Twenty-three Gauteng learners have died as a result of foodborne diseases since January. This was revealed by Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi yesterday during a meeting with municipalities on the implementation of by-laws governing spaza shops in the province.

MORE THAN 441 CASED REPORTED

According to Lesufi, the majority of the cases involve children between the ages of 6 and 10 years old. "Seven postmortem results out of the 19 deaths tested positive for organophosphate," Lesufi said, adding that food contamination incidences reported in the province since the beginning of the year stand at 441. "The majority of deaths were reported from Johannesburg, followed by Ekurhuleni. "A reporting template is being developed to be utilised by hospitals, schools, and community health care centres to ensure that we have accurate reporting in this regard," the premier said. He also said in all the cases, children who have fallen victim and lost their lives have consumed snacks purchased from spaza shops and vendors around their schools.

SPAZA SHOPS TO BE REGULATED

During the meeting with members of the executive council, executive mayors, members of the mayoral committee, Speakers, chief whips, and heads of departments yesterday, Lesufi said they all agreed that addressing the issues required a comprehensive approach involving stricter regulations, better enforcement of existing laws, and increased public awareness about the potential dangers associated with purchasing from unregulated spaza shops and informal traders. Lesufi said they also agreed that all councils across municipalities will pass the new by-laws by the National Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs, which explain how to register a conduct a business. "We are going to start weekly stakeholder engagement and consultations. We are further starting the process of re-registering spaza shops. MEC for Economic Development, Lebogang Maile, and all MMCs will develop a template for reregistering businesses, especially businesses that were involved in the illnesses and deaths of our children," he added. Communities are urged to call the emergency health care number on 012 3456789 to report shops that sell expired goods.