South Africa's Shipping Industry All Set For Y2K

South Africa's Transport Minister Dullah Omar said the country's aviation and shipping industries will ride out any possible glitches caused by the millennium bug computer problem. "I'm confident that we are on course. The essential part of ensuring Y2K readiness is there," Omar said. "I can say with confidence that there'll be no problems with regard to air traffic. Also with the ports." He said one example of South Africa's readiness for Y2K was the recent implementation of a new Belgian-made container handling system named Cosmos, at the Durban, East London, Cape Town and Port Elizabeth harbors. "The introduction of Cosmos was to bring in new computer technology that is Y2K compatible. We need to ensure that airplanes are able to fly and our ports are operating," Omar said. He said his ministry was working closely with the Air Traffic and Navigation Services Company, and the statutory Civil Aviation Authority in verifying systems compliance. South Africa's readiness for Y2K is of regional importance because the country's Indian Ocean port of Durban is a major shipping point for container cargo in southern Africa. The recent swell of international links which the post-apartheid South Africa has nurtured since 1994 have also made the country's skies the busiest in Africa.