<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-topline">TOPLINE</h2>



Food recalls in 2023 reached the highest levels the U.S. has recorded since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, mainly driven by undisclosed allergens and listeria contamination, according to a new report released Thursday.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-key-facts">KEY FACTS</h2>



Some 313 food recalls (impacting products that were still on sale) and alerts (involving products no longer on sale, but may be in consumers’ homes) were announced last year by the Food and Drug Administration and the U.S. Department of Agriculture, an 8% increase from 2022 and the highest number since the COVID pandemic began in 2020, according to a report released Thursday by the nonprofit U.S. Public Research Interest Group Education Fund.



Contaminated food resulted in six deaths and over 1,100 illnesses last year, though the researchers suspect there were more illnesses since most people recover from food poisoning without medical attention.



The most commonly recalled food items in 2023 were snacks like cookies and granola bars, which accounted for one in five recalls, though other commonly recalled foods included fruit—mainly cantaloupes—beef, soup, salads and greens, poultry, cheese, vegetables, supplements and pet food, according to the report.



Almost half of all recalls (49.3%) in 2023 were related to allergens undeclared on packaging, while other major reasons for recalls were listeria contamination (15%), salmonella contamination (8.6%) and uninspected products (6.1%).



This uptick in undisclosed allergen cases was partially driven by the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.fda.gov/consumers/consumer-updates/allergic-sesame-food-labels-now-must-list-sesame-allergen#:~:text=As%20of%20January%201%2C%202023%2C%20sesame%20is%20required%20to%20be,milk" rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank">inclusion</a>&nbsp;of sesame—which accounted for 39% of the increase—as a required disclosed allergen, a rule that began in January 2023.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-are-the-5-biggest-food-recalls-of-2024-so-far">WHAT ARE THE 5 BIGGEST FOOD RECALLS OF 2024 SO FAR?</h2>



<ul>
<li>Dairy products: An investigation into a “multi-year, multistate” <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/ariannajohnson/2024/02/08/costco-trader-joes-walmart-recall-dairy-products-over-listeria-outbreak-what-to-know/?sh=7902e28a47f5">listeria outbreak</a> was reopened after listeria was found in several food products containing dairy like queso fresco and cotija cheese. This outbreak includes cases dating back to 2014, and the FDA investigated it in 2017 and 2021, though it couldn’t link a specific brand to the outbreak. The most recent investigation was reopened in January, and manufacturer Rizo-Lopez Foods voluntarily recalled around <a href="https://www.fda.gov/media/176015/download?attachment" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">60</a> dairy products. Major retailers like Walmart, Costco and Trader Joe’s recalled products including salad and taco kits due to potential contamination. As of April 9, the FDA and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention <a href="https://www.fda.gov/food/outbreaks-foodborne-illness/outbreak-investigation-listeria-monocytogenes-queso-fresco-and-cotija-cheese-february-2024" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">report</a> the outbreak is over. The agencies said there were 26 cases, 23 hospitalizations and two deaths across 11 states.</li>



<li>Trader Joe’s Dumplings: Over 61,000 pounds of Trader Joe’s steamed chicken soup dumplings were recalled in March due to potential hard plastic contamination from a permanent marker. The products were voluntarily recalled by manufacturer CJ Foods Manufacturing Beaumont Corporation, <a href="https://www.fsis.usda.gov/recalls-alerts/cj-foods-manufacturing-beaumont-corporation-recalls-trader-joes-chicken-soup" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">according</a> to the USDA. The problem was discovered after customers submitted complaints of hard plastics in their dumplings, though no adverse reactions were reported.</li>



<li>Ground cinnamon: The FDA issued an <a href="https://www.fda.gov/food/alerts-advisories-safety-information/fda-alert-concerning-certain-cinnamon-products-due-presence-elevated-levels-lead" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">alert</a> in March warning it found unsafe levels of lead in six ground cinnamon products. These products were sold in discount stores like Dollar Tree and Family Dollar across several states. This recall came after the FDA investigated the recall of lead-tainted <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/ariannajohnson/2024/02/07/lead-poisoned-applesauce-ecuadorian-cinnamon-processor-likely-source-behind-recalled-pouches-fda-says/?sh=27a6e3082618">cinnamon applesauces</a> in 2023 that led to over 500 reports of adverse events in children.</li>



<li>Trader Joe’s cashews: Wenders LLC, the manufacturer of the nuts, <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/caileygleeson/2024/03/18/trader-joes-cashews-recall-product-pulled-in-16-states-over-salmonella-concerns/?sh=3ac5e89e58d4">recalled</a> four lots of Trader Joe’s 50% Less Sodium Roasted &amp; Salted Whole Cashews in March due to potential salmonella contamination. Though no illnesses have been reported, the potentially contaminated nuts were sold in 16 states.</li>



<li>Quaker Oats products: Quaker Oats <a href="https://www.fda.gov/safety/recalls-market-withdrawals-safety-alerts/update-quaker-issues-revised-recall-notice-additional-products-due-possible-health-risk" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">expanded</a> its list of recalled products in January after it recalled several in December due to possible salmonella contamination. This expanded list included over 20 granola, protein and cereal bars, cereals, instant oatmeals and snack mixes sold in all 50 states. However, no adverse events have been reported.</li>
</ul>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-big-number">BIG NUMBER</h2>



48 million. That’s how many Americans the CDC&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cdc.gov/foodborneburden/2011-foodborne-estimates.html" rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank">estimates</a>&nbsp;get sick annually due to foodborne disease, totaling one out of six Americans. Out of that number, 128,000 are hospitalized and 3,000 die.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-key-background">KEY BACKGROUND</h2>



Food gets recalled in one of four ways, according to the report. One way is consumers get sick, seek medical attention and then local officials or the CDC test fluids and trace an outbreak to a specific food item; another is consumers file a complaint with companies or regulators; a third is local, state or federal officials discover an issue through investigations or routine surveillance; and the other method is by companies self-reporting a problem after testing. The FDA regulates around&nbsp;<a href="https://www.fda.gov/media/143704/download" rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank">78%</a>&nbsp;of the country’s food supply, and its oversight includes everything except meat, poultry and some fish and eggs products, which are regulated by the USDA. The FDA was behind 224 recalls in 2023, while the USDA accounted for 89, according to the report. Although the number of recalls via the FDA were virtually unchanged, the number of USDA recalls increased by 31% in 2023 compared with 2022—the highest levels since 2019.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-further-reading">FURTHER READING</h2>



<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/ariannajohnson/2024/02/08/costco-trader-joes-walmart-recall-dairy-products-over-listeria-outbreak-what-to-know/?sh=7902e28a47f5">Costco, Trader Joe’s, Walmart Recall Dairy Products Over Listeria Outbreak—What To Know</a>&nbsp;(Forbes)



<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/ariannajohnson/2024/02/07/lead-poisoned-applesauce-ecuadorian-cinnamon-processor-likely-source-behind-recalled-pouches-fda-says/?sh=27a6e3082618">Lead-Poisoned Applesauce: Ecuadorian Cinnamon Processor ‘Likely Source’ Behind Recalled Pouches, FDA Says</a>&nbsp;(Forbes)



<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/caileygleeson/2024/03/18/trader-joes-cashews-recall-product-pulled-in-16-states-over-salmonella-concerns/?sh=3ac5e89e58d4">Trader Joe’s Cashews Recall: Product Pulled In 16 States Over Salmonella Concerns</a>&nbsp;(Forbes)

A Safeway Grocery Store Ahead Of Alberston’s Earnings Figures

2023 Had Most Food Recalls Since Start Of COVID-19 Pandemic, Report Finds

The milestone speaks for itself: it’s the 10th anniversary of FORBES AFRICA’S 30 under 30 list, and just like the honorees who have come before them, the class of 2024 too are driven by impact. Profits aside, it’s about achieving success with innovation, influence and individuality. They aren’t looking to fill big shoes but rather lace up their own and forge ahead with giant strides, leading by example and leaving an indelible path for the changemakers to come.



Words and Curation:&nbsp;Chanel Retief Additional research and reporting:&nbsp;Nicole Pillay&nbsp;With inputs from:&nbsp;Oluwatomisin Amokeoja Art Direction and Layout: Lucy Nkosi |&nbsp;Photography:&nbsp;Katlego Mokubyane |&nbsp;Photography Assistant:&nbsp;Sbusiso Sigidi |&nbsp;Studio:&nbsp;NewKatz Studio, Johannesburg |&nbsp;Styling: Deneal Van Wyk |&nbsp;Outfits supplied by: B Mashilo Designs, DFLO, Franc Elis, Ephymol and Preview Accessories |&nbsp;Hair &amp; Makeup:&nbsp;SnehhOnline Beauty



Known to the world as the actress who brought Puleng Khumalo to life in the Netflix original series Blood and Water, Ama Qamata describes this “passion project” as something she wanted to see do really well. 



“I was in varsity, and dropped out in my second year,” Qamata says to FORBES AFRICA. 



“And I really was new to the industry. It was my first time doing something that big. And I just remember the shooting being so stressful. I guess my mentality the whole time was ‘I just need to show up and give my best’. I remember at the Queen Sono premiere, the CEO of Netflix, Ted Sarandos, met me and said, ‘oh, I’m not worried about the show’.”



Sarandos was right. Months later, when the show premiered in May 2020, it ranked number one in South Africa, France, The Bahamas, Libya, Jamaica, Trinidad, and Kenya. It is also the fi rst South African show to reach number one in the United States.



<figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
<iframe loading="lazy" title="Under 30: South African Actress On The Raw Power Of Our Stories" width="500" height="281" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/0R_HHgm1a9c?feature=oembed" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" allowfullscreen></iframe>
</div></figure>



“When it came out, it was insane. I didn’t even have time to process it because I was working,” Qamata laughs. 



In a 2023 report released by the streaming platform, Netflix stipulated that since entering key countries in sub-Saharan Africa, it has contributed across economic sector value chains within and adjacent to the cultural and creative industries and stakeholder ecosystems. It has contributed “directly” to job creation, skills development, and capacity-building in the local creative industry. 



“It’s about time. I think we have the most creative people in the world,” Qamata adds. “We have such beautiful stories, and what I love about our stories is that they are so raw… what we offer, the world has not seen yet.”

Most Attractive Youtube Thumbnail (3)

Under 30: South African Actress On The Raw Power Of Our Stories

At the 2024 FORBES WOMAN AFRICA Awards, held at the Emperors Palace in Johannesburg on Friday, March 8, African stateswoman and South Africa’s former first lady Graça Machel took home the 2024 FORBES WOMAN AFRICA Lifetime Achievement Award. Machel dedicated the award to women both past and present.



“It has been a long moment and a long journey. It has been nearly eight decades of my journey. And as I stand here, what comes across my mind literally is the hundreds and thousands across the continent, across the globe – many women, most of them who are not here but many millions that are represented here by you today,” the founder of The Graça Machel Trust told a packed ballroom, accepting her award.



“Imagine I am standing here with the likes of Ma’Sisulu… those who are in my generation… We had dreams together, we fought together. And there were times we didn’t believe it would happen not only to have countries be free but more importantly to have women, young women taking what I call center-stage.”



Machel’s dedication to service is rooted in Mozambique’s struggle for self-rule and international advocacy for women and children’s rights. She has also dedicated her life to building equitable rights for women and children.



Machel produced a ground-breaking United Nations Children&#8217;s Fund (Unicef) report, The Impact of Armed Conflict on Children, that changed the way the United Nations and member states respond in conflict zones. She has worked in advocating for global health, child welfare, and women’s rights and empowerment.



The Graça Machel Trust she founded in 2010 focuses on advocating for women’s economic and social empowerment, food security and nutrition, education for all, as well as good governance.



In her speech, Machel stated that she will be using this award to encourage young women to uplift the continent. “At the Graca Machel Trust, we say ‘the future is African and the future is female’; this is the expression of what we see here tonight.”



She added it is the first time she has received an award in the presence of her family.



The star-studded evening celebrated women excelling in different sectors and industries across the continent. Other winners included South African middle-distance runner and Olympic gold medalist Caster Semenya (2024 FORBES WOMAN AFRICA Champion of Change Award), Banyana Banyana head coach Desiree Ellis, South African actress Nomzamo Mbatha (2024 FORBES WOMAN AFRICA Entertainer Award), South African actress Connie Ferguson (2024 FORBES WOMAN AFRICA Media Icon Award), and CEO at EbonyLife Mo Abudu (2024 FORBES WOMAN AFRICA Businesswoman Award).



The 2024 FORBES WOMAN AFRICA Awards gala was held as part of the ninth annual FORBES WOMAN AFRICA Leading Women Summit on March 8.

‘The Future Is African… The Future Is Female’: Lifetime Achievement Award For Graça Machel At FORBES WOMAN AFRICA Awards Gala

<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-topline">TOPLINE</h2>



Ozempic maker Novo Nordisk on Thursday teased a potential successor to its blockbuster weight loss drug Wegovy, the latest in a line of next-generation obesity treatments in development as consumers flock to the powerful drugs and competitors including Eli Lilly, Pfizer and an array of <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/roberthart/2024/02/28/viking-weight-loss-drug-targets-ozempic-and-mounjaro-makers-supremacy---what-to-know/?sh=15da62cf2e43">startups</a> close in to claim a share of the lucrative market.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-key-facts">KEY FACTS</h2>



At an investor event on Thursday, Novo Nordisk&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/roberthart/2024/03/07/novo-nordisks-new-obesity-pill-beats-wegovy-in-early-trial/?sh=20baa926456e">shared</a>&nbsp;data from an early stage clinical trial of an experimental weight loss drug called amycretin, an oral treatment that trial results suggest could be more powerful than the company’s popular weight loss drug Wegovy.



The pill, taken once a day, helped patients in the trial drop 13% of their weight over 12 weeks, a more impressive&nbsp;<a href="https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamanetworkopen/fullarticle/2796491" rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank">rate</a>&nbsp;than Wegovy, where patients lost around 6% at 12 weeks.



Amycretin effectively combines the functionality of two different drugs into a single molecule that targets two hormones involved in regulating hunger and blood sugar levels: GLP-1 and amylin.



GLP-1 is the same hormone targeted by semaglutide and tirzepatide—generic names for Novo and Lilly’s diabetes and obesity blockbusters Ozempic, Wegovy, Mounjaro and Zepbound—and companies including Novo and&nbsp;<a href="https://www.biospace.com/article/releases/zealand-pharma-presents-data-for-amylin-analog-zp8396-at-obesityweek/" rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank">Zealand Pharma</a>&nbsp;view amylin as a one potential target to build next generation of weight loss drugs around.



Novo is also testing a subcutaneous form of amycretin delivered through regular injections like Wegovy and Zepbound, though the early stage trial is ongoing and data is not expected to be released until around 2025.



Novo’s head of development Martin Lange Holst said the promising trial results justify further research into the pill and that a larger Phase 2 trial would begin in the second half of the year.



When will amycretin be available?



It will still be many years before Novo’s amycretin hits pharmacy shelves. Data from the mid-stage trial will not be available until around 2026, at the earliest, and regulators are likely to want an even more comprehensive trial to assess efficacy and safety to authorize it. It’s possible later trials won’t replicate the promising results from the early stage trial—the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/nrd.2016.136" rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank">majority</a>&nbsp;of drugs fail during clinical testing—or Novo may choose to focus its attention elsewhere. Data from the injectable amycretin is likely to have an impact on Novo’s future development pathway for the drug. Side effects and safety will also need to be monitored in a larger cohort of people to see whether the drug makes a viable treatment. Novo said the safety and side effect profile is in line with its other GLP-1 drugs, which can include a variety of gastrointestinal issues like nausea, vomiting, constipation and diarrhea.



News Peg



Novo’s stock hit a&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/roberthart/2024/03/07/novo-nordisks-new-obesity-pill-beats-wegovy-in-early-trial/?sh=20baa926456e">new high</a>&nbsp;after the company revealed some of its future plans on Thursday, gaining 9% and sending its market capitalization soaring to almost $610 billion. The company, which dethroned Bernard Arnault’s LVMH as Europe’s largest last year, is now more&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/dereksaul/2024/03/07/ozempic-maker-novo-nordisk-more-valuable-than-tesla/?sh=27a8c60133f9">valuable</a>&nbsp;than Elon Musk’s Tesla.



Big Number



$100 billion. That’s how much some analysts <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2023-10-17/lilly-lly-and-novo-novob-seen-dominating-100-billion-obesity-market-in-2030" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">believe</a> the obesity drug market will be worth by the end of the decade. Some think the market is <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2023/04/28/obesity-drugs-to-be-worth-200-billion-in-next-10-years-barclays-says.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">potentially</a> worth much more. Novo, alongside Eli Lilly, dominate the market and are likely to continue doing so for some time.<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/roberthart/"></a>

Ozempic Manufacturer Sued Over Side Effects Of Medication Used For Weight Loss

Ozempic Maker’s New Weight Loss Pill Beats Wegovy In Early Trial — What To Know About Novo Nordisk’s Amycretin

Chess unveils a boundless realm of imagination and possibility — a canvas where each match paints a unique tale of conflict and conquest, where kingdoms clash in a dance of uncertainty until the final, decisive moment. FORBES AFRICA takes a look at an NGO championing the game on the continent.



In the heart of the continent beats a timeless rhythm, a symphony of intellect and strategy that has resonated throughout the ages. In one West African nation, chess, a masterpiece of human ingenuity, transcends mere gameplay to become a captivating dialogue between minds, where moves speak volumes and every piece carries the weight of strategy.



And this Nigerian group is keeping the game alive. Chess In Slums Africa, a non-profit organization based in Lagos, uses an impact model to empower their champions, through several programs.



Regarding STEM education, robotics and digital skills, Tunde Onakoya, founder of the chess group, says, “This program aims to provide children with an immersive, hands-on learning experience in slum communities. It focuses on STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics) education, particularly robotics, computer programming, coding, website design, graphic design, and animation.”



“Project C.A.S.T.L.E is a program that uses the game of chess to engage children from marginalized communities. It&#8217;s a game and a strategic tool that teaches critical thinking, patience, and problem-solving. The program is structured to take children from the basics to advanced levels, fostering intellectual growth and strategic planning,” Onakoya adds.



Beyond the confines of the chessboard, the initiative extends its reach to encompass the cultivation of essential life skills such as leadership, teamwork, and resilience. Its overarching objective is to establish an educational haven, using chess as a vehicle for personal growth and empowerment. Through Project C.A.S.T.L.E, the aspiration is clear: to revolutionize lives, one strategic move at a time.



“LIFELINE is a dedicated initiative to promote long term personal and professional growth for children from underprivileged backgrounds. The program offers comprehensive support by providing educational scholarships and practical vocational training,” says Onakoya.



“It helps bridge the gap between academic knowledge and real-world skills. By empowering participants with mentorship, civic education, and financial literacy training, LIFELINE ensures well-rounded development and enables them to pursue their aspirations confidently. The program aims to nurture future leaders and innovators who drive positive change in their communities.”



When it comes to the academic, educational, and critical thinking skills cultivated by Chess in Slums Africa, Onakoya underscores the tailored approach of their program to address the unique challenges faced by the children they serve.



“Our program aims to address challenges stemming from limited access to quality education and resources by focusing on skills that are academically enriching, practical, and relevant to their daily lives,” he says.



Additionally, Onakoya highlights the ‘mental maths’ component, which enhances arithmetic skills and fosters quick thinking and mental agility.



“Through mental maths, children can rapidly perform complex calculations, strengthening their mathematical proficiency, problem-solving skills, and critical thinking abilities.”



The incorporation of tech programs also introduce essential digital literacy skills such as computer proficiency and coding fundamentals. This, he states, prepares the children for success in an increasingly technology-driven world, opening doors to future educational and career opportunities in STEM fields.



The program equips children with academically beneficial, culturally relevant and empowering skills, enabling them to overcome obstacles, pursue aspirations, and succeed not only in chess but also in life&#8217;s challenges.



Central to Chess in Slums Africa’s methodology is community engagement, actively involving local stakeholders to ensure programs are contextually relevant and responsive. Moreover, the importance of innovation and creativity, advocating for approaches that transcend traditional classroom settings to foster independent thought.



Onakoya highlights sustainability, emphasizing the need to address both immediate needs and ensure long-term impact through sustainable partnerships and by empowering children as agents of change.



Emerging from an initial disinterest in the Chess in Slums Africa program in the Majidun community, Jamiu Ninalowo surpassed expectations, becoming a leading player who outperformed his earlier-starting peers. Under the nurturing umbrella of the Chess in Slums Africa Scholarship and child development unit, Ninalowo blossomed. Completing his secondary school education, he begins a new chapter at Nexford University as a freshman, pursuing a Business Administration degree, specializing in Product Management. He is simultaneously taking courses in cybersecurity, and his chess prowess is improving by the day.



Another player – Miriam Kayang, born in the local government area of Obanliku, is the eldest of six children and a local footballer in her community. Kayang was encountered during a project in the country’s Cross River State in November 2022, among over 50 girls to whom the game of chess was taught. She was placed under a scholarship program to complete her secondary school education in 2023, and is currently a linguistics (French) student at the University of Calabar.



Overcoming initial dismissal from the Chess in Slums Africa training sessions in 2019, Fethina Maumo, a child with cerebral palsy, was born into the bustling Makoko informal settlement. Unyielding, Maumo’s determination won him a place in the sessions. His first step in English was memorizing the chess pieces and his triumph as the junior category winner forever shifted his narrative. Now, under the full sponsorship of Chess in Slums Africa, he is enrolled in school, competes in tournaments, and has received widespread recognition.



Chess, in all honesty, is like any other game at first glance. However, the beauty of it is its ability to build a mental toughness in its players akin to no other, much like the game’s own stand against the test of time.

Close-up Businessman playing chess .

How This Board Game Is Making A Difference In Lagos

With a growing youth population, the African continent could find itself on the path towards a bright future. However, this may only become a reality if the continent is able to provide widespread upskilling initiatives and tangible employment prospects.



The International Labour Organization reported in August that more than 72 million youth in Africa are not in education, employment or training, with the majority being young women. Furthermore, it was reported previously that by 2030, young Africans are expected to make up 42% of the world’s youth.



The goal to empower Africa’s young people has become a collective one. One organization working towards this is Prince’s Trust International (PTI). Founded by His Majesty, King Charles III (then Prince Charles), the Trust partners with local stakeholders to develop programs that equip young people with the skills and/or interventions needed to create a future for themselves.&nbsp;



“As a result of Prince&#8217;s Trust International’s human capital development focused&nbsp;programming, we have been able to reach over 15,000 young people since 2019 and provide them with the key skills and opportunities to secure livelihoods,” Shabir Randeree, Chairman of Prince’s Trust International, tells FORBES AFRICA.



“We have also been able to partner with a number of fantastic organizations, working together to help improve the way training facilitators and teachers engage with young people on the continent. This work has helped to deliver more impactful programming with greater rates of positive outcomes and created a ripple effect beyond the young people who directly benefit from our programs.”


<div class="wp-block-image">
<figure class="aligncenter size-full is-resized"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="682" src="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Arunma-Oteh-and-King-Charles-image-supplied.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-61387" style="width:464px;height:auto" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Arunma-Oteh-and-King-Charles-image-supplied.jpg 1024w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Arunma-Oteh-and-King-Charles-image-supplied-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Arunma-Oteh-and-King-Charles-image-supplied-768x512.jpg 768w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Arunma Oteh and King Charles; image supplied</figcaption></figure></div>


CEO, Will Straw says that what started out as an organization that provided grants for people from disadvantaged backgrounds, when the organization was established in the United Kingdom (UK) over 40 years ago, has grown and evolved.



“Over time, [it] expanded into programs with employers, helping young people into job vacancies, where perhaps the employers were struggling to find work-ready youth. Then, more recently, on education programs and personal development programs in schools and other educational settings, helping young people to gain some of the core skills that are so important in the world of work – things like self-confidence, communication, problem-solving, teamwork, resilience, managing feelings, setting and achieving goals,” Straw says.



“And so Britain&#8217;s Trust International, founded in 2015, has sought to take those programs and insights about the needs of young people&#8217;s skills, and helping people to find meaningful work or set up their own business, to countries around the world.”



Currently, on the African continent, the organization has programs in Egypt, Ghana, Kenya, Nigeria, Rwanda, Tanzania and Uganda.



In addition to this, African Development Bank Group (AfDB) President, Dr Akinwumi Adesina and Straw met in November to sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) and to explore strategic partnerships to scale up youth employment, human capital, and entrepreneurship opportunities.



The MoU indicated the commitment of both the AfDB and PTI to work together to identify and develop partnership opportunities, in countries of common interest, to mainstream employability skills for technical and vocational education and training (TVET) projects, funded by the Bank. PTI is also expected to participate in the preparation, design, implementation and monitoring of TVET and skills development projects.


<div class="wp-block-image">
<figure class="aligncenter size-large is-resized"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="683" src="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Participants-on-the-Get-Into-Programme-Nigeria-2023-1024x683.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-61471" style="width:584px;height:auto" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Participants-on-the-Get-Into-Programme-Nigeria-2023-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Participants-on-the-Get-Into-Programme-Nigeria-2023-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Participants-on-the-Get-Into-Programme-Nigeria-2023-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Participants-on-the-Get-Into-Programme-Nigeria-2023-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Participants-on-the-Get-Into-Programme-Nigeria-2023-2048x1365.jpg 2048w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Participants on the &#8216;Get Into&#8217; Programme in Nigeria 2023</figcaption></figure></div>


It was reported at the time of this meeting that the Trust would be committed to “co-hosting a youth-focused investment summit in 2024 in the UK, in conjunction with the African Development Bank.”



According to PTI, it’s the insights of the youth they work with and their local partners that inform the type of work that’s done. Straw echoes this, adding that the role of the Trust is simply to impart the knowledge gained over the past few decades.



“[It’s] a mixture of programs; it depends on what the specific needs are in any particular country, and which local partners we&#8217;ve identified already doing valuable, impactful work on the ground, supporting young people&#8217;s journey, in a sense, from education to employment,” he says.



“Then we&#8217;ll work with them either to introduce one of our own programs or potentially to adapt or add to a program they&#8217;ve already got in place with some of our content or methodologies, to make it even more impactful.”



PTI Trustee, Arunma Oteh, who was the Vice President and Treasurer at the World Bank from September 2015 to November 2018, shares her experience with the organization, saying, “I am honored to be a member of the Board of Prince’s Trust International. I believe that it has even greater potential to do more in Africa and particularly expand its activities in the six countries it already has a presence in, as well as establish its programs in several of the other African countries.”


<div class="wp-block-image">
<figure class="aligncenter size-large is-resized"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="683" src="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Winners-Enterprise-Challenge-Kenya-2022-2-1024x683.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-61470" style="width:634px;height:auto" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Winners-Enterprise-Challenge-Kenya-2022-2-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Winners-Enterprise-Challenge-Kenya-2022-2-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Winners-Enterprise-Challenge-Kenya-2022-2-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Winners-Enterprise-Challenge-Kenya-2022-2-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Winners-Enterprise-Challenge-Kenya-2022-2-2048x1365.jpg 2048w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Winners Enterprise Challenge Kenya, 2022. </figcaption></figure></div>


“Its employability and entrepreneurship programs prepare young people for future success, teaching them valuable business and leadership skills, early in their lives. For example, a number of successful people of African origin, such as Idris Elba and Ozwald Boateng, got their break from Prince’s Trust.”



“I have a personal attachment to both Africa and Asia. I was born in South Africa of Asian origin when my family migrated from Northern India in the 1860s. The opportunity to internationally apply my experience, having also served on the board of The Prince’s Trust in the UK, was hugely appealing,” Randeree adds.



“Having had a career in business, it never ceases to amaze me what can be achieved by elevating educational aspirations of our youth. Last year, almost 30,000 young people were impacted positively by Prince’s Trust International in 18 countries. It was Nelson Mandela who said ‘education is the most powerful weapon you can use to change the world’.”

Kenya Royal Visit 2023 HMK with PTI participants

His Majesty’s Trust In Africa’s Youth:Helping Bridge The Education And Skills Gap

Amid economic challenges, the country&#8217;s latest budget speech draws critical analysis from economist Dawie Roodt, shedding light on the fiscal strategies&#8217; impact on economic growth and the path ahead for the nation.



In an era marked by economic turbulence, South Africa&#8217;s fiscal policy comes under scrutiny following the recent budget speech, aimed at addressing the nation&#8217;s pressing economic challenges. The speech was presented by Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana last week. Dawie Roodt, a renowned economist and Director of the Efficient Group, offers a candid assessment of the outlined fiscal measures and their potential trajectory for South Africa&#8217;s economy.



According to Minister Godongwana, the 2024 budget implements strategic expenditure cuts, aimed at achieving fiscal stability and economic resilience. Specifically, it targets a reduction in non-interest expenditure by ZAR80.6 billion ($4.19 billion) over the medium term, as part of a comprehensive fiscal consolidation strategy.



This measure is complemented by revenue adjustments, which have been revised upwards by ZAR45.6 billion ($2.3 billion) over the same period, compared to the 2023 Medium Term Budget Policy Statement projections.



Additionally, the budget proposes a reform of the Gold and Foreign Exchange Contingency Reserve Account. These adjustments are integral to the government&#8217;s efforts to manage the budget deficit and national debt, reflecting a focused approach to fiscal management in response to current economic challenges.



Despite these state efforts to manage the deficit, Roodt critiques the sustainability of the fiscal account, warning of a looming financial crisis if the current borrowing trend continues in the face of a weak economy.



“The fiscal actions are part of the reason why the economy is not growing,” he says to FORBES AFRICA.



“The fiscal account has become unsustainable, and we are heading for a financial crisis,” Roodt adds, emphasizing the urgent need for a shift in fiscal strategy.



Highlighting state inefficiencies, Roodt points out that despite significant spending, outcomes, especially in education, are dismal.



“We spend a lot of money on education&#8230;but the outcome of education is horrible. The primary focus must be on the improvement of the efficiency of the state,” he says.



On healthcare, Roodt is skeptical about the implementation of significant spending towards health, including the National Health Insurance (NHI), citing financial constraints and efficiency issues.



“It&#8217;s simply going to cost too much money. We ran out of money already; and the government simply is not efficient enough to implement this.”



To combat the FATF greylisting, the government has allocated ZAR628 million ($32.7 million) towards implementing the FATF and State Capture Commission recommendations, totaling ZAR2.3 billion ($119 million) dedicated to these efforts. This budget allocation is part of a broader strategy to address the greylisting by enhancing legal and regulatory frameworks to meet international standards on anti-money laundering (AML) and combating the financing of terrorism (CFT).



Roodt, however, remains skeptical, describing the difficulties presented by the FATF greylisting, especially in the financial services industry, and the broader negative effects on South Africa&#8217;s international business relations.



Addressing social grants and public employment as mechanisms to mitigate poverty and unemployment, Roodt argues these measures are unsustainable without economic growth.



“This is totally unsustainable. You need economic growth. You&#8217;re not going to create jobs or mitigate poverty by spending more money on people,” he advises, calling for policies that truly stimulate economic growth.



The 2024 budget speech, amidst South Africa&#8217;s economic challenges, reflects a critical juncture in the country&#8217;s fiscal management. The government faces the dual task of stimulating economic growth while managing its debt and deficit.



Roodt&#8217;s analysis underscores the importance of efficiency and targeted spending, particularly in education and healthcare, to navigate the path toward sustainable development.



As South Africa addresses international concerns such as the FATF greylisting, the emphasis on reform and compliance highlights the broader effort to secure economic stability. The road ahead requires a balanced approach, integrating fiscal responsibility with strategic investments to foster a resilient and inclusive economy.

South African Minister Godongwana Delivers 2024 Budget Speech In Cape Town

South Africa’s Budget Speech: A Fiscal Reality Check

<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-topline">TOPLINE</h2>



Researchers have potentially linked an antiviral protein produced by the body during infection as the cause of long Covid, according to a new study, and they’re optimistic the next step is making medications to treat the disease.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-key-facts">KEY FACTS</h2>



Researchers followed patients with long Covid for 2.5 years to determine why some recovered from their symptoms and others didn’t, according to the study published Wednesday in Science Advances.



Long Covid (or post-Covid) symptoms include shortness of breath, loss of smell or taste, brain fog or chest pain following recovery from a Covid infection that can last for weeks—or in some cases, for years—<a href="https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/long-term-effects/index.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">according</a>&nbsp;to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.



When infected with the coronavirus, people produce an inflammatory protein called&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4154595/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">interferon gamma</a>&nbsp;(or IFN-y), which is part of the body’s natural response to fight off infection.



The production of the protein typically stops once infection goes away, but researchers discovered participants with ongoing Covid symptoms had high levels of IFN-y for up to 31 months after initial infection, which the researchers believe may be the cause of long Covid.



Over 60% of patients experienced relief from at least some of their symptoms during the study period, and participants who were vaccinated after infection saw significant decreases in their long Covid symptoms and IFN-y production, suggesting vaccination “improved” long Covid symptoms, according to the study.



Current long Covid treatment only targets symptom alleviation and not the underlying disease, but now that a potential cause has been identified, there’s “hope that this could help to pave the way” for creating medication to specifically target long Covid, and “give some patients a firm diagnosis,” Benjamin Krishna, the study’s co-author and an investigator at Cambridge University, said in a statement.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-crucial-quote">CRUCIAL QUOTE</h2>



“The number of people with long Covid is gradually falling, and vaccination seems to be playing a significant role in that,” Krishna said. “But new cases are still cropping up, and then there is the big question of what happens when the next coronavirus pandemic comes along. Understanding what causes long Covid now could give us a crucial head start.”



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-big-number">BIG NUMBER</h2>



65 million. That’s how many people worldwide suffer from long Covid, according to a 2023&nbsp;<a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41579-022-00846-2" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">study</a>. The CDC&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/72/wr/mm7232a3.htm?s_cid=mm7232a3_w" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">estimated</a>&nbsp;around 6% of American adults in June 2023 experienced long Covid at some point in their lives.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-to-watch-for">WHAT TO WATCH FOR</h2>



The study researchers believe because there are several symptoms of long Covid that can look very different from each other, more research is needed in order to create subgroups of the disease. It’s “unlikely” all symptoms are caused by the same thing since some patients are able to recover while others aren’t, so future studies into why should be conducted, according to the researchers.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-key-background">KEY BACKGROUND</h2>



Several risk factors play into who’s more susceptible to long Covid, <a href="https://covid19.nih.gov/covid-19-topics/long-covid" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">according</a> to the National Institutes of Health: underlying health conditions like obesity and diabetes, going unvaccinated, experiencing severe Covid infection or hospitalization, older age and being a woman are all risk factors. Long Covid can affect several organs and body systems like the heart, lungs, kidney, reproductive system and brain and also trigger other health conditions like kidney disease, autoimmune disorders or diabetes. Other experts have attempted to identify the cause of long Covid. Some <a href="https://cardiab.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12933-021-01359-7" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">studies</a> have hypothesized tiny clots in the cells that persist for a long time may be the cause of some symptoms. The microclots may cause an inflammatory response, which causes exhaustion and fatigue, two of the most common long Covid symptoms. The Science Advances researchers believe their new findings suggest microclotting can’t be the only or most significant cause, though they don’t rule it out. The lowering of certain anti-inflammatory gut microbiomes during and after Covid—which causes an inflammatory response—may also trigger long Covid, according to a 2022 <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9088471/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">study</a>. Another theory is that the coronavirus itself—not the body’s response to it—causes long Covid by damaging or altering cells, leading to lasting symptoms, according to a separate Science Advances <a href="https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/sciadv.abc5801" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">paper</a>.

A Covid-19 Vaccination Site As Children Under 5-Years Old Become Eligible For Shot

Possible Long Covid Cause Identified: Suggests Protein Might Be Culprit—And Medication Might Cure It

<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-topline">TOPLINE</h2>



Covid vaccines from companies like Pfizer, Moderna and AstraZeneca were linked to rare occurrences of heart, brain and blood disorders, a recent peer-reviewed study found, though experts say the risks of developing Covid-19 greatly outweigh the risks of getting vaccinated.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">KEY FACTS</h2>



Researchers from the Global Vaccine Data Network—a research arm of the World Health Organization—looked at expected versus observed rates of 13 medical conditions that were considered “adverse events of special interest” in a study population of 99 million vaccinated people eight countries, making it the largest Covid vaccine study to date.



Rare cases of <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/vaccines/safety/myocarditis.html#:~:text=Myocarditis%20is%20inflammation%20of%20the,Shortness%20of%20breath" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">myocarditis</a>—inflammation of the heart—were identified in the first, second and third doses of Pfizer-BioNTech’s and Moderna’s mRNA vaccines: The highest rate was seen after the second Moderna dose (6.1 times the expected rate of cases), according to the study published in the journal Vaccine.



Another heart condition called&nbsp;<a href="https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/pericarditis/symptoms-causes/syc-20352510#:~:text=Pericarditis%20is%20swelling%20and%20irritation,and%20goes%20away%20without%20treatment." target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">pericarditis</a>&nbsp;had a 6.9-fold increased risk in those who took a third dose of AstraZeneca’s viral-vector vaccine, while a first and fourth dose of Moderna’s vaccine had a 1.7-fold and 2.6-fold increased risk, respectively.



There was a 2.5-times greater risk of developing the rare autoimmune disorder&nbsp;<a href="https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/guillain-barre-syndrome/symptoms-causes/syc-20362793" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Guillain-Barre syndrome</a>&nbsp;among those who took AstraZeneca’s vaccine compared to the rate researchers expected, and a 3.2-times greater risk of getting blood clots among the same population.



There was a 3.8-times greater risk of developing the neurological disorder acute disseminated encephalomyelitis after the Moderna vaccine was administered, and a 2.2-fold increased risk after AstraZeneca’s vaccine, according to the study.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">BIG NUMBER</h2>



13.5 billion. That’s how many Covid vaccines have been administered worldwide since the start of the Covid pandemic,&nbsp;<a href="https://ourworldindata.org/covid-vaccinations" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">according</a>&nbsp;to science research organization Our World in Data. Around 71% of the world’s population has received at least one dose of a Covid vaccine.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">CRUCIAL QUOTE</h2>



“The odds of all of these adverse events is still much, much higher when infected with SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19), so getting vaccinated is still by far the safer choice,” CEO of biotechnology company Centivax Jacob Glanville, who is not involved in the study, told Forbes.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">KEY BACKGROUND</h2>



Covid vaccines are meant to prevent severe infection, and studies have indicated&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/acip/recs/grade/covid-19-moderna-vaccine.html%5C" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Moderna</a>,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/acip/recs/grade/covid-19-pfizer-biontech-vaccine.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Pfizer-BioNTech</a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a href="https://www.who.int/news-room/feature-stories/detail/the-oxford-astrazeneca-covid-19-vaccine-what-you-need-to-know#:~:text=The%20AstraZeneca%20vaccine%20has%20an,about%204%20to%2012%20weeks." target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">AstraZeneca’s</a>&nbsp;vaccines are effective at preventing severe illnesses, hospitalizations and death. Meanwhile, the chances of having a neurological event after a Covid infection were up to 617-fold higher than following COVID vaccination, which suggests “the benefits of vaccination substantially outweigh the risks,” according to the Vaccine study researchers. The risk of developing myocarditis is higher post-Covid infection than after getting a Covid vaccine,&nbsp;<a href="https://medicine.yale.edu/profile/akiko-iwasaki/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">according</a>&nbsp;to Akiko Iwasaki, PhD, professor of Immunobiology at Yale University. Myocarditis risk after the second dose of a Covid vaccine is 35.9 per 100,000 people, compared to a 64.9 per 100,000 risk after Covid infection. The risk of developing Guillain-Barre syndrome after Covid infection was six times greater, and the risk of developing it after vaccination was 0.41 times greater than the control group, according to a 2023&nbsp;<a href="https://www.neurology.org/doi/10.1212/WNL.0000000000207900" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">study</a>&nbsp;published in Neurology. While most Americans have received at least one Covid-19 vaccine shot, uptake for booster shots that are updated to combat new coronavirus strains has remained slow.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">TANGENT</h2>



The rapidly spreading Covid variant JN.1 caused an&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/roberthart/2023/12/20/jn1-covid-variant-of-interest-spreading-fast-in-us---heres-what-to-know/?sh=2fe82e10ccce">uptick in cases</a>&nbsp;during the fall and winter months, causing a resurgence of the tripledemic—when cases of Covid, flu and respiratory syncytial virus simultaneously increase. JN.1 made up&nbsp;<a href="https://covid.cdc.gov/covid-data-tracker/#variant-proportions%5C" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">96.4</a><a href="https://covid.cdc.gov/covid-data-tracker/#variant-proportions" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">%</a>&nbsp;of all cases in the two week period ending in Feb. 17. However, Covid cases (down 0.6%) and deaths (down 6.9%) are&nbsp;<a href="https://covid.cdc.gov/covid-data-tracker/#variants-genomic-surveillance" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">declining</a>—though hospitalizations are up 0.8%—signaling an&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/caileygleeson/2024/01/19/tripledemic-surge-eases-as-covid-rsv-flu-figures-drop-for-second-week/?sh=5b629a4c64ac">end</a>&nbsp;to the tripledemic. The variant was&nbsp;<a href="https://www.who.int/docs/default-source/coronaviruse/18122023_jn.1_ire_clean.pdf?sfvrsn=6103754a_3" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">classified</a>&nbsp;as a “variant of interest”—meaning it’s spreading in a way that may pose “an emerging risk to global public health”—by the World Health Organization in December. JN.1 is an offshoot of the highly mutated&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/ariannajohnson/2023/11/28/what-to-know-about-rapidly-spreading-pirola-covid-variant-ba286-and-if-vaccines-offer-protection/?sh=27f10c0e1978">Pirola</a>&nbsp;(BA.2.86) virus that some experts worried wouldn’t be protected against the updated monovalent Covid boosters, which specifically target XBB variants. However, vaccine makers ensured their shots provided some protection.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">FURTHER READING</h2>



<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/roberthart/2023/12/20/jn1-covid-variant-of-interest-spreading-fast-in-us---heres-what-to-know/?sh=2fe82e10ccce">JN.1 Covid ‘Variant Of Interest’ Spreading Fast In U.S. — Here’s What To Know</a>&nbsp;(Forbes)



<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/caileygleeson/2024/01/19/tripledemic-surge-eases-as-covid-rsv-flu-figures-drop-for-second-week/?sh=5b629a4c64ac">‘Tripledemic’ Surge Eases As Covid, RSV, Flu Figures Drop For Second Week</a>&nbsp;(Forbes)



<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/ariannajohnson/2023/11/28/what-to-know-about-rapidly-spreading-pirola-covid-variant-ba286-and-if-vaccines-offer-protection/?sh=717483311978">What To Know About Rapidly Spreading ‘Pirola’ Covid Variant BA.2.86—And If Vaccines Offer Protection</a>&nbsp;(Forbes)

Japan begins the third inoculation of COVID-19 vaccine

Covid Vaccines Linked To Small Increase In Heart And Brain Disorders, Study Finds—But Risk From Infection Is Far Higher

Story curated by Chanel Retief and Nicole Pillay Art Direction: Lucy Nkosi Photography: Katlego Mokubyane ; Assistant: Sbusiso Sigidi Styling: Deneal Van Wyk; Outfits supplied by Fashimo Styles Studio, Ukara, Suited For Her and Preview Accessories Hair &amp; Makeup:Vanessa Unamaca, MakoleMade Location: NewKatz.Studio, Johannesburg



<hr class="wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity"/>



It’s the need of the hour that most entrepreneurs pivot in their approach to building businesses. This has become quite normalized in the tech space. Traditionalists see risks but not Dr Aisha Pandor, whose main goal has always been about building businesses that help those around her and help her plough back into her country’s economy. 



Pandor, a qualified human geneticist, started SweepSouth, an online home cleaning and gardening services platform, with her husband, software engineer Alen Ribic, in 2014. The idea came about when she had just left her corporate career. While they were reviewing different business ideas, the couple realized that they needed help at home, at the time.



“That sparked the idea that there are services like Lyft and Uber, but there&#8217;s nothing that helps to connect you to home services, using technology,” Pandor says.



Almost a decade later, Pandor walks in for the photoshoot at the NewKatz.Studio in Johannesburg, South Africa, ready to announce that she has stepped down as CEO of the online platform.



<figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
<iframe loading="lazy" title="Over 30 Under 50: &#039;Not About Perfection, But About Constantly Trying&#039;-Dr Aisha Pandor" width="500" height="281" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/FoYGSUI73EU?feature=oembed" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" allowfullscreen></iframe>
</div></figure>


“One of the great things about being a scientist is that when you&#8217;re building, you measure your impact as you&#8217;re going along, you do it in a datadriven way.


“Now, I&#8217;m thinking about work-life balance. And so, I think it&#8217;s important to also showcase this phase in [a] woman&#8217;s career,” Pandor adds, stating that she will not be leaving SweepSouth permanently but will rather focus more on building a business centered around health, health technology and genetics.


“This is often the time when you&#8217;re having children or your children are old enough that you start thinking about the time that you spend with them. I think this notion of not needing to find the perfect balance, but being able to hold lots of spaces at the same time – that is really what being a power woman is about. It&#8217;s not about perfection. It&#8217;s about constantly trying.”

OVER 30 UNDER 50: ‘Not About Perfection, But About Constantly Trying’-Dr Aisha Pandor

<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-topline">TOPLINE</h2>



OpenAI is testing a new feature that gives ChatGPT a memory to store information from a user’s previous chats—including their voice, tone and personal preferences—in order to create a more intensely customized experience for future requests.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-key-facts">KEY FACTS</h2>



Users will be able to choose whether they want ChatGPT to store a conversation, allowing the chatbot to remember specific details about the user over time to create more personalized responses, OpenAI&nbsp;<a href="https://openai.com/blog/memory-and-new-controls-for-chatgpt" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">said</a>&nbsp;in a blog post.



The user will be able to control what information ChatGPT can store about them, the company said, though the chatbot’s “memories” will “evolve with your interactions,” allowing it to determine over time what information should be stored based on a user’s preferences.



If a user asks ChatGPT to create a birthday card for a child the user previously said likes jellyfish, OpenAI used as an example, ChatGPT may create a card featuring a jellyfish wearing a party hat.



The feature will be applied to other GPTs, including ChatGPT Team and Enterprises, allowing the chatbot to “remember your tone, voice and format preferences” while responding to certain tasks, while Books GPT will recommend books based on a user’s preferences, like favorite genres or top books.



Organizations will be able to upload data to ChatGPT, which will then create charts based on that data along with “three takeaways each,” while programming firms will also be able to store information about their programming language and frameworks to remember those preferences for future tasks, OpenAI said.



Forbes Daily: Get our best stories, exclusive reporting and essential analysis of the day’s news in your inbox every weekday.Sign Up



By signing up, you accept and agree to our&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/terms-and-conditions" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Terms of Service</a>&nbsp;(including the class action waiver and arbitration provisions), and you acknowledge our&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/privacy" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Privacy Statement</a>.



Joanne Jang, OpenAI’s product lead, told&nbsp;<a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2024-02-13/openai-gives-chatgpt-the-ability-to-remember-facts-from-your-chats" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Bloomberg</a>&nbsp;that while the new memory feature can store information about the user, it was also designed to not save sensitive personal information like passwords, passport numbers or details about the user’s health.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-to-watch-for">WHAT TO WATCH FOR</h2>



The feature will be available for some free and paid ChatGPT users this week before it becomes more widely accessible, OpenAI said.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-key-background">KEY BACKGROUND</h2>



Memory for ChatGPT is the latest feature announced by OpenAI following the chatbot’s success over the last year. Last month, the company launched GPT Store, an online marketplace where users can share custom chatbots with others, after a two-month delay amid CEO Sam Altman’s ouster and subsequent return to the company. ChatGPT Team was also launched last month, a smaller version of ChatGPT Enterprise, which was released in August as an alternative for organizations to use the chatbot with “enterprise-grade security.”



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-tangent">TANGENT</h2>



Altman, who&nbsp;<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=15UZCAr3shU" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">spoke</a>&nbsp;over video during the Dubai-based World Governments Summit, reiterated his concerns about the possible dangers of artificial intelligence. Altman noted he was “not that interested in the killer robots walking on the street direction of things going wrong,” rather he was “much more interested” about the “very subtle societal misalignments” that could make the technology dangerous.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-further-reading">FURTHER READING</h2>



<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/mollybohannon/2024/01/10/openai-launches-gpt-store-where-creators-can-share-and-possibly-make-money-from-their-chatbots/?sh=4904127c7cae">OpenAI Launches GPT Store: Where Creators Can Share—And Possibly Make Money From—Their Chatbots</a> (Forbes)

In this photo illustration, the ChatGPT (OpenAI) logo is

ChatGPT Can Now ‘Remember’ Users—Including Their Voice, Preferences

In a landmark move, Tanzania marked its first participation at the Mining Indaba, being held from February 5-8 in Cape Town, South Africa. This year&#8217;s event, the 30th edition of the conference, with the theme Embracing the power of positive disruption: A bold new future for African mining, focuses on the need for adaptation in the African mining sector in light of technological advancements and environmental concerns​​.



The Tanzanian delegation, comprising both government and private sector representatives, arrived with a clear message, encapsulated in their chosen theme: Advancing mining investment to accelerate prosperity. This move aligns with the Tanzanian government&#8217;s Vision 2030, aiming to intensify geoscientific surveys to tap into the nation&#8217;s rich mineral resources​.



​​​Anthony Mavunde, Tanzania&#8217;s Minister of Minerals, emphasized the vision at the indaba, presenting the government&#8217;s strategy to not only boost investment and economic growth but also focus on sustainable and responsible mining practices. &#8220;Our vision isn’t simply to dig up minerals, it’s to ignite the engines of prosperity,&#8221; Mavunde declared, underscoring a shift from traditional mining practices to a more sustainable and economically beneficial approach.



Tanzania&#8217;s participation in the conference is seen as a crucial step towards redefining the African narrative of mining, which has often been plagued by issues of environmental degradation and exploitation.



Key issues discussed at the conference included the role of Africa in supplying critical minerals for global electronic and automotive industries and innovative approaches to spur mining sector investment and employment. These discussions are particularly relevant for Tanzania, given its abundant reserves of critical minerals like nickel, rare earths, and graphite​​.



However, the path to mining prosperity is not without its challenges. The conference provided a platform for Tanzania to address hurdles impeding investment, such as taxation concerns and the need for equitable sharing of project returns. The government&#8217;s commitment to facilitating a conducive investment environment was evident, as noted by Kheri Mahimbali, Permanent Secretary at the Ministry of Minerals, who confirmed Tanzania&#8217;s dedication to responsible mining practices​​.



Tanzania&#8217;s debut symbolizes more than just participation; it represents the country&#8217;s commitment to playing a key role in the future of African mining.

Key Speakers at The Investing in African Mining Indaba

Tanzania’s Strategic Debut At Mining Indaba: Forging A New Path In African Mining

ChatGPT and other generative AI are being widely used in higher education in school admissions. But now, students who’ve turned to AI for writing are turning back to people to make that work sound more human—and schools can’t possibly keep up.



<hr class="wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity"/>



“Tapestry.” “Beacon.” “Comprehensive curriculum.” “Esteemed faculty.” “Vibrant academic community.”



They’re among the laundry list of colorful words, flowery phrases and stale syntax that are likely to tip off admissions committees to applicants who’ve used AI to help write their college or graduate school essays this year, according to essay consultants who students are hiring en masse to un-ChatGPT, and add a “human touch” to, their submissions.



“Tapestry” in particular is a major red flag in this year’s pool, several essay consultants on the platform Fiverr told&nbsp;Forbes. Mike, an Ivy League alum and former editor-in-chief of the Cornell Business Journal who now edits hundreds of grad school applications each cycle through&nbsp;<a href="https://www.fiverr.com/capitoleditors" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Capitol Editors</a>, said it’s appeared repeatedly in drafts from at least 20 of his clients in recent months. (He requested anonymity to protect their privacy.)



&#8220;I no longer believe there&#8217;s a way to innocently use the word &#8216;tapestry&#8217; in an essay; if the word &#8216;tapestry&#8217; appears, it was generated by ChatGPT,” he told&nbsp;Forbes. Though many such words, on their own, could have come from a human, when a trained eye sees them used over and over again in the same cadence across multiple essays, “it’s just a real telltale sign.”



“There will be a reckoning,” Mike added. “There are going to be a ton of students who unwittingly use the word &#8216;tapestry&#8217; or other words in their essay that [may] not be admitted this cycle.”



This winter and spring mark the first full admissions season since the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/rashishrivastava/2023/12/27/how-chatgpt-and-billions-in-investment-helped-ai-go-mainstream-in-2023/?sh=c63166e7176e">explosion and broad adoption of ChatGPT</a>&nbsp;and other generative AI, and in the education world, the fast-growing use cases for the technology have far outpaced school policies. Some educators are trying to fend off the tech with “zero tolerance” policies, while others are actively embracing it in their classrooms (Arizona State University, for example, is&nbsp;<a href="https://news.asu.edu/20240118-university-news-new-collaboration-openai-charts-future-ai-higher-education" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">partnering with OpenAI</a>&nbsp;to use ChatGPT Enterprise for tutoring and coursework). But short of cohesive, consistent rules for how AI can be used in the application process, if at all—and without tools that can reliably detect whether it has been—many students have turned to OpenAI’s ChatGPT and its rivals for help. The uptake has given rise to a cottage industry of&nbsp;<a href="https://www.fiverr.com/categories/writing-translation/proofreading-editing/ai-content-editing" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">freelance consultants</a>&nbsp;who specialize in plucking out suspicious AI jargon and making essays sound authentic.



Forbes asked more than 20 public and private colleges of varied sizes across the United States, from Arizona State and Georgia Tech to Princeton and Harvard, about trends in the use of AI or ChatGPT among applications and how they are handling candidates likely to have relied on it. Many schools declined to comment or did not respond; Emory spokesperson Sylvia Carson said “it&#8217;s too soon for our admissions folks to offer any clear observations.”



<blockquote class="wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow">
“I no longer believe there&#8217;s a way to innocently use the word &#8216;tapestry&#8217; in an essay; if the word &#8216;tapestry&#8217; appears, it was generated by ChatGPT.”Mike, essay consultant and former editor-in-chief of Cornell Business Journal
</blockquote>



<hr class="wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity"/>



But editing consultants told&nbsp;Forbes&nbsp;that if they were able to spot suspected AI use having read just dozens or hundreds of essays, admissions committees reviewing many multiples more could have an even easier time picking up on these patterns. Ben Toll, the dean of undergraduate admissions at George Washington University, explained just how easy it is for admissions officers to sniff out AI-written applications.



“When you&#8217;ve read thousands of essays over the years, AI-influenced essays stick out,” Toll told&nbsp;Forbes. “They may not raise flags to the casual reader, but from the standpoint of an admissions application review, they are often ineffective and a missed opportunity by the student.”



In fact, GWU’s admissions staff trained this year on sample essays that included one penned with the assistance of ChatGPT, Toll said—and it took less than a minute for a committee member to spot it.



The words were “thin, hollow, and flat,” he said. “While the essay filled the page and responded to the prompt, it didn&#8217;t give the admissions team any information to help move the application towards an admit decision.”&nbsp;(Disclosure: One of the article’s authors, Alexandra, has occasionally shared feedback with college applicants on their essays.)



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-a-demand-for-human-vibes">A demand for “human vibes”</h2>



In December 2023, an unusual request popped up on Indiana Pejic’s Fiverr account: “Could you edit and proofread my personal statement, 1,000 words? I partly wrote it with ChatGPT and would appreciate it if you could make it sound less robotic.” The request was from a Korean student applying for a PhD in Renaissance Literature at the University of Cambridge.



Pejic—a freelancer in Serbia who has three master’s degrees and one PhD—has edited roughly 100 personal statements and college essays through Fiverr. Though she initially feared her business would take a hit with the onset of ChatGPT, the reality has been quite the opposite: the AI boom has fueled unprecedented demand for editors adept at making computer-generated writing sound like the real thing. “ChatGPT is extremely wordy,” she said, and “there are many abstract words that don&#8217;t really connect well.” Today, she charges up to $100 to add “<a href="https://www.fiverr.com/indyomo/manually-edit-rewrite-and-humanize-ai-chatgpt-content?context_referrer=search_gigs&amp;source=top-bar&amp;ref_ctx_id=01d2d30f7d31403ab370b9c53cce4dc0&amp;pckg_id=1&amp;pos=2&amp;ad_key=2a7efde7-d2f5-4994-9e60-2f924d873cfa&amp;context_type=auto&amp;funnel=01d2d30f7d31403ab370b9c53cce4dc0&amp;seller_online=true&amp;imp_id=92806632-babb-46aa-8a8b-fb5fc7b31dfd" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">human vibes</a>” to AI-written essays. (Others offering similar services through Fiverr charge anywhere from $10 to $150 depending on the length.)



Lara Cantos, an editor and translator in Mexico, said she has seen so many repetitive groups of words and sentence constructions that she’s made a glossary of terms that set off AI alarms. “It’s specific terminology and sentence structure that starts repeating itself, and the use of the same adjectives again and again,” she said. (“Tapestry,” she noted, also makes recurring appearances.)



<blockquote class="wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow">
“I partly wrote it with ChatGPT and would appreciate it if you could make it sound less robotic.”A student applying for a PhD at the University of Cambridge
</blockquote>



<hr class="wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity"/>



Mike, from Capitol Editors, says he, too, has kept a running list. It includes describing something that “aligns seamlessly with my aspirations” or “stems from a deep-seated passion,” or references one’s “leadership prowess,” “entrepreneurial/educational journey” and “commitment to continuous improvement and innovation.” (One structure that’s a giveaway, he added, is “not merely X, but Y,” or “not just X, but Y.”)



All the consultants&nbsp;Forbes&nbsp;spoke to said that AI tools are fairly popular among international students applying for admission abroad who turn to the likes of ChatGPT because English isn’t their first language. In some cases, they’ll feed the AI ideas or prompts in their native speech to get started with a first draft; in others, they’ll rely more heavily on the tech. “I just received an order from a student in Switzerland applying for the U.S. with a ChatGPT-generated essay,” Cantos told&nbsp;Forbes. “Some of the AI-written content sounds like literal translations.”



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-a-higher-ed-wild-west">A Higher-ed Wild West</h2>



While AI tools that can write and refine large blocks of text continue to develop at a breakneck speed—becoming both&nbsp;<a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-023-45644-9" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">better at writing</a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wired.com/story/use-of-ai-is-seeping-into-academic-journals-and-its-proving-difficult-to-detect/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">harder to detect</a>—schools are struggling to keep up and reach consensus on how to address them in applications. And students, in the meantime, are both seeking out clearer policies (and pushing the limits) on what they can and cannot do with these tools.



“I don&#8217;t think there is anything even approaching a consistent approach to the problem,” said Chris Reed, executive director of admissions at Texas A&amp;M.



Each admissions office has different rules on AI use in applications—ranging from the University of Southern California’s stringent “zero-tolerance” policy, to Georgia Tech’s position that students are allowed to use AI as a “helpful collaborator,” to Texas A&amp;M’s stance that applicants can submit AI-generated content because the university has moved away from using the standard college essay as a writing sample. (In fact, one of the prompts for Texas A&amp;M’s honors program is to use an AI platform like ChatGPT or Google’s Bard to write an essay, and then&nbsp;<a href="https://twitter.com/superamit/status/1740149257422913940" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">critique</a>&nbsp;how well it was able to present an argument.)



“So much of it just depends on the individual institution and how they&#8217;re using essays in their process,” said Reed from Texas A&amp;M, noting that some 30% of the admissions essays they now receive use AI in some capacity according to AI detection tool GPTZero.



Other universities are less flexible. At the University of California, which has 10 campuses across the state, prospective students may use AI for brainstorming and creating an outline but the final draft must be “independently written”—and answers that include an “unedited AI response” (such as a direct copy-paste from ChatGPT) could be flagged as plagiarism, spokesperson Rachel Zaentz told&nbsp;Forbes&nbsp;in an email. “It would be more work for [applicants] to try building a strong ChatGPT prompt than it would be to develop their own original responses to the questions,” she added.



The Common Application, used by more than a million students each year to apply to over 1,000 academic institutions, also considers “the substantive content or output of an artificial intelligence platform” a form of plagiarism under its&nbsp;<a href="https://www.commonapp.org/files/Common-App-Fraud-Policy.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">fraud policy</a>. Common App president Jenny Rickard told&nbsp;Forbes&nbsp;“we investigate all fraud allegations, and if they are substantiated, we take appropriate disciplinary steps.” She did not say how, exactly, possible instances of AI-related plagiarism are investigated, though she noted the Common App does not use AI detection tools. The consequences, however, can be severe, and the disciplinary actions include reporting the findings to all member colleges on a student’s “My Colleges” list.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-detection-an-imperfect-science">Detection, an imperfect science</h2>



It’s no wonder Common App isn’t relying on tools that promise to weed out AI-generated content: it’s still&nbsp;<a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2023/08/14/prove-false-positive-ai-detection-turnitin-gptzero/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">notoriously inaccurate</a>, so much so that OpenAI shuttered&nbsp;<a href="https://openai.com/blog/new-ai-classifier-for-indicating-ai-written-text" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">its own AI detection software.</a>&nbsp;Leaders in the space like GPTZero have changed course, now offering schools high-level analysis of how AI is being used in applications rather than pinpointing problematic essays. Other creators of detection software have warned against the use of the technology in admissions altogether.



<blockquote class="wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow">
Disciplinary actions for using AI on The Common Application&nbsp;include reporting the findings to all member colleges on a student’s “My Colleges” list.Jenny Rickard, CEO and President of Common App
</blockquote>



<hr class="wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity"/>



Eric Mitchell, a PhD student at Stanford who built&nbsp;<a href="https://ericmitchell.ai/detectgpt/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">DetectGPT</a>, called it “a total minefield,” cautioning that while research into detection software is worthwhile, the resulting tools are simply not ready for primetime in higher ed. College admissions is such a critical moment in a person’s life, he said in an interview, and “the cost of falsely condemning someone&#8217;s essay is just so high, [that] I&#8217;m not sure we can accept a 2% false positive rate.” It’s unclear how widely schools are using this software in admissions, but both Mitchell and GPTZero’s CEO Edward Tian said educators have expressed interest.



Like a majority of the schools&nbsp;Forbes&nbsp;contacted for this story, GWU’s dean of undergrad admissions did not say whether AI detection tools are part of its review process. But he did make a case for aspiring attendees to avoid ChatGPT and its peers altogether.



“By the time a student is filling out their application, most of the materials will have already been solidified. The applicants can&#8217;t change their grades. They can&#8217;t go back in time and change the activities they&#8217;ve been involved in,” Toll said. “But the essay is the one place they remain in control until the minute they press submit on the application. I want students to understand how much we value getting to know them through their writing and how tools like generative AI end up stripping their voice from their admission application.”

Chatbot ChatGPT

Did You Use ChatGPT On Your School Applications? These Words May Tip Off Admissions

<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-topline">TOPLINE</h2>



Hospitalizations for Covid spiked 20% in the week after Christmas, according to new <a href="https://covid.cdc.gov/covid-data-tracker/#datatracker-home" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">data</a> from Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, along with an increase in Covid deaths, and flu hospitalizations and deaths, solidifying what experts predicted to be a “severe” season for respiratory illnesses as Americans traveled and gathered for holiday celebrations.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">KEY FACTS</h2>



There were 34,798 Covid-related hospitalizations during the holiday week ending in Dec. 30, 2023, a 20.4% increase from the week prior, according to&nbsp;<a href="https://covid.cdc.gov/covid-data-tracker/#datatracker-home" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">data</a>&nbsp;from Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.



Covid-related deaths were up <a href="https://covid.cdc.gov/covid-data-tracker/#maps_percent-covid-deaths" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">12.5%</a> during this period, with the highest concentrations in New Jersey, Massachusetts, Missouri and Oklahoma.



New Omicron Covid variant JN.1 made up&nbsp;<a href="https://covid.cdc.gov/covid-data-tracker/#variant-proportions" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">61.6%</a>&nbsp;of all Covid cases in the two-week period between Dec. 24, 2023 and January 6, up 22.8% from the previous two-week period.



There were&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cdc.gov/flu/weekly/index.htm#ORIAM" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">39 states</a>&nbsp;with high or very high levels for respiratory illness, including Covid, the flu and respiratory syncytial virus—this is up from 34 states the previous week.



Flu cases increased by <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/flu/weekly/index.htm" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">17.5%</a>, and there were <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/flu/weekly/index.htm#NHSN" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">20,066</a> flu-related hospitalizations, up over 5% from the previous week, according to the CDC.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">KEY BACKGROUND</h2>



Doctors at Cedars-Sinai Hospital in Los Angeles&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cedars-sinai.org/newsroom/preparing-for-a-tripledemic-holiday-season/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">warned</a>&nbsp;in November 2023 that experts were preparing for an intense tripledemic holiday season. “It’s going to be a severe respiratory virus season,” associate director of Hospital Epidemiology at Cedars-Sinai, said in a statement. The tripledemic is a simultaneous rise in Covid, flu and RSV cases, which typically peaks during the winter season each year. Because of an uptick in respiratory illness-related hospitalizations, several healthcare systems across the country have reinstated&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/ariannajohnson/2024/01/04/heres-where-mask-mandates-are-coming-back-as-covid-cases-and-hospitalizations-rise/?sh=6e54ea132542">mask mandates</a>. Healthcare facilities in New York City began requiring masks for all patients, visitors and staff earlier this week. After the Illinois Department of Public advised hospitals to increase their mitigation efforts in December, several hospitals reinstated mask mandates, including Chicago-based Rush University Medical Center, Cook County Health and Endeavor Health. Berkshire Health System in Massachusetts began requiring masks on Wednesday, citing a “<a href="https://www.berkshirehealthsystems.org/news/winter-respiratory-viruses-on-the-rise-bhs-reinstitutes-masking-and-updates-visitor-guidelines" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">significant increase</a>” in local respiratory cases. After Los Angeles County entered the&nbsp;<a href="http://publichealth.lacounty.gov/acd/ncorona2019/masks/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">medium level</a>&nbsp;for Covid hospitalizations last month, the county required masks in all its hospitals.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">TANGENT</h2>



New Covid variant JN.1 has been driving an increase in Covid cases across the country as it’s been rapidly spreading. JN.1 only made up&nbsp;<a href="https://covid.cdc.gov/covid-data-tracker/#variant-proportions" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">3.3%</a>&nbsp;of all Covid cases during the two-week period ending in Nov. 11, 2023, so it’s grown by almost 60% in a little over two months. The World Health Organization&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/roberthart/2023/12/20/jn1-covid-variant-of-interest-spreading-fast-in-us---heres-what-to-know/?sh=4fafa4dc10cc">classified</a>&nbsp;it as a “variant of interest” in December 2023, meaning it’s spreading in a way that may pose “an emerging risk to global public health.” JN.1 is an offshoot of the highly mutated&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/ariannajohnson/2023/11/28/what-to-know-about-rapidly-spreading-pirola-covid-variant-ba286-and-if-vaccines-offer-protection/?sh=27f10c0e1978">Pirola</a>&nbsp;(BA.2.86) strain that was spreading rapidly last fall. Some healthcare experts worried Pirola wouldn’t be protected against the updated monovalent Covid vaccines since they specifically target XBB variants. However, Moderna, Novavax and Pfizer-BioNTech said their shots provided some protection. Because of how rapidly JN.1 spread, the CDC&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cdc.gov/respiratory-viruses/whats-new/SARS-CoV-2-variant-JN.1.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">said</a>&nbsp;it was the “fastest growing variant in the United States.” WHO also&nbsp;<a href="https://www.who.int/docs/default-source/coronaviruse/18122023_jn.1_ire_clean.pdf?sfvrsn=6103754a_3" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">acknowledged</a>&nbsp;JN.1’s growth, stating it made up the majority of all BA.2.86 subvariants circulating globally, though available evidence suggested it posed a low risk to public health.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">FURTHER READING</h2>



<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/ariannajohnson/2024/01/04/heres-where-mask-mandates-are-coming-back-as-covid-cases-and-hospitalizations-rise/?sh=6e54ea132542">Here’s Where Mask Mandates Are Coming Back As Covid Cases And Hospitalizations Rise</a>&nbsp;(Forbes)



<a href="https://www.cedars-sinai.org/newsroom/preparing-for-a-tripledemic-holiday-season/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Preparing for a ‘Tripledemic’ Holiday Season</a>&nbsp;(Cedars-Sinai)



<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/roberthart/2023/12/20/jn1-covid-variant-of-interest-spreading-fast-in-us---heres-what-to-know/?sh=4fafa4dc10cc">JN.1 Covid ‘Variant Of Interest’ Spreading Fast In U.S. — Here’s What To Know</a>&nbsp;(Forbes)



<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/ariannajohnson/2023/11/28/what-to-know-about-rapidly-spreading-pirola-covid-variant-ba286-and-if-vaccines-offer-protection/?sh=1493441c1978">What To Know About Rapidly Spreading ‘Pirola’ Covid Variant BA.2.86—And If Vaccines Offer Protection</a>&nbsp;(Forbes)

TUNISIA-HEALTH-VIRUS-TOURISM-HOSPITAL

Covid Hospitalizations And Deaths See Double-Digit Spike After Holiday — Amid Surge In Respiratory Illnesses

More than a decade has passed since South African Paralympian, Oscar Pistorius, known as ‘blade runner’, shot his girlfriend, Reeva Steenkamp, through a locked bathroom door. Now out on parole, he is at home, as experts and social media weigh in.



Oscar Pistorius, once hailed as a trailblazing Paralympian, has been released on parole after nearly nine years behind bars in South Africa. His release, confirmed by the country’s prison authorities, marks the end of a journey that has for years gripped the attention of audiences worldwide.



“He was admitted into the system of Community Corrections and is now at home,” concluded the statement from South Africa’s Department of Correctional Services today.



Pistorius, an acclaimed sprinter and gold medal-winning athlete, was convicted of shooting his then-girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp through the bathroom door of their Pretoria home on Valentine’s Day in 2013. The subsequent case became widely publicized both locally and internationally due to both Pistorius&#8217; and Steenkamp&#8217;s prominent social profiles, as well as the horrific end to what had appeared to be an iconic celebrity relationship.



The shooting of Steenkamp not only ended a life but also marked the start of a convoluted legal saga. Initially convicted of culpable homicide, Pistorius&#8217; sentence was later ruled murder after a series of appeals and retrials, highlighting the complexities and nuances of the judicial process.



The relentless media scrutiny brought unprecedented attention to South African legal proceedings, influencing public opinion and raising critical questions about celebrity culture, media ethics, and the justice system&#8217;s handling of domestic violence cases.


<div class="wp-block-image">
<figure class="aligncenter is-resized"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="595" src="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/GettyImages-162069565.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-60887" style="width:638px;height:auto" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/GettyImages-162069565.jpg 1024w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/GettyImages-162069565-300x174.jpg 300w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/GettyImages-162069565-768x446.jpg 768w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Outside the Pretoria High Court on March 4, 2014, in Pretoria, South Africa. (Photo by Herman Verwey/Foto24/Gallo Images/Getty Images)</figcaption></figure></div>


“He has served more than 50% of his sentence. And the parole, or rather the Correctional Services Act and the regulations make provision for parole… He is being very carefully monitored, and the conditions are there… The parole board has set stringent checks on him,” comments William Booth, a defence counsel in South Africa specializing in criminal law, to FORBES AFRICA.



The conditions of Pistorius&#8217; parole, as outlined by South African correctional services, underscore a set of requirements. His life, once marked by the freedom of the running track, is now confined to the boundaries of his uncle&#8217;s residence in the upmarket suburb of Waterkloof, Pretoria. Additionally, his rehabilitation includes therapy for anger management and programs addressing gender-based violence, a nod to the underlying issues his case has brought to the fore as well as stern adherences to a daily routine and a ban on alcohol consumption.



The most significant condition to his release, which is quite uncommon to parole cases, is his strict adherence to a media blackout.



“I think the reason for that is because the case has been dealt with worldwide in the media on all platforms,” Booth explains. “They feel that he should not give interviews, be paid for those, write articles or have articles written or even, let&#8217;s say write a book and get paid for that. So I think that is the feeling in this instance. And in many cases, when people are released on parole, there&#8217;s never any fear of the person going to speak to the media, because it&#8217;s not a case that the public have any particular interest in. But here, certainly the world and the public internationally, and, of course, nationally, have a very specific interest in this matter.”


<div class="wp-block-image">
<figure class="aligncenter is-resized"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="683" src="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/GettyImages-476628927.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-60886" style="width:702px;height:auto" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/GettyImages-476628927.jpg 1024w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/GettyImages-476628927-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/GettyImages-476628927-768x512.jpg 768w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption"> (Photo by Herman Verwey/Foto24/Gallo Images/Getty Images)</figcaption></figure></div>


Even with these conditions in place, activists hold strong views about granting parole to a person convicted of murder in South Africa, a country with one of the highest femicide rates in the world.


<div class="wp-block-image">
<figure class="alignleft size-full is-resized"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="636" height="1024" src="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/GettyImages-161658209.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-60889" style="width:304px;height:auto" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/GettyImages-161658209.jpg 636w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/GettyImages-161658209-186x300.jpg 186w" sizes="(max-width: 636px) 100vw, 636px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Reeva Steenkamp. (Photo by Mike Holmes/The Herald/Gallo Images/Getty Images)</figcaption></figure></div>


“Thirteen years and five months was a very lenient sentence in the first place, but that he got out after serving only [over] eight years in prison just reflects the legal system&#8217;s inability to address femicide as a pandemic,” says Sabrina Walter, Chairperson of Women For Change, a non-profit organization advocating against Gender Based Violence and Femicide in South Africa.



“I still maintain that Oscar Pistorius should have served the full sentence for the brutal murder of Reeva. Given the severity of the crime, I feel that justice has not been adequately served. My thoughts are with June today and everyone who dearly loved Reeva.”



The most resonant voice in the aftermath of Pistorius&#8217; release is that of June, mother of the late Steenkamp, issued in a statement early this morning. While acknowledging the inevitability of Pistorius’ parole, she stated that she and her “dear late husband Barry” have never been able to come to terms with Reeva&#8217;s death, or the way she died.



“Has there been justice for Reeva? Has Oscar served enough time?” Steenkamp said in her statement on Friday. “There can never be justice if your loved one is never coming back, and no amount of time served will bring Reeva back. We, who remain behind, are the ones serving a life sentence. With the release of Oscar Pistorius on parole, my only desire is that I will be allowed to live my last years in peace with my focus remaining on the Reeva Rebecca Steenkamp Foundation, to continue Reeva&#8217;s legacy.”


<div class="wp-block-image">
<figure class="aligncenter size-full is-resized"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="682" src="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/GettyImages-478398457.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-60885" style="width:520px;height:auto" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/GettyImages-478398457.jpg 1024w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/GettyImages-478398457-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/GettyImages-478398457-768x512.jpg 768w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Oscar Pistorius at the Pretoria High Court on March 13, 2014, in Pretoria, South Africa.(Photo by Alet Pretorius/Foto24/Gallo Images &#8211; Pool /Getty Images)</figcaption></figure></div>


The Reeva Rebecca Steenkamp Foundation, established in her honor, continues to address issues of domestic violence and support women in need, reflecting her commitment to social change.



As Pistorius begins his life under the conditions of parole, the case leaves a lasting imprint on public discourse surrounding the criminal justice system, the treatment of high-profile figures within it, and the ongoing challenges in addressing domestic violence.

Tag: COVID-19

FORBES AFRICA SOCIAL MEDIA