En 1999, durante el 23.º período de sesiones de la Comisión del Codex Alimentarius, se estableció el Comité Coordinador Regional para el Cercano Oriente, que reúne a los países de la región del Cercano Oriente (para la FAO) y de la región del Mediterráneo Oriental (para la OMS). El comité celebró su primera reuniónen El Cairo (Egipto), en 2001.
El actual coordinador regional para el Cercano Oriente tiene su sede en el Centro de Inocuidad y Calidad Alimentaria del Ministerio de Agricultura y Pesca y Recursos Hídricos de Mascate./p>
Los objetivos del Sultanato de Omán al asumir el papel de coordinador regional de la región del Cercano Oriente y la presidencia del Comité Coordinador FAO/OMS para el Cercano Oriente son los siguient
- Incrementar los esfuerzos para promover la participación efectiva en los procedimientos del Codex Alimentarius de los países miembros y de todas las partes interesadas, entre otras, los productores, los consumidores y las organizaciones gubernamentales y no gubernamentales pertinentes de la región del Cercano Oriente.
- Continuar desarrollando y mejorando las capacidades nacionales en los Estados miembros y las organizaciones regionales con el fin de permitir la participación efectiva en el proceso de establecimiento de normas alimentarias internacionales.
- Velar por que, en la elaboración de las normas del Codex Alimentarius a nivel mundial, se tengan en cuenta las particularidades de la producción y el consumo de alimentos en la región del Cercano Oriente.
- Promover la adopción y el uso de las normas del Codex como base de las decisiones nacionales en materia de reglamentación alimentaria en los Estados miembros de la región, lo que repercutirá positivamente en la salud de los consumidores y facilitará el comercio de productos alimenticios tanto a nivel regional como internacional, a la vez que contribuirá aún más al desarrollo de la producción de alimentos en la región, con una mayor competitividad tanto en el plano regional como internacional.
The National Food Safety Authority (NFSA) of the Arab Republic of Egypt commemorated the sixth World Food Safety Day this year in on 29 and 30 May. As part of NFSA efforts to be active and collaborative on a regional level, the event marked the NFSA’s launch of its Egyptian Global Food Safety Symposium (EGFoSS) in the presence of H.H Ali Meselhy, Minister of Supply and experts and industry professionals in the field of food safety and agricultural industries from [...]
By Khadija Qalandari, Acting, Head of Technical Follow-up Standard Specifications Section, UAE
The UAE National Codex Committee (NCC), led by the Abu Dhabi Agriculture and Food Safety Authority (ADAFSA), in coordination with the Ministry of Industry and Higher Technology (CCP), organised a scientific workshop to mark the 60th anniversary of the first meeting of the Codex Alimentarius Commission (CAC). The workshop was held to review the work of Codex and highlight its role in the development of international standards. The audience of the [...]
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 Khalid Al Zhrani (Saudi Arabia), Regional Coordinator for the Near EastAfter a gap of 4 years due mainly to the Codex pandemic and the challenge of finding space on the calendar, CCNE11 brought the latest round of Coordinating Committees to a close. The Regional Coordinator looks back on the [...]
Iraq’s Central Organization for Standardization and Quality Control organized a symposium in cooperation with the Iraqi College of Engineering Sciences, entitled “The Importance of the Codex Alimentarius in Promoting Food Safety”. The slogan of the event was “sustainable food standards, a vision for a better world”, and it served as an introduction to the Codex Alimentarius Commission.
The symposium highlighted the occasion of the 60th anniversary of the Codex Alimentarius Commission and the importance of Codex’s food safety standards . and [...]
On 14 October, Egypt joined standard setting organizations in celebrating “World Standards Day” 2023. Dr Khaled Sofi, Chairperson of the Egyptian Organization for Standardization and Quality (EOS) and Egyptian Codex, highlighted the importance of this year’s slogan, Shared vision for a better world: Incorporating SDG 3, by recalling that adopting Codex standards as the basis for the national legislation contributes to protecting consumer health within and beyond national borders. “Strengthening food safety systems will enable countries to take measures to [...]
Egypt celebrated a milestone: 50 years participating in Codex work, marked by a commitment to the principles and objectives of the joint FAO/WHO programme. Celebrations hosted by Dr Khaled Soufi, Chairperson of the Egyptian Organization for Standardization and Quality (EOS) and Codex Egypt, and Dr Ashraf El Gazayerli, Chairperson of the Chamber of Food Industries (CFI), took place in Cairo with the participation of Raj Rajasekar CAC Vice-chairperson, Khalid AlZhrani, CCNE Chairperson, Hakim Mufumbiro, CCAFRICA Coordinator, along with FAO staff. [...]
The FAO/WHO Coordinating Committee for the Near East (CCNE) will be sending for adoption to Step 5 the regional standard for maamoul. Maamoul is a traditional Middle Eastern baked product, enjoyed by millions in the region and of high relevance for CCNE members: “Having a Codex standard for maamoul is fundamental for the region as it would directly contribute not only to consumer health, but also to promote the trade of this product internationally” - said Khalid AlZharani Chairperson of [...]
The eleventh session of the FAO/WHO Coordinating Committee for Near East (CCNE) commenced today, marking an important milestone in regional collaboration on food safety and quality standards. The meeting, chaired by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, is taking place on 18 – 22 September 2023 in Rome, at the FAO headquarters with representatives from 17 countries joining in person and virtually.
“I urge everyone to exchange scientific expertise and promote the use of Codex Alimentarius Commission standards as a basis for [...]
The eleventh meeting of the Codex Coordinating Committee for the Near East (CCNE) will take place 18–22 September at FAO headquarters in Rome. We spoke to Khalid S Al Zhrani, from the Saudi Food and Drug Authority (SFDA), who will chair CCNE11 on behalf of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, the current Regional Coordinator for the Near East, to find out more about him and his expectations for the meeting.
Q. Khalid, thanks for your time. For those who don’t know you, could [...]
The Qatar General Authority for Standardization and Metrology held World Food Safety Day events on 7 and 8 June under the theme “Food standards save lives”. Celebrations took place in collaboration with the Municipality, Qatar University, and Monoprix supermarkets and included a popup stall showcasing awareness videos and emphasizing the importance of food safety to consumers and children. Leaflets were distributed and colouring sessions and games were organized for children.
There were three key messages the events were aiming to highlight:
The [...]