To mark World Food Safety Day this year, young people in Burkina Faso were taught about food hazards, good food hygiene and the “five keys to safer food,” which are promoted by the World Health Organization (WHO). Across the 12 districts of Burkina Faso’s capital Ouagadougou, 16-to-20-year-olds were trained over a period of three days on “awareness sessions on food safety and the means to ensure daily healthy food.”

Between 8 and 10 June, pairs of experts, including food safety experts and food science and technology students, went into 12 different schools to share their knowledge, with the long-term aim of instilling in the younger generations an understanding about nutrition and the need for regular good hygiene practices. The objective is to establish nutritional “clubs” in which students will learn more about food safety and how and why to adopt a healthy and balanced diet.

The sessions were well received, and the youngsters suggested the initiative should be extended so other young people could benefit from it. Training was also given to the women and men food vendors that work in the vicinity of the schools, so they, too, should have an understanding of their responsibilities to the school students.

There was coverage of this initiative in the broadcast and print media.