that they prefer to visit cash pay points. “In Khayelitsha is a post office and banks. But when we encouraged people to use other payment methods, we were told it’s a cultural thing. The elderly people prefer to come to pay points to interact amongst themselves,” he said.

KwaZulu-Natal

Sibusiso Nhlangothi, acting regional manager in KZN, said their province had the most beneficiaries with 3.8 million, but only 377,000 of these visited cash pay points.

“There was a bit of anxiety with beneficiaries in KZN as a result of people giving incorrect information about the cards. We went on a serious communication drive at places like churches and taxi ranks to say that the current card will continue. Beneficiaries more than five kilometres will be dealt with in terms of the contingency plan because everything is linked to what will be decided. The region is ready otherwise,” he said.

Mpumalanga

Kedibone Mathebula, acting regional manager in Mpumalanga, said of their 954,000 grant recipients, 156,239 collect at cash pay points.

“We found that Bushbuckridge will be most affected because of its rural nature. There isn’t much banking infrastructure but we are looking to strengthening this,” she said.

Eastern Cape

Zanoxolo Oscar Mpeta, acting regional manager in the Eastern Cape, said only 20% of the 1.8 million beneficiaries opt to get their grants at cash points.

“Because of the vastness [of the province] and farms on the western side and rural areas in the east, we have 2,150 pay points. Of the 1.8 million, 397,247 beneficiaries get their grants through cash. For electronic payments and merchants 1.4 million. So 20% of beneficiaries get their grants through cash,” he said.

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