Parliament’s Education, Sciences and Creative Industries Select Committee said on Friday it wants government to ban foreign nationals from operating spaza shops and maintain an updated register of people who sell snacks at schools.

This comes after the deaths of several young primary school learners and hundreds others who have taken ill, owing to poisonous snacks.

African National Congress secretary-general Fikile Mbalula announced on Thursday that the party is exploring the development of tailored local by-laws to better regulate spaza shop operations and ensure public health is prioritised.

The committee noted the Gauteng Department of Education's temporary suspension of consumables within and around school premises.

“This intervention was occasioned by foreign nationals who perhaps were thankless to the generosity of South Africans, who were always willing to share their country with the visitors. Now the time and circumstances determine that there be strict enforcement of legislation and policies,” said committee chairperson Makhi Feni.

Feni said the committee also wanted government to ban situations where homes were sub-let to illegal immigrants for purposes of operating spaza shops.

“The undesirable effects of foreign ownership, like the protection fee and the massive killings over the collection of these monies, should be decisively dealt with,” he explained.

Feni said the committee’s interest was the safety of poor South Africans and their children, noting that the report of poisonous snacks sold to children had reached crisis point.

Meanwhile, ActionSA said it believed it was unacceptable that learners continued to be exposed to dangers owing to inadequate food safety oversight in communities, calling for an immediate clampdown on these unmonitored vendors.

“It is imperative that health and safety checks are enforced rigorously, and that all food vendors operating around schools are certified and regularly inspected to ensure compliance with food safety standards,” said ActionSA Free State chairperson Patricia Kopane.    

Kopane pointed out that parents should never have to fear that their children’s health will be compromised by buying lunch or snacks near their schools.

The party called on local and provincial authorities to act decisively.

ActionSA proposed the establishment of strict regulatory frameworks for informal vendors and spaza shops operating in school zones to ensure that only those meeting the highest standards of food safety are permitted to operate.

“We demand that food safety be prioritised to prevent the recurrence of incidents like this, which compromise the health and future of our youth. The safety and well-being of our children is non-negotiable,” said Kopane.