The ‘Coordinating Committee for Africa’ was established by the Codex Alimentarius Commission in 1972 with a mandate to “exercise general coordination in the preparation of standards relating to the region of Africa”. The committee held its first meeting at FAO in 1974, with 19 countries in attendance.
As the new regional coordinator begins their term, the Agreement of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), which came into effect in May 2020, has reinforced the need for an efficient and effective system for managing sanitary and phytosanitary measures, in particular food safety, across the continent as its borders open for trade.
The regional coordinator is based in the Uganda National Bureau of Standards, a statutory body under the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Co-operatives which oversees, as part of its mandate, the promotion and use of standards.
As regional coordinator, Uganda intends to engage closely with countries via surveys, webinars and workshops to identify needs and emerging issues, create awareness of priority food safety issues and of Codex standards. A pilot study will also explore the food safety situation in broader terms across the region. By strengthening engagement with regional bodies such as the African Union, the African Organisation for Standardisation and the African Continental Free Trade Area Secretariat, Uganda also aims to enhance advocacy work in the region.
To mark World Food Safety Day, the Faculté des Sciences et Techniques de Tanger will hold a physical conference under the theme of “Safe food now for a healthy tomorrow.”
The 7 June event will consist of three subject areas:
“Ionization technology for the development of Moroccan agriculture” from Dr Said Zantar of the Tangier National Institute of Agronomic Research
“Food safety: towards anti-microbial and biodegradable packaging” from Professor Mounir Hassani Zerrouk, of the Polydisciplinary Faculty of Larache
“Bioresources at the service of the [...]
The not-for-profit organization, Work Partnership International Ghana, will celebrate World Food Safety Day this year, by visiting five local markets on 7 June, to create awareness. Organizers will introduce the 5 Keys to Safer Food and information on relevant food safety laws, rules and regulations. Through cookery demonstrations and talks, the aim is to “encourage the market traders, buyers and food handlers to cook healthy and balanced meals for improved health, as well as to learn about safe food handling.”
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Chadian authorities are planning a national event to celebrate World Food Safety Day. A full-day conference and broader media campaign are planned for 7 June, which event organizers, Cabinet d’Expertise Six Sigma, hope will connect with agri-food sector actors and with consumers on the importance of food safety. “This day will be an opportunity to raise public awareness and encourage people to take action to prevent, detect and manage foodborne risks,” they said.
The N'Djamena-based conference will discuss a number of [...]
Kenya has pulled together a multi-stakeholder committee to organize a series of media events for World Food Safety Day this year. The committee, which includes relevant ministry representatives as well as representatives from the private sector and consumer organizations, has put together a series of events “carrying messages on key food safety aspects, which includes antimicrobial resistance, food contaminants, pesticide residues and residues of veterinary drugs in food,” according to the Codex Contact Point, Maryann Kindiki.
“The level of safety of [...]
In Nigeria’s state of Lagos, students are taking part in a project about training in food safety and good handling practices. They will celebrate World Food Safety Day as part of their training programme and plan activities at a local abattoir. They will have an interview session with meat sellers and consumers and have prepared information placards for the event.
They will also give a presentation covering key aspects of safe meat production and handling and have modelled their messaging around [...]
The South African Association for Food Science and Technology is planning a webinar to celebrate World Food Safety Day. The event will take place on 2 June at noon local time (10:00 GMT) with an exciting line up of speakers, including Professor Lucia Anelich, of Anelich Consulting food safety solutions, Susan Featherstone, CEO of SAAFoST and Jane Nock, Chief Technical Food Science Officer for in2food, South Africa.
SAAFoST includes scientists, technologists and other professionals serving the food and allied industries in [...]
A team in Burkina Faso dedicated to organizing activities for World Food Safety Day, met in Ouagadougou on 7 May 2021 to set out a plan for the 7 June celebration and the key messages to disseminate nationally.
Some of the major food safety concerns in the country include the misuse of pesticides in agriculture on fruits, vegetables and cereals and the use of veterinary drugs. Sales of street food without adequate food safety checks are also on the rise, as [...]
Lantomalala Raharinosy Codex Contact Point Madagascar
Despite the context of the Covid 19 pandemic and related restrictions, the National Codex Alimentarius Committee of Madagascar held two days of meetings (partly virtual and partly face-to-face) from 6 to 7 May 2021 which made it possible to develop a procedural manual and establish a 2021-2023 three-year plan based on the Codex Strategic Plan.
These two documents will certainly help us to facilitate the implementation of Codex activities and to improve the effective participation of [...]
By Hakim Baligeya Mufumbiro Uganda National Bureau of Standards Coordinator for the Codex African Region
Partner States in the East African Community (Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda, South Sudan, Tanzania and Uganda) participated in an online training on Codex Electronic Working Platform and Online Commenting System from 28 to 30 April 2021 as one of the capacity building activities to enhance the skill and knowledge of stakeholders in the region in order to better engage and participate in the Codex activities. Considering the [...]
On Thursday 15 April 2021, at the Hotel Ivotel, Abidjan-Plateau, Côte d'Ivoire launched a Capacity Building Project for the National Codex Alimentarius Committee, a project funded by the Codex Trust Fund 2.
Chaired by Mr. KOUASSI Kouamé Bernard, Technical Advisor to the Minister of State, Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, the opening ceremony recorded the physical presence of Mrs. N'GORAN Patricia, SUN Focal Point and Technical Advisor to the Presidency of the Republic of Côte d'Ivoire, Dr ZOMBRE, Daogo Sosthene, [...]
