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 Hakim B. Mufumbiro, Codex Office, UGANDA
On the margins of the recently concluded 48th Session of the Codex Alimentarius Commission (CAC48), a high-level advocacy event for African Missions in Rome was held on 13 November 2025 at FAO Headquarters. This was the first time that diplomatic representatives from the African region were were convened to build collective support for food safety and Codex activities across the continent. The event saw attendance from Ambassadors, Agricultural Attachés, and delegates from the region who were already [...]
by Rosine Niyonshuti, CCP Rwanda
From 10 to 13 November 2025, the Rwanda Standards Board (RSB), in the capacities of Rwanda’s Codex Contact Point, held a training workshop for members of the National Codex Committee (NCC) with support from TradeMark Africa. The NCC, which represents Rwanda’s participation in the Codex Alimentarius Commission, includes members from academia, food industries, regulatory bodies, consumer associations, and the National Standards Bureau.
The training aimed to strengthen participants’ understanding of the Codex Alimentarius Commission’s procedures, the process [...]
An event titled “Bridging the gap between the parliamentary community and Codex” was held in the margins of the 48th Codex Alimentarius Commission meeting Tuesday and brought together key Codex and FAO actors, and representatives from African parliamentary networks.
The event was held in a collaboration between Codex and the FAO partnerships and UN collaboration division and aimed to bring to the attention of parliamentarians the crucial role that effective participation in Codex can play in the health of consumers and [...]
Ghana joined the rest of the world to celebrate the World Food Safety Day on the 18 June 2025, with a symposium. The celebration was spearheaded by the National Codex Committee to create awareness on the role science plays in ensuring food safety through standards. The celebration brought together participants from various government institutions, academia, and research institutions, including the Ministry of Fisheries and Aquaculture Development, Fisheries Commission, Ghana Standards Authority, Food and Drugs Authority, University of Ghana, Council for [...]
Nairobi, Kenya, 3 October 2025 – Delegates from across Africa gathered in Nairobi for an intensive three-day workshop to sharpen their skills in participating in all aspects of Codex work. Organized under the European Union’s Better Training for Safer Food (BTSF) initiative, the training equipped participants with practical tools to strengthen their voices in international food safety debates.
From day one, participants explored Codex history, governance and procedures and engaged with the tutors asking multiple of questions. Sessions spotlighted key committees [...]
In an effort to create awareness among the high-level decision and policy makers in the country, the Republic of South Sudan organized a National Workshop on Advocacy and dissemination of food safety policy briefs on 23 September 2025. On 24 September, a National stakeholders Consultation Workshop on Codex priority Standards and establishment of National Codex Mirror committees was also convened. Both workshps were convened in Juba, Republic of South Sudan, with support from the Codex Trust Fund.
The workshops were officially [...]
A new country story has been published showcasing the benefits of the Codex Trust Fund (CTF). In it, the former Codex Contact Point for Burkina Faso, Sansan Cyrille Régis Kambire, tells how, having succeeded in his application to the CTF, he executed the project to the benefit of his country: “I feel the country has now started to catch up with others when it comes to Codex,” he says.
“Catching up with others” involved learning from fellow African states that have [...]
By Hakim B. Mufumbiro, CCAFRICA Coordinator, Uganda
As part of the transition of the CCAFRICA coordination role from Uganda to the Gambia, a benchmarking and mentorship session for The Gambia Codex Secretariat to understudy the Codex structures and functioning in Uganda was held in Kampala 2–5 September 2025 at the Uganda National Bureau of Standards Headquarters (Codex Contact Point for Uganda). The delegation from The Gambia was led by Mr Mamodou Bah, Director-General of Food Safety and Quality Authority of The Gambia as [...]
By Lusubilo Mwamakamba (WHO AFRO), Hakim Mufumbiro (CCAFRICA), Sansan Kambire (FAO RAF)
On 10 September 2025, the regional offices for Africa of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO RAF), the World Health Organization (WHO AFRO), the African Union–InterAfrican Bureau for Animal Resources (AU-IBAR), the FAO/WHO Codex Coordinating Committee for Africa (CCAFRICA), and the Codex Trust Fund (CTF) Secretariat jointly hosted a continent-wide webinar. The event aimed at sharing best practices and lessons learned in strengthening national Codex [...]
The National Workshop on Advocacy and Dissemination of Food Safety Policy Briefs to high level policy and decision makers was held on 14 August 2025 in Dodoma, Tanzania, with support from the FAO/WHO Codex Trust Fund group project.
The workshop was opened by Ashura Katunzi, Director General of the Tanzania Bureau of Standards (TBS), and officially inaugurated by Suleiman Serere, Deputy Secretary of the Ministry of Industry and Trade.
The event brought together permanent secretaries and directors of policy and planning (DPPs) [...]
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