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The CCAFRICA Region - Regional Coordinator Uganda

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.

 


News from the region

East African states agree on actions to strengthen food safety in the region

By Ms Sylvia Kirabo, Head of Public Relations and Marketing for UNBS and Hakim B. Mufumbiro, Regional Coordinator CCAFRICA Policy and decision makers on food safety and Codex activities of the East African Community (EAC) held a meeting on 1 September, hosted by the Uganda National Bureau of Standards (UNBS), which also serves as the national Codex Contact Point in Uganda, resolving to implement 11 actions to improve food safety control and Codex related systems in the region. The high-level participants from [...]
29 September 2023

Codex Trust Fund project training under way in Nigeria

Members of the National Codex Committee (NCC) of Nigeria are undergoing capacity development training on the scientific basis of Codex and food safety risk analysis. The training programme, which is funded by the Codex Trust Fund, will improve the technical capacities of NCC members and their knowledge on food safety risk assessment, the risk management framework, risk management activities and risk communication. The training will also improve Nigeria’s capacities to participate effectively in Codex and implement the revised NCC procedural manual. At [...]
21 September 2023

1st National Codex Committee for Somalia resolves to adopt over 80 Codex standards

by Mohamed Aden Hersi, Codex Contact Point (CCP) for Somalia and Hakim Mufumbiro, Regional Coordinator, CCAFRICA Wednesday 23 August 2023 marked a significant milestone for Somalia when the country’s 1st National Codex Committee (NCC) meeting was held, following two days of intensive capacity building sessions involving national stakeholders. The sessions, held on 21 and 22 August in Mogadishu, Somalia, provided training on Codex work management and were attended by 27 different state and non-state stakeholders who are members of the NCC. Somalia [...]
16 September 2023

The Codex Trust Fund project in Mauritius

To consolidate its national Codex structures and to increase its participation in international food standards drafting at the level of the Codex Alimentarius Commission, Mauritius has been filing for assistance from the Codex Trust Fund (CTF) since 2012. In 2020, Mauritius was successful in its application and was the sole country in the African region to benefit from CTF funding. Mauritius’ CTF project will run activities geared towards building a strong and sustainable national Codex structure, with the ultimate aim [...]
29 August 2023

Codex Trust Fund training in Mali aims to make food safety a reality in the country

Recently two training sessions have taken place in Mali (a training session on Codex for the national media on 3 August 2023 and a training session on Codex for the country’s Economic, Social, Environmental and Cultural Council on 10 August 2023) as part of the 3-year Codex Trust Fund (CTF) project being implemented in the country. A key component of the project involves awareness-raising activities for members of the country’s Economic, Social, Environmental and Cultural Council and for journalists. The training [...]
23 August 2023

Launch of the Codex Trust Fund 2 project in Guinea-Bissau

On Monday, 10 July 2023, the launch of the Codex Alimentarius Trust Fund 2 project in Guinea-Bissau took place in the capital Bissau at the Royal Hotel from 09.00 am. Under the leadership of the Secretary General of the Ministry of Health of Guinea-Bissau, Doctor Quiletche Na Isna, the launching ceremony brought together representatives of State institutions, laboratories and representatives of the private food processing sector of the country and consumers. The Secretary General of the Ministry of Health was accompanied [...]
03 August 2023

Traditional marketers in Lagos, Nigeria learn from World Food Safety Day hygiene talks

The Environmental/Occupational Health and Safety Directorate of Lagos State Ministry of Health, in partnership with the Lagos State Safety Commission of Lagos State Ministry of Special Duties and Inter-Governmental Relations marked World Food Safety Day with the theme "Food Standards Save Lives" at Mile 12 International Market, the largest market of fresh farm produce in sub-Saharan Africa. As a relevant stakeholder in the food industry, a food safety advocate and “acclaimed food evangelist”, Rasaq Oke of FOODDOTCOMACADEMY SERVICES was invited to [...]
11 July 2023

Nigerian food safety experts raise awareness throughout week of World Food Safety Day

The food safety training organization, HACCP (Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points) Academy Nigeria (HAN) spent the week of World Food Safety Day taking their expertise to the grassroots and raising awareness about good hygiene practices in various contexts. For seven days, HAN experts talked with producers, vendors and consumers about avoiding food safety hazards. On day one of their World Food Safety Day campaign, the team visited a farm where they advised on good practices in crop production and about [...]
11 July 2023

Benin’s food safety agency spreads the World Food Safety Day message

The Benin Food Safety Agency (ABSSA) is the competent authority responsible for organizing World Food Safety Day activities at the national level in Benin, in collaboration with international organizations. Organizing and celebrating such a day involves communicating about food-related health risks. As such, ABSSA organized this year’s activities with the aim of raising public awareness and inspiring action to prevent, detect and manage food-borne health risks. Activities were rolled out in two phases: firstly, the activities were promoted in the media, [...]
29 June 2023

World Food Safety Day hits the television news in Chad

On 7 June World Food Safety Day was celebrated in Chad under the theme "Food standards save lives". As part of the celebrations, the manager of the Cabinet d’Expertise Six Sigma gave an interview to Télévision Tchad24, a private Chadian television channel based in N'Djamena, Chad. The interview focused on the issue of a food safety culture and the popularization of food standards in Chad. Responding to journalists’ questions, the manager of Cabinet d’Expertise Six Sigma listed a few points, which can [...]
28 June 2023

CCAFRICA Coordinator

All information on Codex is public and free.

For regional enquiries contact:

CCAFRICA Secretariat

Uganda National Bureau of Standards

Plot 2 - 12, Bypass Link, Industrial & Business park, Kyaliwajala road,
P.O Box 6329 Kampala, Uganda
Tel: +256 (041) 7333250 / 0417333251 / 0417333252
Email: [email protected]
Web: www.unbs.go.ug