El Comité Coordinador para África fue creado por la Comisión del Codex Alimentarius en 1972, con el mandato de ejercer “la coordinación general en la preparación de normas relativas a la región de África”. El comité celebró su primera reunión en la FAO en 1974, con la asistencia de 19 países.
Al iniciarse el mandato del nuevo coordinador regional, el Acuerdo sobre la Zona de Libre Comercio Continental Africana (AfCFTA, por sus siglas en inglés), que entró en vigor en mayo de 2020, ha reforzado la necesidad de contar con un sistema eficiente y eficaz para gestionar las medidas sanitarias y fitosanitarias, en particular la inocuidad alimentaria, en todo el continente a medida que sus fronteras se abren al comercio.
El coordinador regional tiene su sede en la Oficina Nacional de Normalización de Uganda, un organismo estatutario dependiente del Ministerio de Comercio, Industria y Cooperativas que supervisa, en el marco de su mandato, la promoción y el uso de las normas.
Como coordinador regional, Uganda tiene la intención de colaborar estrechamente con los diferentes países a través de encuestas, seminarios web y talleres para identificar las necesidades y los nuevos problemas, y generar conciencia sobre los temas prioritarios en materia de inocuidad de los alimentos y sobre las normas del Codex. También se analizará la situación de la inocuidad de los alimentos en la región en términos más amplios a través de un estudio piloto. Al fortalecer la colaboración con organismos regionales como la Unión Africana, la Organización Africana de Normalización y la Secretaría de la Zona de Libre Comercio Continental Africana, Uganda pretende asimismo mejorar la labor de incidencia en la región.
By KEMBOU Etienne, Nutrition & Food Safety Focal Point in the Multi-Country Support Team (MCAT) Burkina Faso; Mr Dominique Ouedraogo, Codex Contact Point, Burkina Faso
From 21–23 November 2023, 33 national experts in Burkina Faso underwent capacity building and training on the generation of quality data usable by the Codex Alimentarius.
Specifically, the experts were trained on five themes: procedures for developing Codex standards; basic principles and procedures for food safety risk assessment; the role of scientific expert bodies (FAO/WHO JECFA, [...]
This year's edition of the CODEX magazine, titled "60 years of standards", is out now! Read some of our articles online and click on the link below to download the full publication.
This article by Haklim Mufumbiro (Uganda), Regional Coordinator for CCAFRICAThe year 2023 marked the return to normalcy for mostactivities, following two years of uncertainty due to COVID-19 and several virtual engagements in all shapes and sizes. Most of the countries in the region continued, with impressive awareness events during [...]
By Ms Lusubilo Witson MWAMAKAMBA, Regional Food Safety Focal Point, WHO Regional Office for Africa and Hakim B. MUFUMBIRO, Regional Coordinator CCAFRICA
As part of commemorations of the 60th anniversary of Codex in the African region, the World Health Organization (WHO) Regional Office for Africa in collaboration with the FAO/WHO Codex Coordinating Committee for Africa (CCAFRICA) conducted a two-and-a-half-day regional training workshop on enhancing participation in the work of Codex and preparation of robust applications for submission to the Codex Trust [...]
The Malawi National Codex Committee (NCC) attended a three-day training session 15 to 17 November 2023 as part of the country’s Codex Trust Fund project.
The training, which was about data generation for Codex Alimentarius, informed the Malawi NCC of the basic principles of toxicology, risk profile, exposure and consumption data and gave an overview of the FAO/WHO committees and the general Codex framework of risk analysis and risk assessment.
Speaking at the opening function of the training, the Director-General of the [...]
In 2020, Mauritius had a Codex Trust Fund application approved for a project that is geared towards building a stronger and more sustainable national Codex structure, with the ultimate aim of increasing the country’s participation in the work of Codex.
As part of this project, a workshop was organized 21–25 August 2023 on “Achieving leadership in the Codex process,” which was organized by Codex Mauritius, Ministry of Agroindustry, in close collaboration with the WHO country office. The workshop was conducted by [...]
The National Food Safety Authority of Egypt (NFSA) and the African Union Commission (AUC) convened a meeting for African Food Regulatory Authorities, to advance the regional food safety agenda, as a way to support the region’s food security and trade goals, and in particular to progress the Regional Food Safety Strategy and the creation of the African Food Safety Agency (AFSA). The meeting was held in Cairo from 11–13 October 2023 and brought together food regulatory professionals from 38 countries of [...]
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 [...]
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 [...]
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 [...]
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 [...]