NEW MANAGER FOR FRUIT DESK

AGROBUSINESS advocacy group Agbiz said on Friday that it had appointed Stephanie van der Walt as general manager of its Fruit Desk, a new initiative aimed at ensuring the sector is better represented. Van der Walt was joining from the National Agricultural Marketing Council, where she served since 2010, first as a senior analyst and later as a manager. “The purpose of the desk is to ensure that the South African fruit sector is represented in matters of policy, regulation and market access,” Agbiz said. | African News Agency (ANA)

SACAA STOPS CEMAIR OPERATIONS

THE SOUTH African Civil Aviation Authority (Sacaa) on Friday put a stop to CemAir’s operations, following the suspension of the airlines’ Part 121 and 135 Air Operator Certificates from 5pm with immediate effect. “The suspension was necessitated by Sacaa’s concerns over the systemic failure of the airline’s maintenance controls. In a nutshell, the most recent annual renewal audit revealed CemAir’s inability to prove the continued airworthiness of its fleet,” it said. Last month, the aviation regulator suspended CemAir’s air operator certificates. Sacaa said that it had numerous interactions with CemAir between December 28, 2018, and January 11. | African News Agency (ANA)