By The Telegraph (World News) | Created at 2024-11-21 17:00:10 | Updated at 2024-11-21 22:18:28
5 hours ago
South Africa has classified a spate of poisonings as a “national disaster”, after at least 23 children have died in recent months.
A five-year-old-boy this week became the latest suspected victim when he died after reportedly eating snacks from a small shop in Soweto.
Several of the deaths have been blamed on pesticide-tainted food bought from small convenience shops in townships, though it is not clear if all the incidents are linked.
President Cyril Ramaphosa last week unveiled a plan to remove suspect pesticides from the streets and shops, and ordered that informal convenience stores known as spaza shops, or tuck shops, register within 21 days.
In the worst of the recent incidents, in October six children died after allegedly consuming snacks bought from a spaza shop in Naledi, Soweto.
Toxicology reports found they had been poisoned by an organophosphate pesticide called terbufos.
The chemical is highly toxic and widely used in citrus, maize and potato agriculture, but often also illegally sold as a street pesticide against township rat infestations.
Mr Ramaphosa said last week: “After stringent testing, a chip packet found on one of the children who had died had traces of terbufos on both the inside and the outside of the packet.”
Samples were taken from 84 spaza shops in inspections after the children’s deaths and revealed that three spaza shops had evidence of terbufos use.
Inspectors have also found food stored next to pesticides.
“Our people have every right to be upset and to be angry in the face of such tragedies,” Mr Ramaphosa said.
Since September, at least 890 incidents of food-borne illnesses have been reported.
Velenkosini Hlabisa, minister for cooperative governance and traditional affairs, said classifying the poisonings as a national disaster gave authorities greater regulatory powers to enforce standards.
He said it was possible the government could go further, with a full blown declaration of a national disaster which would grant sweeping emergency powers.
Doctors will also have to urgently report the deaths of any patients under the age of 12, in an attempt to give experts a better idea of the scale of the problem.
Dr Aaron Motsoaledi, minister of health, said that terbufos was often widely available and not only found in spaza shops. He said it was also for sale at taxi ranks and by street vendors.
He said: “It’s all over so I don’t think there’s a need to target any one area.”
John Steenhuisen, agriculture minister, said the terbufos found in investigations so far did not appear to be locally manufactured.
He said: “If one looks at the pictures of what has been found in spaza shops, it differs quite significantly from the colour and texture of locally produced terbufos.”
Many spaza shops are owned by foreign nationals and the poisonings have added to tensions about the number of migrants in the country.
Shopowners have questioned whether 21 days is enough time to register all their businesses. There are an estimated 1,000 spaza shops in Soweto alone.
Protect yourself and your family by learning more about Global Health Security
