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.
World Food Safety Day messages were delivered this year by ministers and experts in Uganda, who encouraged food business operators throughout the supply chain to help improve food safety within the country. The messages were delivered through TV and print media and a three-day training course was implemented “for food business operators and regulators in collaboration with the Ministry of Agriculture, Animal Industries and Fisheries”, according to The New Vision news outlet. The activities were organized as part of the [...]
by Mr. Celestin Ntahomvukiye Codex Contact Point Burundi
Five East African Community Partner States Burundi, Kenya, South Sudan, Tanzania and Uganda are currently implementing a Codex Trust Fund (CTF) group project with the aim of strengthening national Codex Structures. One of the identified activities is to establish a twinning programme between partner states with well-functioning structures and those with their structures still under development. Burundi was allocated to Kenya for this mentorship program.
The Codex Contact Point (CCP) from Kenya in liaison [...]
By Sylvia Kirabo, Head of Public Relations and Marketing at UNBS and Hakim Mufumbiro, Regional Coordinator CCAFRICA
Uganda, which doubles as the current CCAFRICA Coordinator, has concluded a four-day Twinning and Mentorship programme on Codex Activities between Uganda and Tanzania that was held at the Uganda National Bureau of Standards (UNBS) Headquarters in Kampala from 19 to 22 September 2022.
The objective of the twinning arrangement is to strengthen Member States capacity and efficiency in engaging and management of Codex activities especially [...]
The 24th session of the FAO/WHO Coordinating Committee for Africa ended virtually in Kampala, Uganda on 13 September 2022, having reached agreement on a series of proposals that will now be forwarded to the upcoming Codex Alimentarius Commission in November this year.
The Committee completed its work on guidelines for developing harmonized food safety legislation for the CCAFRICA region and a proposed regional standard for dried meat products traded in the region. New work proposals on kethiakh, a type of dried [...]
Burundi, a Member of Codex since 1963, needs to have an operational National Codex Alimentarius Committee and has begun to sensitize decision-makers on the importance of Codex standards. The committee will help to enforce food standards and Burundi’s participation in fair competition in international trade. This emerged from the joint FAO/Burundi Bureau of Standardization two-day workshop on Codex, which took place in Bujumbura from 24 to 25 August 2022 and was followed by a National Technical working group of Codex [...]
The FAO/WHO Coordinating Committee for Africa opened virtually from Kampala, Uganda on Monday 5 September 2022. In opening remarks, Hon. Ms. Harriet Ntabazi, State Minister for Trade, Uganda, called for harmonization of food safety standards across the continent. “If we merge as Africa and talk one language, if we concretize our standards together then the level of competitiveness as a continent will grow … in other markets.”
Hon. Mrs. Margaret Muhanga Mugisha, State Minister for Primary Health Care, welcomed nearly 200 [...]
On 5 August 2022 the President of Liberia George Weah signed into law a series of bills. The official Facebook page of the Liberia Presidency and government websites describe the measures as a spur to national inclusiveness and to fight corruption. Amongst the bills signed is “an Act to Establish the Liberia Standards Authority.”
Stephen Mambu, Codex Contact Point for Liberia said, “Liberia now has a national standardization body known as the Liberia Standards Authority (LiSA). As part of this legislation, [...]
The National Codex Committee of Nigeria, in collaboration with FAO Nigeria, under the sponsorship of the Codex Trust Fund, held a two-day regional workshop from 26to 27July 2022 in Lagos, Nigeria to create awareness on the importance of using Codex Standards for farmers, processors, small and medium enterprises, and to train local journalists on the reporting of Codex activities.
With more than 65 participants in attendance, the general objective of the workshop was to spread information and awareness on Codex Alimentarius [...]
by the Codex Contact Point of Liberia
The fourth meeting of the National Codex Committee (NCC) of Liberia was held on the 25 July 2022 at the National Public Health Institute of Liberia (NPHIL). The NCC meeting, which is held quarterly, brings together key national actors from both the private and public sector to discuss and take action on Codex work and food safety.
The meeting opened with several statements from stakeholders. In his opening remarks Walter Sayor, President of the National [...]
By John Oppong-Otoo, Food Safety Officer at AU-IBAR and Hakim Mufumbiro, Regional Coordinator CCAFRICA
Nineteen Member States of the African Union (AU) (Algeria, Benin, Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, Cameroon, Cote d’Ivoire, Democratic Republic of Congo, Egypt, Guinea Equatorial, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea Bissau, Liberia, Mali, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone and Togo) met between 4 and 6 July 2022 in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso, as part of an initiative to enhance Codex work management within the Member States on the continent.
The regional workshop [...]
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