Day: October 1, 2022

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Hawks seek public assistance to identify suspected armed robbers

LIMPOPO – The Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation requests public assistance to identify four suspected armed robbers.

It is alleged that on 23 September 2022, a G4S security official went to Palamine shop in Namakgale outside Phalaborwa to collect money. Due to technical problems, he was unable to access a safe and went back to the vehicle.

While walking towards the G4S vehicle, the security official was allegedly accosted by four armed men who took an empty trolley bag and also disarmed him of a pistol. It is also reported that the suspects fired several shots before fleeing the scene. No one was injured during the shooting but a customer’s vehicle was reportedly damaged.

It is believed that the people who are appearing in the pictures could assist the police with the investigation.

Anyone with information about the people appearing in the pictures or knows the whereabouts of the suspects is requested to contact Detective Warrant Officer Doit Malebe on 083 338 2676 or Captain Aaron Masete on 071 351 7279 or Crime Stop on 08600 10111 or by using MySAPS app.

Source: South African Police Service

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Gauteng Provincial Commissioner attends National Council of SPCA’s Annual General Meeting

Partnership policing plays a pivotal role in addressing all types of crime which include animal related crime.

It is on this basis that Provincial Commissioner of police in Gauteng, Lt Gen Elias Mawela attended the National Council of SPCA’s (NSPCA) annual general meeting (AGM) today, 01 October 2022 which took place at Emperors Palace Convention Centre in Kempton Park.

Lt Gen Mawela was accompanied by Provincial Head: Organised Crime Investigations, Brigadier Cynthia Gopane and various other SAPS officers.

Various presentations were delivered during this AGM outlining the important role played by the NSPCA.

Animal related crimes include among others; animal abuse, bestiality, theft of stock and endangered species.

Source: South African Police Service

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Africa needs to develop mango, cassava, ICT sectors – ITC

The African continent need to develop the Mango, Cassava and ICT sectors, given the great potential for value addition and export, said  Ruben Poolchund, Chief Officer for Africa at the International Trade Centre (ITC).

Speaking  at the launch of the second edition of the West Africa Connect event, in Accra, he said out of 302 million tonnes of cassava globally produced in 2020, more than half was produced in Africa. 

The two-day event is hosted by the West Africa Competitiveness Programme (WACOMP) to connect suppliers from the region with buyers inside and outside the region in order to promote access to market opportunities and linkages with global value chains.

This year’s event focuses on Mango, Cassava and ICT Value chains, with the objective of providing SMEs across the region with a platform for business engagement, market linkages and commercial exchanges that will serve to promote trade in the region

He said on the African continent, 52 per cent of total Cassava production was carried out in West Africa, with Nigeria alone accounting for 23.4 per cent of global production. 

He said in the Mango sector, although a significant part of the production was not marketed, the ECOWAS Region led as the 7th Mango-exporting origin worldwide, with 90,000 tonnes exported in 2019 and the market share of global trade rising up to 5.1 per cent in 2020.

Poolchund said West Africa also provided a vibrant ecosystem for the development of the ICT sector.

He said the ECOWAS region had both benefitted and contributed to the significant growth witnessed in the digital space in the past decade.

The Region has experienced up to 45 per cent additional share of the population using the internet between 2010-2019, with an estimated increase in bandwidth of up to 368 Tbps (Terabit per second)  by 2023, allowing for faster and greater interconnectivity with the rest of the world.

He said the ICT space was important in itself, but also represented an important enabler for the rest of the economic sectors, including agritech. 

He said businesses across the region have begun to embrace digital transformation in the way they trade and carry out operations, and the e-commerce sector was a prime example, with revenues expected to triple to more than €30 billion between 2017–2024.  

He said across all three priority sectors, ITC had conducted a number of studies and initiatives in West Africa and beyond, supporting the promotion of these agric sectors through exports, as well as enabling the creation of a number of tech hubs for ICT SMEs and agritech start-ups, in support of the immense potential in the region.

More than 140 representatives of financial institutions across the ECOWAS Region have been trained on sustainable finance, in order to better serve the needs of West African SMEs and Business Support Organisations. 

He said ITC was partnering with the ECOWAS Commission to support the first ECOWAS-wide network for Trade Promotion Organisations, recently established through the assistance of ITC.

Source: Nam News Network

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African Court judges, registry officers visit The Hague

TWO teams of judges and registry officers from the African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights (AfCHPR) have visited the International Criminal Court (ICC) intending to enhance and exchange issues concerning international justice.

All the delegates from two groups were led by the president of the African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights, Lady Justice Imani Aboud.

The visit was held as part of the African Court’s increased effort to engage in judicial dialogue with international institutions sharing similar or cross-cutting mandates.

During the visit, the African Court’s delegation met with ICC’s Vice-President, Judge Ibanez Luz del Carmen Ibáñez Carranza, and Judge Solomy Balungi Bossa – formerly a judge of the African Court.

The delegation also met with senior officers of the Office of the Prosecutor and Registry of the world criminal tribunal.

Exchanges revolved around issues concerning international justice, and particularly questions that arise in the intersection between international criminal justice, and international human rights adjudication such as fair trial rights, use of technology in the administration of justice, as well as reparations to victims.

The two teams also engaged in legal aid and knowledge management systems which have become key components of an effective administration of justice in the international realm.

In her welcome statement, Ibáñez Carranza restated the critical understanding of the complementarity between international criminal and regional human rights systems as both works within the same interconnected global justice network.

She stressed the importance of working through synergy to achieve the common cause of ending impunity for crimes committed against humans.

Also, the ICC’s Vice-president said that the only operational judicial organ of the African Union, the African Court is to adopt judicial dialogue as one of the key pillars of its current strategic plan to achieve its mandate toward more effective protection and enforcement of the individual and group rights guaranteed in the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights.

“One legal anchorage of the African Court’s engagement with the ICC is Article 21 of the Rome Statute, which requires all stakeholders of international criminal justice to work consistently with internationally recognised human rights standards,” said the vice president.

She also said that the outcome of this visit is expected to strengthen recommendations from previous engagements to enhance legal knowledge and improve institutional practices.

In concluding their exchanges, the two institutions committed to enhancing the existing cooperation through positive complementarity, as well as continued operational and judicial engagement.

Source: Nam News Network

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37 hospitals excluded from load shedding in South Africa: Health Minister

Thirty-seven hospitals across the country will be exempted from the load shedding schedule, Health Minister, Dr Joe Phaahla, announced on Friday.

This follows several engagements with various stakeholders, including Eskom and municipalities, as the Department of Health works on a plan to introduce an energy mix to shield public health facilities from the devastating power outages.

“The impact of load shedding on the provision of healthcare services cannot be underestimated or overemphasised,” said Phaahla, during a media briefing on the impact of load shedding on health services.

While most public health facilities have backup power supply systems, including generators and uninterrupted power supply (UPS), he said they were not designed to reserve electricity for an extended period.

According to the Minister, most provinces have reported that their budgets for diesel are running out quicker, and generators are old and cannot power the entire facility. 

“Generators have been proven not to adequately meet the increasing demands during load shedding in health facilities, hence some hospitals are left without a choice, but forced to switch off some critical areas, which now compromise patient care.”

In some provinces, like Limpopo, hospitals have resorted to putting elective surgeries on hold until further notice.

The outages are reducing the lifespan of some of the critical medical machinery and equipment and the efficacy of some medications and vaccines, which need to be stored at specific temperatures.

“Equipment is at risk in our ICUs and those are some of the very sensitive equipment, which has to be protected. Because if there can be any power interruption with a ventilator, you’re almost certain that the patient is going to die.”

According to Phaahla, there are two sets of areas of differentiation in power supply, the urban which is mainly connected by municipalities and the rural that mainly receives its electricity from Eskom.

“In cases of Eskom direct connection, they will directly exempt the facilities and in case of municipality connection, they will install a dedicated feeder line that kicks in to keep power in the facility once the municipality load shedding schedule takes place,” he explained.

The criteria for hospital exclusion include patients’ volume, the nature of specialised services they provide and technological and medical equipment they have, of which most are academic, regional and district hospitals.

However, he said exclusions do not mean the facilities should waste electricity.

In addition, he said the department was considering a phased approach to investment in renewable energy through solar power installation at health facilities as part of the energy mix.

Meanwhile, solar energy will be prioritised for areas such as operating theatres, intensive care units (ICU), and high-tech and advanced equipment.

The installation of UPS technology is on the cards to improve the reliability and efficiency of an electrical system across an entire hospital facility and sustain critical services and data protection for patients and staff.

The exempted health facilities include:

In Gauteng: Charlotte Maxeke Hospital, Hellen Joseph Hospital, Steve Biko Academic Hospital, George Mukhari Hospital, Pretoria West Hospital, Tshwane District Hospital, Mamelodi Hospital, Bronkhorstpruit Hospital, and Katlehong Hospital.

In KwaZulu-Natal:Harry Gwala Hospital (former Edendale), Greys Hospital, Ladysmith Hospital, Prince Mshiyeni Hospital, RK Khan Hospital, Inkosi Albert Luthuli Hospital, McCords Hospital, King Dinizulu Hospital, Mandela Children’s Hospital, Mahatma Gandhi Hospital, Osindindisweni Hospital, St Aidans Hospital, Addington Hospital, Clairwood Hospital.

In Limpopo: Mankweng Hospital, Lebowakgomo Hospital, Dilokong Hospital, Maklenburg Hospital.

In the Eastern Cape:Frere Hospital, Elliot Hospital, Livingstone Hospital, Port Elizabeth Provincial Hospital, Uitenhage Hospital.

In the Free State:Pelenomi Academic Hospital.

In the Western Cape:Tygerberg Hospital, Groote Schuur Hospital, Red Cross Hospital.

Three names have been submitted in the Northern Cape and the department is waiting for a response from Eskom.

In Mpumalanga, the department is waiting for a response on Witbank and Rob Ferreira hospitals which are on the priority list.

Source: Nam News Network

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Trade Minister Minister Patel to host South Africa-Saudi Arabia Joint Economic Commission (JEC)

Trade, Industry and Competition Minister Ebrahim Patel will host the 9th session of the South Africa-Saudi Arabia Joint Economic Commission (JEC) and the South Africa-Saudi Arabia Trade and Investment Forum next week.

The forum is set to take place on Monday in Pretoria alongside the 9th Session of the South Africa-Saudi Arabia Joint Economic Commission (JEC).

Patel and Saudi Arabia’s Minister of Industry and Mineral Resources, Bandar bin Ibrahim Al-Khorayef, are expected to address both the forum on Monday and the Plenary Session of the JEC on Tuesday.

In a statement on Friday, the Department of Trade, Industry and Competition said the South Africa-Saudi Arabia Joint Business Council will be launched on the first day.

“The objective of the forum is to provide South African and Saudi Arabian companies with a strategic platform to engage on bilateral trade and investment opportunities in both markets, while simultaneously affording them access to senior decision-makers and stakeholders,” the department said.

According to the Acting Deputy Director-General of Invest SA, Yunus Hoosen, the JEC between South Africa and Saudi Arabia is envisaged to explore areas of cooperation, which will provide and promote opportunities on trade and investment, and industrial development.

“The JEC is an ideal platform to unlock investments through establishing networks with key Saudi Arabian officials and private sector leaders, and importantly to attract investment. Significantly, the launch of the South Africa-Saudi Arabia Joint Business Council will bring together captains of industry from both countries to develop a roadmap to deepen economic ties,” Hoosen said.

According to Hoosen, Saudi Arabia continues to be South Africa’s strategic partner in the Middle East. It is South Africa’s second largest trading partner in the Middle East and largest source of imports from the region.

He added that the exchange of political and business visits, as well as trade and investment exhibitions and seminars by both countries in the past years have had a positive effect on trade and investment trends.

Total bilateral trade between South Africa and Saudi Arabia stood at R66.15 billion in 2021 with South African exports at R5.54 billion and imports from Saudi Arabia amounting to R60.61 billion.

South Africa’s main exports to Saudi are concentrated in agriculture,and agro-processing; mineral resources, chemicals, automotive parts and components, and metals.

On the other hand, Saudi Arabia ranked as a largest source of imports, mainly for oil supply. Saudi Arabia plays an important role as a source of oil, as well as a destination for South Africa’s exports.

Source: Nam News Network